Category: Media

  • Global Awards 2017 Winner Notification Criminal Law Firm of the Year – USA

    From: Navdeep Poonia
    Sent: Thursday, September 7, 2017 3:36 PM
    Subject: Global Awards 2017 – Winner Notification

    Good morning,
    Finance Monthly is delighted to inform you that following your recent shortlist announcement you are confirmed as the winner of a Finance Monthly Global Award 2017 for the following area:

    FINANCE MONTHLY GLOBAL AWARDS 2017

    SECTOR WINNER Criminal Law Law Firm of the Year USA

    Finance Monthly offer you our warmest congratulations and kindly ask for your immediate assistance as we begin the process of formulating the Finance Monthly Global Awards 2017 edition and commence production of commemorative trophies. The opportunity now presents itself for you to be featured within the winners’ edition as a profiled individual/firm.

    Finance Monthly Global Awards Edition 2017
    Now entering its 9th year, the Global Awards edition will be published in October. This specially commissioned awards edition will be produced in both hard copy and digital formats and distributed to the entire Finance Monthly readership of over 195,000+.

    The Finance Monthly Global Awards Edition is designed as a platform for individuals and firms to showcase their achievement to our corporate readership through an interview, biography and/or an advert. Additionally, it will also be free to view on our new dedicated awards site for a period of 12 months.

    Voting Process
    This time around competition has been fiercer than ever.

    Between March and May, a total number of 18,952 votes were registered.

    The following points were considered during the final selection process:

    The number of nominations received

    Supporting material, covering statements and evidence supplied

    Amount of documented activity in the last 12 months when compared to industry peers

    Involvement in significant deals, cases or notable work

    Recognised financial and/or legal expertise (by peer group)

    Innovation in client care

    Size (value) of involvement within transactions, deals and cases

    Previous accolades and entries within recognised financial and legal guides

    Navdeep Poonia Awards Manager
    t: 0044 (0) 1543 267632
    e: navdeep.poonia@finance-monthly.com
    w: finance-monthly.com

     

  • One Decade on Superlawyers.com List

    Aarons profile in 2017 Superlawyers

    Congrats to Criminal Defense Lawyer Stephen D Aarons, who was included in the first New Mexico list for Superlawyers.com in 2007 and has been included every year since!

    Stephen D Aarons featured in SuperLawyers
    Stephen D Aarons featured in 2017 SuperLawyers Edition

    17 SuperLawyers Award

  • Not Guilty Verdicts

    After severing counts two counts and the court dismissing a third count of criminal sexual contact of a minor, an Albuquerque jury deliberated for 40 minutes before acquitting Harold Potter of Las Vegas, Nevada, of the remaining two counts. Inconsistencies in the alleged victim’s testimony was a primary reason for the verdicts.

  • Taos County Jury Verdict

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    Defendant sent home after Jury returns verdict in Taos Murder Trial

    The prosecution did not object to Manual Leyba going home after the jury returned a verdict of involuntary manslaughter after the fatal stabbing in Penasco. A sentence hearing is scheduled for June 2016.

    [/column]

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    Peñasco man found guilty of involuntary manslaughter

    Laurie Celine Updated May 20, 2016

    Manuel Leyba of Peñasco was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter by a jury (May 19) in the Eighth Judicial District Court before Judge Jeff McElroy in Taos. The verdict was based on an incident that happened when Leyba allegedly stabbed his 22-year-old cousin, Alex Vigil, the night of June 19, 2015. Leyba, 31, was charged with second-degree murder.

    The events leading up to the murder began with a domestic altercation between Vigil and his girlfriend, Tysha Sandoval. Sandoval is the mother of James Leyba’s son, who is Manuel Leyba’s brother. Prosecutors Ron Olsen and David Thomas argued for second-degree murder, while Defense Attorney Stephen Aarons argued for innocence. The prosecutors and the defense attorney described the events leading up to the incident as intricate and complex family relations.

    The jury was instructed to make the decision by examining four possible outcomes: not guilty, self-defense, voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter, which it ultimately ruled on.

    Copyright Taos News, reprinted with permission

    [Editor’s Note: the four possible verdicts were: guilty of second degree murder, guilty of voluntary manslaughter, guilty of involuntary manslaughter and not guilty]

    [/column]

  • Peñasco Murder Trial

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    Peñasco man will face trial for second-degree murder in cousin’s stabbing

    A Peñasco man accused of stabbing his 22-year-old cousin will stand trial for second-degree murder after a magistrate judge rejected arguments Monday (Aug. 10) the charge against him be reduced to voluntary manslaughter. Manuel Leyba, 30, is accused of knifing Alex Vigil during an altercation June 19. After testimony from eight witnesses during a three-hour hearing Monday, Taos County Magistrate Judge Ernest Ortega advanced the case against Leyba to Eighth Judicial District Court, where it can proceed to trial.

    The attorney representing Leyba, Stephen Aarons, asked Ortega during the preliminary examination to advance the case with a lesser charge, suggesting Vigil provoked the fight that led to his death.

    Ortega said there was substantial evidence of aggression by Vigil. But he added lethal force was not warranted and that the evidence did not indicate sufficient provocation.

    Testimony Monday suggested the events that led to the ultimately fatal altercation outside Leyba’s Camino de la Acequia Madre home began at another residence with an argument between Vigil and his then-girlfriend. Tysha Sandoval testified Monday Vigil spent much of the evening at her home before a disagreement. Sandoval said Vigil beat her during the argument, after which she called her mother, who later arrived.

