Cases in Context – 2024-01: State v. Torres, 2022-NMSC-024
Supreme Court Case Numbers: S-1-SC-38484 and S-1-SC-38546
Parties:
Counsel:
Hector H. Balderas, Attorney General, and Benjamin L. Lammons, Assistant Attorney General, for Petitioner
Bennett J. Baur, Chief Public Defender, Victor E. Sanchez, Jr., Assistant Appellate Defender, and Caitlin C.M. Smith, Associate Appellate Defender, for Respondents Gerardo Torres and Kendale Hendrix
Gary C. Mitchell, for Respondent Skeeter W. Chadwick
Justices:
Holding: The Legislature intended the livestock larceny statute to punish offenders for each episode of theft, not for each head of cattle stolen.
Case Summary:
This case began in a criminal trial court in Otero County, New Mexico. The State charged each of the three Respondents (Mr. Torres, Mr. Hendrix, and Mr. Chadwick) with committing multiple counts of livestock larceny in 2017. Larceny is “the stealing of anything of value that belongs to another,” in this case, livestock. NMSA 1978, §§ 30-16-1(A) and (G) (2017). Though the “Criminal Code does not define the term livestock[,] . . . other statutory provisions define [it] as referring to herds or groups of domesticated animals.” State v. Torres, 2022-NMSC-024, ¶ 21 (emphasis in original) (citations omitted). Cows, or “several head of cattle,” were the livestock involved here. Id. ¶ 1.
In two unrelated incidents, Mr. Torres allegedly stole eighteen head of cattle and Mr. Hendrix and Mr. Chadwick, working together, allegedly stole twenty-five. Id. ¶¶ 4-5. In the Twelfth Judicial District Court, the State charged Mr. Torres with eighteen counts of livestock larceny, “one for each animal” allegedly stolen. Id. ¶¶ 1, 4. Similarly, the State charged both Mr. Hendrix and Mr. Chadwick with twenty-five counts of livestock larceny, “one count for each head” of cattle. Id. ¶ 6. All three defendants (Respondents) filed motions asking the trial judge to merge their numerous individual charges, arguing that the multiple counts of livestock larceny violated double jeopardy principles or the single-larceny doctrine. Id. ¶ 7.
Double jeopardy principles include a “protection against [receiving] multiple punishments for the same offense.” Id. ¶ 11. The single-larceny doctrine, meanwhile, provides that “when several articles of property are stolen . . . from the same owner at the same time and at the same place, only one larceny is committed.” Id. ¶ 29 (internal quotation marks omitted). The trial judge agreed with the defendants (Respondents) and “dismissed the charges that [he] determined to be multiplicitous” or duplicative. Id. ¶ 1.
The State immediately appealed those rulings to the Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals concluded, “the livestock larceny statute . . . does not express an intent to prosecute [d]efendants for an alleged larceny of each animal.” Id. The State then petitioned the Supreme Court for certiorari, asking it to review the Court of Appeals’ decision. Id. The Supreme Court “granted the petitions and consolidated all three proceedings for review.” Id. ¶ 9. On April 1, 2022, the Supreme Court held oral argument for this case in Las Cruces at New Mexico State University, before high school and college students, as part of its Rule of Law Program. In its Opinion, filed on October 3, 2022, the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals’ decision and found that the livestock larceny “statute expresses an intent to prosecute [d]efendants for each episode of theft,” not each animal. Id. ¶ 18. The Court remanded all three matters back down to the Twelfth Judicial District Court for further proceedings consistent with the Opinion. Id. ¶ 53.
