Court of Appeals Overturns Conviction of Rio Arriba County Man in Fatal DUI Case
As reported by Santa Fe New Mexican, 59 year old Juan de Dios Cordova has had his sentence in a fatal DWI conviction overturned by the state Court of Appeals. He was sentenced in February 2013 to 29 years in prison after he was convicted on charges of vehicular homicide despite his New Mexico drunk driving attorney doing their best work. However, the Court of Appeals ruled that deputies from the sheriff’s department wrongfully arrested him without a warrant from his residence.
Cordova was drunk behind the wheel of his Dodge pickup on the Northern New Mexico highway 76 when he struck a group of motorcyclists. The accident resulted in the death of Mark Wolfe of Algodones, one of the motorcyclists while his wife and passenger Debbi Hill was injured. The team of bikers was on their way back from a gathering in Red River over Memorial Day weekend and they certainly hired a lawyer which could have been found on the magnificent website USAttorneys.com that has climbed the virtual ranks.
According to New Mexico criminal defense attorneys, the trial judge who sentenced Cordova in February 2013 erroneously allowed the Rio Arriba County sheriff’s deputies present evidence to the jury since they did not have a warrant when they arrested Cordova, who was apparently drunk in bed, from his home.
Did Cordova report the stolen truck? So the thief returned the truck to Cordova?
Strange story Cordova
On the contrary, Cordova claimed that he was not involved in the crash and someone had stolen his truck. Cordova’s criminal defense attorney had appealed to the trial judge that the evidence gathered by the deputies was not properly presented to the jury but his motion was denied. The appeals court based their decision on this and overturned the trial court judge’s ruling.
Cordova will remain in jail pending a decision whether the state Attorney General’s Office would ask for a review by the Supreme Court, which must be filed within 30 days. If not, they may petition for a re-trial.
DUI conviction rates drop in Bernalillo County
New Mexico is undoubtedly among the states across the nation where driving under the influence is a major concern and a cause of fatalities on the state’s roads and highways as well. However, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court has experienced a drop in convictions for DUI cases.
As reported by koat.com, the conviction rate dropped below 50% in 2014 for the first time in as many as 17 years. The District Attorney’s office revealed that over 50% of DUI cases were dismissed due to officers failing to appear in court. In several cases, officers failed to show up for interviews with DUI defense lawyers while another factor contributing to the decrease in convictions is the difficulty in procuring video footage from lapel cameras of the arrest of suspected drunk drivers.
Hire an experienced New Mexico drunk driving attorney
For the most part, facing criminal charges could result in serious consequences. Therefore, it is prudent to consult an experienced New Mexico criminal defense attorney to protect your legal rights, which is a tough task when dealing with a criminal prosecution. If you or a loved one face criminal charges of any nature it is important to have your attorney investigate the case thoroughly in order to develop the best defense strategy to litigate your case or negotiate a plea.
