By Roger M. Rael
The Raton Rang
SPRINGER, N.M. — Linda E. Baca, a candidate for Colfax County magistrate judge, Division 2, says her 42 years of public service and current courtroom experience have prepared her to serve on the bench.
Baca began working for the town of Springer while still a senior in high school and remained there for approximately eight years. She later worked at Miners’ Colfax Medical Center before accepting a position at what was then the New Mexico Boys School.
When the facility became an adult prison, Baca worked as secretary for the classification department, handling inmate payroll, preparing paperwork and attending hearings and meetings involving inmates.
Baca later joined the Springer Magistrate Court as a court clerk in approximately 2012. She served as a clerk for four years before becoming interim court manager, a position she has held for nearly 10 years.
“I’ve been in the courtroom probably 10 years,” Baca said. “I’ve done 14 years with Judge Peña, so I’ve learned a lot from him.”
Baca said those years taught her the importance of listening to both sides, following the law and treating everyone who enters the courtroom fairly and respectfully.
She said she would recuse herself from any case involving someone with whom she has a personal relationship.
“If I personally knew them or had some kind of personal interaction with them, I would not hear the case,” Baca said. “You need to be fair and unbiased.”
When asked about domestic violence cases, Baca said she would listen to the prosecution and defense, examine the evidence and issue a decision consistent with the law. She acknowledged that some domestic violence cases are dismissed when alleged victims decline to testify.
Baca described impaired driving as a choice rather than simply a mistake, particularly when repeat offenders continue appearing before the court.
“They decided to go out and drink, and they decided to get behind the wheel,” she said.
Baca said every case is different, but repeated offenses may warrant increasingly serious consequences. Decisions involving jail should depend on the offense, the defendant’s history, public safety and the sentencing limits established by law, she said.
She also said the public sometimes misunderstands the magistrate court’s responsibilities. Although magistrate courts handle traffic citations, they also oversee misdemeanor cases and initial proceedings in felony cases before those matters advance to district court.
“All cases are important because you’re dealing with people’s lives,” Baca said.
Baca said her experience inside a correctional institution also gave her a firsthand understanding of incarceration and its consequences.
Asked what distinguishes her from her opponent, former Magistrate Judge Warren Walton, Baca pointed to her familiarity with recent changes in court operations.
She said Walton offers previous judicial experience but has been away from the court for more than four years. During that period, court files and many hearings transitioned from paper and in-person systems to electronic platforms.
“He brings past experience,” Baca said. “I bring current experience. I know the changes, and I know the updates to the law.”
Baca said integrity, fairness, commitment and respect would guide her decisions if voters elect her to the Division 2 bench.
