A judge is arrested for drunken driving and cocaine possession. Another is indicted for rape and bribery. A third resigns after being found incompetent to stand trial on charges stemming from a motorcycle crash. A series of egregious incidents involving New Mexico judges in 2004 led to a dramatic increase in funding for and, as a result, activity of the Judicial Standards Commission, the state body charged with holding judges accountable to the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Thirty-four percent of petitions for discipline or temporary suspension of judges filed by the 38-year-old commission have come since Jan. 1, 2004. In
The increase in activity has been controversial. Some say the system is flawed and judges aren’t being treated fairly. Others defend the system, which was created by a constitutional amendment approved by voters in the 1960s.
In this special report, Heath Haussamen on New Mexico Politics examines the commission, its role and whether the system is just.
Part 1: A crackdown on misbehaving judges
Monday, Sept. 11, 2006
John Brennan couldn’t have known when he tried to evade a DWI checkpoint in
Click here to read the article.
Part 2: Has the commission gone too far?
Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2006
Some in
Click here to read the article.
Part 3: Will the system change?
Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2006
The increase in the Judicial Standards Commission’s funding and activity has led to scrutiny that could result in changes to the system for holding judges accountable to the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Click here to read the article.
Part 4: Legislators investigate
Thursday, Sept. 14, 2006
Two attorneys and a judge criticized the judicial discipline process and suggested changes to improve the system during a candid legislative committee hearing Thursday in
Click here to read the article.
Other articles
Legislators’ criticism of commission doesn’t tell the whole story
Friday, Sept. 15, 2006
Click here to read the article.
***
Six