Jury Begins Deliberating in Murder Trial Over 2022 Shooting Outside Albuquerque Convenience Store

A jury in Albuquerque began deliberating Thursday in the murder trial of Curtis Taylor III, who is accused in a May 2022 shooting outside a Central Avenue convenience store that left one man dead and another wounded. The jurors went home for the day without reaching a verdict.

Prosecutors said in closing arguments that as many as 15 armed men approached Raymond Sedillo outside the store before he was struck in a barrage of gunfire. The shooting happened on May 8, 2022, in the parking lot of the business at Central and Pennsylvania, which is now known as Adam Food Market. A passenger in Sedillo's car was also injured.

Taylor, 25, faces a second-degree murder charge in Sedillo's death, along with other counts. He is also charged with aggravated battery for allegedly shooting and wounding the passenger, Caden Wells-Herzstein. The five-day trial was held in 2nd Judicial District Court before District Judge Emeterio Rudolfo.

Prosecutors told the jury that Taylor and at least two other men fired dozens of rounds at Sedillo's car, which was hit by at least 25 bullets. "They made Swiss cheese, not only of the car, but the people inside of it," prosecutor Christine Jablonsky said. Sedillo was struck by at least seven rounds and survived for 13 days in a hospital before dying.

Both sides agreed Sedillo had a handgun. They disagreed over whether he fired it in the moments before he was shot.

Jurors watched security video from inside the store. It shows Taylor ducking inside and chambering a round in his handgun while gunfire can be heard outside. He and another man later begin firing into the parking lot from the front door. Prosecutors argued that Taylor fired once at Sedillo's car before his gun jammed, then resumed shooting after clearing it.

Taylor's attorney, Richard Pugh, said the footage shows his client taking cover and suggested he was protecting himself from shots fired by Sedillo. "His initial reaction is to duck and run away," Pugh told jurors. "When he came back into the store, he clearly didn't have a round in the chamber."

The video also shows Taylor trying to pick up shell casings inside the store. Jablonsky said an employee assured him that the casings would be cleaned up, and Taylor then left the scene.

Taylor is one of three men charged in connection with Sedillo's death. Tyrell Burr, 28, pleaded guilty in August to involuntary manslaughter and other charges and faces up to 13½ years in prison, though no sentencing date has been set. Anthony McCrady, 29, faces charges including first-degree murder and aggravated battery, and his trial has not been scheduled.

The City of Albuquerque has also filed a nuisance complaint against the store, asking a judge to order it closed for three years or demolished. The Albuquerque Police Department has reported six homicide investigations and hundreds of service calls at the location.