If you or someone you love suffered a terrible injury due to mistreatment in New Mexico’s prisons or jails, an injustice hurting almost as bad as the first one is having your claim thrown out on a technicality.
For a prison abuse claim in New Mexico, to even get your foot in the door of the courthouse, you need to file a notice to the State that you have been wronged. Due to the principle of Sovereign Immunity, the government does not have to let its own citizens sue it; we only have the legal right to sue the State of New Mexico when and how it chooses to allow us to sue it. One of the authorizations allowing the right to sue the State is the New Mexico Tort Claims Act. Another is the New Mexico Civil Rights Act. Both acts put into place a strict requirement that the government be “noticed” or informed when it has injured someone, and that person is thinking about suing it. So the law requires a notice be filed allowing the government to be informed and to, theoretically at least, make it right on its own.
This notice for the Tort Claims Act must be filed within 90 days of the incident giving rise to the claim. The deadline for the New Mexico Civil Rights act is one year from the date of the incident. Without meeting this deadline, your claim under the specific act will be barred.
The New Mexico Department of Corrections (NMCD) is part of the State government. So, in New Mexico prisons, if you have been harmed due to the negligence or misdeeds of the prison or its employees, the notice should be presented to the Risk Management Division for New Mexico. Try using this link: Tort Notice of Claim | NM GSD
For a claim against MDC, notice should be given to the Bernalillo County Clerk and Risk Management Department. You may start with this email: risk@bernco.gov
The difference in dates of deadline means that a person could potentially miss out on the Tort Claims Act cause of Action while still having a live Civil Rights cause of action.
The Tort Claims Notice and the New Mexico Civil Rights Act Notice is a crucial step in the process of suing New Mexico prisons and jails. Failing to file this notice within the 90-day or 1-year deadline can result in your claim being completely barred in State Court. The notice should state the time, place, and circumstances of the injury you suffered.
It’s important to note that these notice requirements are separate from the prison’s internal grievance process. Check out my blog on the prison’s grievance system: Grievances: What is necessary to sue NMDOC or MDC for mistreatment of a prisoner? – Max Pines Law While you certainly need to exhaust the prison’s internal grievance procedures before filing a lawsuit, the notices is a legal requirement for preserving your right to sue under state law.
You do not want to lose out on your right to recover for your injuries simply because you didn’t file a notice within the required time frame. This and other counter-intuitive requirements to getting justice are great reasons to contact a civil rights attorney as soon as possible to determine a strategy and to better understand your rights.
Given the technical requirements looming from the start and the strict deadlines involved, it’s advisable to consult with a civil rights attorney as soon as possible after the incident to ensure all requirements are met and your rights are protected.
