A jury on Thursday convicted an Arizona man of first-degree murder for shooting and killing an Ignacio man on New Year’s Day in 2009.
David Hendren remained standing and showed little reaction to the verdict. He is expected to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Oct. 13.
Hendren was accused of shooting and killing Larry John Fuller early Jan. 1, 2009, after he mistook Fuller for someone else following a bar fight in Ignacio.
Chris Madril, Fuller’s stepson who attended the jury decision, said the verdict gives him and his family some measure of resolution after more than 16 years of trying to bring Fuller’s killer to justice.
“Finally, we got a little closure,” he said. “My family and I would like to thank the prosecution and investigators and also the jury as well. I mean, without all of them, we would have never got any of this. It would just remain cold.”
The trial, which began Aug. 25, was the second time a jury was asked to rule on the case. A Feb. 19 trial ended in a mistrial.
Madril said this time around, the prosecution presented the same evidence, but with a better argument for why Hendren was guilty – including testimony from Angel Garcia, who was with Hendren the night of the shooting, and from Hendren’s ex-girlfriend, who Hendren had allegedly confided in and told her he had killed someone.
Derek Levy, a juror, said there was ample evidence that helped jurors make their verdict in a day after both the prosecution and defense rested their cases.
“The prosecution stated a pretty rock-solid case,” Levy said. “There wasn’t a whole lot of debate as far as the details and whatnot. So it seemed to be a fairly easy decision for everyone.”
He clarified that just because the case had ample evidence, it was not an easy case to decide.
Sixth Judicial District Attorney Sean Murray wrote in a statement that he is satisfied with the ruling and glad to bring Fuller’s family justice and closure.
“The District Attorney’s Office would like to express tremendous gratitude to the jury for the service,” Murray said. “We are proud that Mr. Larry Fuller’s family finally has justice and hope that this verdict will provide some measure of closure.”
The decision comes more than 16 years after Fuller was shot by Hendren after being mistaken for someone Hendren had been in a fight with in the Sidekick Lounge in Ignacio early on New Year’s Day, 2009. For nearly 14 years, the case went cold until it was opened when two witnesses stepped forward in 2023.
For Madril and his family, the road to finding closure in Fuller’s death has been long and brutal. Now that Hendren has been convicted, Madril said, they can continue to heal, though the pain will always be there.
“This will never go away,” he said. “We still have a loss.”
Madril said Fuller was a kind soul with a lot of love for his friends and family who was taken too soon.
“He was just a loving, caring guy,” he said. “He was a giant of a man, and he was just a giant teddy bear. He’d do anything for anybody. I mean, no hesitation. Loved to be around family, laugh, joke – just have a good time. ... (He) wasn’t the type of guy to have any enemies or anything.”
sedmondson@durangoherald.com
An earlier version of this story erred in saying two witnesses stepped forward in 2013. They came forward in 2023.
