New Mexico Supreme Court

The New Mexico Supreme Court issued an order Monday affirming a lower court’s ruling that the state’s congressional map is constitutional. The state Republican Party had appealed, arguing Democratic lawmakers “egregiously” gerrymandered the 2nd Congressional District, making it difficult for their party to win even one of the state’s three seats.

The state Supreme Court on Monday heard arguments in the New Mexico Republican Party’s appeal in a case that saw Democratic lawmakers cleared of accusations of egregious partisan gerrymandering in the state's 2nd Congressional District. The question before the high court is whether Democrats had to guarantee their party’s victory to have drawn the map illegally, or simply make it harder for the GOP to win.

The Republican Party of New Mexico has appealed a district court ruling on the state’s congressional map, which upheld it as constitutional.

The New Mexico Supreme Court this week sided with the state Republican Party in allowing its lawsuit alleging Democrats politically gerrymandered the new congressional map to be heard in district court. While it may look like a victory for the GOP, nonpartisan advocates for fair redistricting say it’s actually a win for all New Mexicans.

For the second year in a row, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has vetoed raises for the state’s judges and justices that the Legislature had approved.

The New Mexico House on Wednesday approved raises for state supreme court justices and lower court judges. The bill now heads to the governor who vetoed a similar proposal last year.

New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice C. Shannon Bacon touted accessibility initiatives and called on lawmakers to weigh the fiscal and human impact of criminal justice reforms in her State of the Judiciary address to a joint session of the New Mexico legislature Tuesday. She also urged legislators to better fund the coequal branch of government.

PNM's request for a rate hike is entangled with a case sitting in the state Supreme Court over when and how PNM should lower customer bills after shutting down a coal-fired power station earlier this year.

On any given day, up to 400,000 people with mental illnesses are in jails and prisons across the United States. That’s according to a report by the Legislative Finance Committee, which also found that people with mental health diagnoses are likely to spend more time behind bars. Now the New Mexico Supreme Court has created a new commission to address how the criminal justice system responds to those facing mental health issues.

After reviewing eviction diversion programs from other states like Illinois and Florida, the New Mexico Supreme Court last week announced its own, soon bringing an end to the state’s moratorium on evictions after 2 years. The state will transition to the new Eviction Prevention and Diversion Program – first with a pilot program in Eastern New Mexico starting February 1st, then the rest of the state will follow in March. Maria Griego from the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty told KUNM how it will work.