Adrián LeBarón, father of one of the victims and grandfather of four others in the 2019 Bavispe, Sonora massacre, has stated that Mexico's justice system has failed his family. No one has yet been convicted of the killings, which saw three women and six children traveling in three SUVs ambushed by cartel gunmen.
The attack occurred on November 4, 2019, near the U.S.-Mexico border. Rhonita Miller and Christina Langford were traveling with their children to a wedding, while Dawna Ray Langford and her children were en route to meet her husband in Arizona. Gunmen identified as members of La Línea, the armed wing of the Juárez Cartel, opened fire on the convoy. One SUV, carrying Miller and her four children, was set ablaze.
Authorities suggested the attack may have been a case of mistaken identity, with the gunmen believing the convoy belonged to a rival gang, Los Salazar. However, LeBarón voiced skepticism about the Mexican court system's capacity to secure convictions for the murders.
"I still don’t understand why that tragedy had to happen. Damn it, what the hell was going on in Mexico for things like that to happen?" LeBarón told The Post. "For me, it’s a wake-up call to those realities, and the fact that these things keep happening tells me we’re screwed. There are people accused, but no one has been sentenced (on murder charges)."
To date, only two convictions have been secured in connection with the massacre, neither for the killings themselves. One individual received a 12-year sentence for organized crime and weapons possession, and a former public security chief was sentenced to 15 years for organized crime. Jacinto “El Monster” Galindo, a former police officer and soldier, is the sole individual indicted for murder.
LeBarón expressed more confidence in the U.S. justice system, stating, "I don’t have confidence in our justice system; I have more faith in the US system."
Following the massacre, the grieving family traveled to Washington, D.C., and appealed to then-President Donald Trump to designate Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. Within a month of Trump’s second term, six Mexican cartels were designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations. The Juárez Cartel, though not on the initial list, was added in July, enabling the U.S. to pursue La Línea members and seek their extradition for crimes committed.
La Línea was established in 2008 by active and retired law enforcement officers as the Juárez Cartel's primary enforcement unit in Ciudad Juárez. Recently, Mexican authorities have taken action against the group. Epifanio Villa, identified as a regional leader for La Línea, and his son Alejandro Villa were arrested by the military in Manuel Ojinaga, Chihuahua, near the Texas border. These arrests were for charges unrelated to the 2019 killings, reportedly involving drug production and trafficking, and migrant smuggling operations.
LeBarón believes Villa's arrest may be a result of the U.S. designation of the Juárez Cartel as a terrorist organization, stating, "When the United States takes the step of designating them as FTOs – now we’re talking."