Carlsbad, New Mexico criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant writ of habeas corpus case.


Does the Earned Meritorious Deductions Act (EMDA) create a liberty interest protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. NMSA 1978, § 33-2-34 (2015); see Miller v. Tafoya, 2003-NMSC-025, ¶¶ 12, 23, 134 N.M. 335, 76 P.3d 1092. In this case, we discuss the differenc... More...    $0 (11-18-2024 - NM)

Albuquerque, New Mexico defendant was charged with two counts of first-degree murder.

Smith met Cari Talton, age 26, and Leslie McDonnell, age 18, on August 8 at a party at Smith’s house.

On August 12, 1977, the bodies of Talton and McDonnell were found in a corral near Mountainair in Torrance County, New Mexico. Both women had been shot to death with a shotgun. Autopsies in... More...    $0 (03-05-1978 - NM)

Defendant was charged with residential burglary, unlawful taking of a motor 8 vehicle, stalking, larceny, and escape or attempt to escape from a peace officer on 9 June 21, 2012. Defendant’s charges stemmed from an event on May 22, 2012, 10 involving Defendant’s ex-girlfriend, E. Ramirez. Defendant and Ms. Ramirez had 11 been involved in a two-year relationship and had a child together in March 2... More...    $0 (08-09-2018 - NM)

When he illegally reentered the United States after completing a prison term in
this country and then being deported to Mexico, Martin Saavedra–Villasenor violated a
condition of his supervised release: that he not commit any more crimes. And Mr.
Saavedra1 did not deny that he had committed a federal crime by returning to the United
 After examining the briefs and appellate... More...    $0 (06-20-2018 - NM)

Defendant Wilbur M. Stejskal (Defendant) appeals an amended judgment
4 and sentence entered two years after the entry of his original judgment and sentence.
5 By changing the word “concurrent” to the word “consecutive,” the amended judgment
6 has the practical effect of increasing Defendant’s term of incarceration from nine
7 years to ten years. On appeal, Defendant asserts that, ... More...    $0 (05-27-2018 - NM)

Abraham Gonzalez-Alarcon filed a habeas petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241
alleging specific facts which, if proven, would demonstrate that he is a United States
citizen. He seeks release from custody from Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(“ICE”) following ICE’s reinstatement of a prior order of removal on that basis.
Dismissing Gonzalez-Alarcon’s petition, the district court concl... More...    $0 (03-20-2018 - NM)

Defendant Dennis Miera met Margarita Burciaga (Margarita) in 2000. The two
18 began dating, and eventually moved in together. When the relationship ended in the
19 spring of 2003, the couple split amicably, and Defendant continued to babysit
2
1 Margarita’s children. In the summer of 2006, Defendant had agreed to watch G.M.,
2 Margarita’s eight-year-old daughter. Before the vis... More...    $0 (11-29-2017 - NM)

Following a preliminary hearing in the magistrate court in Carlsbad, New
13 Mexico, the district attorney filed a criminal information in the district court charging
14 Defendant with eighteen counts of sexual exploitation of children (possession) in
15 violation of Section 30-6A-3(A). Pursuant to State v. Olsson, 2014-NMSC-012, 324
16 P.3d 1230, an amended criminal complaint was ... More...    $0 (11-08-2017 - NM)

3 Defendant Jesus Castro was charged with two counts of criminal sexual
4 penetration. Defendant had two trials; the first resulted in a mistrial, and thirty-two
5 months later, after the second trial, a jury convicted him of one count of forced penile
6 penetration. The delay was due to multiple continuances, attorney motions to
7 withdraw from the case, the mistrial, ... More...    $0 (08-24-2017 - NM)

Defendant was indicted on 211 counts, including 52 counts of securities fraud,
18 52 counts of prohibited conduct in providing investment advice, 52 counts of fraud,1
52 counts of forgery, two counts of theft of identity, and one count of conspiracy to
2 commit securities fraud. Following Defendant’s plea of not guilty, the State filed a
3 motion to set conditions of release. Afte... More...    $0 (04-10-2017 - NM)

Defendant was indicted on 211 counts, including 52 counts of securities fraud,
18 52 counts of prohibited conduct in providing investment advice, 52 counts of fraud,1
1 52 counts of forgery, two counts of theft of identity, and one count of conspiracy to
2 commit securities fraud. Following Defendant’s plea of not guilty, the State filed a
3 motion to set conditions of release. Af... More...    $0 (04-05-2017 - NM)

