Reynaldo Nava, 26, of 1306 Mesa, and Ernesto Trevino, 24, of Lubbock, were both arrested and charged with deadly conduct – discharge of a firearm in May after a witness identified the pair following a shooting near  Cantu Hydraulics May 3. Both men were later indicted on the same charges.

No one was injured in the alleged shooting, according to police.

“The report of shots fired wasn't immediately reported,” said Big Spring police Department Lt. Terry Chamness. “The report doesn't specify how many shots were believed to have been fired, but there were no injuries. The only thing that is believed to have been hit during the shooting was C&M Garage's building, which is located across the street. The owner of the garage said he heard something hit the building.”

According to police, Nava was a known member of the Latin Kings street gang, which has allegedly been engaged in a narcotics turf war with a local family for more than a year.

At the time the incident was reported, police investigators were already inundated with numerous reports of shootings across the city of Big Spring, including a drive-by on May 4 that claimed the life of 20-year-old Valerie Garcia and 21-year-old Michael Cardona, in the 900 block of E. 16th Street. Police officials speculated both shootings were a result of the turf war.

The motion to dismiss, which was signed by presiding District Court Judge Weldon Kirk Thursday, was submitted by District Attorney Hardy Wilkerson, citing “exculpatory evidence” as the reason for the dismissal.

“As we began investigating the alibi of one of the individuals and talked with the people in Lubbock where he was supposedly was at the time of the shooting, we began to have questions,” said Wilkerson. “Other intelligence sources within the police department came up with additional stories indicating these two men were not the ones who did it. We ultimately came to the conclusion we needed to give these guys polygraphs, and they were willing to do so. They passed both of the polygraph tests, indicating their innocence.

“So we arrived at the conclusion that perhaps these two aren't the ones who did that particular shooting, that day. My obligation as district attorney is to see that justice is done, not just to obtain convictions. I'm not in the business of prosecuting people I believe to be innocent. So the natural recourse was simply to dismiss the case and let's look for who really did it. ”

According to Stephen Stallings, the Midland attorney representing the two men, Wilkerson's diligence in the case was something for Howard County residents to be proud of.

“He (Wilkerson) did something a lot of district attorneys wouldn't do,” said Stallings. “I think it says a lot for him and the district attorney's office, that they are looking for justice and not just another notch in their six-guns.”

Wilkerson said the investigation into the May 3 shooting will continue, but was hesitant to comment on exactly how the two shootings may have been related.

“The potential capital murder case is still being investigated and worked very hard,” said Wilkerson. “Were the shootings on May 3 and May 4 related? To the extent there were a lot of shootings that involved the same parties, yes, they were. Are they specifically related, regarding individuals? I'm not really willing to say one way or the other at this point.

“We're probably taking a little more active role in the (murder) investigation process than we normally do. Obviously, the circumstances justify that. We're trying to craft a solution to this thing to get it into a format we're all comfortable with that will serve the ends of justice and bring the people who committed those murders before the law.”

Contact Staff Writer Thomas Jenkins at 263-7331 ext. 232 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it