Courts

New Mexico Supreme Court To Resume Civics Education Program By Hearing A Case In Española

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Members of the state Supreme Court speak to students at Organ Mountain High School in Las Cruces in 2022 as part of the Rule of Law Program. Standing at left is Justice David K. Thomson and seated from right to left are then Chief Justice Michael E. Vigil and Justices C. Shannon Bacon and Julie J. Vargas. Courtesy/AOC

AOC News:

SANTA FE — The state Supreme Court will hear legal arguments in a criminal case appeal next month in Española as part of a civics education program for students.

This marks the third year for the Court’s Rule of Law Program. The justices traveled to Las Cruces last year for an oral Read More

NMSP Officer Involved Shooting In Las Vegas, NM

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NMSP News: 

Las Vegas, N.M. – On Friday March 10, 2023, New Mexico State Police (NMSP) officers were dispatched to the Speedway gas station in Romeroville to assist the US Marshals in locating a suspect with an outstanding warrant.

While at the gas station, the officers observed another person known to have warrants, Pedro Griego, 40. Griego had active felony warrants for aggravated battery against a household member, aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer, and traffic violations.

Two NMSP officers observed Griego at a gas pump. As they waited for additional Read More

FBI: Pedro Lee Benally Charged With Aggravated Abuse Of Child In Indian Country

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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 Wednesday that Pedro Lee Benally made an initial appearance in federal court facing two charges of aggravated sexual abuse in Indian Country.

Benally, 29, of Montezuma Creek, Utah, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, will remain in custody pending a detention and preliminary hearing.

A federal grand jury indicted Benally Feb. 23. According to the indictment and other court records, Benally Read More

FBI: Navajo Woman Charged With Involuntary Manslaughter

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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 that Leticia Ashley was arraigned March 6 on an indictment charging her with involuntary manslaughter and abandonment and abuse of a child.

Ashley, 42, of Navajo, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, will remain under supervision pending trial, which has not been scheduled.

A federal grand jury indicted Ashley Feb. 23. According to the indictment, July 29, 2022, Ashley, while under Read More

FBI: Mescalero Man Charged With Baseball Bat Assaults

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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 Friday that Spencer George Klinekole made an initial appearance in federal court Feb. 27 facing a charge of assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to do serious bodily harm.

Klinekole, 38, of Mescalero, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, will remain in custody pending a preliminary and detention hearing scheduled for March 2.

According to a criminal complaint, Nov. Read More

Portrayal Of Ruth Bader Ginsburg At Fuller Lodge March 18

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The Los Alamos County Library System is hosting a living-history portrayal of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in honor of Women’s History Month March 18 at Fuller Lodge. Courtesy/LAC 

COUNTY News:

Los Alamos County Library System welcomes the community to attend a living-history portrayal of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in honor of Women’s History Month live at Fuller Lodge 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday, March 18.

The program, Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Notorious RBG, is free to the public and is made possible by the generous support of the New  Mexico Humanities Council. The event will also be livestreamed to accommodate those Read More

Bills To Improve Public Safety And Criminal Justice System Pass House Judiciary Committee

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Lead Bill Sponsor Rep. Meredith Dixon

DPNM News:

SANTA FE — The House Judiciary Committee passed two bills today that would make communities safer and improve the way our criminal justice system functions.  

House Bill 357 would establish a fund to help recruit and retain municipal and county law enforcement officers, as well as prosecutors and public defenders. Funds would go toward raises for current officers, relocation expenses for newly hired officers, and recruiting initiatives. 

“Adding more officers to our local police forces is an impactful, necessary step we can take to make our Read More

New Mexico Supreme Court Rules Juveniles Cannot Waive Right To Appeal A Decision To Sentence Them As Adults

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COURT News:

SANTA FE — The New Mexico Supreme Court ruled today that juveniles can challenge a judge’s decision to sentence them as adults for certain felonies even if a plea agreement waives their appeal rights.

In a unanimous opinion, the Court concluded that Christopher Rodriguez could appeal a district judge’s finding that he was not amenable to treatment as a juvenile and instead would be sentenced to prison as an adult.

“We will not declare an amenability determination – a determination that implicates the interests of the child, the child’s family, and society as a whole – nothing more Read More

FBI: Man Charged With Domestic Assault In Indian Country

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, has announced that Steven Williams was charged by complaint with assault with a deadly weapon and assault by strangulation.

Williams, 28, of the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, appeared in federal court today for a detention hearing and will remain in custody pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled.

According to the criminal complaint, over the course of three days in February, Williams allegedly beat his pregnant girlfriend, identified in court records as Jane Doe, so badly she needed Read More

American Bar Association Report Criticizes Fines & Fees System In New Mexico’s Courts

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ABA News:

CHICAGO — Nearly three years after announcing a national initiative to tackle pretrial justice issues, the public defense group of the American Bar Association (ABA) issued a report Friday critical of how New Mexico treats indigent defendants facing low-level charges, finding that too often they are assessed fines and fees they cannot afford and then jailed for their inability to pay.

The report, “Punishing the Poor: An Assessment of the Administration of Fines and Fees in New Mexico Misdemeanor Courts,” found that the Ten Guidelines on Court Fines and Fees adopted by the ABA Read More