Category Archives: New Mexico Court of Appeals

NMCA: Whistleblower who recovered no damages still entitled to attorney’s fees and costs

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on November 6, 2019

While employed by the Town of Taos, Joseph Maestas was caught viewing pornography on his work computer, and was fired two weeks later. He then sued the Town under the Whistleblower Protection Act. Although he admitted to viewing pornography on … Continue reading →

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NMCA: Testimony about threatening text did not violate best evidence rule where victim’s phone could not be unlocked

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 24, 2019

Thomas Stevenson appealed his conviction for shooting into a motor vehicle. He argued that the victim’s nephew’s testimony about a threatening text that Stevenson allegedly sent to the victim was inadmissible under the best evidence rule, because the State should … Continue reading →

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NMCOA rejects challenge to radar technology used to determine drivers’ speed

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 18, 2019

Defendant Juan Garcia was convicted of driving 78 miles per hour in a 65-mile-per-hour speed zone, based on the testimony of a police officer who used radar technology to determine his speed. On appeal, Garcia argued that expert testimony was … Continue reading →

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Congratulations to the new Chief Judge of the New Mexico Court of Appeals, Miles Hanisee

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 16, 2019

Judge Miles Hanisee was recently sworn in as Chief Judge of the New Mexico Court of Appeals. He takes over from Judge Monica Zamora, who served in the post since January. Chief Judge Hanisee was originally appointed to the Court … Continue reading →

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NMCA issues another opinion on UM/UIM insurance

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 9, 2019

New Mexico’s appellate courts have issued a long line of decisions dealing with uninsured and underinsured motorist in insurance. In fact, last year I made my own contribution to the genre. This week the Court of Appeals issued another UM/UIM … Continue reading →

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Judge Zachary Ives’ campaign website is now up

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 9, 2019

You can find it here. I have not yet heard whether Judge Ives will face any opposition in the Democratic primary, or any opposition in next year’s general election. But I’ll let you know when I know.

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NMCA: Juvenile “used” BB gun in assault despite not brandishing or referring to it

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 3, 2019

This case presents an interesting issue of textual interpretation — what does it mean to “use” a weapon? I would not be surprised to see our Supreme Court take up this case: Suspecting that 12-year old Zachariah G. had some … Continue reading →

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NMCA: Instructing jury on offense for which the defendant was never charged is fundamental error

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 3, 2019

The defendant was charged with escape from jail, but the jury was instructed on the separate offense of escape from an inmate-release program. No objection was made. In State v. Grubb (opinion by Chief Judge Monica Zamora), the Court of … Continue reading →

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The New Mexico Court of Appeals has changed the way it assigns panels and authorships

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on September 17, 2019

In an effort to overcome the present backlog of cases, the Court of Appeals has changed the way it is assigning cases to panels, at least for awhile. In the past, the clerk’s office would assign each judge nine cases … Continue reading →

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NMCA: Albuquerque police are immune from claims that they botched an investigation of the death of prominent lawyer Mary Han

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on September 17, 2019

Mary Han was a prominent civil rights lawyer in Albuquerque whose untimely death has attracted both attention and litigation. In this lawsuit, Ms. Han’s daughter, and the personal representative of her estate, sued the City of Albuquerque and some of … Continue reading →

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