Jones' murder trial starts Monday

QCS Staff

The murder trial of Randall Jones of Tucumcari, accused in the July 9, 2011, slaying of Shirley Pacheco, also of Tucumcari, begins May 12, according to court documents.

Both Tenth Judicial Assistant District Attorney Kirk Chavez and Mike Rosenfield, representing Jones, said they expect the trial to take up two weeks.

The trial will be held in Tenth Judicial District Court before Ninth Judicial District Court Steven Quinn. Tenth District Judge Albert Mitchell recused himself from the case.

At a hearing on Friday in Clovis, Quinn decided to open records in the case to the public that had been closed since 2012 due to a clerical error, according to Tenth Judicial District Attorney Tim Rose.

An order to seal one court order from public view was inadvertently applied to all records in the case, Rose said.

Jones, who was 20 at the time of Pacheco’s slaying, is facing first-degree murder charges in the case.

The body of Shirley Pacheco, 33, was found outside her home in Tucumcari on July 9, 2011. An autopsy showed she died as a result of a blow to the head from a blunt instrument during a beating.

Jones is suspected of beating Pacheco to death in a robbery attempt, according to court records.

Rosenfield, Jones’ attorney, is a public defender in the New Mexico Public Defender’s Capital Crimes unit. Rosenfield could not be reached immediately for comment.

Jones is being held at the Quay County Detention Center.