An officer fired at an armed woman as police responded to a scene where a 17-year-old had been fatally shot.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A multi-agency task force is investigating an Albuquerque police officer’s use of gunfire Saturday after officers responding to a fatal neighborhood shooting encountered an armed woman near Tennessee Street and Copper Avenue NE, police said.
The officer-involved shooting was part of a more complicated incident that began with a dispute between neighbors and left a 17-year-old girl dead. Police said a 10-year-old boy is suspected of shooting the teenager during an altercation involving adults at the location. No Albuquerque police officers were injured, and police gunfire did not strike the woman.
Police responded around 4 p.m. Oct. 31 after receiving reports of a shooting in the area. Albuquerque Police Department spokesperson Gilbert Gallegos said responding officers heard another gunshot after reaching the scene. Police said the mother of the 10-year-old then came out of an apartment carrying a handgun.
An officer fired at the woman but did not hit her, according to police. She then surrendered. Police have said the woman also fired a shot as officers were arriving, although investigators had not publicly established Sunday where that round was directed or whether the gun she carried was the same firearm involved in the teenager’s death.
The Multi-Agency Task Force is conducting the investigation into the officer’s shooting. That review is separate from the Albuquerque Police Department homicide investigation into the teenager’s death. Authorities had not released the officer’s name or provided additional details about the officer’s position, distance from the woman or other circumstances immediately surrounding the officer’s decision to fire.
The initial reports of the police shooting offered little information beyond its location and confirmation that no officers were hurt. Later information from police tied the officer’s gunfire to the fatal shooting investigation at the same scene, providing a fuller account of why officers had been called to the neighborhood.
Police said the underlying dispute began over loud music and escalated into a physical confrontation involving several people. Investigators said the 10-year-old and the 17-year-old became involved as adults fought. Police allege the boy went inside a residence, obtained a firearm and returned before firing one shot that struck the teenager.
The girl died at the scene, police said. The boy, his mother and other people involved in the confrontation were detained while detectives investigated. Authorities have not publicly identified the teenager or the 10-year-old, and police have not released a detailed account explaining how the child obtained the firearm.
Police said they are working with the Second Judicial District Attorney’s Office on possible charges arising from the broader incident. Investigators have not announced a final charging decision involving the boy or his mother, and the findings of the separate review of the officer’s gunfire remain pending.
Author note: Last updated November 1, 2026.