A
Judge's job is to apply the law to
the facts of the case and make
decisions consistent with the
Constitution and the written law.
This must always be done fairly,
impartially and with integrity. All
people who come before the Court
must be treated with respect.
The
individual's rights must be balanced
with the rights of the community.
One of the first things that a Judge
does in the courtroom on any given
case is to decide conditions of
release for the accused. In reaching
that decision the Judge must look
at the facts of the crime that has
been charged, the background of the
accused and the safety of the
community. As in other decisions
made in the courtroom, the
individual's rights must be balanced
with the rights of the community.
During the time up to and including
trial, the Judge must make legal
decisions, applying New Mexico
Statutory law, case law and the laws
of the Constitutions of New Mexico
and of the United States. Again,
these decisions must be made fairly
and impartially based upon a firm
foundation of both knowledge of the
law and experience in the courtroom.
I
have the legal knowledge and the
courtroom experience that make me
the best qualified to make those
decisions fairly, impartially and
decisively. With 12 years of
prosecution experience and 10 years
of defense experience in the
District Courts I am uniquely
positioned to be a judge.
The
judge issues the sentence once the
jury has rendered its verdict. I
believe that in sentencing the
rights of individuals and the rights
of the community must be balanced.
Each crime and each offender must be
considered individually and the
punishment must be just for both the
individual and the people of
Bernalillo County.
Two
types of people find themselves in a
courtroom: those who have made
mistakes but are not career
criminals and those who have
repeatedly broken laws and violated
our community's citizens.
For
the former, the State District Court
has some excellent programs. Drug
court helps those with drug/alcohol
problems break the addictions that
lead to criminal behavior and allows
them to return to their productive
place in our community. The Judicial
Supervision Program (formerly Mental Health
Court) provides therapy and
counseling for those with mental
health issues so they can obtain
housing, acquire job skills and
improve their situation.
These two services provide excellent
alternatives for offenders and
positive options for the judge in
sentencing.
The
latter, who have repeatedly broken
laws and violated our community,
must be punished with an appropriate
sentence as directed by our state
laws and sentencing requirements.
There are also those whose crimes
are so damaging and who are so
dangerous that they must be
incarcerated so our community is
protected from them.
