Judge Robert E. Robles
N.M. Court of Appeals Judge Robert E. Robles pleaded guilty today to drunken driving, and it’s now up to the Supreme Court to decide whether he gets to keep his job.
Robles, who had been charged with aggravated DWI, pleaded guilty to one count of first-time DWI. He was sentenced to one year of probation, community service, and use of an ignition interlock device for a year, The Associated Press is reporting.
He must also undergo alcohol screening and complete DWI school.
Robles was arrested in Albuquerque in February after reportedly running a red light at 50 mph and nearly crashing his car into a police officer’s vehicle. Police say he had a breath-alcohol concentration of .20, nearly 2.5 times the legal limit.
Following his arrest, Robles apologized for “an egregious error in judgment,” voluntarily placed himself on unpaid administrative leave and reported himself to the state’s Judicial Standards Commission. Soon thereafter, the Supreme Court formalized Robles’ leave by suspending him without pay pending the conclusion of his criminal case.
Robles appeared to indicate when he apologized last month that he intends to stay on the bench. He said he hoped his apology would be “the first indication of my profound remorse” and a sign of his “commitment to do my best to restore your confidence in me as your public servant.”
Some, including the head of the state’s DWI Resource Center, have called for Robles to resign.
He’s not the first judge to have problems with DWI in recent years. In 2002, District Judge Thomas Cornish of Las Cruces pleaded guilty to DWI and resigned. Two years later, John Brannan, the chief district judge in Bernalillo County, pleaded guilty to aggravated DWI and possessing cocaine and left the bench.
Then in 2005, Socorro County Chief District Judge Thomas Fitch left the bench after pleading guilty to an aggravated DWI charge that stemmed from him rolling a state-owned van into a ditch.
Whether the Supreme Court will allow Robles to return to work or remove him from the bench remains to be seen.