FOR IMMIDIATE RELEASE October 24, 2008

CONTACT:  Whitney Potter, Communications Director (505) 266-5915 ext. 1003;[email protected] or James Flores, Spokesperson for Secretary of State Mary Herrera (505) 476-0352; [email protected]

The New Mexico Women’s Justice Project, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico, and Secretary of State Mary Herrera announced an agreement to ensure convicted felons who have completed all probation or parole are able to vote in the upcoming election.
Under a 2001 state law, individuals who have completed their sentence are to be reinstated into the voter rolls by the State. This year, the State had a backlog of reinstatements for individuals whose voter rights had been restored. To remedy the problem of the backlog and make sure that people formerly convicted are given every opportunity to vote, the civil rights groups and Secretary Herrera agreed that the Secretary of State will:

• Issue a directive permitting anyone to vote on a provisional ballot who states that they should be permitted to vote because they completed the terms of their sentence under N.M. Stat. Ann. § 31-13-1 (2008), but who appears as an ineligible voter because of a felony conviction on the rolls.

• Waive any time constraints for qualifying the provisional ballot of these individuals, until such times as the Secretary of State can review them and cross-reference them with the information from the New Mexico Department of Corrections, New Mexico Administration of Courts, and the Federal Department of Corrections.

• Direct all County Clerks to issue a letter to anyone who has received a letter of rejection, clarifying that the individual may be permitted to vote on a provisional ballot.

• Enter all data of information for all persons with a prior felony conviction, now eligible to vote, into the computer system prior to this year’s election.

• Provide record of information of all individuals who have been sent a rejection letter or who have not been able to vote based upon a prior felony conviction.

Christina Vigil, Executive Director of the New Mexico Women’s Justice Project, said, “We were very concerned about the disenfranchisement of individuals with felony convictions who completed their sentence and were eligible to vote.  We are relieved that the Secretary of State’s Office has agreed to solutions, which ensure that individuals with past felony convictions will now be allowed to exercise their fundamental right to vote on Election Day and participate in the political process.”

“This is an important accomplishment that clears the way for thousands of restored voters to participate in one of the most momentous elections in recent history,” said ACLU of New Mexico Executive Director Peter Simonson.  “We are thrilled that the Secretary of State’s Office shares our commitment to voters’ rights and is willing to implement these critical changes, even so close to the time of the election.”

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The New Mexico Women’s Justice Project, Inc. (NMWJP), located in Albuquerque, is a non-profit organization that seeks to eliminate a broad range of systemic barriers to social, economic and political justice faced by women, girls and their families in NM. The NMWJP focuses on women and girls whose lives are affected by the criminal justice, delinquency and child welfare systems. The Project is dedicated to improving the lives of women and children who have been affected by poverty, addiction, mental illness, and the trauma of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse by providing research, policy development, education, and direct action for change that enhances lives while maintaining families and protecting our communities.

The mission of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico is to maintain and advance the cause of civil liberties within the state of New Mexico, with particular emphasis on the freedom of religion, speech, press, association, and assemblage, and the right to vote, due process of law and equal protection of law, and to take any legitimate action in the furtherance and defense of such purposes. These objectives shall be sought wholly without political partisanship.

FOR IMMIDIATE RELEASE October 22, 2008
CONTACT: (505) 266-5915 ext. 1003; [email protected]
ALBUQUERQUE—In a letter to the New Mexico Attorney General today, the ACLU called for a criminal investigation into concerns that the Bernalillo County Clerk’s Office may have released confidential voter registration information to the Republican Party, and that the Party may have publicly distributed that information in violation of state laws protecting voter privacy.  A press packet distributed by the GOP last week contained photocopies of 19 voter registration forms, and acknowledged that the Party obtained 92 voter registration forms in all.  Several of the forms displayed written notes in a space reserved for “office use only,” suggesting that they had been reviewed by County officials before arriving in the Party’s hands.
New Mexico state law prohibits the County Clerk from releasing voter registration to anyone except registrants and it assesses a fourth degree felony upon any, “person who unlawfully copies, conveys, or uses information from a certificate of registration.”
“The evidence suggests to us a stunning disregard for the privacy of New Mexico voters and the laws of our state that ensure orderly elections,” ACLU Executive Director Peter Simonson said.  “Voters should not have to fear that their identifying information is going to make its way into the hands of people who want to influence their vote or intimidate them into not voting at all.”
Although the GOP blacked out social security numbers on the registration forms released to the press, they left names, addresses, phone numbers, and, in some instances, dates of birth unredacted.  Simonson urged immediate intervention by state authorities.
“We still do not know how the GOP obtained these registration forms, whether they might obtain more, and if someone in the County Clerk’s office is sharing the information with other parties,” Simonson said.  “The threat to voters’ privacy is imminent.”

