Mistrial Has Been Declared In George Alan Kelly Rancher Case

(PatriotPostNews.com) – On June 30th, 2023, Arizona rancher George Kelly, 75, reported seeing a group of illegal aliens holding guns and wearing backpacks crossing his 100-acre property. Kelly admits to firing a number of warning shots over the trespassers’ heads. Sometime after the group crossed Kelly’s property, Kelly discovered the remains of Gabriel Buitimea, who had suffered a fatal gunshot wound.

Kelly maintains he did not aim his weapon directly at the trespassing migrants. Kelly’s defense has asserted that the illegal alien was likely involved with smuggling and could have been shot by one of the other migrants. The bullet that struck Buitimea has not been recovered.

On April 23, 2024, Superior Court Judge Thomas Fink of Santa Cruz County, citing a deadlocked jury, declared a mistrial in the case. Kelly said that, even if he is retired, he will not let it wear him down.

Kelly was charged with a single count of second-degree murder. Murder in the second degree does not require criminal intent, only reckless behavior that results in an individual’s death.

Kelly and his wife, Wanda Kelly, described feeling unsafe after witnessing numerous illegal aliens breach the boundary of their private ranch over the last number of years.

The Kellys are not the only ones who are fearful of the increase in illegal entrants since President Joe Biden entered office. Republican Governor Greg Abbott announced plans to erect an 80-acre military installation along the Rio Grande River at the southern border. President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrado, lampooned the Texas governor’s announcement, branding it as “not serious”. Abbott said the facility would allow for something similar to a “large army” that would monitor the southern border for illegal entrants, potentially including enemy combatants. The compound will accommodate roughly 2,300 soldiers.

The Santa Cruz County attorney will decide if Kelly will face a new trial. Kelly’s wife expressed grief over the uncertainty of what would happen to her husband.