HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 27

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2018

INTRODUCED BY

David M. Gallegos and Rick Little

A JOINT MEMORIAL

CALLING ON THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO UPHOLD ITS RESPONSIBILITY AS LEGAL COUNSEL OF THE STATE TO PROTECT ALL NEW MEXICO RESIDENTS AND ENFORCE THE LAWS ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO.

     WHEREAS, the office of the attorney general has a statutory responsibility to serve as legal counsel for the state and prosecute all criminal actions in which the state may be party or interested; and

     WHEREAS, the office of the attorney general failed to fulfill this responsibility in its response to criminal referrals from the United States congressional select panel on infant lives regarding the university of New Mexico health sciences center and southwestern women's options; and

     WHEREAS, upon receiving the congressional criminal referrals on June 23, 2016 and December 21, 2016, the office of the attorney general misconstrued statutes enacted by the legislature of the state of New Mexico and allowed more than four hundred criminal claims on behalf of New Mexico women to expire; and

     WHEREAS, in response to the criminal referrals from the congressional select panel on infant lives, in 2016, the office of the attorney general claimed that the Maternal, Fetal and Infant Experimentation Act was "never intended to regulate fetal tissue resulting from an induced abortion"; and

     WHEREAS, in its response, the office of the attorney general failed to address the consent requirement for research activities involving pregnant women undergoing pregnancy termination; and

     WHEREAS, the congressional select panel on infant lives provided procurement logs from the health sciences center to the office of the attorney general, detailing the procurement of human fetal tissue and blood samples of women obtained without lawful consent as required by the Maternal, Fetal and Infant Experimentation Act; and

     WHEREAS, in its response, the office of the attorney general also failed to include women whose blood samples were used for research without lawful consent obtained by the health sciences center and southwestern women's options as required by the Maternal, Fetal and Infant Experimentation Act; and

     WHEREAS, a complete investigation of these claims is clearly within the purview of the Maternal, Fetal and Infant Experimentation Act consent requirements;

     NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the office of the attorney general uphold its responsibility as legal counsel of the state to enforce the law by conducting a complete investigation of fact and enforcing New Mexico statutes before any additional claims expire due to the statute of limitations; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the attorney general and the governor.

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