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The murder of Fred Martinez Jr., a gay Navajo teenager, who often identified as two-spirited, goes down as one of the grisliest hate crimes ever committed against the LGBTQIA+ community. The 16-year-old was a Montezuma-Cortez High School when he went missing in June 2001 after heading to the Ute Mountain Roundup Rodeo.
Fred's decomposing remains were found in an area called "the Pits," and he was bludgeoned beyond recognition. He also had a large cut in his abdomen, wounds to the wrists, and multiple skull fractures. The teen died of blunt force trauma and exposure.
An anonymous tip led authorities to the killer, an 18-year-old Shaun Murphy a violent young man with an extensive criminal record. Murphy had reportedly bragged about having "bug squashed" and "beat up" a f*g. He was handed a 40-year sentence the following year and was released from prison in 2018.
An upcoming episode of ID's Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death is scheduled to revisit Fred Martinez Jr.'s murder. The episode titled Killing of Two Spirits will air on the channel this Tuesday, May 9, at 9 pm ET.
The synopsis states:
"In 2001, in Cortez, Colo., the violent murder of a gay Navajo teenager means two spirits die with him."
Fred Martinez Jr. was a two-spirited teenager, who was bludgeoned to death in a gruesome hate-crime
Fred Martinez Jr. was born on March 15, 1985, and lived the short 16 years of his life in the southern corners of Colorado. Sources state that Fred, a Navajo student at Montezuma-Cortez High School, identified as a "Two-Spirit" person. Indian Country Today describes them as a person who has both the "male and female spirit within them." It added that a Two-Spirit person is "blessed by their Creator to see life through the eyes of both genders.
Fred was outwardly expressive about his identity in feminine ways and was fluid. He wore women's clothing but was often harassed by other students at school and eventually switched to adult education courses to avoid the harassment.
In June 2001, the 16-year-old left home and made his way to the Ute Mountain Roundup Rodeo in Cortez, Colorado, but failed to return home. His concerned mother reported him missing shortly after. About five days later, a young person's decomposing remains were found in an area called "The Pits." The remains were eventually identified as Fred Martinez Jr.
It was soon determined that Fred was killed on June 16. He was bludgeoned beyond recognition and has sustained several injuries including a large cut on his abdomen, wounds to the wrists, and multiple skull fractures. An autopsy confirmed that he died of blunt force trauma and exposure. The teen's mother found out about this death days after the discovery was made.
Who was behind Fred Martinez Jr.'s murder?
Initially, law enforcement was hesitant in labeling the murder a hate crime, but soon after they received a tip, the nature of the killing because abundantly clear. As per the tip, Shaun Murphy of Farmington, New Mexico, bragged to friends that he "bug-smashed a h*to [slang for a f*g]." Murphy was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. A charge of first-degree murder was later added.
Detectives learned that Murphy, a violent man with a lengthy criminal history, was at least partially motivated by hate of Fred's s*xuality. After a brief encounter during which he learned the 16-year-old was gay, he chased the teenager south of Cortez. Murphy repeatedly hit him over the head with rocks before leaving him there to suffer and slowly die.
In 2002, Shaun Murphy pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Fred Martinez Jr.'s murder and was sentenced to 40 years in prison. He only served 17 years and was released in 2018.
Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death on ID will further delve into Fred Martinez Jr. murder this Tuesday.
