Politics & Government
Border Patrol Agent Who Killed Mexican Faces Retrial
In April, a federal grand jury acquitted Lonnie Swartz of murder but couldn't reach a verdict on manslaughter. In October, he'll be retried
TUCSON, AZ – Federal prosecutors say that they are going back to court in an attempt to have Lonnie Swartz held accountable to the killing of a Mexican teenager. Swartz, a border patrol agent, fired across the border in 2012, killing Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez in 2012.
In April, a grand jury acquitted Swartz of murder but couldn't reach a verdict on manslaughter.
On Thursday, prosecutors filed papers for a new trial. (Get Tucson Patch's daily newsletter and real-time news alerts. Or, find your local Patch here and subscribe).
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Both sides will be in court in July for a hearing on pre-trial motions and jury selection is scheduled to begin on October 23.
While the agent maintained that Rodriguez had been throwing rocks and that Swartz was acting in self-defense, prosecutors charged that he had used an unreasonable amount of force.
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His prosecution is a rare example of a border agent being charged in connection with firing across the border.
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