Courts

U.S. Sen. Luján, Colleagues Urge Department Of Justice To Improve Public Safety On Tribal Lands

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U.S. SENATE News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Thursday, U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawai’i), and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on the high rates of Tribal prosecutorial declinations.

In their letter, the Senators asks a series of questions to better understand the reasons behind the high rates of declinations. Specifically, the letter asks about the lack of evidence in these cases and the Department’s Read More

New Mexico Supreme Court Reverses Reckless Child Abuse Convictions Of Mother And Daughter In Daycare Case

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Courtesy photo

New Mexico Supreme Court News:

SANTA FE — The New Mexico Supreme Court has reversed the reckless child abuse convictions of a mother and daughter who provided daycare in Portales and left two children unattended in a hot car in July 2017. One girl died and another survived her injuries.

The Court ordered a new trial for Sandi and Mary Taylor.

In a split decision, the Court concluded that instructions to the jury about the conduct necessary for the defendants to have committed reckless child abuse “confused and misdirected the jury and allowed it to make a finding of guilt on a legally Read More

State Bar Foundation’s Modest Means Helpline Adds Hours To Increase Access To Legal Services For New Mexicans

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NMSBF News:

ALBUQUERQUE — The New Mexico State Bar Foundation’s Modest Means Helpline is proud to announce that it has officially expanded the hours callers can access the helpline from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. MT, Monday through Friday. This will give New Mexican residents of modest means more access to the free services of the Modest Means Helpline.

The Modest Means Helpline, launched in October 2022, provides brief legal advice in many civil areas of law to New Mexico residents with incomes below 500% of the federal poverty guidelines. The most common legal issues we advise include domestic relations, Read More

FBI: Taos Compound Defendants Sentenced

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced March 6 that Jany Leveille, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, his sisters Hujrah Wahhaj and Subhanah Wahhaj and Subhanah’s husband, Lucas Morton, appeared before a federal judge for sentencing.

Siraj, Hujrah and Subhanah Wahhaj, and Lucas Morton were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Per the terms of her plea agreement, Leveille was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Upon her release from Read More

New Mexico Supreme Court Reinstates Child Pornography Convictions On David Rael Of Los Alamos

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David Rael

NMSC News:

SANTA FE – The state Supreme Court today reinstated a Los Alamos man’s convictions for possession, distribution and manufacturing of child pornography.

In a unanimous opinion, the state’s highest court reversed the Court of Appeals and clarified the legal elements that must be proven for the crime of manufacturing child pornography.

David Rael was sentenced in 2017 to nine years in prison for convictions of three counts of manufacturing child pornography and one count each of distribution and possession of child pornography.

The Court of Appeals overturned Rael’s Read More

New Mexico Supreme Court Vacates Convictions Of Clayton Man In Union County Due To Prosecutorial Misconduct

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Courtesy/NMSC

New Mexico Supreme Court News:

SANTA FE — The New Mexico Supreme Court has ruled that a man was wrongly retried and convicted in 2019 of child sex crimes in Union County.

In a unanimous opinion, the Court concluded that a prosecutor’s conduct was so prejudicial and improper during Rudolph Amador’s first trial that constitutional double jeopardy protections precluded a second trial.

The Court ordered the case back to the district court in Union County to vacate Amador’s felony convictions and discharge him from custody.

Amador was charged in 2017 for allegedly sexually abusing Read More

FBI: Navajo Man Pleads Guilty To Assault Upon Federal Officer And Assault Resulting In Serious Bodily Injury

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office, announced that Kenneth Lee Begay pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of assault upon a federal officer inflicting bodily injury and one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

Begay, 59, of Newcomb, N.M., and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, will remain on conditions of release pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.

June 4, 2023, after Begay interrupted a Chapter House Read More

Marco Serna Announces Candidacy For 1st Judicial DA

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Marco Serna

From Marco Serna for First Judicial District Attorney Campaign:

SANTA FE — Former First Judicial District Attorney Marco Serna announces his candidacy for the same office.

As a dedicated prosecutor with more than 14 years of experience, Serna has gained a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and complexities our criminal justice system faces. ­“The current DA has enacted selective self-serving policies that fail to understand these complexities which has not only eroded the public’s trust in the judicial system, but it has also left families without justice, and Read More

New Mexico State Police And 2nd District Attorney’s Office Team Up To Take 16 Felons Off Streets Of Bernalillo County

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Fentanyl seized during recent three-day crime-fighting operation in Bernalillo County. Courtesy/NMSP

Items seized during recent three-day crime-fighting operation in Bernalillo County. Courtesy/NMSP

NMSP News:

ALBUQUERQUE — During a three-day operation in Bernalillo County aimed at disrupting criminal activity associated with violent crime, narcotics and auto theft, the New Mexico State Police (NMSP) Crime Suppression Bureau and 2nd District Attorney’s Office joined forces to apprehend fugitives from justice and substantially impact crime.

At around 11 p.m., Thursday, Feb. Read More

Los Lunas Man Who Shot New Mexico State Police Officer Pleads Guilty To Federal Firearms Offense

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced Tuesday that Caleb Elledge pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Elledge, 26, of Los Lunas, will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.

A federal grand jury indicted Elledge June 28, 2022. According to publicly available court records, Feb. 11, 2022, New Mexico State Police (NMSP) Lt. Jeremy Vaughan was on duty when he pulled in the Mr. Gas Mart located at 1192 Read More