    Sandoval testified she left the residence with her mother, planning to leave Peñasco. The two women went to retrieve Sandoval’s 3-year-old child, who is the son of Leyba’s brother, James Leyba, Sandoval testified. But before leaving town, the young woman said they planned on taking the child to his father’s residence, where Manuel Leyba also resided. Vigil is said to have given chase in his car, purportedly running them off the road at one point. He allegedly pursued his then-girlfriend, her child and her mother to the Leyba residence.

    Witnesses testified Manuel and James Leyba went to meet Vigil at the entrance to their driveway. James Leyba testified Vigil was belligerent, shouting obscenities and demanding to see his girlfriend. An altercation reportedly ensued but witnesses provided testimony Monday that in some instances differed from their statements to Taos County Sheriff’s deputies shortly after the incident. Deputy Eighth Judicial District Attorney Emilio Chávez noted Monday that James Leyba initially denied witnessing the altercation when interviewed by law enforcement.

    James Leyba said Monday he saw the two men fight but disagreed with Chávez when the prosecutor recounted a statement in which he claimed to hear Vigil say “you stabbed me and I’m calling the cops.” Instead, James Leyba said Monday he was not aware Vigil had been stabbed or suffered serious injury during the incident. Vigil clutched his face, returned to his vehicle and drove at the brothers before speeding away, James Leyba said Monday.

    Manuel Leyba did not testify. Law enforcement were unequivocal that Vigil was stabbed, however. Vigil is said to have driven from the Leyba residence to his mother’s home nearby, telling her only that he was dying before collapsing on the building’s front steps. Zack Wright, then a Taos County Sheriff’s deputy, recounted arriving at the home after a 911 call to find Vigil unresponsive with stab wounds to his left rib cage, a cut on his forearm and an approximately six-inch laceration across his face.

    When Vigil’s mother suggested her son may have been injured at the Leyba residence, Wright said he drove to the home. There, the deputy measured an approximately 77-foot trail of blood along the road stemming from a puddle near the driveway. But everyone at the residence denied witnessing an altercation involving Vigil, Wright testified. Leyba had already left the home by the time law enforcement arrived shortly after midnight. It was not until a subsequent interview with a sergeant from the sheriff’s office that James Leyba recounted witnessing an altercation at the edge of the driveway. Sgt. Rick Romero testified James Leyba told him it appeared the men were boxing when Vigil exclaimed “you sliced me, bro.

    Copyright Taos News. Reprinted with Permission

    [/column]

  • Plea Deal Accepted in Murder/Arson Case

    By Carlos Padilla HERALD Editor

    A plea deal was struck between the State of New Mexico and accused murderer and arsonist Willie Garcia Jr., on Wednesday morning, Nov. 12, in the Seventh Judicial District Courthouse in Truth or Consequences. Mr. Garcia has been incarcerated since shortly after the death of 27-year-old Mical Lee Culpepper, who died in May 2012.

    Sentencing will take place in approximately 45 days.

    If sentenced to the maximum term in prison allowed by law due to this plea agreement – 5-1/2 years – Willie Garcia Jr., may be out of prison before this year’s sophomores at Hot Springs High School receive their diplomas for graduation.

    QUESTION OF COMPETENCY

    On Wednesday morning, Seventh Judicial District Court Chief Judge Kevin Sweazea opened the proceedings for the plea hearing, where Seventh Judicial District Attorney Clint Wellborn went on record as the prosecutor in the case and Steve Aarons went on record as the defense attorney representing Mr. Garcia.

    Judge Sweazea acknowledged that the agenda to last week’s hearing indicated that the court was set to hear the plea and disposition, and that the court had been awaiting a competency report.

    “Has that been prepared?” Judge Sweazea asked.

    “It has, Your Honor,” Mr. Aarons offered, addressing the court, adding that he was filing in open court a notice of withdrawal of the competency issue.

    Mr. Aarons went on to state that he had received a report Monday evening, Nov. 10, that in the opinion of the individual who had prepared the report after interviewing Mr. Garcia, that although Mr. Garcia does “have a history of multiple head injuries, the neuropsychological screening” indicates that “his memory, attention and language skills are sufficient for him to be able to work with his attorney in a rational and factual manner in his defense.”

    Mr. Aarons had in fact been the individual to breech the issue of Mr. Garcia’s competency in the first place.

    In question to the legal matters at hand, Garcia was found to possess “more than an adequate grasp of the fundamentals,” Mr. Aarons stated, reading from the report. “He does have a significant substance abuse history for which he could benefit from treatment. He is to remain on appropriate psychotropic medications to maintain competency.”

    Aarons addressed the court, stating that he was now satisfied, as Garcia’s attorney, that his client’s competency was determined to be intact by the forensic psychologist, who he stated has a distinguished reputation in the state of New Mexico in her field.

    With that said, Mr. Aarons requested that the issue of competency be withdrawn from the court.

    Judge Sweazea, who was given the original report by defense attorney Aarons, ordered that the attorney needed to file the report with the court clerk’s office, as the issue of competency had been raised with the court regarding Mr. Garcia.

    PLEA AGREEMENT

    With that issue being put to bed, so to speak, Judge Sweazea asked the attorneys present in court if they wished to proceed with the plea agreement. Both attorneys stated that they were in fact prepared to proceed.

    District Attorney Wellborn addressed the court, asking to specifically address the matter of Garcia being considered for a habitual offender enhancement.

