Courts

Youth Summit ‘Lifeline: Tools To Save A Life And Build One’ Empowers Teens With Life-Saving Skills & Community Connection

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Los Alamos High School Key Club provides cotton candy for youth summit participants. Courtesy/LAC

Juanita McNiel hosts a silent disco with the courts during the youth summit. Courtesy/LAC

COUNTY News:

Local youth gathered after hours at Mesa Public Library on March 6 for Lifeline: Tools to Save a Life and Build One, an interactive and impactful youth summit focused on prevention, connection, and practical life-saving skills.

Sponsored by Anchorum Health Foundation and Los Alamos County, the event brought together a wide range of community partners, including JJAB and the YMCA, to create Read More

Supreme Court Affirms Murder Conviction Of Albuquerque Man For Causing Death Of A Church Security Guard

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NMSC News:

SANTA FE — The state Supreme Court Monday upheld an Albuquerque man’s first-degree murder conviction for the death of a church security guard who he hit with a pickup truck in the church’s parking lot.

In a unanimous opinion written by Justice C. Shannon Bacon, the Court rejected arguments by Marc Ward that there was not enough evidence to support his conviction and that the trial court wrongly denied a request to instruct the jury on the crime of involuntary manslaughter. 

The justices also concluded there was no harm by the trial court’s decision to admit certain evidence by prosecutors Read More

New Mexico State Police Crime Reduction Operation Leads To Multiple Felony Arrests In San Juan County

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NMSP News:

SAN JUAN COUNTY — Wednesday, March 11, the New Mexico State Police (NMSP) Uniform Bureau partnered with the New Mexico Corrections Department’s Probation and Parole Division’s Security Threat Intelligence Unit (STIU) to conduct a coordinated crime reduction operation in San Juan County focused on locating and apprehending individuals who had absconded from probation and had active arrest warrants.

During the targeted enforcement effort, officers and agents worked together to locate individuals who had failed to comply with the terms of their probation and were actively Read More

Court Of Appeals To Display Artwork Of Middle School Students Who Practice Restorative Justice

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NMSC News:

ALBUQUERQUE — The state Court of Appeals will host an exhibition of artwork by students who follow restorative justice principles to resolve conflict and reduce harmful behavior at their middle school in Albuquerque.

About 20 students in the Circle Keepers program at Garfield STEM Magnet and Community Middle School will display their art from noon to 1 p.m., Wednesday, March 18, in the foyer of the Court of Appeals Building, which is next to the University of New Mexico School of Law. 

The artwork reflects the experiences of students in grades 6 through 8 who learn communication and Read More

Fifteen Los Alamos Residents File Candidacy For Office

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Top row from left, Rep. Christine Chandler, Magistrate Judge Catherine Taylor, Municipal Judge Elizabeth Allen, Assessor candidate Jeff Casalina, Sheriff candidate Antonio Maggiore. Center row from left, Sheriff candidate David Izraelevitz, County Council candidates David Hampton, Eric Stromberg, Jason Chappel, Joe Granville. Bottom row from left: Council candidate Marshall Maez, Councilor Melanee Hand, Council candidate Steve Lynne, Councilor Theresa Cull and Probate Judge Perry Clare all filed for the 2026 election. Collage created by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com

By Read More

Phillip G. Sapien Appointed Part-Time United States Magistrate Judge For District Of New Mexico

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Judge Phillip G. Sapien

COURT News:

ALBUQUERQUE — Friday, March 6, 2026, the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico appointed Phillip G. Sapien as Part-Time United States Magistrate Judge. The position, which is for a 4-year term, is located in Farmington.

Judge Sapien obtained his B.A. from the University of New Mexico (1988) and his J.D. from the University of Arizona College of Law (1991). He began his legal career at the New Mexico Public Defender’s Office in Albuquerque in 1992, where he represented several hundred clients charged with crimes ranging from petty misdemeanors Read More

NM Supreme Court To Hear Case In Portales For Rule Of Law Program April 1

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COURT News:

SANTA FE — Students will have an opportunity to see how courts resolve disputes when the New Mexico Supreme Court conducts an oral argument in April in Portales as a part of a civics education program.

The Court will hear attorneys present arguments on behalf of their clients in a criminal case for the Rule of Law Program at 1 p.m., April 1 at the University Theatre Center at Eastern New Mexico University. This is the sixth year for the program, which allows students to watch the court consider a case in person as well as online.

“The Rule of Law Program helps the law come alive for young people,” Read More

NMSP Arrests Juvenile For Homicide In Buena Vista

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NMSP News:

Feb. 20, 2026, at approximately 1:52 a.m., the New Mexico State Police (NMSP) Investigations Bureau investigated a homicide at 69 County Road C011 in Buena Vista, N.M. 

Earlier that morning, at approximately 12:44 a.m., NMSP Dispatch received a call regarding 10 to 15 gunshots being heard in the area of 69 County Road C011, possibly coming from a white pickup truck.

Approximately 2 minutes later, Uniform Bureau officers were dispatched to 69 County Road C011 in reference to a male who had been shot. Officers arrived on scene and observed individuals performing CPR on the victim, later Read More

New Mexico Courts Face Increasing Requests For Interpreting Services

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Post file photo

COURT News:

SANTA FE — New Mexico’s Judiciary is expanding its network of interpreters to help address a growing need for language access services for jurors and people in court cases who have a limited proficiency in English or are deaf or hard of hearing. 

Interpreting services were provided in 87 languages in New Mexico courts in the 2025 fiscal year. People requested about 50,300 hours of interpreting in FY25 — more than double from the 2021 fiscal year. The five most frequently requested languages were Spanish, American Sign Language (ASL), Navajo, Arabic and Vietnamese. Read More

FBI: Woman Pleads Guilty To Meth Trafficking

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — A Las Cruces woman has pleaded guilty to federal drug trafficking charges after more than 40 grams of methamphetamine was recovered during a traffic stop. 

According to court documents, investigators with the FBI Safe Streets Gang Task Force and the Las Cruces/Dona Ana Metro Narcotics unit conducted a joint investigation into Ivory Hernandez, 43, for trafficking, drugs, stolen vehicles and firearms. May 7, 2025, investigators attempted to conduct a traffic stop on Hernandez’s vehicle between Anthony and Las Cruces, New Mexico. Hernandez initially slowed down Read More