We granted en banc review in this case because it involves a clear failure of
the trial court to ask the defendant if he had anything to say on his behalf before
imposing sentence—a failure to personally address the defendant and offer an
opportunity to allocute. Because our jurisprudence has been somewhat contradictory,
we also chose to grant en banc rehearing in order to refine t... More...    $0 (03-03-2017 - NM)

The appellate process in New Mexico has evolved in tandem with our court
17 system, and an overview of the historical development of our courts provides helpful
18 background for understanding the issues in this case. The structure of New Mexico’s
19 judicial system can be traced back to prestatehood laws. See State v. Ball, 1986
2
1 NMSC-030, ¶¶ 17-21, 104 N.M. 176, 718 P.2d ... More...    $0 (06-14-2016 - NM)

Defendant advances two arguments. First, he contends that sentence imposed5
by the district court exceeds the maximum allowable sentence. [MIO 5-9] He suggests6
that the sentence is illegal insofar as it fails to award him pre-sentence confinement7
credit, specifically contending that the nearly six-month period between the time of8
his arrest and the time of sentencing was not p... More...    $0 (02-16-2016 - NM)

Defendant Dorall Smith appeals his convictions for first-degree murder,
4 contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 30-2-1(A)(1) (1994), and criminal damage to
5 property, contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 30-15-1 (1963). Defendant challenges his
6 convictions on ten grounds, arguing that: (1) there was insufficient evidence of
7 deliberate intent to support a conviction for first-degree murder... More...    $0 (02-15-2016 - NM)

THIS MATTER comes before the Court on the Motion for Release Pending Appeal, filed February 6, 2015 (Doc. 195)("Motion"). The primary issues are: (i) whether Defendant Thomas R. Rodella has presented a substantial question that, if answered in his favor, would likely result in a new trial; and (ii) whether Rodella has shown exceptional circumstances, which are required for a violent offender to be... More...    $0 (01-03-2016 - NM)

Defendant and Justin Mark arrived at Kevin Lossiah’s apartment the morning of May 29, 2011. Initially, Lossiah’s neighbors saw Defendant and Mark outside Lossiah’s apartment. Neighbor Wesley Gray talked to Defendant briefly before returning to his apartment. Moments later Gray and his wife Nicole Beyale heard banging coming from Lossiah’s apartment and someone yelling “Please stop! Shut up!” Beya... More...    $0 (12-29-2015 - NM)

THIS MATTER comes before the Court on the Motion to Suppress, filed August 7, 2014 (Doc. 675)("Motion"). The Court held evidentiary hearings on the Motion on January 22, 2015, January 28, 2015, and January 30, 2015. The primary issues are: (i) whether the United States Drug Enforcement Agency's investigation of the Homero Varela Drug-Trafficking Organization ("Varela DTO") gave Luis Almonte and Ma... More...    $0 (12-02-2015 - NM)

Theresa Vigil, her daughter Natalie Vigil, and Natalie’s boyfriend Austin Urban11
all lived in Santa Fe in a trailer they rented from Defendant. Defendant lived in the12
trailer next door. In October 2011 Defendant and Theresa entered into an oral lease13
agreement for $300 per month to be paid on the twenty-third of each month.14
Defendant kept a notebook titled “rental agreement,... More...    $0 (10-27-2015 - NM)

Defendant Raul Cruz was convicted by a jury of knowingly and intentionally
possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§
841(a)(1), (b)(1)(B), and 18 U.S.C. § 2, and sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 63
months. Cruz’s conviction and sentence were affirmed on direct appeal. United States v.
Cruz, 680 F.3d 1261, 1262 (10th Cir. 2012) (Cr... More...    $0 (12-22-2014 - NM)

{1} Three of the remainder beneficiaries (Beneficiaries) of their father’s two testamentary
trusts appeal a judgment awarding them damages in an amount lower than they claimed that
the trust Beneficiaries were entitled to recover. The trustee, Bank of America (the Bank),
cross-appeals. The Bank’s cross-appeal challenges the court’s determination of liability. We
deny the Bank... More...    $0 (12-10-2013 - NM)

What started as a routine inspection of Norman Washington Berry’s commercial tractor-trailer at a New Mexico port of entry eventually revealed boxes of marijuana nestled in with his load of cantaloupe. A jury convicted Berry of possession with intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. He complains about a “permissive inferenceâ€� instruction given to the jury and claims the evid... More...    $0 (06-26-2013 - NM)

{1} This case comes to this Court on direct appeal from an order issued by the First Judicial District Court granting a writ of habeas corpus. For reasons that follow, we reverse the district court, dismiss the petition for a writ of habeas corpus, and reinstate the sanctions imposed by the New Mexico Corrections Department (NMCD).

