By Matthew Reisen
Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Moments after taking a bullet to the hip, an Albuquerque police sergeant was on his feet giving orders and radioing information to dispatch. The man who shot him lay motionless in the entryway of an apartment — inside, a sleeping neighbor was struck by an officer’s bullet.
On Wednesday, the Albuquerque Police Department detailed the first police shooting of 2025: a close-quarters gunfight with a man having an apparent mental health crisis.
Cmdr. Kyle Hartsock , who oversees APD’s Criminal Investigations Bureau , said on Jan. 24 that Sgt. Brandon Watts and officers Brice Merriken and Adrian Lopez shot and killed 23-year-old Anthony Williams . Watts, Merriken and Lopez joined APD in 2020, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and none have been in a prior shooting.
The three officers have not returned to duty, and APD Chief Harold Medina said Watts is still recovering from his injury. Medina said the department would be honoring Watts for his actions.
“I really want to compliment our sergeant... the leadership that he showed, the courage that he showed... to get back on his feet, to continue directing officers (to) what needed to be done is nothing but impressive,” Medina said.
The neighbor who was struck in the forearm by an officer’s bullet as he slept was released from a hospital the same day, Hartsock said. An evidence photo showed the bullet that struck the man was one of several that flew through his bedroom wall from police gunfire.
Williams was convicted as a teen of killing three men with a shotgun in Valencia County and served several months behind bars until he turned 21.
“Our juveniles need to be held accountable,” Medina said. "... I think it was five months after he pleaded to three manslaughter charges, and he aged out... We’ve got to make changes that hold people accountable.”
More recently, Williams was sentenced to probation in 2023 in a case where he beat a jail guard. Court records showed Williams violated probation in February 2024 , admitting to smoking methamphetamine and drinking. He was discharged from probation in October.
An obituary for Williams said he got a high school diploma behind bars and wanted to be a plumber.
“His greatest passion was music — of all genres — which he loved sharing with everyone,” Williams’ obituary states. “He also enjoyed gaming on his PC, spending time with his family, and making memories with his faithful puppy, Hades.”
Medina said Williams’ dog, seen barking at officers, ran off when the bullets flew and was not found.
Hartsock said officers first came into contact with Williams on Jan. 22 , when a woman flagged them down at the Tesota Morningside apartments on Montgomery, east of Carlisle. The woman told them Williams had been scaring her by coming to her apartment, saying he was looking for his girlfriend.
Lapel camera video showed officers speaking with Williams as he held his dog Hades, telling them he was on several medications and could “have a little bit of manic issues.” In the video, Williams was cooperative but appeared paranoid, and the officer offered him help with resources for mental health assistance.
“Would you want us to take you to a hospital so you can get all squared away? If you change your mind, just give us a call,” the officers told him in the video, asking him not to go back up to the woman’s apartment.
On Jan. 24 , officers were called to the complex again after a man reportedly tried to break into a couple’s apartment, telling them he was looking for his girlfriend and would shoot them.
In lapel video, Sgt. Watts and other officers were in the parking lot when they spotted Williams and his dog in a courtyard. The officers asked Williams to talk to them, one of them recognizing him from the call days earlier.
Williams’ dog barked at police as they approached and asked him to keep his hands out of his pockets, according to lapel video. As one officer got close, Williams said “don’t touch me” repeatedly and backed away.
Lapel video showed Williams pulled a gun from his jacket and began firing as he ran the other way, with Watts, Merriken and Lopez returning fire. Watts fell to the ground and, once the gunfire stopped, calmly said, “Shots fired, I’m hit,” over the radio.
In the minutes that followed, Watts gave the other officers orders and even took control of the situation, asking Williams to put his hands out so they could approach to try to help him. Williams could be heard yelling in pain at first, but then falling silent.
Hartsock said officers fired almost two dozen rounds and Williams was shot several times. He said the gun used by Williams was bought by someone else in 2020 who admitted to knowing Williams but told police he didn’t know the gun was missing.
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