Conservatives rooting for Arizona rancher charged with shooting man in the back

A rancher in the heavily Hispanic border community of Santa Cruz County, Arizona is facing murder charges for allegedly shooting an undocumented Mexican migrant — and right-wingers are enthusiastically supporting his cause as he gets ready to go to trial, wrote Ja'han Jones for MSNBC's "The ReidOut" blog.

"Much like former President Donald Trump, some adherents of the 'build the wall' rhetoric and all its troubling tributaries seem to benefit — whether politically, financially or both — the more heinous their behavior is toward migrants," wrote Jones. "That's the political lens through which I view George Kelly, an Arizona rancher charged with murdering Gabriel Cuen-Buitimea in January. Cuen-Buitimea, an undocumented migrant from Mexico, had illegally crossed into the United States in search of work, his family told law enforcement officials."

Kelly's defense team alleges that he fired a "warning shot" and that Cuen-Buitimea brandished a rifle before Kelly fired in self-defense. However, this contradicts a witness to the shooting, who "told investigators that Kelly opened fire on him and Cuen-Buitimea without warning."

A recent New York Times report on the case makes clear that Kelly has supporters on the right.

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"The sheriff’s office arrested George Alan Kelly, the rancher suspected of firing the fatal shot, and charged him with murder," reported Jack Healy. "Then the angry calls started pouring in. 'This is garbage.' 'It’s a travesty of justice.' 'Since when do illegals have rights?' To conservative ranchers and far-flung immigration critics who seized on the case as it ricocheted across social media, Mr. Kelly, 74, was the real victim in a murky tale of death and justice in Arizona’s politically volatile borderlands."

Moreover, Jones noted, Kelly effortlessly made his $1 million bond "days after crowdfunding site GoFundMe removed all campaigns raising money on Kelly's behalf."

"The disturbing details and allegations don’t end there, according to law enforcement officials. In his 911 phone call alerting authorities of Cuen-Buitimea's death on his property, Kelly referred to the migrant as an 'animal,' according to the Times," wrote Jones. "Conservatives' racist fearmongering about migrants 'replacing' white Americans has created a war-like posture toward migrants, evident in the right-wing support for Kelly. It's disturbing just how many conservatives see him as the victim in this case."