    Defense attorney Aarons spoke to the habitual offender enhancement, confirming that Mr. Garcia’s prior criminal offense was more than 10 years old, however, because Garcia was not released from probation until 2007, which was within 10 years, that placed Garcia “within the zero to 5-1/2 years.”

    Asking for clarification, Judge Sweazea was told by Mr. Aarons that the figure of 5-1/2 years included the potential prison sentences combined.

    In the portion of the plea agreement that discusses sentencing, Judge Sweazea stated, it references a statute that the offenses are nonviolent offenses. “Does that mean that they are not serious offenses?” he asked District Attorney Wellborn, who stated that the statute does state that the offense included in the plea agreement were considered nonviolent.

    Willie Garcia Jr., was then sworn in by Chief Judge Sweazea.

  • Rowley v. Morant (D.N.M. 2012)

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    TRAVIS R. ROWLEY, Plaintiff,
    v.
    KEVIN MORANT et al, Defendants. 

    No. 1:10CV1182 WJ/WDS

    UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF NEW MEXICO

    Dated: July 26, 2012

     

    STIPULATED ORDER EXTENDING DISCOVERY DEADLINES
            THIS MATTER came before the court on plaintiff’s unopposed Motion for Stipulated Order Extending Discovery Deadlines. (Doc 43) The court FINDS all remaining parties agree in the relief requested and it is well taken.

     

    IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that discovery is reopened. All discovery including interrogatories and depositions shall be complete by 28 September 2012 except upon leave of court for good cause shown. The court reserves ruling on the issue of expert witness disclosures.

    ____________
    W. Daniel Schneider
    United States Magistrate Judge

    Stipulations of Counsel:

     Stephen D Aarons
            Attorney for Plaintiffs

    Kathryn C. Levy
    Attorney for City Defendants

    [/column]

  • Cordova Trial Will Proceed

    By Vic Vela / Journal Staff Writer

    SANTA FE, N.M. — A Rio Arriba County vehicular homicide case will survive, even though the truck allegedly driven by the defendant in a fatal Memorial Day weekend crash did not.

    A judge Thursday denied a defense motion to dismiss charges against Juan de Dios Cordova, despite his lawyers’ argument that Cordova’s ability to defend himself has been prejudiced because his truck was crushed into scrap metal instead of held as evidence.

    State District Judge T. Glenn Ellington did say that Cordova has legal remedies to ensure that he gets a fair trial. His defense attorneys maintain that the pickup is “the most important piece of evidence in this case.”

    Also Thursday, on a secondary matter, the judge denied defense motions that sought to have Rio Arriba County Sheriff Tommy Rodella held in contempt of court for testimony during a preliminary hearing on Cordova’s case and for comments he made in a radio interview.

    Cordova, 56, is alleged to have been drunk behind the wheel on the High Road to Taos on May 28, before striking and killing motorcyclist Mark Wolfe, 51, of Algodones. Wolfe’s wife, Debbie Hill, 50, was seriously injured. Other friends who were part of a group on motorcycle riders returning from a rally in Red River were also hurt.

    Cordova is accused of fleeing the scene and ditching his truck along the side of the road. He was arrested later at his home in Cordova. A blood sample taken several hours after the wreck showed his blood-alcohol concentration was 0.14 percent, nearly twice the state’s presumed level of intoxication.

    Cordova has claimed he wasn’t driving when the fatal wreck occurred.

    He faces one count of vehicular homicide; two counts of great bodily injury by vehicle; two counts of aggravated DWI; and one count of leaving the scene of an accident.

    The truck that hit Wolfe, which was supposed to held as evidence, was destroyed in a mishap involving a towing company owner who was storing the truck for the Rio Arriba County Sheriff’s Office. Freddie Seeds, owner of Total Secure Towing in Española, sold it as scrap metal and has said he had a deputy’s approval to release the truck.

    Representatives of the Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office have denied ever giving Seeds permission to release the vehicle. They found out it had been destroyed during a preliminary hearing on Cordova’s charges that started in September.

    Cordova’s Public Defenders Damian Horne and Kathryn Fischer argue that the state had a duty to preserve the truck. The defense attorneys contend the truck had “mechanical defects” that contributed to the wreck, and it can never be tested by an expert witness. They also claim they’re not able to put on evidence that the pickup’s tires blew out before the crash.

    ‘Murky waters’

    Chief Deputy District Attorney Juan Valencia conceded the truck’s importance in the case, but said that it wouldn’t be prudent to dismiss the charges against Cordova outright.

    “The defense is asking for you to wade into very murky waters on what the destroyed truck might prove,” the prosecutor said. “There’s so much other evidence that the jury is entitled to hear.”

    Valencia also said that the DA’s Office “could not anticipate” the actions of the towing company owner Seeds. The prosecutor said Seeds was “operating under his own thought process” and should have known better than to get rid of a truck in a vehicular homicide case.

    Fischer said that regardless of how the truck came to be destroyed and whose fault it was is a “red herring.”

    “None of that matters,” she argued. “… We have nothing. We’ve been left with nothing.”

    Ellington agreed that the state “clearly had a duty” to preserve the truck, and the pickup and the evidence associated with it is “material” to the case. But, the judge said, “It is possible to construct remedies to protect Mr. Cordova’s due process rights without dismissal of the case.”

    The judge said the defense will be allowed at trial to put on expert testimony about what could have been gained by preserving the truck, as well as “how it came to be destroyed.” The defense team will also be “allowed to argue mechanical failure was a possibility.”

    As for what led to the truck’s demise, Chief Deputy District Attorney Dorie Biagianti Smith said State Police is expected to report findings by January.

