Email: albddiv23proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Email: albddiv20proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: Judge Britt Baca-Miller was born and raised in Albuquerque. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Eastern New Mexico University, a master’s degree in public administration from Portland State University, and a juris doctor degree from the University of New Mexico School of Law.

Judge Baca-Miller worked for the State of New Mexico and for a number of non-profits prior to her appointment to the bench. She served on the board of directors of the New Mexico Hispanic Bar Association and is currently a member of the Hispanic National Bar Association and the New Mexico Women’s Bar Association.

Judge Baca-Miller currently presides over criminal expungement matters and the DWI Court program.

Email: albddiv18proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge Barela-Shepherd has been a District Court Judge since December 2003. She has the unique experience in presiding over both criminal and civil law cases. She currently presides over civil law cases. She previously presided over all phases of criminal law cases ranging from misdemeanor to 1st-Degree felony offenses.

Judge Barela-Shepherd has served as the Chairman of the District Court Security Committee since 2005, which develops and oversees security issues and concerns involving the Court. She was previously appointed by the NM Supreme Court to serve as a member of the Statewide Court Security Committee. Judge Barela-Shepherd is a long-time standing member of the Bench Bar Media Committee, which serves as a liason between the Judiciary and the Media.

Judge Barela-Shepherd is a native New Mexican. She received her high school diploma from Valley High School, her Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from Texas Tech University, and her Juris Doctor from the University of New Mexico.

Email: albddiv8proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Children’s Court Judges

Biography: Judge Catherine Begaye was appointed to the bench January 2021.

Email: albddiv4proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Email: albddiv19proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge Benjamin Chavez graduated form the University of New Mexico of Law in 1996 and served as a Judge of the Metropolitan Court from 2004 through 2012. He joined the Second Judicial District Court in 2012 where he served as a member of the Criminal Division through December 2018. He now serves as a member of the Civil Division.

Email: albddiv22proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Family Court Judges

Email: albddiv13proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge Lisa Ortega graduated from the University of New Mexico School of Law in 1997 and enjoyed a civil litigation practice for more than twenty years before taking the bench. Her law practice focused on personal injury and wrongful death claims throughout the state including those involving product liability, premises liability, and general negligence.

On March 15, 2019, she was appointed to Division XIII of the Second Judicial District Court by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. Judge Ortega serves in the Civil Division.

Email: albddiv10proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: Judge Bruce Fox received his B.A. from the University of Connecticut and his J.D. from Western New England University. He has been licensed to practice law in New Mexico since 1993, and has spent his entire career working in the courts of New Mexico, the Navajo Nation, and the Pueblo of Laguna.

Before being appointed to District Court in 2021, he was Chief Judge for the Pueblo of Laguna. He was also a New Mexico Public Defender for many years in the Second Judicial District, and spent the early part of his career as a legal aid attorney at DNA Legal Services on the Navajo Nation.

Throughout his career, Judge Fox has worked on developing a better understanding of addiction and behavioral health issues and their impact on the criminal justice system. He is a strong believer in drug courts and mental health courts.

Email: albddiv5proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Email: albddiv11proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Family Court Judges

Biography: Prior to being appointed to the Family Court bench in January 2009, Judge Lavelle practiced Family Law for 28 years. Judge Lavelle has presented at Continuing Legal Education seminars on Family Law issues locally and nationally. Judge Lavelle has served for many years as a judge at Mock Trials for both high school and middle school students.

Email: albddiv9proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: Judge Leos was elected November 8, 2016 to Division 9 of the Second Judicial District Court. In 2017 Judge Leos helped to create and currently presides over the Young Adult Court Program.

Email: albddiv25proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Family Court Judges

Email: albddiv27proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge Lopez was first sworn-in as a District Court Judge in December 2014. He has been licensed to practice for over 31 years. In his practice, he was responsible for a wide variety of civil and administrative law cases. He served as a Workers’ Compensation Judge for six (6) years, as a disciplinary board hearing officer, and recently as a DWI hearing officer. Judge Lopez currently seeks to administer justice fairly and promptly in a wide variety of civil cases for the Second Judicial District Court.

Email: albddiv3proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Email: albddiv12proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge Lujan is proudly from Albuquerque’s South Valley where her family owned and operated a small family-run business. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and her Juris Doctorate from the University of New Mexico School of Law. Judge Lujan was appointed to the civil bench in 2021. Prior to her appointment, she served as a Law Clerk to Justice Edward L. Chávez at the New Mexico Supreme Court, as an Assistant Attorney General in Civil Affairs at the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, and as a Civil Staff Attorney at the Second Judicial District Court.

Email: albddiv26proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: Judge Joseph Montano is an Albuquerque native, and a 2001 graduate of St. Pius X High School. He earned a political science degree from California Lutheran University in 2005, and a J.D. from UNM School of Law in 2008.

After law school, Judge Montano worked for the University of Michigan’s Athletic Department as a Compliance Assistant. He was also the Director of Compliance for UNM’s Athletic Department. He worked in the Second Judicial District Attorney’s Office for the past ten years, most recently serving as the Deputy District Attorney managing the General Crimes Felony Trial Division.