BACKGROUND

{2} Joseph C. Perry, Petitioner, is a... More...    $0 (11-08-2012 - NM)

Alvin Valenzuela, an enrolled member of the Tohono O’odham Nation (the “Nationâ€�), through counsel, filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus pursuant to 25 U.S.C. § 1303 seeking relief from tribal court convictions and his sentence. While Mr. Valenzuela’s petition was pending in federal district court, he completed his sentence and was released from prison. The district court concluded t... More...    $0 (11-15-2012 - NM)

{1} “There is nothing which so generally strikes the imagination, and engages the affections of mankind, as the right of property.â€� 2 William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England 2 (Univ. of Chicago Press ed. 1979) (1766). The property that has captured the affections of the litigants in this case is a parcel of land located in San Juan County with productive oil and gas wells there... More...    $0 (08-24-2012 - NM)

A New Mexico jury convicted John Gould, a former prison guard, of two counts of depriving an inmate of his rights under color of law, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 242, and two counts of filing a false report, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1512(b)(3). These convictions arose out of Gould’s use of excessive force against two inmates in two different detention centers, and his subsequent filing of f... More...    $0 (02-28-2012 - NM)

{1} This case requires us to determine whether the community property trust created by a married couple granted the surviving spouse the power to amend the trust’s remainder distribution schedule after the death of the first spouse. The Court of Appeals upheld the affirmative answer to that question by the district court solely on the theory that the surviving spouse’s undisputed right to with... More...    $0 (03-23-2010 - NM)

{1} This case requires us to determine whether the community property trust created by a married couple granted the surviving spouse the power to amend the trust’s remainder distribution schedule after the death of the first spouse. The Court of Appeals upheld the affirmative answer to that question by the district court solely on the theory that the surviving spouse’s undisputed right to with... More...    $0 (03-23-2010 - NM)

Steffan Hobbs, by and through his parents as next friends, sued several employees of the New Mexico Human Services Department (“NMHSDâ€�) following that agency’s denial of Hobbs’ application for Medicaid benefits. NMHSD’s denial turned on its determination that a certain trust was a “countable resourceâ€� because the trust was not being administered for Hobbs’ sole benefit. Hobbs advan... More...    $0 (09-01-2009 - NM)

This is a case in which the Attorney General for the State of New Mexico (AG) seeks unrestricted money damages exclusively under state law for groundwater contamination in Albuquerque's South Valley. The district court granted summary judgment to Defendants General Electric (GE) and ACF Industries (ACF) because the AG "failed to raise genuine issues of material fact on the essential elements o... More...    $0 (11-03-2006 - NM)

Petitioner Jerry Serrano, a New Mexico state prisoner, appeals from the district court's order dismissing his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for a writ of habeas corpus. The district court determined that Mr. Serrano failed to file his petition within the one-year limitations period provided for in the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 ("AEDPA"). See 28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)(1). We... More...    $0 (09-14-2004 - NM)

In this prisoner suit, plaintiff Michael Rene Ross brings Eighth Amendment claims against several defendants alleging that a slippery shower floor was unreasonably dangerous and that he did not receive appropriate medical attention after falling in the shower and injuring his shoulder. Applying a total exhaustion rule, the district court dismissed these claims without prejudice for failure to e... More...    $0 (05-03-2004 - NM)

Mr. Chen is a native and citizen of Taiwan who entered the United States in 1982, at the age of twenty-three, as a lawful permanent resident. On September 25, 1995, after pleading guilty, a Georgia state district court convicted Mr. Chen of possession and sale of marijuana, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Mr. Chen ... More...    $0 (01-14-2004 - NM)

{1} The State appeals directly to this Court from an order of the district court granting Petitioner's writ of habeas corpus challenging the loss of good-time credits following a disciplinary hearing. See Rule 5-802(H)(1) NMRA 2002 (allowing for an appeal as of right by the State when a writ of habeas corpus is granted); Rule 12-102(A)(3) NMRA 2002 (providing that such appeals shall be take... More...    $0 (12-19-2002 - NM)