State v. Lynch

2003 NMSC 020, 74 P.3d 73, 134 N.M. 139
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 9, 2003
Docket26,252
StatusPublished
Cited by42 cases

This text of 2003 NMSC 020 (State v. Lynch) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Lynch, 2003 NMSC 020, 74 P.3d 73, 134 N.M. 139 (N.M. 2003).

Opinions

OPINION

MINZNER, Justice.

{1} Defendant appeals from an order of the district court denying his motion to dismiss an amended criminal information charging him with first-degree murder. Defendant contends the district court erred in ruling that the district attorney’s decision to charge him with first-degree murder, following the Court of Appeals’ reversal of his conviction for second-degree murder, was not contrary to federal and state constitutional protections against double jeopardy and prosecutorial vindictiveness. Defendant initially appealed the order of the district court to the Court of Appeals. See State v. Apodaca, 1997-NMCA-051, ¶ 17, 123 N.M. 372, 940 P.2d 478 (holding defendant has a constitutional right to appeal from an order denying a double jeopardy objection to an indictment). The Court of Appeals certified the matter to us on the ground that language in State v. Martinez, 120 N.M. 677, 678, 905 P.2d 715, 716 (1995), appeared to be inconsistent with the portion of Aticle II, Section 15 of the New Mexico Constitution that provides protection against double jeopardy. See Alexander v. Delgado, 84 N.M. 717, 718, 507 P.2d 778, 779 (1973) (holding that the Court of Appeals is bound by Supreme Court precedent); NMSA 1978, § 34-5-14(0) (1966). We accepted certification and now reverse the district court’s order denying Defendant’s double jeopardy claim. We do not reach the issue of prosecutorial vindictiveness.

I

{2} The following facts appear to be undisputed. In April 1996, Defendant and Kim Gurley, who was then separated from her husband Richard Gurley, were living together. On the night of April 15, Defendant and Richard argued during a telephone conversation. Following this argument, Richard and his brother drove to the house where Defendant and Kim were living. Richard pounded on the door and front windows, yelling for Defendant to come out and fight. After the door to the home was opened, Richard grabbed Defendant and pulled him from the house, throwing him to the ground. The two men exchanged punches. Defendant fatally stabbed Richard during the fight.

{3} The State filed a criminal complaint that night, which described the crime as “Murder in the First Degree Open Charge,” and stated that Defendant had killed Richard “by an act greatly dangerous to the lives of other[s].” See NMSA 1978, § 30-2-1 (A)(3) (1994). At the preliminary hearing, however, the magistrate judge bound Defendant over for trial on the offense of second-degree murder. On April 30, 1996, the State filed a criminal information charging Defendant with second-degree murder, contrary to Section 30-2-l(B).

{4} Defendant was tried before a jury in January 1997, and convicted of second-degree murder. Defendant successfully appealed his conviction. State v. Lynch, No. 18,368, slip op. (N.M.Ct.App. Dec. 16, 1998). The Court of Appeals reversed Defendant’s conviction on the ground that the district court’s denial of a requested instruction on self-defense or defense of a dwelling as an element of the second-degree murder instruction was potentially confusing to the jury, contrary to State v. Parish, 118 N.M. 39, 878 P.2d 988 (1994). Lynch, No. 18,368, slip op. at 5.

{5} On remand to the district court, Defendant was scheduled to be retried for second-degree murder on July 19, 1999. On defense counsel's motion, trial was continued until September 27, 1999. The prosecutor then spoke with Ginger Dickinson, the girlfriend of Kim Gurley’s step-father, for the first time. In that interview, Dickinson said that prior to the killing she had heard Defendant say that he had learned in prison how to kill a person by stabbing him with a single thrust and that he was going to kill Richard in this way. On August 6, 1999, the State filed an amended criminal information charging Defendant with premeditated first-degree murder, contrary to Section 30-2-l(A).

{6} Defendant filed a motion to dismiss the first-degree murder charge, alleging that the charge violated his double jeopardy rights and constituted prosecutorial vindictiveness. The district court denied Defendant’s double jeopardy claim without a hearing. However, the court ordered an evidentiary hearing on the claim of prosecutorial vindictiveness, reasoning that the circumstances surrounding the State’s filing of a greater charge against Defendant — more than three years after the offense was committed and following a successful appeal — raised a presumption of prosecutorial vindictiveness. Following the hearing, the court determined that the State had overcome the presumption of prosecutorial vindictiveness by proving that newly-discovered evidence led to the filing of the greater charge against Defendant. Defendant subsequently moved twice for reconsideration of the court’s denial of his double jeopardy claim. The court denied both motions.

{7} Defendant appealed the district court’s denial of his double jeopardy claim to the Court of Appeals. In certifying this matter, the Court of Appeals noted that Defendant’s double jeopardy argument appeared meritorious based on the plain language of Article II, Section 15 of the New Mexico Constitution, but was inconsistent with this Court’s interpretation of the substantially similar double jeopardy statute, NMSA 1978, § 30-1-10 (1963), in Martinez. State v. Lynch, No. 21,108 (N.M.Ct.App. Mar. 23, 2000) (order certifying matter to the Supreme Court). In Martinez, we stated that the language upon which Defendant now relies precludes retrial of a greater offense “only after an acquittal of that offense.” 120 N.M. at 678, 905 P.2d at 716.

II

{8} Under State v. Gomez, 1997-NMSC-006, 122 N.M. 777, 932 P.2d 1, we first analyze Defendant’s double jeopardy claim under the federal constitution. If Defendant’s rights are protected under the federal constitution, we will not examine Defendant’s state constitutional claim. Id. ¶ 19. If the federal constitution does not protect the asserted right, we analyze Defendant’s claim under the state constitution. Id.

Ill

{9} The federal double jeopardy clause has been said to embody three separate protections: (1) protection against a second prosecution for the same offense after acquittal; (2) protection against a second prosecution for the same offense after conviction; and (3) protection against multiple punishments for the same offense. See, e.g., Justices of Boston Mun. Court, v. Lydon, 466 U.S. 294, 306-07, 104 S.Ct. 1805, 80 L.Ed.2d 311 (1984). In discussing the policies which underlie the double jeopardy clause, the United States Supreme Court has stated:

The constitutional prohibition against ‘double jeopardy’ was designed to protect an individual from being subjected to the hazards of trial and possible conviction more than once for an alleged offense....

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. Revels
New Mexico Supreme Court, 2025
City of Rio Rancho v. Sais
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2022
State v. Chavarria
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2021
State Ex Rel. Riddle v. Toulouse Oliver
2021 NMSC 018 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2021)
State v. Loza
2018 NMSC 34 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2018)
State v. Steven A.
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2017
State v. Ortiz-Castillo
2016 NMCA 045 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2016)
El Castillo Retirement Residences v. Martinez
2015 NMCA 041 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2015)
State v. Nabhan
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2014
State v. Torrez
2013 NMSC 34 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2013)
State v. Boyse
2013 NMSC 024 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2013)
State v. Montoya
2013 NMSC 20 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2013)
State v. Gonzales
263 P.3d 271 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2011)
State v. Gonzales
2007 NMSC 059 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2007)
State v. Frazier
2007 NMSC 032 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 2007)
State v. McClaugherty
2007 NMCA 041 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2007)
State v. Jimenez
2007 NMCA 005 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2006)
Hankerson v. State
929 So. 2d 691 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2006)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2003 NMSC 020, 74 P.3d 73, 134 N.M. 139, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-lynch-nm-2003.