SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Supreme Court has removed Aztec Magistrate Court Judge Connie Johnston from office for misconduct that a state commission said included dishonesty, surreptitious recording of private conversations in the courthouse and abuse of her judicial power of contempt.
The high court's order issued its order Monday following a hearing on the Judicial Standards Commission's April 10 petition seeking removal of Johnston from office.
Her term was set to end in December of 2018.
The commission's petition cited Johnston's "dishonesty shown in committing various acts of willful misconduct and throughout the commission's proceedings, including her false statements under oath as well as her concealment of surreptitious recordings that she was ordered to disclose but kept secret until midtrial when she perceived a personal advantage to disclosure."