Mary Lynne Newell
The head of the state district attorney’s association has disclosed how each district attorney voted during two recent votes on whether to continue an automated system that notifies victims and others of court hearings.
During the first vote, those who wanted to accept an offer from the company that provides the service to continue the system free for two months while they seek long-term funding were:
- Third Judicial District Attorney Amy Orlando
- Ninth Judicial District Attorney Matt Chandler
- Tenth Judicial District Attorney Ronald Reeves
- Eleventh Judicial Division 1 District Attorney Robert “Rick” Tedrow
- Eleventh Judicial Division 2 District Attorney Karl Gillson
- Thirteenth Judicial District Attorney Lemuel Martinez
Those who wanted to reject the offer and shut down the system on June 30 were:
- First Judicial District Attorney Angela “Spence” Pacheco
- Second Judicial District Attorney Kari Brandenburg
- Fourth Judicial District Attorney Richard Flores
- Fifth Judicial District Attorney Janetta Hicks
- Sixth Judicial District Attorney Mary Lynne Newell
- Seventh Judicial District Attorney Clint Wellborn
- Eighth Judicial District Attorney Donald Gallegos
- Twelfth Judicial District Attorney Diana Martwick
That’s according to Newell, the president of the DA’s association.
Later, the DAs reversed that vote. During the second vote, Newell said those voting in favor of keeping the system going for another two months were Chandler, Gillson, Martinez, Martwick, Orlando, Reeves, Tedrow and Wellborn. Brandenburg, Hicks and Newell voted against it, and the others didn’t vote.
As things stand now, the system is continuing for two months while DAs seek long-term funding. NMPolitics.net first reported last Thursday that the state’s DAs were scrambling to save the VINE, or Victim Information and Notification Everyday, system, which provides automated notification about defendants’ incarceration status and court hearings, after Gov. Susana Martinez pocket vetoed a funding bill she said was flawed.
Federal funding for the separate courts and jails systems ended June 30. The district attorneys always intended to take the company that provides the system up on its offer to keep the jail system going for two free months while they sought other funding.
But they originally voted to shut down the courts system and develop their own in-house. Newell cautioned in an e-mail against people making “any conclusion from negative votes as to the reasons behind them.” She said in her district, it would be “quite easy” to keep an existing in-house court notification system in place. She also said the district attorneys could have a statewide in-house system running by the fall if their programmer didn’t have to work on VINE – and given the governor’s veto, she believes this is the best option.
“This does not mean that I did not support VINE when it seemed its funding could be solidified and its growth continued,” Newell said. “It would have lessened my advocates’ load if it gave victims a fully functional system.”
Newell’s disclosure of how each district attorney voted is a shift. Last week, she refused to release the vote tallies, saying the DAs “abide by majority vote, and always have. We are an amicable bunch and we aim to keep it that way.”
During follow-up e-mails, she asserted that the DAs, though they vote as a group on issues, are not subject to the state’s Open Meetings Act. But when pressed about whether there are any records of the vote tallies that are subject to the Inspection of Public Records Act, she released the tallies.