Family of slain UNM student prepares wrongful-death suit against university

In August, Michael LaMotte’s family hired Rothstein Donatelli to prepare a wrongful-death claim against the University of New Mexico, turning the 14-year-old’s killing into a civil fight that could force the school to answer for security, supervision and emergency response at its main campus dorms.

The case stems from the early-morning shooting on July 25, 2025, inside the Casas Del Rio dorm complex, where LaMotte was killed and 19-year-old Daniel Archuleta was wounded. Police identified 18-year-old John Fuentes as the suspect, and he was later arrested in Los Lunas.

A gunshot detection device picked up gunfire near the dorms just after midnight, UNM police did not find LaMotte until about 2:30 a.m. after a student arrived at the hospital with a gunshot wound, and LaMotte’s mother told police by phone early that morning that her son may have been the victim. UNM’s first emergency alert at 3:27 a.m. said police were investigating a shooting at Casas Del Rio-Gila, and a later alert at 3:50 p.m. said the area was still an active crime scene.

A wrongful-death notice in New Mexico can be filed by the deceased person’s personal representative or by someone claiming benefits from the wrongful-death proceeds, and it generally must be presented within six months of the injury that caused the death. The state’s Tort Claims Act also places a general cap of $400,000 per person on non-medical, non-real-property damages arising from a single occurrence and bars punitive damages in ordinary judgments.

Casas del Rio is a suites-style student residential property on the main campus, and the university cannot intervene in lease or property-condition disputes because the housing is operated by American Campus Communities. A civil case could still probe what campus officials knew and what protections were in place for a 14-year-old inside university housing.