Former Santa Rosa police officer to be sentenced for sex charges involving teens

SANTA ROSA, N.M. — A judge is set to sentence a former Santa Rosa police officer who pleaded guilty to two felony sex charges involving teenage girls.

In September, Joe Lucero-Gonzales agreed to pleaded guilty to two fourth-degree felony charges – criminal sexual penetration and sexual exploitation of children (possession).

About a year before, Lucero-Gonzales was arrested for using social media to exchange explicit pictures with four teenagers. According to court documents, this happened between May and August in 2023.

Police said the girls told them Lucero-Gonzales wanted to have sex in his patrol car while he was on duty, which they thought was strange. Investigators said he did have sex with one of the girls, who was 15 years old. He allegedly met up with her in the middle of the night, while on duty.

Police say he was very persistent with the young girls. The victims said Lucero-Gonzales would follow them around in his patrol vehicle, continuously asking them to meet up.

Lucero-Gonzales later admitted it, saying the conversations were a “bad judgment call.”

Lucero-Gonzales faced sentencing Monday but the court rescheduled it due to a scheduling conflict. There is no word on the new sentencing date.

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