Santa Fe police have obtained a video that appears to show the fatal shooting of an 18-year-old Thursday at the Santa Fe Place mall, a detective said Monday.

The video was taken from a camera mounted on the roof of the southeast entrance of the mall and seems to show what happened between the shooter, Michael Trujillo, 16, and Chris Aguayo, Detective Tony Trujillo said.

Tony Trujillo — no relation to Michael Trujillo — said technicians are enhancing the video, though it appears to corroborate witness accounts of the incident.

Police also obtained a second video from a camera on a Santa Fe Trails bus that was parked nearby, though the detective said he was unsure of the contents of that video.

Meanwhile, a prosecutor told a state District judge Monday that the District Attorney's Office plans to seek adult sanctions against Michael Trujillo. If, in fact, he is indicted for first-degree murder, the law wouldn't allow him to be charged as a juvenile, said Sarah Piltch, Children's Court prosecutor.

That means Michael Trujillo could be facing a life sentence in prison — 30 years without the possibility of parole — if convicted of that charge.

Michael Trujillo's family has hired Ruidoso attorney Gary Mitchell to represent the teen. Mitchell, who did not attend Monday's hearing, said if a jury returns a verdict of less than first-degree murder, Michael Trujillo could be sentenced as a juvenile.

Mitchell also accused prosecutors of releasing too much information about the case in an effort to taint the jury pool.

"I noticed the state did everything it could to try this in the press," he said. "I wish the District Attorney's Office would try it in court instead."

Mitchell said he hadn't yet received any reports detailing the case against Michael Trujillo and declined to comment on details that have already appeared in news accounts.

"I've learned over the years to investigate before I open my mouth," he said.

Mitchell said he has known the defendant's family "all my life" and attended school in Encino with the teen's grandmother and her brothers. He said he doesn't know Michael Trujillo, whose grandfather arrived in New Mexico before statehood and raised sheep on a ranch near Encino.

Michael Trujillo allegedly used a .357 SIG Sauer semi-automatic handgun he stole from his mother's boyfriend — state police Officer Trace Spoonhoward — to shoot Aguayo an estimated 14 times, according to a probable cause statement written by the detective. The dispute between the two centered on Michael Trujillo's resentment of a friendship between Aguayo and a girl, according to the statement.

Michael Trujillo and the girl went to the mall together Thursday afternoon to meet Aguayo, with whom Michael Trujillo wanted to talk. When Michael Trujillo and the girl arrived, Aguayo and Michael Trujillo got out of their cars and began to approach each other, the statement says.

"It was at that time that (the girl) noticed that Michael (Trujillo) was holding a handgun as he was walking toward Chris Aguayo," according to the statement. "(The girl) said that she immediately got out of the car and ran between Michael (Trujillo) and Chris Aguayo. (The girl) said she told Michael Trujillo 'no, don't do this, you don't have to do this, don't shoot him.' "

However, Michael Trujillo allegedly pushed her out of the way and shot Aguayo several times. The girl then saw Aguayo fall to the ground.

"Michael Trujillo then walked over to where Chris Aguayo was lying and fired the handgun into Chris Aguayo several more times," the probable cause statement says. "(The girl) said that Chris Aguayo was not in possession of any weapons."

Michael Trujillo and the girl then fled in his car. When police pulled them over 15 to 20 minutes later, they found a handgun in plain view in a compartment on the driver's door.

"I know I did wrong," Michael Trujillo said after police arrested him, according to the report. Aguayo "didn't do (anything), I was just pissed at him because he was talking (smack). I know the gun wasn't the answer, I don't know, I just ... panicked and he was pissing me off ... "

Michael Trujillo said he went to the meeting armed because Aguayo was a gang member and was usually armed, according to the statement.

"(H)e started coming towards my car, so I got out and shot him," Michael Trujillo told police, according to the probable cause statement. "I shot the whole gun, there's no more bullets in that gun. I shot them all at him ... "

Chris Aguayo was shot approximately 14 times in the torso, the statement says.

In court Monday, Michael Trujillo quietly answered, "Yes, sir" to each question asked by District Judge Michael Vigil. A public defender who stood in as his attorney did not oppose his continued detention at the Santa Fe County juvenile jail, and the judge ordered him kept there at least until his next hearing, July 22.

Eric Garcia, a state police spokesman, said officers are required to secure their weapons "out of people's reach" when they arrive home after a shift. Spoonhoward did that, Garcia said, though he was not sure the exact procedure the officer used.

Spoonhoward, who frequently coordinates Santa Fe County Magistrate Court video arraignments at the county jail, remains on duty and is not likely to be fired over the incident, Garcia said.

"There is no reason to believe as an agency that he did any wrong-doing," Garcia said. "He's a good guy. He's having a hard time with it."

Contact Jason Auslander at 986-3076 or jauslander@sfnewmexican.com.


Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the victim of the shooting. A correction was made about 9:50 a.m., July 13, 2010.