New Mexico Statutes
Article 15 - Violations of Municipal Ordinances
Section 35-15-3 - Procedure; commitment.

A. In any action for the violation of any ordinance in which an arrest has not been made, a warrant for the arrest of the defendant may issue in the first instance upon the affidavit of any person making a complaint that he has reasonable grounds to believe the party charged is guilty. Any person arrested upon such warrant shall, without unnecessary delay, be taken before the proper officer to be tried for the alleged offense or be allowed to post an appropriate bond.
B. Any municipality may provide by ordinance that the first process shall be a citation or summons in cases involving violations of any municipal ordinance not amounting to a breach of the peace, requiring the party charged to appear before the municipal court at a time fixed in the citation or summons. The ordinance may also provide that, upon the failure of the party charged to appear, a warrant for his arrest shall immediately issue by the municipal judge for the offense specified in the citation or summons, commanding that the party charged shall be arrested and proceedings had as in the case when arrest is made upon a warrant issued upon affidavit as provided in Subsection A of this section.
C. Any person upon whom any fine or penalty is imposed may, upon order of the court convicting him, be committed to the county jail, municipal jail, detention facility or other place provided by the municipality for the incarceration of offenders until the fine or penalty is fully paid. The period of incarceration shall not exceed sixty days for any one offense except as authorized in Subsection C of Section 3-17-1 NMSA 1978. The municipal governing body may provide by ordinance that every person so committed shall work for the municipal corporation, at such labor as his strength will permit, within or without the jail or other place provided for the incarceration, not exceeding ten hours each working day. Each offender shall be credited with eight times the federal hourly minimum wage per day in reduction of any fine.
History: Laws 1884, ch. 39, § 19; C.L. 1884, § 1627; C.L. 1897, § 2407; Code 1915, § 3628; C.S. 1929, § 90-908; 1941 Comp., § 39-203; 1953 Comp., § 38-1-3; Laws 1959, ch. 169, § 3; 1961, ch. 209, § 1; 1963, ch. 11, § 1; 1987, ch. 92, § 2; 2001, ch. 170, § 2.
The 2001 amendment, effective July 1, 2001, in Subsection C, substituted "period of incarceration shall not exceed sixty days" for "imprisonment shall not exceed ninety days" and increased the credit amount from five dollars per day to eight times the federal hourly minimum wage per day.
The 1987 amendment, effective June 19, 1987, in Subsection B, near the end of the first sentence substituted "municipal court" for "municipal magistrate court"; in Subsection C, in the first sentence substituted "detention facility" for "prison farm", in the second sentence made a minor stylistic change and inserted "except as authorized in Subsection C of Section 3-17-1 NMSA 1978" at the end, and in the third sentence substituted "jail" for "prison" preceding "or other place provided for the incarceration."
Validity of ordinances authorizing commitment. — If a fine is imposed, an order may be made for commitment until the fine and costs are paid; although such proceedings are not criminal, being at most quasi-criminal, ordinances authorizing commitment are valid. In re Roe Chung, 1897-NMSC-016, 9 N.M. 130, 49 P. 952.
Forms of proceedings. — This section provides two forms of proceedings for the violation of city ordinances, viz.: one civil in form and providing that the first process shall be a summons; the other a warrant for arrest of the offender, based upon affidavit. It provides for a fine or penalty, and for imprisonment as a means of collecting the same. City of Tucumcari v. Belmore, 1913-NMSC-084, 18 N.M. 331, 137 P. 585.
No warrants required. — While this section requires that warrants must be supported by affidavits, if the offense is committed in the immediate presence of the arresting officers, no warrant is required. City of Clovis v. Archie, 1955-NMSC-105, 60 N.M. 239, 290 P.2d 1075.
When endorsement by district attorney not needed. — A complaint sworn to and filed upon information and belief by a police officer, which alleges a violation of a municipal ordinance need not be endorsed or approved by the district attorney or his representative. 1968 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 68-115.
"Reasonable grounds to believe" means substantially the same thing as probable cause. 1963 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 63-123.
Law reviews. — For article, "Prisoners Are People," see 10 Nat. Resources J. 869 (1970).
Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 56 Am. Jur. 2d Municipal Corporations, Counties, and Other Political Subdivisions § 419.
Conviction under state statute held not a bar to prosecution under ordinance, or vice versa, 103 A.L.R. 1249.
Penalties for violations of ordinances, municipal power to impose, 115 A.L.R. 1395.
Interest necessary to maintenance of declaratory determination of validity of ordinance, 174 A.L.R. 549.
Meaning of term "radius" employed in ordinance as descriptive of area, location or distance, 10 A.L.R.2d 605.
Public regulation and prohibition of sound amplifiers or loud speaker broadcasts in streets, 10 A.L.R.2d 627.
Right of municipal corporation to review of an unfavorable decision in an action or prosecution for violation of a municipal ordinance, 11 A.L.R.4th 399.
62 C.J.S. Municipal Corporations §§ 316, 327, 351, 355, 356.