    Contempt charges

    Another issue taken up by Ellington on Thursday were accusations by the defense attorneys that Rio Arriba County Sheriff Tommy Rodella had committed contempt of court.

    Two contempt motions were filed. One of them deals with Rodella’s court testimony about telephone conversation he had with a deputy, Paula Archuleta, who is at the center of a dispute over who authored a particular Sheriff’s Office report.

    Horne accused Rodella of stating “outright falsehoods” in his testimony during the preliminary hearing about the duration and nature of his phone call with Archuleta.

    Rodella’s attorney Stephen Aarons countered that the sheriff is standing by his testimony and that “there has to be a knowing falsehood” present for contempt.

    Horne’s other contempt motion is critical of Rodella for going on a radio show and praising his deputies for their “exceptionally fine work in the case,” even though the judge had told the sheriff not to discuss the case.

    Rodella’s “self-congratulatory oration about having gotten their man” over Rio Arriba County airwaves “virtually destroyed” Cordova’s shot at getting a fair trial there, Horne argued.

    Aarons said that there was no gag order in place during or after the preliminary hearing, and the sheriff was trying to defend his office’s handling of the Cordova case. “Attacks on him and the department were made,” Aarons said. “He felt there was another side of it that weren’t discussed in court.”

    The judge rejected both contempt motions. Ellington said the statements that the sheriff made on the radio were akin to protected “political speech.”

    But the judge did order that “no more statements be made publicly in order to protect the (jury pool).”

    As for the other contempt issue, the judge said that “the court knows (contempt) when it sees it. It is an affront on the process and proceedings (of the courtroom),” a line that apparently Ellington didn’t think Rodella crossed.

  • State v. Hubble

    206 P.3d 579 2009 NMSC 014

    STATE of New Mexico, Plaintiff-Respondent,
    v.
    Rich HUBBLE, Defendant-Petitioner.

    No. 30,663.

    Supreme Court of New Mexico.

    March 31, 2009.

    [206 P.3d 581]

            Hugh W. Dangler, Chief Public Defender, Nancy M. Hewitt, Appellate Defender, Kathleen T. Baldridge, Assistant Appellate Defender, Santa Fe, NM, for Petitioner.

            Gary K. King, Attorney General, Anita Carlson, Assistant Attorney General, Santa Fe, NM, for Respondent.

            Donna M. Bevacqua-Young, John Ward Wheeler, II, Santa Fe, NM, for Amici Curiae, New Mexico District Attorneys’ Association and New Mexico Department of Public Safety.

    OPINION

            SERNA, Justice.

            {1} Defendant Rich Hubble was convicted in magistrate court of Driving Under The Influence of Intoxicating Liquor, contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 66-8-102 (1953, as amended through 2004), and Improper Turning at Intersection, contrary to NMSA 1978, Section 66-7-325(A) (1978). Pursuant to Rule 6-703 NMRA, he appealed to the district court. During the district court bench trial, Defendant moved to suppress the evidence that was obtained from the traffic stop, which he claimed was conducted without reasonable suspicion. The district court denied the motion and Defendant was once again convicted of the same two offenses. Defendant appealed the district court’s judgment and the Court of Appeals affirmed. We granted Defendant’s petition for writ of certiorari on the issue of whether the initial traffic stop was based upon reasonable suspicion that he violated a traffic law. We hold that the traffic stop was based upon reasonable suspicion and we affirm the denial of Defendant’s motion to suppress.

    [206 P.3d 582]

            I. BACKGROUND

            {2} On the evening of February 15, 2005, Deputy Phillip Francisco was driving southbound on County Road 6100 when he observed Defendant’s vehicle come to a stop at a “T” intersection between County Road 6100 and an unnamed access road. Aside from the vehicles belonging to Deputy Francisco and Defendant, there were no other vehicles on either the county road or the access road. As Deputy Francisco passed through the intersection, he observed that Defendant did not have his turn signal engaged. Deputy Francisco continued to observe the vehicle through his rearview mirror as he proceeded southbound and never saw the turn signal engaged. Deputy Francisco then observed Defendant turn onto County Road 6100 without using his turn signal. Defendant and his passenger both testified that Defendant did turn on his signal before turning right onto Country Road 6100. Deputy Francisco pulled over to the side of the road about one hundred feet past the intersection and waited for Defendant to pass him. Deputy Francisco then proceeded to make the traffic stop on the basis that Defendant turned without using his signal.

            {3} Deputy Francisco approached the vehicle and detected the odor of alcohol on Defendant’s breath and observed that Defendant had bloodshot, watery eyes and slurred speech. Deputy Francisco also observed Defendant act in a slow, impaired, and disoriented manner when he was retrieving his license and registration. Deputy Francisco ordered Defendant to exit his vehicle and observed Defendant swaying and losing his balance when standing. Deputy Francisco asked Defendant if he had been drinking and Defendant responded by saying that he had consumed one beer. Deputy Francisco then had Defendant undergo the horizontal gaze nystagmus, the walk-and-turn, and the one-leg stand tests. Defendant failed all three tests and Deputy Francisco placed him under arrest. Defendant consented to two breath tests and the results indicated that he had a blood alcohol content of 0.12 and 0.10, respectively. Deputy Francisco issued Defendant a citation for DWI and for Improper Turning at Intersection.

            {4} At trial, Deputy Francisco acknowledged that the turn signal statute dictates that a driver use the turn signal in order to indicate to other traffic in which direction the driver intends to travel. Deputy Francisco testified that he considered himself to be traffic that night.

