Defense Rests in Trial of Arizona Rancher Accused of Killing Illegal Immigrant

The jury is set to begin deliberating following closing arguments on April 18.

A van carrying the 12 jury members in the second-degree murder trial of George Alan Kelly tour a section of border fence where an illegal immigrant allegedly escaped back into Mexico. Photo taken on April 11, 2024. Court photo

NOGALES, Ariz.—A jury on April 18 will hear closing arguments in the monthlong trial of an Arizona man accused of murdering an illegal immigrant on his ranch property near the U.S.-Mexico border.

George Alan Kelly, 75, faces charges of second-degree murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in the alleged shooting death of Mexican citizen Gabriel Cuen-Buitimea, 48, on Jan. 30, 2023.