New Mexico Legislative Updates from the House Republican Caucus:
Driver’s License Compromise Passes House Judiciary Committee
Santa Fe, NM – Compromise legislation that will end the dangerous practice of giving New Mexico driver’s licenses illegal immigrants passed the House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 7-6 Monday. The compromise bill, HB 99, is sponsored by Reps. Paul Pacheco and Andy Nunez.
“Today we saw another victory for this legislation,” Pacheco said. “New Mexicans have spoken and they want to stop giving driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants. Sen. Michael Sanchez and Senate Democrats need to start listening to New Mexicans and agree on our compromise.”
Since this practice became law, House Republicans have fought to get it off the books, but Democrats blocked the legislation. This bill is an effort compromise with Senate Democrats by granting illegal immigrants driving privilege cards instead of New Mexico driver’s licenses.
“I’m looking forward to presenting this bill on the House Floor,” Nunez said. “It’s about time New Mexicans get this win.”
California, Nevada, Utah and Colorado use similar approaches to the system proposed in the bill. Gov. Susana Martinez has said she supports this compromise. It heads to a vote on the House Floor next.
Rep. Maestas Barnes’ funding request to reduce rape-kit backlog passes House Judiciary Committee
Bill passes committee on a unanimous vote
Santa Fe, NM – A bill by Representative Sarah Maestas Barnes to provide an additional $1.2 million to the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to reduce the backlog of unprocessed rape kits in New Mexico unanimously passed the House Judiciary Committee today.
Maestas Barnes’ request, HB 130, would allow DPS to hire additional full-time staff to process the backlog of over 5,000 untested rape kits in New Mexico. Some of these unprocessed kits date back to the 1980s.
“The existence of this backlog seriously hurts the victims of sexual violence,” Maestas Barnes said. “When we allow these kits to remain untested after years, sometimes decades, we’re allowing sexual predators to roam free to commit more crimes. This backlog is must be eliminated to bring these criminals to justice.”
Also, the committee approved Maestas Barnes’ request to provide $1 million to the Department of Health to contract with rape crisis centers across the state to provide trauma-informed counseling services to victims of sexual assault. The funding would be used by the centers to meet the increased need for victim services.
“The services provided by these centers are critical for rape survivors to heal from their traumatic experiences,” said Maestas Barnes. “My goal with this appropriation is to ensure that victims of sexual assault have access to the resources necessary to help them through the recovery process.”
Legislation to Give Judges Full Picture of Criminal Histories Passes Committee
Santa Fe, NM – A bill that will give judges access to the full criminal histories of violent offenders passed the House Regulatory and Public Affairs Committee by a 7-0 vote. House Bill 72, also called Jaydon’s Law, is sponsored by Reps. Nate Gentry and Paul Pacheco.
“Currently, judges don’t have access to a complete view a criminal defendants violent criminal history,” Gentry said. “This bill will give them the information they need to make fully informed sentencing and pre-trial decisions.”
Current law prohibits judges from considering the juvenile record of an adult offender during bond and sentencing decisions. Jaydon’s Law would change the Criminal Procedure Act to allow judges to review an adult defendant’s prior record as a youth offender. It will also give judges access to other information, such as evidence presented during past hearings for youth offenses.
The bill would not apply to juvenile offenses committed prior to the age of 14 or to juvenile delinquent offenses. It is targeted specifically at older juveniles found guilty of committing serious violent youth offenses such as second degree murder, aggravated battery and rape.
“It’s crucial that judges have the information they need to make these important decisions,” Pacheco said. “This bill will help judges keep criminals who have a long record of violent offenses off the streets.”
The bill is named after Jaydon Chavez-Silver, an Albuquerque teen who was gunned down during a drive-by shooting while he was attending a house party.
Bipartisan Legislation to Allow Local Governments to Implement Curfews Passes First Committee
Santa Fe, NM – Today bipartisan legislation that would authorize local governments to impose curfews on minors under the age of 16 from midnight to 5 a.m. passed the House Regulatory and Public Affairs Committee by a 4-3 vote. The bill, HB 29, is sponsored by Rep. Nate Gentry and Democrat Rep. Carl Trujillo.
“No good can come from young teens roaming the streets after midnight,” Gentry said. “This legislation will protect our children from the dangerous situations that result from unsupervised minors being out on the street during the early morning hours.”
The legislation was crafted in response to recent violent incidents involving minors. Steven Gerecke was gunned down in his driveway by six minors at 3 a.m. in June last year. Also, a 14-year-old student, Isaiah Albright, was shot and killed around 2 a.m. at Pat Hurley Park on Albuquerque’s Westside by another minor a month later.
The legislation is supported by Albuquerque Westside City Councilor Ken Sanchez.
Currently, law enforcement has little authority to detain children out during school hours or at night without reasonable suspicion that a crime is being committed. This bill would allow officers to detain minors, and it would provide guidelines on how law enforcement should handle children who are caught violating a curfew. This legislation would prohibit children from being placed in secure settings for violating a curfew.
Additionally, the bill provides a variety of exemptions for children who have reason to be out during the regulated times, such as if they are participating in a school function, accompanied by their parent or guardian, or attending a civic or religious function. This legislation excludes emancipated youth from its provisions.