            II. DISCUSSION

            A. Standard of Review

            {5} “In reviewing a trial court’s denial of a motion to suppress, we observe the distinction between factual determinations which are subject to a substantial evidence standard of review and application of law to the facts[,] which is subject to de novo review.” State v. Nieto, 2000-NMSC-031, ¶ 19, 129 N.M. 688, 12 P.3d 442 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). “We view the facts in the manner most favorable to the prevailing party and defer to the district court’s findings of fact if substantial evidence exists to support those findings.” State v. Urioste, 2002-NMSC-023, ¶ 6, 132 N.M. 592, 52 P.3d 964. “Questions of reasonable suspicion are reviewed de novo by looking at the totality of the circumstances to determine whether the detention was justified.” State v. Robbs, 2006-NMCA-061, ¶ 9, 139 N.M. 569, 136 P.3d 570.

            {6} Defendant did not assert that the New Mexico Constitution afforded him greater protection than the federal Constitution, so we only address the issue of reasonable suspicion under federal Fourth Amendment law. See State v. Gomez, 1997-NMSC-006, ¶¶ 22-23, 122 N.M. 777, 932 P.2d 1.

            {7} “Both the United State Constitution and the New Mexico Constitution protect a citizen against unreasonable searches and seizures.” State v. Funderburg, 2008-NMSC-026, ¶ 12, 144 N.M. 37, 183 P.3d 922. Since an automobile stop is considered a “seizure” under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments, it must “be conducted in a reasonable manner to satisfy the Fourth Amendment.” State v. Duran, 2005-NMSC-034, ¶ 22, 138 N.M. 414, 120 P.3d 836. “Before a police officer makes a traffic stop, he must have a reasonable suspicion of illegal activity.” State v. Anaya, 2008-NMCA-020,

    [206 P.3d 583]

    ¶ 6, 143 N.M. 431, 176 P.3d 1163. We analyze the reasonableness of a stop in accordance with the two-part test set forth in Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 19-20, 88 S.Ct. 1868, 20 L.Ed.2d 889 (1968):(1) whether the stop was justified at its inception and (2) whether the officer’s action was “reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justified the interference.” Funderburg, 2008-NMSC-026, ¶ 13, 144 N.M. 37, 183 P.3d 922. Because there are no allegations that Deputy Francisco exceeded the scope of the initial interference, we need only examine the first part of the test—whether the stop was justified at its inception.

            {8} “A reasonable suspicion is a particularized suspicion, based on all the circumstances that a particular individual, the one detained, is breaking, or has broken, the law.” State v. Jason L., 2000-NMSC-018, ¶ 20, 129 N.M. 119, 2 P.3d 856. “The test is an objective one. The subjective belief of the officer does not in itself affect the validity of the stop; it is the evidence known to the officer that counts, not the officer’s view of the governing law.” State v. Muñoz, 1998-NMCA-140, ¶ 9, 125 N.M. 765, 965 P.2d 349. We objectively examine whether the facts available to the officer warrant the officer, as a person of reasonable caution, to believe the action taken was appropriate. State v. Madsen, 2000-NMCA-050, ¶ 9, 129 N.M. 251, 5 P.3d 573. We will find reasonable suspicion “if the officer is aware of specific articulable facts, together with rational inferences from those facts, that, when judged objectively, would lead a reasonable person to believe criminal activity occurred or was occurring.” State v. Taylor, 1999-NMCA-022, ¶ 7, 126 N.M. 569, 973 P.2d 246 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

            B. Section 66-7-325(A) Requires Engagement of a Turn Signal When There is a Reasonable Possibility That Other Traffic May Be Affected

            {9} The determination of whether Deputy Francisco had reasonable suspicion to make the traffic stop does not hinge on whether Defendant actually violated the underlying turn signal statute. See State v. Brennan, 1998-NMCA-176, ¶ 12, 126 N.M. 389, 970 P.2d 161 (holding that, regardless of whether the defendant was ultimately convicted of careless driving, the officer had reasonable suspicion that he was driving carelessly and the stop was therefore justified). For clarity, we nonetheless take this opportunity to discuss Section 66-7-325(A) and review Defendant’s Improper Turning at Intersection conviction.

            {10} “The primary goal in interpreting a statute is to give effect to the Legislature’s intent;” we first look at the words chosen by the Legislature and the plain meaning of those words. State v. Davis, 2003-NMSC-022, ¶ 6, 134 N.M. 172, 74 P.3d 1064. Under the plain meaning rule, when a statute’s language is “clear and unambiguous,” we will give effect to the language and refrain from further statutory interpretation. State v. Rivera, 2004-NMSC-001, ¶ 10, 134 N.M. 768, 82 P.3d 939. We will not read into a statute language which is not there, especially when it makes sense as it is written. Burroughs v. Bd. of County Comm’rs of Bernalillo County, 88 N.M. 303, 306, 540 P.2d 233, 236 (1975).

            {11} Section 66-7-325(A) provides in pertinent part: “No person shall . . . turn any vehicle without giving an appropriate signal . . . in the event any other traffic may be affected by such movement.” Thus, there are two elements in the statute that must be satisfied in order for its mandate to be triggered: (1) there must be other “traffic” (2) that “may be affected” by the motorist’s turn.

