- Harrison Davis allegedly crashed a vehicle while drunk on July 1, 2018, which led to the death of a child
- A federal judge released Davis to the custody of his wife
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A year after an alleged drunk driving crash that resulted in the death of a child, a federal grand jury indicted a Gallup man on a charge of child endangerment resulting in death.
The grand jury indicted Harrison Davis on the single count on Nov. 25, 2019, although the case was not entered into the federal court system until Dec. 3, 2019. He was arrested a week later, on Dec. 11, 2019, by Federal Bureau of Investigations Agent Brad Simons, according to an arrest warrant.
Details of the case are extremely scarce and, according to the indictment, Davis is a Native American who was allegedly driving while intoxicated with a boy, age unlisted, and that driving while drunk caused the boy’s death.
It is not clear from court documents if the boy died immediately following the crash, on July 1, 2018, or later on.
According to a motion to continue filed on Jan. 6, 2020, by public defender Sylvia Baiz, the crash happened “in a remote area near Gallup.”
Davis was initially ordered detained on Dec. 12, 2019, in federal court in Albuquerque following a request by prosecutor Frederick Mendenhall, according to a minute sheet.
Davis was arraigned a day later on Dec. 13, 2019, pleaded not guilty to the charge. A different federal prosecutor, David Cowen, did not object to the recommendations of the pretrial services officer and the judge adopted them, according to court minutes.
The minutes sheet does not list what the conditions are. The order releasing him states he can only travel in New Mexico, he can talk to his family but not about the case, he may not use alcohol and he must participate in any outpatient programs ordered by pretrial services. Federal District Court Judge Karen Molzen ordered him released to the custody of his wife, Juanita Davis, and allowed to live in their home near Gallup, according to a minute sheet.
According to the court docket, the case was continued twice, once in January and once in March, and is now set for a tentative trial of June 8, 2020, on the trailing docket.
Davis is being federally charged with a state crime, which is a first-degree felony in New Mexico law.
According to the federal statute, if found guilty, Davis would face the same penalties as he would in New Mexico.
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- Suspect: Harrison Davis
- Victim: Unidentified child
- Charges: Child endangerment resulting in death
- Date of incident: July 1, 2018
- Type of incident: DWI crash
- Status: Pending
- Investigating Agency: Federal (unlisted)
- Location: Outside of Gallup, in McKinley County, NM
- Federal district case number: 19-cr-04446
- Prosecutor: Frederick Mendenhall