Sources for Further Reading:
Chief Justice David K. Thomson"Chief Justice David K. Thomson took the oath of office on February 4, 2019, following his selection by the nonpartisan Judicial Nominating Commission and his appointment by the Governor to the New Mexico Supreme Court. He was sworn in as Chief Justice on April 17, 2024, where he will serve a two-year term. Prior to his appointment, Chief Justice Thomson served as a State Trial Judge in the First Judicial District, overseeing a civil docket in excess of 1000 cases. He is a leader in judicial education and efforts to increase diversity in judicial clerkships and advance technology in the courts. In 2019, he founded a diversity clerkship program with the New Mexico State Bar Association, which has resulted in increased post-graduation clerkship opportunities within New Mexico’s Appellate Courts. He has also successfully launched an annual “Rule of Law Program” where schools and students in New Mexico are given the opportunity to view oral arguments, ask questions about a case, and gain an understanding of the judiciary’s role in state government." - NM Supreme Court
Judge Steven E. Blankinship
Judge Blankinship had the cases of both Torres and Hendrix in the Alamogordo District Court. "Blankinship earned his juris doctorate from the University of Akron School of Law in 2004. He worked as a general counsel in the Office of Gov. Susana Martinez between December 2012 and June 2017. Prior to working in the governor's office as a civil litigation attorney, he worked as a prosecutor in the 12th Judicial District Attorney's Office between July 2007 and February 2009 then worked as a prosecutor in the 3th Judicial DA's Office between February 2009 and December 2012. Blankinship and his family moved back to Alamogordo in June 2017 because he accepted a deputy district attorney position in the 12th Judicial District Attorney’s Office." (Duane Barbati, Blankinship officially takes the bench in 12th Judicial Court, Alamogordo Daily News. Sep. 20, 2017).
New Mexico Livestock Board
The New Mexico Livestock Board, originally the Cattle Sanitation Board, was founded in 1887. This agency registers brands and inspects animals to prevent theft and the spread of disease. This is the agency that publishes the Brand book of the state of New Mexico. In both cases the cattle stolen were unbranded. Brands are markings placed on cattle indicating the ownership of the animal.
Officer Skylar Davis (Livestock Inspector Supervisor, New Mexico Livestock Board, District 4, Cloudcroft.)
Davis investigated the theft by Torres. Davis graduated from the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy on June 30th, 2017.
The calves were stolen from two ranches. Ganada and Crossroads Cattle Company both have connections to Texas.
Ganada is registered as a domestic company in New Mexico with a mailing address in Shallowater, TX. The owner is David Kent Gabel and his agent in New Mexico is Paul Gabel. The brand to the left is registered to David Gabel, the brand to the right was registered to Paul Gabel but expired in 2023. The Gabels are a ranching family. Kent Gabels brother, Tony, owned Clabber Hill Farm and Ranch near Logan, New Mexico, before he died in 2022. Both images are from the New Mexico Livestock Board.
Crossroads Cattle Company
Crossroads operates in multiple states including Texas and Nebraska. Founded by Leslie Callahan and Jennings Steen in August of 2002. "When we started Crossroads, our initial customer base was centered in the feeding industry of the Texas Panhandle, Western Oklahoma and Southwestern Kansas, where we had built extensive networks throughout our careers. However, we are committed to expanding Crossroads’ reach beyond being a regional player in the business of feeder cattle trading." -About us. Crossroads Cattle Company, https://crossroadscattle.com/about-us/. Brand image from the New Mexico Livestock Board
In both cases the cattle stolen were unbranded. Brands are markings placed on cattle that show the ownership of the animal.
Business of Beef
Raising cattle for meat or dairy production is a significant industry in New Mexico. In 2022 the gross income from cattle and calves was $1.6 billion. Ranchers pay attention to diet and the health of the animals.
New Mexico's inventory of all cattle and calves was 1,310,000 head as of January 1, 2023. According to the U.S. Census the human population of the states is 2,117,522.
Cattle can sell for hundreds of dollars each.
New Mexico Weekly Cattle Summary
Cattle and Calves, Statistics from the 2022 Census of Agriculture
The New Mexico Agricultural Extension Service at New Mexico State University studies and published reports on the science of raising livestock. Below are examples of their publications.
Managing and Feeding Beef Cows Using Body Condition Scores
"One of the greatest challenges facing cow-calf producers is maintaining a defined and short calving season. Maintaining a short calving season gives producers the ability to strategically manage their cow herd and to market uniformly aged calves at weaning. Strategic management includes a goal-oriented, low-cost nutrition program designed to meet the specific needs of all cows at the same time."
