Elbert Turner trial comes to screeching halt on first day

Man awaiting murder trial charged with battering prison mate

A man who is waiting for a jury trial after being charged with murdering a couple on a neigh…

Man arrested for killing couple on neighbors property

Elbert Turner, 45, of Rio Rancho, was arrested for killing two people and tampering with evidence June 30 at a residence located on the corner of Sixth Avenue and 40th Street on the outskirts of Rio Rancho Estates. According to a police report filed by Sandoval County Sheriff, deputies responded to a report of a […]

BERNALILLO — A man who was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and three counts tampering with evidence was supposed to go to trial this week, but that changed with a mistrial.

Elbert Turner, 46, of Rio Rancho, was arrested for killing Jordan Green and Marilyn Benham on a neighbor's property in July 2023. He is also accused of moving the bodies from that property.

Earlier this year, Turner was additionally charged with battering a prison inmate, where he told the inmate he'd "kill you just like I killed that couple."

Now, the trial has been rescheduled to March 2025 as Judge George Eichwald declared a mistrial the first day of the trial Dec. 3 due to the court finding that a piece of evidence had not been analyzed yet. The state sent that evidence to the New Mexico Crime Laboratory for analysis, but that analysis wasn't complete at the time of the trial.

Turner's council moved for the mistrial. The state opposed the mistrial, saying the evidence analysis wasn't necessary and the trial could proceed. The state added that the proper remedy was either a curative instruction or suppression of certain evidence or testimony. The court found that curative instruction and suppression are "insufficient."