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The mission of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico is to maintain and advance the cause of civil liberties within the state of New Mexico, with particular emphasis on the freedom of religion, speech, press, association, and assemblage, and the right to vote, due process of law and equal protection of law, and to take any legitimate action in the furtherance and defense of such purposes. These objectives shall be sought wholly without political partisanship.
Related Documents:

ACLU's Letter to the New Mexico Attorney General's Office (10-21-08)

FOR IMMIDIATE RELEASE August 6, 2008
CONTACT: (505) 266-5915 ext. 1003
ALBUQUERQUE— Yesterday, the New Mexico Court of Appeals struck down a city ordinance, affirming an earlier ruling, that would have empowered the city of Albuquerque to forcibly medicate people with mental illnesses. The Assisted Outpatient Treatment Law (AOT) conflicted with state laws that require patient consent before treatment.  This decision is a tremendous victory - upholding civil liberties in New Mexico.
Protection and Advocacy System, Inc., the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico (ACLU), and The Law Offices of Peter Cubra initially sued the City in 2006, alleging that AOT subjects people with mental illness to potentially invasive treatment regimens based upon speculation that they might become dangerous.
"The Court of Appeals made clear that all people have the right to make decisions about their mental health care and that state law identifies the circumstances and creates the process by which people with mental illness may be forced to accept mental health treatment, both in and out of treatment facilities.  In addition, the Court affirms the right of people with mental illness, when they have capacity, to make advance directives for mental health treatment and have them honored," said Nancy Koenigsberg, legal director of Protection and Advocacy System.
AOT, also known as Kendra’s Law, grants judges the authority to require people receiving mental health services to take psychiatric drugs, regularly undergo psychiatric treatment, or both. Failure to comply could result in the patient’s being committed to an institution for up to 72 hours.
“The decision was not based on some arcane turn of the law,” said Peter Simonson, executive director of the ACLU of New Mexico. “The court found that the city ordinance directly conflicted with the legislature’s desire to preserve some basic rights for people with mental illness and the way those protections were written into state law.  In the wake of this decision, the city should work with the legislature to channel resources into services for people with mental illness and abandon the tack of denying basic liberties.”
In October 2006, Second District Court judge Valerie Huling struck down the law writing that the ordinance was “inconsistent with the statutorily recognized right of a competent mentally ill person to refuse consent to treatment,” including psychotropic medications, electroshock therapy, and other invasive procedures.  She also ruled that the ordinance was in “direct conflict” with a state law that “broadly recognizes a right in competent individuals to make health care decisions.”
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The mission of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico is to maintain and advance the cause of civil liberties within the state of New Mexico, with particular emphasis on the freedom of religion, speech, press, association, and assemblage, and the right to vote, due process of law and equal protection of law, and to take any legitimate action in the furtherance and defense of such purposes. These objectives shall be sought wholly without political partisanship.
The Protection and Advocacy System (P&A) is a private, non-profit organization which protects and promotes the rights of people with disabilities in New Mexico. Founded in 1979 and authorized through federal law and an Executive Order of the Governor, P&A is the state's only legal rights center for people with disabilities. Each year, after public hearings and comment, P&A sets priorities for the cases and disability problems it will address. Visit http://www.nmpanda.org/index2.htm
Related Documents:

Appeals Court Opinion (Vol 1)
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Appeals Court Opinion (Vol 2)
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Kendras Law Press Release (10-13-2006)