19 hours ago
High court pauses trial of former firefighters charged in alleged rape
Jun. 25—A judge on Wednesday paused the trial of two former firefighters accused of raping a woman in 2023 after the New Mexico Supreme Court agreed to consider issues raised by defense attorneys.
Justices ordered a stay late Tuesday in response to an emergency petition filed last week by three men charged in the case, alleging mishandling of the grand jury process.
The Supreme Court ordered the 2nd Judicial District Attorney's Office to file a response to the emergency petition no later than noon Thursday.
"We are responding in accordance with the court's request," a spokeswoman for the 2nd Judicial District Attorney's Office said in a statement Wednesday. The DA's office offered no additional comment.
The Supreme Court also ordered that the lower court judge not consider a motion for a mistrial based on the stay.
Testimony began Tuesday in the trials of Aden Heyman, 48, and Anthony Martin, 46, who are each charged with three counts of criminal sexual penetration for allegedly raping a woman at an Albuquerque apartment complex. The 2nd Judicial District Court trial was scheduled to continue through Friday.
The third former firefighter, Angel Portillo, 33, also is charged with three counts of criminal sexual penetration for his role in the incident. No trial has been scheduled in Portillo's case.
Attorneys for Heyman, Martin and Portillo filed an emergency petition June 18 alleging that prosecutors improperly handled the grand jury process that led to the criminal charges.
In particular, the petition argued that the grand jury was not instructed "to consider the guilt of each person individually" for each of the three men accused in the case.
Judge Britt Baca on June 16 rejected a motion from defense attorneys to toss the September 2023 grand jury indictment based on similar issues raised in the emergency petition.
The petition also alleged that the only witness who testified before the grand jury was the lead detective in the case, who was allowed to testify about the alleged victim "blacking out without any foundation provided for her opinions."
The three former firefighters are charged with raping a woman who was invited to a pool party following a charity golf tournament.
A prosecutor told jurors on Tuesday that the three men plied the woman with alcohol until she "blacked out completely at the pool" immediately prior to the alleged attack.
The woman woke up pinned to a bed in a dark room and realized she was being raped, Assistant District Attorney Crystal Cabrido told jurors.
Attorneys for Heyman and Martin said in opening statements Tuesday that the sexual encounter was consensual and questioned whether the woman ever lost consciousness.
