A Las Cruces magistrate judge is stepping down to avoid being disciplined by the N.M. Supreme Court, the Las Cruces Sun-News is reporting.
From the newspaper:
“Las Cruces Magistrate Court Judge Olivia Nevarez Garcia, the wife of New Mexico higher education secretary Jose Z. Garcia, agreed to accept permanent retirement effective at 5 p.m. on Dec. 31, according to an order unsealed Monday by the New Mexico Supreme Court.
“A petition detailing the allegations against Garcia, 68, was not immediately available Monday.
“However, the Supreme Court’s order says the first of three inquiries began in September, 2010 and that the Judicial Standards Commission voted unanimously Nov. 4 to accept her retirement ‘in lieu of further disciplinary proceedings.’”
The Sun-News doesn’t yet have a copy of the Judicial Standards Commission’s petition for discipline, which details the allegations against Garcia, and the newspaper reported no details about the allegations. I called the Supreme Court Clerk’s Office to ask for a faxed copy of the petition – which is how I normally obtain such documents from that office – and was told this one is “too lengthy” to fax.
As part of her agreement with the commission, Garcia, a Democrat who was first appointed to the bench in 2005, won’t be able to hold judicial office in New Mexico again, the Sun-News reported.
Read the full Sun-News article here.
Update, 6:45 p.m.
The Sun-News has updated its article with details about the allegations:
“Las Cruces Magistrate Court Judge Olivia Nevarez Garcia, 68, is alleged to have prevented a defendant in one case from having the help of attorney, advised another defendant during plea negotiations, and misapplied landlord-tenant law and disparaged a hard-of-hearing litigant in that case.
“While she did not admit wrongdoing in any of the three cases in question, Garcia, the wife of New Mexico Higher Education Secretary Jose Z. Garcia, agreed to accept permanent retirement effective at 5 p.m. on Dec. 31, according to an order unsealed Monday by the New Mexico Supreme Court.”
Updated, 7:10 p.m.
You can read the agreement between Garcia and the Judicial Standards Commission, which includes details about the allegations, here.