COURT News:ALBUQUERQUE ― Students at Laguna-Acoma High School will have an opportunity today to better understand New Mexico’s judicial system when the Court of Appeals hears arguments at the school in a criminal case.
Students in grades 9-12 at this school, about 50 miles west of Albuquerque, will be able to watch as lawyers appear before a panel of three judges in a case involving an Albuquerque man appealing his conviction on drug charges. After the arguments, judges will take questions from students.
The Court of Appeals is not a trial court and there will be no witnesses testifying. The hour-long arguments will focus on questions of law, including whether a police officer properly detained the defendant and seized drugs during an arrest in April 2012. At issue are questions regarding constitutional protections against unlawful searches and seizures.
The court usually takes cases under advisement after hearing arguments and then issues a written decision later. The Court of Appeals travels to schools around the state about four times a year to hear arguments in cases.
