NM SUPREME COURT News:
The New Mexico Supreme Court today affirmed the convictions of Matthew Wood for first-degree felony murder and shooting at a motor vehicle for his role in a teenager’s death in 2019 in Albuquerque.
Click here to read the Court’s unanimous nonprecedential decision. The case is State v. Wood, S-1-SC-40305. Read More
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — A Shiprock man was charged by indictment with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents, in the morning hours of May 15, 2025, Jay Ray Kelly, 39, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, was seen walking in Shiprock, firing a handgun into the air.
Concerned citizens called police. Later that morning, police arrested Kelly with a handgun and 155 rounds of ammunition in a backpack.
Kelly is charged federally with unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition. In 2006, Kelly was convicted in the District of New Mexico for possessing Read More
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE – A Dulce man pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a minor involving the use of force.
According to court records, on or about Sept. 13, 2023, Cisco Cruzito Pinto, 38, an enrolled member of the Jicarilla Apache Nation, engaged in sexual contact with a minor who was between the ages of 12 and 16 at the time. When the victim resisted, Pinto used force to maintain control.
Pinto will be detained pending sentencing. At sentencing, Pinto faces any term of years and up to life in prison. Upon his release from prison, Pinto will be subject to a term of supervised release of not less than Read More
NMSC News:
The New Mexico Supreme Court (NMSC) Thursday affirmed the convictions of Travis Nolan for first-degree murder, armed robbery and tampering with evidence for the 2019 shooting death of a man in Ruidoso.
The Court remanded the case to the trial court for resentencing because the justices concluded that a one-year sentencing enhancement – rather than three years – should have been imposed on Nolan for using a firearm to commit a noncapital felony such as armed robbery. State law requires a one-year firearm enhancement if the offense is the defendant’s first felony.
Nolan was sentenced Read More
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — A Cuba man was sentenced to 28 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and firearms offenses.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court records, July 26, 2022, Navajo Nation Police Department officers responded to reports of a shooting at a residence near Ojo Encino.
Upon arrival, officers discovered John Doe deceased with a gunshot wound to his chest and right arm. Witnesses identified Jason Lee Martinez, 52, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, as the shooter, who fled the scene immediately after the incident.
Aug. Read More
NMSP News:
FORT SUMNER — June 5, 2025, New Mexico State Police (NMSP) Investigations Bureau agents were called to investigate a shooting that left one male injured, on North 8th Hill Road, in Fort Sumner.
Agents learned that a confrontation ensued between a female suspect and a male, leading to her shooting him with a shotgun.
After law enforcement responded, she barricaded herself inside a residence, but agents convinced her to exit the residence and took her into custody.
The victim was transported by ambulance from the scene to a local area hospital and later flown to Lubbock, Texas, for treatment, Read More
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — An Albuquerque man was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison after a pattern of persistent digital harassment targeting multiple women over a nine-month period.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court records, between June 2022 and March 2023, Phillip Gonzales, 39, stalked and harassed three women using anonymous texting applications and Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services. Over this nine-month period, Gonzales sent the victims graphic sexual messages, expressed rape fantasies, threatened the victims, and demonstrated knowledge Read More
Police discovered six sticks of deteriorating dynamite on Oct. 20, 2023, at a home in Española. Courtesy/FBI
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — An Española man was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison following a series of law enforcement actions that uncovered illegal firearms, narcotics, and unstable explosives.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court records, Aug. 1, 2023, Pojoaque Police Department officers conducted a traffic stop on a sedan with expired registration driven by Mario James Valdez, 35. Inside the car, officers located two loaded “ghost guns”, one of which Read More
NM SUPREME COURT News:
SANTA FE — Governmental organizations are immune from liability in civil rights lawsuits for their administrative actions that are judicial in nature, the state Supreme Court ruled today.
The Court unanimously concluded that “the doctrine of judicial immunity extends to claims for damages asserted against a governmental entity, including a public body sued under” the New Mexico Civil Rights Act (CRA).
The justices for the first time interpreted provisions of the civil rights law, which was enacted in 2021 to provide a basis in New Mexico law to sue the government for Read More
USDC News:
ALBUQUERQUE — The United States District Court for the District of New Mexico has recently been notified of individuals being targeted in a court-related scam. The targets have been told they failed to respond to a subpoena issued by a U.S. District Judge and that a warrant for their arrest has been or will be issued. The scammer may ask for personal identifiers or for immediate payment of fines with the assurance this will resolve the warrant. The scammers may use the name of an actual judge and purport to be a member of local law enforcement or staff from the Clerk’s Office.
The U.S. District Read More