Former Velarde Acting Chief Indicted on Weapons Charges

Posted by: Curt Varone May 8, 2013 0

The former acting fire chief from Velarde, New Mexico has been indicted on seven felony counts associated with his brandishing a firearm at a fire company meeting last August.

Darwin Yazzie, 28, has been charged with five felony counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and two felony counts of child abuse. The child abuse charges appear to relate to the fact that children were present when the behavior took place.

Yazzie faces the possibility of 13 years in prison.

More on the story. Note: the news outlets inaccurately state the incident occurred in August 2011… it was last August, 2012.

BTW – There are somewhere around 32,000 fire departments of various sizes in the United States. Fire Law Blog regularly features cases from large departments like FDNY, DCFD, or LAFD, which is to be expected. However, this headline represents the SEVENTH time that the Velarde Fire Department has been featured in a law related story. Here are the listings.

About Curt Varone

Curt Varone has over 45 years of fire service experience and 35 as a practicing attorney licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. His background includes 29 years as a career firefighter in Providence (retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief), as well as volunteer and paid on call experience. He is the author of two books: Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, (2006, 2nd ed. 2011, 3rd ed. 2014, 4th ed. 2022) and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook (2007), and is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column.
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