Tag Archives: Criminal Procedure

NMSC: Defendant need not expressly state “I am guilty” to enter a valid guilty plea

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on October 8, 2019

In State v. Yancey, the Supreme Court held, in a unanimous opinion by Chief Justice Nakamura, that a criminal defendant need not expressly state “I am guilty” or “I plead guilty” in open court to enter a valid guilty plea. … Continue reading →

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GOP legislators ask NM Supreme Court to reconsider strict criminal case deadlines

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on December 2, 2015

Deborah Baker of the Albuquerque Journal has this story about a letter that 16 Republican state legislators sent to the New Mexico Supreme Court, asking it to relax strict deadlines it imposed on the prosecution of criminal cases in Bernalillo … Continue reading →

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Convictions upheld in 2010 murder of Albuquerque teenager

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on September 17, 2015

The New Mexico Supreme Court has issued a non-precedential opinion in State v. Pagan-Rivera, affirming convictions for murder and other crimes in connection with the November 2010 shooting death of eighteen-year-old Dwayne Johnson in Albuquerque. Justice Daniels wrote the opinion. For … Continue reading →

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New Mexico’s heightened search-and-seizure protections don’t apply at Mexican border

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on June 16, 2015

The New Mexico Constitution provides greater protection to citizens than the Fourth Amendment when it comes to searches and seizures. For example, in State v. Cardenas-Alvarez, the New Mexico Supreme Court held that at interior border control checkpoints (such as those … Continue reading →

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Cop-killer Michael Astorga’s convictions upheld by NM Supreme Court

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on February 17, 2015

In March 2006, Michael Astorga shot Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Deputy James McGrane during a traffic stop. On Friday, in an opinion by Justice Chavez, the New Mexico Supreme Court rejected Astorga’s arguments on appeal and upheld his conviction for first-degree … Continue reading →

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DWI lawyer Ron Bell prevails on appeal in his own DWI case

by Emil J. Kiehne Posted on September 11, 2014

Virtually everyone in Albuquerque has seen Ron Bell’s billboards and television commercials proclaiming his willingness to sue malefactors of all sorts; many of these include his catchphrase “I sue drunk drivers!” So some people experienced a fair amount of schadenfreude when Mr. Bell was arrested for … Continue reading →

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