            {12} The “traffic” element is easily interpreted and any questions regarding its application in this case are easily resolved given the factual scenario. In interpreting the “traffic” element, we look to how the word is defined in our Motor Vehicle Code: “pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles and other conveyances either singly or together using any highway for purposes of travel.” NMSA 1978, § 66-1-4.17(F) (1990, as amended through 2007). Thus, there is no doubt that Deputy Francisco, who was driving a vehicle on a highway, was “traffic” under Section 66-7-325(A). The more contentious

    [206 P.3d 584]

    question deals with the “may be affected” element.

            {13} We first look to the plain meaning of the words chosen by the Legislature and in particular, the word “may.” Black’s Law Dictionary defines “may” as “[t]o be a possibility.” Black’s Law Dictionary 1000 (8th ed. 2004). Webster’s Dictionary defines it as “[u]sed to indicate a certain measure of likelihood or possibility.” Webster’s II: New Riverside University Dictionary 734 (1988). Thus, the concept of “possibility” is common to both definitions. To this end, it is significant that the Legislature chose the phrase “may be affected” as opposed to “is affected,” “will be affected,” or “most likely will be affected.” We understand this to mean that the Legislature’s intent was to provide Section 66-7-325(A) with a broad reach, requiring a signal even when there is only a reasonable possibility that other traffic may be affected by the signaling driver’s movement. Thus, under the plain meaning rule, we read the phrase “may be affected” to mean when there is a reasonable possibility that other traffic may be affected.

            {14} This interpretation of Section 66-7-325(A) aligns with the policy and concerns that the New Mexico Motor Vehicle Division expressed in the New Mexico Driver Manual. See Motor Vehicle Div., New Mexico Taxation & Revenue Dep’t, New Mexico Driver Manual 19 (2004) [hereinafter New Mexico Driver Manual]. In the section titled “Letting Others Know What You Are Doing,” the manual states: “Generally other drivers expect you to keep doing what you are doing. You must warn them when you are going to change direction or slow down. This will give them time to react if needed, or at least not be surprised by what you do.” Id. The manual further instructs drivers to signal when they change direction, turn right or left, merge into traffic, or park so that other drivers will have time to react to such movements. Id. Thus, requiring motorists to signal before they turn when there is a reasonable possibility that other traffic may be affected by such a turn not only reduces the chance that other drivers would be surprised, but also increases the time that other drivers have to react to such movements.

            {15} Given this interpretation, we now turn to the application of Section 66-7-325(A) to the facts of this case. In their arguments regarding whether Deputy Francisco was “other traffic [that] may be affected” under the meaning of the statute, the parties advocated for different snapshots of time from which this issue should be analyzed. Defendant argued that the issue be determined by analyzing Deputy Francisco at the point in time when he had already passed through the intersection and pulled over to the side of the road. Conversely, the State argued for an extended period of time—the time from when Deputy Francisco was approaching the intersection, including the time he passed through the intersection, until the time he pulled over onto the side of the road.

            {16} In holding that Deputy Francisco was not traffic that may have been affected by Defendant’s turn, the Court of Appeals endorsed the Defendant’s proposed snapshot in time: “[t]he State has not directed our attention to any evidence that Deputy Francisco believed that Defendant’s right turn itself presented a potential hazard to him (the only traffic present) as he observed the turn in his rearview mirror from 100 feet down the road . . . .” State v. Hubble, No. 26,452, slip. op. at 3 (N.M.Ct.App. Sept. 10, 2007) (emphasis added).

            {17} Given our interpretation that Section 66-7-325(A) requires a motorist to give the appropriate signal when there is a reasonable possibility that other traffic may be affected by a turn, we believe that the time period during which there was such a possibility that Deputy Francisco may have been affected by Defendant’s turn encompassed the time that Deputy Francisco was approaching and passing through the intersection. The broad reach and underlying policy of Section 66-7-325(A) dictate that the effect that one driver’s movement may have on another driver is not confined to the point in time when the actual, physical movement occurs. Rather, the effect also involves a driver’s decision-making process in the time leading up to the movement. A driver, once given a visual cue that indicates another driver’s intention, may decide to switch lanes, slow down, or prepare for a change in direction.

    [206 P.3d 585]

    When a driver engages his or her turn signal, it also communicates to other motorists that the driver is aware of their presence on the road. Thus, to consider that other traffic may be affected only at the time of the actual, physical movement unduly limits the broad reach of 66-7-325(A) and undermines our policy of giving drivers ample time to react to the future movements of other drivers on the road. See New Mexico Driver Manual at 19.

            {18} Further, subsection (B) of the statute reinforces the notion that the time period before the actual, physical movement of a driver is pertinent to the determination of Section 66-7-325 violations. It provides: “[a] signal of intention to turn right or left when required shall be given continuously during not less than the last one hundred feet traveled by the vehicle before turning.” Section 66-7-325(B). Thus, because we have determined that Deputy Francisco was “other traffic [that] may [have been] affected,” Defendant should have engaged his right turn signal at least one hundred feet before the intersection. Such indication would have alerted Deputy Francisco as to Defendant’s intention before Deputy Francisco reached the intersection.

            {19} The Court of Appeals also unreasonably narrowed the reach of Section 66-7-325(A) when it deviated from the language of the statute in its analysis. The first such deviation was when the Court articulated the issue that it would discuss: “we must decide whether Deputy Francisco could have been affected by Defendant’s turn within the meaning of Section 66-7-325(A).” Hubble, No. 26,452, slip. op. at 2 (emphasis added). Later, the Court reasoned, “[w]e do not understand how Deputy Francisco’s operation of his vehicle was affected in any normal sense of this word by a right turn that occurred after he was well clear of the intersection.” Id. at 3 (emphasis added). Finally, the Court stated, “[t]he State has not directed our attention to any evidence that Deputy Francisco believed that Defendant’s right turn itself presented a potential hazard to him. . . .” Id. (emphasis added).

