Estrada takes plea agreement in nude video scandal
Charges dismissed for other defendants
Christina Holt/News-Sun
LOVINGTON — A deputy with the Lea County Sheriff’s Office who’s currently on administrative leave took the fall Wednesday for the three other law enforcement officers accused of sending a nude video of a fellow deputy to other law enforcement officers.
Sonia Estrada entered into an Alford plea agreement. She was sentenced to 90 days of unsupervised probation, make a $50 donation to a domestic violence shelter and to have no contact with Tello.
An Alford plea allows a defendant to plead guilty and accept a plea bargain even if they claim to be innocent, according to the website Lawinfo.com.
As part of the plea agreement, the charges against fellow defendants Aileen Vizcarra, Alyssa Porras and Diana Jurado-Garcia were dismissed.
Judge James Mason of Chavez County conducted the hearing online with about 20 individuals in attendance, including attorneys Christopher R. Mills representing Estrada and Melissa A. Sawyers representing Vizcarra, Porras and Jurado-Garcia. The four were accused of sending a private video of then-Deputy Karina Tello to several other people without her permission.
Estrada has been a law enforcement officer for about 23 years and is eligible for retirement, Mills told the News-Sun.
“Since she is eligible for retirement, she felt it was best to take this on so the other officers could continue in their careers,” Mills said. “(Estrada) wanted to put the matter behind her and I am glad we were able to work out a resolution with the prosecuting attorney. Although we believe Ms. Estrada is innocent of the charges, this agreement allows all of our brave law enforcement officers to move on from this matter and get back to what they do best — to protect and serve this community.”
“I am very pleased for my clients that this matter was dismissed,” Sawyers told the News-Sun. “These ladies have been through a very challenging time since these charges were filed, and I feel very badly for that. This has affected all facets of their lives and these are strong, brave women who protect our community.”
Estrada was originally charged with six counts of unauthorized distribution of sensitive images. The charges were reduced to one count of use of telephone to terrify, intimidate, threat or harass. The amended charge is punishable by a maximum 364 days of incarceration and a $1,000 fine.
With the plea agreement, Estrada gives up her right to a jury trial and to appeal the conviction.
Ninth Judicial District Attorney Quentin Ray said he had a strong case to go to trial but this is a negotiated plea in which a resolution was reached.
Ray said one deciding factor to not go to jury trial is the video of Tello would have to be displayed, at very least, to the jurors and she would have to take the stand four separate times.
Tello approved of the plea agreements, Ray said.
“In my mind, Ms. Estrada has the strongest case against her. She was willing to come forward and take responsibility for not only herself but the other three. I can disagree with what Ms. Estrada did in this case, but I do admire the fact she is willing to … take the blame for this,” Ray said.
Ray read a letter from Tello during the hearing stating:
“I wish nothing but the best for the defendants and I hope this to be a lesson learned for all involved. Nothing can be gained from malice or hate. I viewed all of you as my friends and I was devastated by your actions. However, I hope that you all can recover from this the way I have. I have begun a new career outside of law enforcement as a teacher. My goal is to spread love and good morals, which are unfortunately not the things the defendants showed me through their actions. I feel this was not a defeat but a blessing in disguise. I am thriving and have made peace with what happened. Your actions have made me stronger and will continue to push me to be the best version of myself and not what you all tried to make me out to be. While this horrible damage to my reputation can never be undone and the pain I endured and continue to endure can’t be taken back, you must know I have found the strength to move forward. Thank you for forcing me to a new beginning, which I fell in love with.”
“This whole case has been very interesting,” Judge Mason said. “All of you are officers. Don’t let yourself fall down this path. There is no reason for it. Move on with your careers. You’ve got a lot of community depending on you and this isn’t what they want to see. This is not something that law enforcement needs to be exposed to.”
Jim Hardy led the defense investigation and expressed deep concern New Mexico State Police relied on allegedly altered text messages as a basis for the entire investigation, Mills said.
Sawyers stated she stands by her statements in her Motion to Suppress and has proof there was not probable cause to issue the search warrants.
“It is interesting they only targeted women (defendants) in this matter,” Sawyer stated.
A separate lawsuit is pending in the federal courts with Tello naming Estrada, Jurado-Garcia, Porras, Vizcarra, Lea County Sheriff Corey Helton, Lea County Undersheriff Michael Walker, Fernando Jimenez, Sean Roach, the Lea County Sheriff’s Office and Lea County Board of County Commissioners as defendants.
In the original complaint filed in the Fifth Judicial District Court, Tello claims LCSO retaliated and discriminated against her along with a list of other allegations of violations.
Tello also claims Helton, Walker, Jimenez, Roach, and Estrada, acting under color of law, punished her for sending an intimate video of herself to a romantic partner.
