NM Supreme Court assigns judge to case
There may finally be a judge to hear the case of Socorro Electric Cooperative vs. Charlene West et. al.
New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles W. Daniels appointed 10th Judicial District Court Judge Albert J. Mitchell Jr. to the case on Monday.
Mitchell holds court in Tucumcari. As of El Defensor Chieftain press time, there is no word as to when he might address the matter, which has been in limbo for nearly four months, or whether any hearings would be held in Tucumcari or Socorro.
Daniels said his appointment of Mitchell was “routine” — something he does nearly ever day when the parties in a district court case can’t agree on a judge.
“It had nothing to do with the content of the case,” Daniels said of the appointment. “My job is not to assess the merits of the case, but to make sure a judge is assigned after all other judges in a district have been removed.”
All seven judges in the 13th Judicial Court District, where the case was originally filed, were either excused by parties involved in the lawsuit or recused themselves from participating.
Daniels said the appointment of Mitchell could put an end to that. Parties aren’t allowed to excuse judges without reason, he said, as they are permitted to do before the case comes to a Supreme Court assignment. Now the only thing that can prevent Mitchell from hearing the case is if Mitchell recuses himself or if someone cites just cause.
“An excusal for cause, that always may be raised,” Daniels said. “So this wouldn’t preclude a legal challenge for cause.”
Socorro Electric Cooperative filed a lawsuit June 29 requesting declaratory judgment and injunctive relief from three of the bylaws overwhelmingly passed by member-owners at the annual meeting in April.
All three of the bylaws call for increased transparency with regard to how the co-op goes about its business. They call for Socorro Electric’s board of trustees to follow the guidelines of the Open Meetings Act, permit members and the press to be present at board meetings and allow public inspection of co-op financial records — except those that would violate the Privacy Act.
In order to challenge the bylaws, the co-op sued all of the approximately 13,000 member-owners of the public, nonprofit corporation, who are also the co-op’s customers. Charlene West of Lemitar, a leader in the movement to reform the co-op, was the only individual singled out in the lawsuit.
Even though the co-op has backtracked by filing papers to dismiss the case, several answers have been filed in response to the case, including a countersuit against current and former co-op officials and request for class action certification. All those matters would need to be resolved before the case could be dropped from the court system.
Daniels initially filed an order designating Seventh Judicial District Court Judge Edmund “Ted” Kase as the appointed judge. But Kase, who makes his home in Socorro, notified Daniels of a potential conflict of interest.
“As a member of Socorro Electric Cooperative, I thought it would be inappropriate for me to hear the case,” Kase said on Tuesday.
According to the Quay County Sun newspaper, Mitchell became a district court judge in 2008 after practicing law in Quay County for 24 years. He served as president of the Tucumcari School Board before resigning to take his seat on the bench.
Nicknamed “Scooter,” Mitchell, 51, earned a degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University in 1980 and received a law degree from the University of New Mexico in 1984.
Asked why he chose to pursue a career in law, the Sun quoted Mitchell as saying, “I have always liked solving problems and working with people. Human problems are some of the hardest problems to solve.”
Contact T.S. Last