Email: albddiv28proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Email: albddiv30proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Email: albddiv17proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge O’Connell was appointed to the civil bench in February 2019. She is Co-Chair of the Second Judicial District Court Pro Bono Committee, and is Co-Chair of the New Mexico Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission. Judge O’Connell is committed to facilitating and expanding access to civil legal services to New Mexicans in need across Bernalillo County and the State.

Judge O’Connell graduated from the University of New Mexico School of Law. She was a law clerk for two years for Justice Charles W. Daniels of the New Mexico Supreme Court. Following her clerkship, and until appointed to the bench, she was in private practice as a trial and appellate lawyer. Judge O’Connell is an active supporter of the Second Judicial District Court’s judicial clerkship program, which affords law students the opportunity to serve as a law clerk with Judge O’Connell and to experience working with all divisions of the Court.

Email: albddiv1proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Children’s Court Judges

Biography: Judge Parnall was appointed to the Children’s Court Division of the Court in November of 2007 after a 30-year practice as a trial attorney in Criminal and Juvenile Defense and Personal Injury. He was appointed by the New Mexico Supreme Court as Co-Chair of the New Mexico Tribal/State Judicial Consortium and still serves on that committee. The purpose of the Consortium is to foster strong relationships between Tribal and State judges throughout New Mexico. Judge Parnall recently created a Family Reunification Drug Court in the Second Judicial District which provides extra support for families torn apart by drug and alcohol addiction. The goal of the program is to accomplish early reunification when in the best interest of children in order to avoid the trauma of separation from their families in prolonged foster placement.

Email: albddiv6proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Civil Court Judges

Biography: Judge Daniel E. Ramczyk practiced law for twenty years, both in the private and government sectors. He was appointed to the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court in 2003 and handled both criminal and civil dockets. He served on several of the specialty courts and was appointed the first Chairperson of the Metropolitan Court Rules Committee in 2006 and served until 2012.

He resigned from Metropolitan Court when he was appointed to the Second Judicial District Court in February 2019, Criminal Division.

Judge Ramczyk graduated from the UNM School of Law in 1983 and was admitted to the New Mexico State Bar later that year.

Email: albddiv24proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Family Court Judges

Email: albddiv7proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Children’s Court Judges

Biography: Judge Alma Cristina Roberson was born in the border town of El Paso, Texas to immigrant parents from Mexico.  She moved to Albuquerque in 2009 to attend the University of New Mexico School of Law.  She graduated in 2012 and started soon after as an attorney in the Metro Division of the Law Offices of the Public Defender.  In 2015, she moved to the Juvenile Division of LOPD where she found her true passion, working with children and their families.

As part of her advocacy, Judge Roberson served as a board member for Bernalillo County’s Reducing Racism and Ethnic Disparities Committee for two years.  Currently, Judge Roberson serves on the Juvenile Drug Treatment Court National Project Advisory Board for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.

Email: albddiv21proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Email: albddiv29proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: Judge Lucy Boyadjian Solimon is from Lebanon. She lived in California for 17 years prior to making Albuquerque her home in 2003. Judge Solimon earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Occidental College and in Spanish from the University of New Mexico (UNM). She is fluent in Armenian and is beginner conversant in Spanish. Judge Solimon graduated from UNM School of Law in 2007. She has practiced as both a defense attorney and prosecutor, and has State, Federal, and Administrative court experience. Judge Solimon has worked as an Assistant Public Defender, in private practice, as a Prosecutor for the Pueblo of Laguna as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, and as a Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of New Mexico. She was appointed to the criminal bench in 2020. Judge Solimon presides over cases in the Mental Health Court Program and also aids the Committee for Diversity in the Legal Profession.

Email: albddiv14proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Children’s Court Judges

Email: albddiv15proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: An Albuquerque native, Judge Courtney Weaks graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in English Literature in 2004. She returned to New Mexico to attend UNM Law School, where she met her husband Jason, and graduated in 2007.

She began her career at the Second Judical District Attorney’s office, prosecuting criminal cases in Metropolitan Court, DWI charges as well as vehicular homicide cases. Judge Weaks then entered private practice where she focused on criminal defense work in addition to practicing family law.

Judge Weaks was elected to the Metropolitan Court Bench in 2014 where she served as the Presiding Judge of Metropolitan Court’s Specialty Court Program as well as the Presiding Judge of the Court’s Behavioral Health Court Program and the Early Intervention Program.

Judge Weaks also serves as an executive of Bernalillo County’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council’s (BCCJCC) Subcommittee on Reintegration and Reentry. She was elected to the District Court Bench in 2020.

Email: albddiv16proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Email: albddiv2proposedtxt@nmcourts.gov
Group: Criminal Court Judges

Biography: Judge Stan Whitaker is a 1989 graduate of the University of New Mexico School of Law. Judge Whitaker joined the Second Judicial District Court in 2006. He serves as a member of the Criminal Division. He served as Chief Judge from 2018 – 2021.