            {20} Given our interpretation of Section 66-7-325(A) and its underlying policy, it is clear that the Court of Appeals required a greater show of effect than the statute contemplates. The State was not required to prove that Deputy Francisco could have been affected, that he was affected, or that Defendant’s turn presented a potential hazard; the statute only requires that the surrounding facts establish that there was a reasonable possibility that he may have been affected. To require an actual effect or a potential hazard would undermine the policy behind driving safety by depriving non-signaling drivers of visual cues and ample decision-making time in their interactions with drivers who intend to change directions. We therefore conclude that Defendant violated Section 66-7-325(A) and affirm Defendant’s turn signal violation conviction. We now turn our discussion to reasonable suspicion.

            C. Mistakes of Fact and Law and Reasonable Suspicion

            {21} Defendant argues that the traffic stop was not supported by reasonable suspicion because Deputy Francisco made a mistake of law when he concluded that Defendant violated the traffic code. As we have already discussed, we agree with the district court that Defendant violated Section 66-7-325(A) and therefore Deputy Francisco did not make a mistake of any kind. However, in order to clarify the law regarding reasonable suspicion, we take this opportunity to discuss mistakes of law and mistakes of fact and how they interact with reasonable suspicion.

            {22} A mistake of law is a “mistake about the legal effect of a known fact or situation,” whereas a mistake of fact is a “mistake about a fact that is material to a transaction; any mistake other than a mistake of law.” Black’s Law Dictionary 1023. Although mistakes of law and fact are more frequently encountered in the context of criminal defenses, some jurisdictions have incorporated these concepts into their rules regarding reasonable suspicion. See, e.g., United States v. Valadez-Valadez, 525 F.3d 987, 991 (10th Cir.2008) (“[F]ailure to understand the plain and unambiguous law . . . is not objectively reasonable.” (internal quotation marks and citation omitted)); United States v. Coplin, 463 F.3d 96, 101 (1st Cir.

    [206 P.3d 586]

    2006) (“Stops premised on a mistake of law, even a reasonable, good-faith mistake, are generally held to be unconstitutional.”); United States v. Chanthasouxat, 342 F.3d 1271, 1276 (11th Cir.2003) (reasoning that, while an officer’s mistake of fact may provide the objective grounds for reasonable suspicion, an officer’s mistake of law cannot); People v. Ramirez, 140 Cal.App.4th 849, 44 Cal. Rptr.3d 813, 816 (2006) (“[A] suspicion founded on a mistake of law cannot constitute the reasonable basis required for a lawful traffic stop.”)

            1. State v. Anaya

            {23} Reasonable suspicion in New Mexico is analyzed with the use of an objective test. In State v. Anaya, our Court of Appeals held that “conduct premised totally on a mistake of law cannot create the reasonable suspicion needed to make a traffic stop; but if the facts articulated by the officer support reasonable suspicion on another basis, the stop can be upheld.” Anaya, 2008-NMCA-020, ¶ 15, 143 N.M. 431, 176 P.3d 1163.

            {24} The facts in Anaya are similar to the instant case. The defendant in Anaya was observed to be weaving within his lane of traffic and was later stopped by a police officer after he failed to utilize his turn signal. Id. ¶ 2. After approaching the car and observing signs of intoxication, the officer arrested the defendant for DWI. Id. The defendant moved to suppress the DWI evidence on the basis that the initial stop was invalid because it was not supported by reasonable suspicion. Id. ¶ 3. At the suppression hearing, the officer testified that he did not observe any other cars in the area at the time of the stop and that he understood that the turn signal statute required the use of a turn signal in all circumstances. Id. Additionally, the officer did not testify that he was affected by the defendant’s right turn. Id. The district court found that the defendant’s traffic stop was not supported by reasonable suspicion and granted the motion to suppress the DWI evidence. Id. ¶ 4.

            {25} In affirming the district court’s decision to suppress the evidence, the Anaya Court found that, although “there could be cases in which the officer’s vehicle could be considered affected traffic, depending on the evidence presented[,] . . . the facts as articulated by the officer do not support violation of the turn signal law.” Id. ¶ 19. The Court also stated that “[f]ailure to signal is not a per se traffic violation, despite [the] officer’s good-faith understanding to the contrary,” and also classified the officer’s mistake as a mistake of law. Id. ¶ 17. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the defendant, the Court agreed with the district court’s finding that “the officer’s vehicle was not traffic that could be affected by [the][d]efendant’s failure to signal.” Id. ¶ 19.

            2. Anaya Does Not Conflict With Our Objective Reasonable Suspicion Test

            {26} The State argues that Anaya conflicts with our existing caselaw that has consistently applied an objective approach to analyzing reasonable suspicion. We disagree.

            {27} In its answer brief, the State asserted that “[t]he Anaya Court incorrectly states that New Mexico caselaw holds that conduct premised totally on a mistake of law cannot create the reasonable suspicion needed to make a traffic stop.” However, in making this assertion, the State ignored the second part of Anaya’s holding: “but if the facts articulated by the officer support reasonable suspicion on another basis, the stop can be upheld.” Id. ¶ 15. This second part is critical because it establishes that a court’s analysis has not been completed once an officer’s conduct has been categorized as a mistake of law—courts will still analyze the facts surrounding the officer’s decision in order to determine whether the officer had reasonable suspicion on another basis. In essence, the second part of the Anaya proposition is our objective test for reasonable suspicion.

