September 30, 2025
Brighton, CO – The District Attorney’s Office announced today that Xavier Garcia, 17, has been sentenced to 35 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections for the murder of 19-year-old Joseph Martinez on March 23, 2024, in Aurora.
On the night of March 23, 2024, Martinez attended a party at a rental hall in the Adams County portion of Aurora near the 2000 block of Tower Road that Garcia organized and promoted. Martinez was standing against a wall, next to a fight that had broken out, when Garcia approached Martinez, pulled out a .45 caliber handgun, and shot the victim in the chest.
Chaos erupted as party goers fled the scene and additional shots were fired. Martinez was transported to a local hospital where he later died from a single gunshot wound to the chest.
Following a thorough investigation by the Aurora Police Department, Garcia was arrested and charged in Adams County District Court. On July 28, 2025, he pleaded guilty to Second-Degree Murder. On September 26, 2025, Adams County District Court Judge Jeffrey Ruff sentenced Garcia to 35 years in prison.
“This young defendant shot and killed a fellow teenager for nothing,” said District Attorney Brian Mason. “His actions were outrageous, unjustified and devastating. This case is yet another tragic example of the devastation caused by youth gun violence. A 19-year-old lost his life, and a 17-year-old threw his future away with senseless act of violence.”
This case was prosecuted by Senior Lead Deputy District Attorney Will Atherton and Senior Deputy District Attorney Lauren Asher.