Teen faces first-degree murder charge, to be tried as an adult
Nefi Ezequiel Armijo Hernandez faces five counts related to the death of another teen in a Gypsum park
A 16-year-old male will be tried as an adult for first-degree murder in the death of a 14-year-old following an altercation at Second Street Park in Gypsum on April 24, according to court filings.
Nefi Ezequiel Armijo Hernandez was taken into custody by deputies from the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office on the night of the altercation in the park. Along with the first-degree murder charge, Armijo Hernandez faces a charge of second-degree murder, two charges of a violent crime involving death and a charge of conspiracy to commit assault with a deadly weapon.
Jackson Davis, a freshman at Eagle Valley High School, died from injuries sustained in the altercation, which involved multiple teens and occurred just before 10 p.m.
Armijo Hernandez faces a sentencing of life in prison if convicted of the first-degree murder charge.
The Eagle County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest of another male suspect on Saturday, May 4, who is listed as a codefendant in court documents. The codefendant’s name and the charges he faces haven’t been made public, nor is it clear whether the 5th Judicial District intends to charge him as an adult.
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District Judge Rachel J. Olguin-Fresquez sealed information about the arrests and charges on April 30, but on Friday, May 10, granted motions made by the district attorney’s office to move Armijo Hernandez’s case out of juvenile court into district court, unsealing some records related to the case.
Armijo Hernandez, according to court filings, has been appointed a public defender.
Eagle County Sheriff James van Beek has declined to say whether more arrests were forthcoming or offer any information about what led to the altercation in the park.
The altercation in the park involved multiple teens, and videos of the incident have circulated in its aftermath. The Vail Daily has acquired and reviewed one video of the incident, which shows a fistfight beginning between two males that quickly escalates into a fight involving numerous people and weapons.
Students from three area high schools — Battle Mountain, Eagle Valley and Red Canyon — were at the park during the incident.