            {28} Even with the “mistake of law” language of the first part of Anaya proposition, our objective test set forth in Brennan and Muñoz remains unaffected because it does not hinge on a court’s classification of an officer’s mistake as either a mistake of law or a mistake of fact. See Brennan, 1998-NMCA-176, ¶ 10, 126 N.M. 389, 970 P.2d 161 (“[T]he question is whether there

    [206 P.3d 587]

    were facts available to [the officer] that would warrant a person of reasonable caution to believe the stop was appropriate.”); Muñoz, 1998-NMCA-140, ¶ 9, 125 N.M. 765, 965 P.2d 349 (“The test [for reasonable suspicion] is an objective one. The subjective belief of the officer does not in itself affect the validity of the stop; it is the evidence known to the officer that counts. . . .”). In other words, it is not fatal in terms of reasonable suspicion if an officer makes a mistake of law when he conducts a traffic stop; courts will still look objectively to the totality of the circumstances surrounding the officer’s decision to conduct the traffic stop in order to determine if he or she had reasonable suspicion.

            {29} This was the Court of Appeals’ process in Anaya. It determined that the officer in that case made a mistake of law because he believed that the turn signal statute required drivers to engage their turn signal at all times, no matter if there was other traffic that may have been affected or not. Anaya, 2008-NMCA-020, ¶ 17, 143 N.M. 431, 176 P.3d 1163. However, the inquiry did not end with this determination. The Court of Appeals still had to determine, despite the officer’s misunderstanding of the law, if there were other facts surrounding the officer’s decision to conduct the traffic stop that could provide the objective grounds for reasonable suspicion. Id. (“[T]here [were] no other facts or testimony . . . to support reasonable suspicion on other grounds.”). The Court further held that “[i]t cannot be objectively reasonable to stop a vehicle when there are no facts to support the inference that a law has been violated.Id. ¶ 20 (emphasis added). Thus, the Court analyzed the facts surrounding the officer’s decision and did not merely conclude that there was no reasonable suspicion upon its determination that the officer had made a mistake of law.

            3. This is Not a Mistake of Law Case

            {30} In an attempt to apply the proposition set forth in Anaya, Defendant argues that Deputy Francisco made a mistake of law when he conducted the traffic stop of Defendant based on a perceived violation of the turn signal statute and that this mistake was the sole basis for the stop. We disagree.

            {31} Primarily, as discussed above, we hold that Defendant violated the turn signal statute and thus, Deputy Francisco did not make a mistake either of fact or of law when he conducted the traffic stop of Defendant. Thus, the mistake of law portion of the Anaya proposition does not apply. Also, unlike the officer in Anaya, who testified that he “understood Section 66-7-325 to require the use of a turn signal in all circumstances,” id. ¶ 3, there is no evidence in the record before us that Deputy Francisco had any such misunderstanding of the breadth of Section 66-7-325(A).

            {32} Finally, even if Deputy Francisco was mistaken when he believed that Defendant had violated the turn signal statute, such a mistake would be a mistake of fact, not a mistake of law. Deputy Francisco’s determinations—that he, while driving his vehicle on the highway, was “traffic,” and that he “may [have been] affected” by Defendant’s turn-concerned “fact[s] that [were] material to [the] transaction.” See Black’s Law Dictionary 1023. Deputy Francisco made no mistake about the applicable rules of law relating to the mandatory use of turn signal. Instead, he had to determine whether certain facts—the relative positions of the vehicles and their direction of travel—constituted a scenario where he may have been affected by Defendant’s movement. Thus, any mistakes regarding these factual judgments would be classified as mistakes of fact and not mistakes of law.

            4. Reasonable Suspicion Analysis

            {33} Given our interpretation of Section 66-7-325(A) and our holding that Defendant violated the statute, we now address the reasonable suspicion inquiry to the facts of this case.

            {34} Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to the State, we hold that Deputy Francisco had reasonable suspicion to stop Defendant. Deputy Francisco testified that as he passed through the intersection, he observed Defendant approach the same intersection perpendicularly and come to a stop. Deputy Francisco observed that Defendant did not have his turn signal engaged at that time. Deputy Francisco further testified that Defendant never, at any time, had his turn signal engaged as Deputy

    [206 P.3d 588]

    Francisco drove through the intersection and pulled over to the side of the road.

            {35} Looking at the “totality of the circumstances” and through an objective lens, we hold that Deputy Francisco had a “particularized suspicion . . . that [Defendant] [was] breaking, or [had] broken[] the law.” See Jason L., 2000-NMSC-018, ¶ 20, 129 N.M. 119, 2 P.3d 856. The “specific articulable” facts that Deputy Francisco observed would lead a reasonable officer to believe that Defendant had violated the turn signal statute and they created the objective basis for Deputy Francisco’s reasonable suspicion. Thus, Deputy Francisco’s traffic stop of Defendant was based upon reasonable suspicion.

            III. CONCLUSION

            {36} We hold that Defendant violated Section 66-7-325(A) and that Deputy Francisco had reasonable suspicion to conduct the traffic stop of Defendant. The district court’s denial of Defendant’s motion to suppress and his convictions are hereby affirmed.

            {37} IT IS SO ORDERED.

            WE CONCUR: EDWARD L. CHÁVEZ, Chief Justice, PETRA JIMENEZ MAES, RICHARD C. BOSSON, and CHARLES W. DANIELS, Justices.