22 April 2025, El Paso, Texas, Steven Zimmerman – It’s time to remember Larry Donnell Lacy and what happened to him.
Donnell hated being called Larry.
He was discharged from the United States Army and elected to remain in El Paso, Texas. He stayed near the woman he loved and wanted to be here when their child was born. Donnell was trying to make a go of it here in El Paso.
During the day, Donnell was out looking for work. When I was in his apartment with his parents, Keri and Elmo Duncan, we found copies of his resume and applications. We also found evidence of someone else living with him.
Donnell loved anime and manga and was equally passionate about helping others. From what Keri and Elmo could gather from looking at Donnell’s apartment, he was helping someone.
Whoever murdered Donnell knew him. They were in his apartment, as there was no sign of forced entry. Maybe it was the person, or persons he was helping, by allowing them to stay in the apartment with him.
Other items were found besides women’s clothes and handbags. There were also notebooks with writing and a female’s name. Among that unknown person’s belongings, we also found medication bottles with the patient’s name ripped off. Even though those bottles were left behind, they were dusted for fingerprints.
The fingerprinting is another piece of Donnell’s story. When someone is murdered, the police department will come in and dust for prints—however, the way it was done left one retired New York City Detective confused.
“That ain’t how you do it,” says former Detective F. Guzman. “It’s all haphazard, like they were making it look like they did something for the parents. That ain’t professional at all. You’de be lucky to get a hit on that mess.”
To make matters worse, the words of an El Paso police Sergeant, overheard by neighbors, made the family even more angry.
What was said?
When Sergent was in and out of the apartment, he commented, loud enough for everyone to hear, “He’s a user.”
“Why would some cop say this? It doesn’t make sense to me,” says Detective F. Guzman. “This cop needs to take some social training so he knows empathy and compassion.”
Compassion is something the El Paso Police Department lacks. While the El Paso Police Department does not have a team or a way to clean blood from a crime scene, what the family was met with at Donnell’s apartment was, according to one El Paso Police Officer, “A fucking horror movie.” Why does the City of El Paso not clean scenes like the one below?
I caught up with Keri Duncan.
“I’m not gonna lie, I’m not coping,” says Keri Duncan. “One minute, I’m fine, and the next, I’m breaking down.”
Keri finds it hard to accomplish even the simplest daily tasks. Every moment, everything she sees reminds her of Donnell.
“I had a meltdown today, trying to light the stove,” says Keri. “I’m empty inside. They took a major piece of me.”
That’s another aspect of this case: a stove.
When we were in the house, we discovered that while the stove was left on, filling the apartment with gas, there was an attempt to either set the home on fire or cause it to explode in hopes of covering its tracks.
The fact that the bad actors, or actors, hoped to cover their tracks this way should be a cause of greater concern for the Detectives in this case. The people who murdered Donnell were willing to kill other people to hide their crime.
How is Keri Duncan keeping her spirits up, knowing that the people who murdered her son are still at large?
“It’s a battle. On one hand, I have my faith,” says Keri. “The other wants to be bitter, and that’s not who I am. I’m confused about how a human could treat another human like this. It has changed my view on humanity.”
Keri has also changed her views towards the El Paso Police Department and the Detectives investigating the case.
We were told two individuals were discovered in a stolen car in Northeast El Paso. Deanna Teran and Joseu Efrain Macias were arrested. Both have prior criminal histories that include possession of a firearm and drugs. What’s telling is that Macias is not in jail, and Teran is only in prison for a probation violation. Neither were charged with the stolen vehicle they were found in.
“I don’t know why that is,” says an Officer with the El Paso Police Department. “They were found in it; they were in possession of a stolen vehicle. They were sleeping in it. Why were they not charged?”
Why is no one in custody behind Donnell’s murder? Even Keri is growing impatient?
“I’m getting impatient,” says Keri. “I know they have to do a thorough investigation, but I’m ready for the answer. I was there, in Donnell’s house. There was too much evidence to not have any suspects. I’m so confused.”
Speaking to others around El Paso, there is a growing concern about how the El Paso Police Department conducts investigations and how information is released to the public.
“We don’t see anything now until they have someone arrested,” says Rosa De La Cruz, an El Paso resident. “Like that attack at the smoke shop, we knew nothing, and I live near there. What if the person who did this was in my neighborhood? What is going on here?”
With the Public Information Officer (PIO) Robert C. Gomez refusing to visit crime scenes, such as the Lava Rock and Donnell’s home, we are left in the dark.
“It was horrendous of him,” says an Officer with first-hand knowledge of Gomez’s refusal to come to the Lava Rock crime scene.
Keri agrees with Ms. De La Cruz’s statement that EPPD is not communicating with anyone.
“I haven’t had a direct call since I came home,” says Keri. “However, I did ask if there were any updates before my son’s memorial, and I was told ‘no.’ I’m just sitting in limbo.”
While Keri, Elmo, and the rest of Donnell’s family are celebrating and remembering Donnell’s life, they are all in the dark. As beautiful and moving as the memorial was, there is still a cloud hanging over Donnell’s family and the City of El Paso as long as the murders are on the loose.
Donnell, like every victim of crime in El Paso, deserves justice. We need to do better. We need a Chief of Police who will fire up and inspire his Officers to clear cases, rather than the Chief making jokes about the El Paso Fire Department.
“I wonder how different this would be if it were a member of Veronica Escobar’s family or Dionne Mack’s family that was murdered,” says an Officer with the El Paso Police Department. “Would the Detectives then do their job? It seems solving crime has a price tag in El Paso.”
If you would like to voice your opinion about the El Paso Police Department, you may email the following:
Chief Peter Pacillas [email protected]
City Manager Dionne Mack [email protected]
You can reach Southwest News Today at [email protected]