ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) A New Mexico judge knew right away she shouldn't issue a bench warrant for a burglary defendant not in court for a hearing. That's because District Court Judge Sheri Raphaelson was among those who'd stopped that morning at an accident scene on a snowy highway and she knew the defendant was hospitalized.
The judge and a court bailiff were driving from Espanola to court in Tierra Amarilla on Feb. 4 when they came upon an overturned pickup that had skidded off the highway.
Raphaelson checked defendant Isaac Martinez and covered him with her jacket as they waited for help. Meanwhile, others helping out included several other defendants who held a tarp to keep falling snow off Martinez. The Albuquerque Journal reports that Martinez has been released from the hospital.
