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Summary of statute(s): It is an unlawful “interference with communications” to record a telephone conversation without the consent of one of the parties to the communication. But the statute does not prohibit recording an in-person conversation without such consent. N.M. Stat. Ann. § 30-12-1 (West 2012).
The New Mexico Supreme Court overturned an appellate court's decision and clarified grounds for defamation lawsuits in the state when the high court ruled against a retired Episcopal priest who sued parishioners who accused him of pedophilia.
A bill that would have sealed some criminal records -- from minor offenses to felonies -- was vetoed by New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, who stated the public and media had a right to know about important information relating to criminal proceedings.
New Mexico went live Dec. 16 with a prototype of its planned online open government resource called the Sunshine Portal. The website, which is scheduled to go fully live on July 1, 2011, opens to journalists and citizens information that otherwise might take weeks or months to gain access to through information requests.
The New Mexico Supreme Court has adopted a uniform set of rules that will dictate when court records can be sealed, including a presumption that the records are public, the El Defensor Chieftainreported.
CBS could have acted with actual malice when it broadcast a story about a government employee who was investigated for allegations she had used federal dollars to buy a Ford Mustang, a federal court in New Mexico has ruled.
Public records requests in New Mexico can now be made over e-mail or by fax, and state lawmakers will open their final bill negotiations process, in two pro-transparency changes Gov. Bill Richardson signed into law last week.
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) unnecessarily delayed responding to numerous records requests from a citizen’s group regarding documents on nuclear waste sites in New Mexico, a federal judge ruled earlier this week.
U.S. District Judge Robert Brack held that the complex nature of the documents was no excuse for not complying with the federal Freedom of Information Law.
New Mexico Attorney General Gary King said he plans to ask the legislature next year to update the state's open records law.
Changes include requiring governmental bodies to accept e-mail requests for documents. Currently, the law is ambiguous as to whether e-mail is considered the same as written requests for public records.
