2024 New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 66 - Motor Vehicles
Article 8 - Crimes, Penalties and Procedure
Part 2 - TRAFFIC OFFENSES
Section 66-8-102.5 - Driving while intoxicated with a minor in the vehicle; penalty.
A. Driving while intoxicated with a minor in the vehicle consists of a person committing a violation of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978 when a minor is in the vehicle and when the minor does not suffer great bodily harm or death. Whoever commits driving while intoxicated with a minor in the vehicle is guilty of a misdemeanor.
B. A charge for a violation of Subsection A of this section shall be in addition to a charge for the violation of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978 and shall be punished as a separate offense.
C. As used in this section, "minor" means an individual who is younger than thirteen years of age.
History: Laws 2019, ch. 79, § 1.
ANNOTATIONSEffective dates. — Laws 2019, ch. 79, § 2 made Laws 2019, ch. 79, § 1 effective July 1, 2019.
General/specific statute rule was inapplicable where facts supported both a charge of DWI with a minor and child abuse by endangerment. — In consolidated cases, where defendants were driving while intoxicated with minors in their vehicles, and where both defendants were charged with child abuse by endangerment, but where both defendants moved to dismiss those charges, arguing that NMSA 1978, § 66-8-102.5 displaced the prosecutor's charging discretion under the general/specific statute rule, the district court improperly limited prosecutorial charging discretion by dismissing the child abuse by endangerment charges, because while the child abuse and DWI with a minor statute share similar purposes and histories, there are differences in the conduct each criminalizes, and the plain language of § 66-8-102.5 provides no indication that the legislature intended it to always be charged by a prosecutor instead of child abuse by endangerment. State v. Saltwater, 2024-NMCA-018, cert. denied.
