AI Generated Opinion Summaries

This summary was computer-generated without any editorial revision. It is not official, has not been checked for accuracy, and is NOT citable.

Facts

• Maria De Jesus Salazar (Defendant) was convicted for acceptance of a bribe by a witness and for failure to report child abuse and neglect. The case was brought before the Court of Appeals of New Mexico following these convictions (para 1).

Procedural History

• Appeal from the District Court of Doña Ana County, Douglas R. Driggers, District Judge, April 9, 2014: Convicted for acceptance of a bribe by a witness and for failure to report child abuse and neglect.

Parties' Submissions

• Defendant: Filed a motion to withdraw her appeal following the Court's calendar notice proposing to affirm her conviction for acceptance of a bribe and to reverse her conviction for failure to report child abuse and neglect due to insufficient evidence (para 1).
• State: Responded to the Court's order, acknowledging that the case State v. Strauch might be dispositive of this case but argued that Strauch was wrongly decided. The State suggested reconsidering the application of Strauch, holding the case in abeyance pending the Supreme Court’s decision in Strauch, or certifying this case to the Supreme Court to be consolidated with Strauch (para 3).

Legal Issues

• Whether the Defendant's conviction for acceptance of a bribe by a witness should be upheld.
• Whether the Defendant's conviction for failure to report child abuse and neglect should be reversed due to insufficient evidence.

Disposition

• The appeal for the Defendant's conviction for acceptance of a bribe by a witness was dismissed following the Defendant's motion to withdraw her appeal (para 2).
• The Defendant's conviction for failure to report child abuse and neglect was reversed, and the case was remanded to the district court with instructions to vacate this conviction (para 3).

Reasons

• Per Roderick T. Kennedy, Chief Judge (Jonathan B. Sutin, Judge, and Linda M. Vanzi, Judge concurring):
  The Court decided to sever the Defendant's appeal of her convictions, granting her motion to withdraw her appeal for the conviction of acceptance of a bribe by a witness and dismissing this appeal (para 2).
  Regarding the conviction for failure to report child abuse and neglect, the Court relied on the precedent set by State v. Strauch, concluding that the Defendant was not subject to the reporting requirement. Despite the State's arguments against the application of Strauch and suggestions for alternative approaches, the Court declined these suggestions and followed the precedent to reverse and remand the conviction for failure to report abuse and neglect (paras 3-4).