Legislator’s bid for jury trial in DWI is rejected
Judge rules out option, says possible sentence too short
SANTA FE — A state judge on Thursday rejected state Sen. Richard Martinez’s request for a jury to determine whether he should be convicted of a drunken driving charge, clearing the way for a two-day bench trial later this month.
Martinez, D-Ojo Caliente, is facing charges of aggravated DWI and reckless driving stemming from a June 28 crash in which the SUV he was driving rear-ended another vehicle that was
stopped at a red light in Española.
His request for a jury trial was denied by District Judge Francis Mathew, who said that the court system has limited resources and that previous court rulings have established that criminal defendants are entitled to jury trials only in cases in which they face potential sentences of more than six months in prison.
Martinez has been charged with aggravated DWI and reckless driving, both of which carry penalties of no more than 90 days.
“There is no right to a jury trial in this case,” Mathew said during a Thursday hearing in Santa Fe.
Attorney General Hector Balderas’ office, which is prosecuting the case against Martinez, had not opposed the jury trial request but had expressed concern about it delaying the case and affecting legal deadlines.
The AG’s Office also recently modified its charges against Martinez, adding an alternative count of aggravated drunken driving that hinges on injuries suffered by the occupants of the car Martinez crashed into. The original charge hinges on the senator’s refusal to submit to a breath test to determine blood alcohol content.
Martinez’s defense attorney, David Foster, argued Thursday that the alternative count should be dismissed, because it was not filed until a month before the case goes to trial.
But that motion was also denied by the judge, who said it did not unduly affect Martinez’s defense.
Martinez, who has served in the Senate since 2001, could not successfully perform sobriety tests after the June 28 crash, as shown on police lapel-cam video. He later pleaded with an Española police officer not to arrest him.
The veteran senator, a retired Rio Arriba County magistrate judge, has said he does not plan to resign from the Legislature, even if convicted, and intends to run for a new four-year term in 2020.
He also said recently that he feels he can still serve ably as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, saying the experience could end up making him a “better senator.”
Mathew is the eighth judge assigned to the case. The seven previous judges either recused themselves or were bumped off the case by Martinez’s defense attorney or the AG’s Office.
The two-day trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 18.