New Mexico District Attorney's Office, New Mexico
End of Watch: Wednesday, December 1, 1971
Age: 54
Tour of Duty: 20 years
Badge Number: Not available
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: December 1, 1971
Weapon Used: Rifle; .30 caliber
Suspect Info: Deceased
District Attorney Breen was shot and killed in Tucumcari by a mental patient he had helped to convict in 1968. The patient had been released and assassinated District Attorney Breen as he walked to his car before going to work.
The suspect was apprehended a short time later and was sent to a state hospital. He was released from the hospital three years later and died in 1988.
District Attorney was assigned to the 10th Judicial District of New Mexico and had been with the agency for 20 years. He was survived by his wife, two daughters and parents.