New Mexico attorney general directs staff to revive two criminal cases dismissed by Gallup DA

SANTA FE — New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said Friday he had directed prosecutors in his office to take over two criminal cases that had been dropped by the McKinley County district attorney.

Both the cases in question, a 2023 rape case and a 2022 murder case, were dismissed by Gallup-based District Attorney Bernadine Martin, who cited conflicts of interest but did not refer them to an outside prosecutor.

“Our top priority is ensuring that victims of violent crime are never denied their day in court,” Torrez said in a statement. “The decision to dismiss these cases without properly referring them to another prosecutor jeopardized not only the pursuit of justice for the victims and their families, but also the safety of our communities.”

Martin, who was reelected last year, has come under criticism from local judges and law enforcement officials for high case dismissal rates and the handling of her office.

After being asked to investigate by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, the attorney general filed a petition with the Supreme Court last week seeking to remove Martin from office under a rarely used state statute. No hearings have been scheduled in the case yet.

That came after lawmakers essentially defunded Martin’s office during this year’s 60-day legislative session, shifting funding for prosecuting cases in McKinley County to the district attorney of neighboring San Juan County.

Martin, who is the state’s first female Navajo district attorney, has defended herself against allegations of mismanagement and accused leading legislators of holding her office hostage.

She has also insisted she will not hand over operations of her office to San Juan County District Attorney Jack Fortner, though the two prosecutors earlier this month agreed on a temporary arrangement for handling cases.

However, her handling of past criminal cases has come under renewed scrutiny after she told KRQE-TV she dismissed the 2023 rape case because the defendant went to school with her children.

In that case, McKinley County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Valentino Roderick Johnson after a woman told responding officers she was thrown into the driver’s seat and raped after a car crash.

The defendant was initially charged with criminal sexual penetration, aggravated battery, aggravated drunken driving and additional charges, but all charges were dismissed just a week or so after being filed.

McKinley County Sheriff James Maiorano expressed concern about the way the case was handled by Martin, saying both the victim and law enforcement officers deserve better.

“Whether it was negligent or intentional, I find it unacceptable that DA Martin dismissed this case due to a personal connection to the suspect and it was never refiled,” Maiorano said in a statement.

In addition to directing his office to revive the case, Torrez also filed a motion with the Supreme Court on Friday requesting that Martin’s office provide information on all other cases dismissed since she took office in January 2021.

Data provided by the state Administrative Office of the Courts shows a total of 2,750 charges were dismissed last year by the McKinley County District Attorney’s Office, though some criminal cases can feature multiple charges. The number of charges dismissed amounted to about 69% of all charges disposed of in the county.