Criminal Affairs
By statute, the criminal jurisdiction of the Attorney General is to prosecute and defend all criminal related cases in the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals in which the State is a party.
The Attorney General has authority to prosecute and defend any criminal action and proceedings when, in his judgment, the interest of the state requires such action or when requested by the Governor. The Attorney General also has statutory jurisdiction when any district attorney either refers and/or fails to prosecute any criminal matter, and shares concurrent jurisdiction with local District Attorneys for specific offenses, including:
- Violations of the Medicaid Fraud Act
- Human Trafficking
- Governmental Conduct
- Campaign Practices
- Violations of the Motor Carrier Act
- Violations of the New Mexico Uniform Securities Act
- Adulterated or Misbranded Food
Criminal Affairs is broadly divided into Special Prosecutions, Victim Services, Special Investigations, and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, as described below.
Special Prosecutions
The Special Prosecutions Division is responsible for prosecuting complex and specialized criminal cases throughout New Mexico. The Division specializes in handling cases related to internet crimes against children, child exploitation, violent crimes, fraud, and government accountability. The Special Prosecutions Division provides assistance and trial support to local prosecutors and law enforcement, and provides training for federal, state, and local agencies. In addition, the Division performs prosecutorial reviews of officer involved incidents.
Victim Services
Victim Services is committed to offering resources and support to victims of crime and their families. The New Mexico Department of Justice recognizes the importance of victims’ rights and is committed to working proactively to ensure that those rights are upheld throughout the criminal legal process. The goal of Victim Services is to provide comprehensive services in a competent, sensitive, and professional manner. In order to ensure the quality of services being offered, all members of Victim Services have a minimum of 10,000 hours of training and hands on experience working victims of crime. The NMDOJ recognizes the value of preventing victimization and decreasing criminal behaviors through an integrated approach to include education and awareness, outreach, collaboration, harm reduction, and access to services.
Victim Services is available to answer questions about the criminal process and victims’ rights and also connect victims with the appropriate services
Special Investigations
The Special Investigations Division of the New Mexico Department of Justice (NMDOJ) is comprised of separate units, each handling investigations in its own specialty area. The Division utilizes expert special agents for major criminal investigations across the state as directed by the Attorney General.
Medicaid Fraud Control Unit
The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit Investigates and prosecutes fraud committed by Medicaid providers, including hospitals, nursing homes, care facilities, laboratories, doctors, dentists, nurses, personal care providers, and therapists. We conduct investigations into billing for services not rendered, billing for a higher level of service than provided, fraudulent prescriptions for dangerous opioids and narcotics, and whistleblower actions brought by an individual on behalf of the government. How Medicaid providers commit fraud is constantly evolving and the Unit must adjust accordingly to protect the system that helps so many New Mexicans.
The Unit also investigates and prosecutes abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation against residents in facilities, including assisted living facilities and nursing homes.
Collaborative Partners & Resources
- New Mexico Crime Victims Reparation Commission
- New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs
- Albuquerque SANE
- Nation Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)
- All Faiths
- Para Los Ninos
- New Mexico Kids Matter
- Assistance Dogs of the West
- New Mexico Coalition Against Domestic Violence
- Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women
- New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator (OMI)
- Grief Resource Center
- New Mexico Corrections Department
- The Life Link
- New Mexico Dream Center
- Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) New Mexico
- New Mexico Suicide Prevention Resource Center
- The New Mexico Suicide Intervention Project
- New Mexico Crisis and Access Line
- LGBTQ Resource Center
- Transgender Resource Center of New Mexico
- New Mexican Asian Family Center
- Enlace Comunitario
- New Mexico Department of Health Opioid Safety
- Victim Information & Notification Everyday (VINE) – English
- Victim Information & Notification Everyday (VINE) – Spanish
