Senate panel changes, OKs child porn bill

SANTA FE — A bill aimed at toughening New Mexico’s child pornography laws is steaming toward Gov. Susana Martinez’s desk, but it looks a lot different from the way it did just a week ago.

The bill, which cleared the House on Jan. 26 on a 60-2 vote and has been pushed by Attorney General Hector Balderas, appeared to face long odds in the Democraticcontrolled Senate after being assigned to three committees — a typically ominous sign.

But the bill got a makeover before its first Senate committee and was then approved unanimously.

On Monday, it was placed on the agenda of its next assigned Senate committee — the Senate Judiciary Com- mittee — but was not brought up for a vote.

House Bill 65, after its makeover, now calls for penalties for possession, distribution and manufacturing of child pornography to be increased. For instance, those convicted of child porn possession could face nine years in prison, instead of the current 18-month maximum sentence.

In its original form, the bill had called for prosecutors to be able — but not required — to go after defendants for each image or depiction of child pornography they possess. The new version no longer does that.

Rep. Sarah Maestas Barnes, R-Albuquerque, the bill’s sponsor, said that the changes were tough to swallow but that she ultimately agreed to them to increase the measure’s chances of passing the Senate.

Balderas, a Democrat, said he also still supports the legislation, despite its makeover.

“I am pleased that my colleagues in the Senate agree that these atrocious crimes should carry a nine-year penalty,” Balderas said Monday. “We now need to ensure that this law passes constitutional muster and makes it clear to offenders that they are facing the penalty associated with a second-degree felony.”

Criminal defense attorneys and other critics have said this year’s bill, in its original form, would be overly harsh and could lead to those convicted of possessing child porn receiving longer sentences than murderers.

Last year, a bill aimed at closing what some describe as a loophole in the state’s child pornography laws stalled in the Senate after passing the House without opposition.

The proposals are in response to a 2014 state Supreme Court ruling. Under that ruling, an individual can be charged with only a single count of child porn possession, even if the individual possessed hundreds or thousands of images.

House Speaker Don Tripp, R-Socorro, told the Journal he expects to see revisions to other crime-related bills in the final days of this year’s 30-day session as lawmakers look to keep their bills moving.

“I’m sure a lot of them will be changed,” he said.