The Arizona rancher who became the face of the border crisis when he was accused of killing a migrant on his land will not face trial again, a judge has ruled.
George Alan Kelly, 75, was charged with the murder of Gabriel Cuen-Buitimea, a Mexican national found dead on Kelly’s sprawling ranch in January 2023.
The case ended in a mistrial in April when jurors failed to reach a verdict after one holdout refused to acquit.
Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Thomas Fink denied prosecutors’ request to keep the case open in anticipation of new witnesses appearing Tuesday.
“The interests of justice are not served when all that is achieved by a dismissal without prejudice, when there is no possibility of a new trial, is harassment of the defendant,” Fink said in a decision obtained by Number 9.
A judge has ruled that prosecutors cannot retry the case against George Alan Kelly (pictured), 75, who was accused of shooting a migrant at his ranch.
Gabriel Cuen-Buitimea (pictured), a Mexican national, was found dead on Kelly’s sprawling ranch in January 2023.
‘The interests of justice are not served by the dismissal without prejudice of a case that cannot and will not be tried again.
‘The State’s motion to dismiss the case without prejudice is denied. In the interest of justice, the case is ordered dismissed without prejudice.’
After the trial, Deputy County Attorney Kimberly Hunley said the prosecution supported dismissing the case but wanted the option to retry if circumstances changed.
She had said that unknown witnesses could come forward and that known witnesses in Mexico might be available.
Prosecutors said Kelly recklessly fired his AK-47 nine times at a group of immigrants 100 yards away who were trespassing on his 170-acre cattle ranch near the U.S.-Mexico border.
The group, which included Cuen-Buitimea, was reportedly fleeing from Border Patrol agents, according to law enforcement officials.
Cuen-Buitimea, who was found with a bullet hole in his back at Kelly’s ranch, He had previously entered the U.S. illegally several times and was deported, most recently in 2016, court records show.
Kelly said he fired warning shots into the air to scare the group and that he never intended to hit, let alone kill, anyone.
Prosecutors said Kelly recklessly fired his AK-47 nine times at a group of immigrants 100 yards away who were trespassing on his 170-acre cattle ranch near the U.S.-Mexico border.
Cuen-Buitimea, who was found with a bullet hole in his back at Kelly’s ranch, had previously entered the United States illegally several times and was deported.
At trial, prosecutors said Kelly’s story to Border Patrol officers kept changing, first saying he returned fire at the five individuals who were shooting at him, then saying it was a group of 10 to 15 people armed with AR-style rifles. ABC News reported.
Kelly said he fired warning shots into the air to scare the group and that he never intended to hit, let alone kill, anyone.
The defense said authorities were lying about Kelly’s admission of shooting multiple people.
In his ruling, Fink highlighted testimony from a Honduran migrant who told jurors he was walking with Cuen-Buitimea that day.
The judge wrote that any new witness would contradict the man’s sole witness testimony and raise other credibility challenges.
