Constitutional Recalibration: Lessons from New Mexico

Joanna C. Schwartz*

* Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law. Deepest thanks to Shannel Daniels and all the editors of the NEW MEXICO LAW REVIEW, to Carol Suzuki, the Faculty Advisor of the NEW MEXICO LAW REVIEW, and to Dean Camille Carey of the University of New Mexico School of Law for organizing and hosting the NEW MEXICO LAW REVIEW’S symposium on this important topic, and to the participants and attendees whose contributions greatly enhanced my understanding of the New Mexico Civil Rights Act. Thanks also to James Pfander and Alexander Reinert for offering characteristically thoughtful and useful comments on an earlier draft of this essay.

Abstract:

On and off over the past several decades, and with particular force and urgency since George Floyd’s murder in May 2020, we have been engaged in a national conversation about the scope of government misconduct and the need for meaningful accountability. Civil lawsuits have long been one of...