Former Gov. Bill Richardson, implicated by a Las Cruces judge in an alleged pay-to-play scheme, said Tuesday that campaign contributions had nothing to do with his judicial appointments and that "any suggestion to the contrary is outrageous and defamatory."

Richardson, though a spokeswoman, emailed a statement to reporters in response to last week's indictment of state District Judge Mike Murphy on bribery and intimidation charges.

According to an investigator's report released with the indictment, Murphy told a lawyer interested in a judgeship that she should make cash contributions to the Democratic Party. Murphy allegedly told a fellow judge he was appointed to his job after providing $4,000 in contributions to Richardson's campaign.

According to the nonpartisan website Followthemoney.org, Richardson campaign finance statements show donations from Murphy equal to only about 10 percent of the $4,000 he allegedly claimed to have provided.

Richardson's statement said, "I appointed judges through an extensive process, including a thorough vetting first by the judicial nominating commission and then by my legal staff of the candidates that were nominated to me.

"I personally interviewed every candidate and appointed based on merit. I appointed 113 judges, including several Republicans, and the general consensus in the legal community is that we selected excellent judges who had to prove themselves to voters in elections," Richardson said.

Murphy was the only person indicted in the case. However, prosecutor Matt Chandler of Clovis and Gov. Susana Martinez, former district attorney in Doña Ana County, said this week that the investigation will continue.

Murphy was suspended Monday by the state Supreme Court, which appointed retired U.S. Magistrate Leslie Smith to preside over Murphy's criminal cases.

Also on Tuesday, the dean of The University of New Mexico law school and chair of the panel that recommends new judges said he was dismayed by a recent indictment implying there was a pay-to-play selection system in the works under Richardson.

If the allegations are true, Dean Kevin Washburn said, he thinks they are a "rare instance."

Chandler's investigation report outlined accusations that the political "donations" he was seeking were being funneled to Richardson's campaigns through local Democratic political fixer Edgar Lopez. The report says retired Court of Appeals Judge Rudy Apodaca told the whistle-blower judge, Lisa Schultz, that's how the system works. Apodaca has disputed his portrayal in the report.

Washburn said if he thought such a practice was widespread, the university would not be involved. "But it is so frustrating because it undermines the public integrity," Washburn said, "because it's the worst thing that people suspect about government."

As governor, Richardson picked new judges from a list submitted by the commission Washburn heads.

New Mexico changed from partisan judicial elections to a hybrid appointment-election in process in 1988, in part to reduce politics in the selection of judges. The governor still has the final say, picking new judges from a list of candidates vetted by the Judicial Nominating Commission administered by the University of New Mexico School of Law and chaired by its dean. After judges are appointed, they stand for periodic nonpartisan retention elections.

Gov. Martinez said Monday the state should consider going back to the old system of having judges face re-election every four years.

Under a move early in Richardson's administration, the governor also has control over the body that oversees judicial conduct.

The Judicial Standards Commission has 11 board members, six of whom are appointed by the governor. Until Richardson was elected in 2003, the gubernatorial appointees served staggered terms, meaning a sitting governor's picks usually did not constitute a majority.

But when Richardson took office, he fired those appointed by his Republican predecessor and named six new members. That led to a court battle that ended with a Supreme Court ruling in Richardson's favor.

Martinez followed suit and replaced Richardson's board members with her own when she took office this year.

Washburn says that while the governor is "keenly" involved in the selection process, the involvement is much less than in the many states where governors can pick whomever they want.

In New Mexico, all candidates apply first to the nominating commission, which makes sure they meet constitutional qualifications. Those who meet qualifications appear before a panel appointed by the governor, lawmakers, judges and the State Bar of New Mexico. Those panels are required to have an equal number of Democrats and Republicans.

"So this actually lessens the control the governor might have," Washburn said. "This is sort of a check. But as we see, there are still potential opportunities for corruption."

"What our system does well is ensure that the people who go on the bench will be collegial, will be well-regarded, will be competent and capable. Our job is to send names to the governor and the governor has to choose from that list," Washburn said.

However, the governor does have the option to reject that list and demand more candidates. Washburn said that doesn't happen often.

In 2007, Richardson rejected the sole candidate sent to him for a Southern New Mexico judgeship, setting off a legal battle with the commission when it declined to send a new list. The state Supreme Court ultimately made the appointment.



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