Protein and Energy Supplementation for Beef Cattle Grazing New Mexico Rangelands
"Providing supplemental nutrients to cattle grazing western rangelands is practiced commonly, and for good reason. Ruminants often are unable to consume enough nutrients from rangelands to fulfill their requirements for maintaining acceptable production levels. During such situations, supplemental feeding is necessary. Producers have many choices of commercial feed supplements and an unlimited number of options for developing custom supplements."
Estimating Water Intake for Range Beef Cattle
"There is considerable natural variability in water intake and limited research supporting current water use estimates for beef cattle grazing New Mexico rangelands. While there are numerous prediction equations available, most have been developed using young growing cattle (most data sets were developed using cattle in dry-lot situations) in environments outside of the desert Southwest."
Hendrix and Chadwick, who were reported by an off-duty livestock inspector, had stolen calves that were “quarantined to prevent the spread of a livestock disease.” One of the charges against Hendrix was "Failure to Comply with New Mexico Livestock Board Rules (Bovine Trichomoniasis)." One of the stolen calves had to be put down, it is unclear if this was due to disease or injury. Livestock inspectors monitor animals for sale, import to and export from New Mexico. Some diseases effect other livestock and some can endanger humans.
These are some diseases of cattle:
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy “Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), widely referred to as “mad cow disease,” is a progressive and fatal disease of the nervous system in cattle. It results from infection by a "prion," an abnormal cellular protein found mostly in the brain. BSE is not contagious. Cattle become infected by eating prion-contaminated feed.”
Brucellosis “It is caused by a group of bacteria in the genus Brucella. The disease has significant consequences for animal health, public health, and international trade.”
Bovine Tuberculosis “APHIS and State animal health agencies collaborate with U.S. livestock producers to administer the National Tuberculosis Eradication Program, which has nearly eradicated tuberculosis from the Nation's livestock population since its inception in 1917. Several factors, including the eradication program and pasteurization of milk, have reduced the number of human tuberculosis cases in the United States.”
Eddy County was named after Charles Bishop Eddy, a cattleman from New York. He and his partner Amos Bissell, a banker, worked to promote investment in the area. This included the Carlsbad Irrigation Project. At one point 500 head of cattle were shipped from Carlsbad weekly and Eddy county was one of the largest producers of cattle in New Mexico. (Eddy County, Birchell)
| 2022 | % change since 2017 | |
| Number of Farms | 346 | -32 |
| Land in farms (acres) | 640,351 | -41 |
| Average size farm (acres) | 1,851 | -14 |
| Total Population: 62,314 | Without Health Care Coverage: 9.2% |
| Median Household Income: $77,458 | Total Employer Establishments: 1,512 |
| Bachelor's Degree or Higher: 18% | Total Households: 22,703 |
| Employment Rate: 58.3% | Hispanic or Latino of Any Race: 31,307 |
| Total Housing Unites: 26,277 | American Indian and Alaska Native: 922 |
In 1899 Otero County was formed by an act of the Territorial Legislature. Named after Miguel Anonio Otero II, who was governor at the time, the area was made up of land taken from Dona Ana, Lincoln and Socorro counties. At it's founding the main communities were Tulatrosa, La Luz, Weed and Mayhill. Alamagordo, which would become the county seat, had been established one year prior. The Mescalero Apache (Shis-Inday or Mashgaléńde / Mashgaléneí or Naa'dahéńdé / Naa’dańde) Reservation is in the the northeastern part of Otero county.
| 2022 | % change since 2017 | |
| Number of Farms | 467 | -1 |
| Land in farms (acres) | 867,162 | -15 |
| Average size farm (acres) | 1,857 | -14 |
Otero County, New Mexico has 6,612.6 square miles of land area and is the 3rd largest county in New Mexico by total area. (U.S. Census, County Profile).
| Total Population: 67,839 | Without Health Care Coverage: 6.1% |
| Median Household Income: $54,093 | Total Employer Establishments: 925 |
| Bachelor's Degree or Higher: 21.9% | Total Households: 24,963 |
| Employment Rate: 43.8% | Hispanic or Latino of Any Race: 326,963 |
| Total Housing Unites: 32,210 | American Indian and Alaska Native: 4,981 |