A crime is an act or omission forbidden by law and for which, upon conviction, a
sentence of either death, imprisonment or a fine is authorized.
History: 1953 Comp., § 40A-1-4, enacted by Laws 1963, ch. 303, § 1-4.
ANNOTATIONS
Nature of criminal intent. — Criminal intent is more than intentional taking. It is a
mental state of conscious wrongdoing. State v. Austin, 1969-NMCA-095, 80 N.M. 748,
461 P.2d 230.
Crime as public offense. — A crime is a public offense, and all public offenses are
expressly defined to be crimes in New Mexico. 1959 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 59-154 (opinion
rendered under 40-1-2 to 40-1-4, 1953 Comp.).
Violation of public law. — A "public offense" is the same as a "crime," and may
include a breach of the laws established for the protection of the public, as distinguished
from an infringement of mere private rights. It is an act committed or omitted in violation
of public law. 1959 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 59-154 (opinion rendered under 40-1-2 to 40-1-4,
1953 Comp.).
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
8
cases (
2 in the last 5 years), 1965–2025 · leading case:
State v. Leal, 723 P.2d 977 (N.M. Ct. App. 1986).
State v. Leal, 723 P.2d 977 (N.M. Ct. App. 1986).
· cites it 2× “, supra; NMSA 1978, § 30-1-4 (Repl.Pamp.1984). Section 30-6-1(C)(2) prohibits two acts — causing or permitting child abuse.”
Hummer v. Betenbough, 404 P.2d 110 (N.M. 1965).
· cites it 2× “, and § 30-1-4, N.M.S.A., 1953 Comp.; that at the time such instrument was executed and attested, the testatrix knew and understood the nature and effect of making and executing her last will and testament, understood the nature and extent of the property she then owned, and had…”
Mills v. Kelly, 660 P.2d 124 (N.M. Ct. App. 1983).
“Instead, § 45-2-502 is based upon the language of former New Mexico Sections 30-1-4 and 30-1-6, N.M.S.A.1953.”
State v. Yancey, 2017-NMCA-090.
· cites it 2× “” NMSA 1978, § 30-1-4 (1963).1 A conviction is a factual finding that the defendant committed a crime—that the defendant is guilty.”
State v. Yancey, No. 34,190 (N.M. Ct. App. Aug. 24, 2017).
· cites it 2× “” NMSA 1978, § 30-1-4 (1963).1 A conviction is a factual finding that the 10 defendant committed a crime—that the defendant is guilty.”
State v. Padilla, 580 P.3d 243 (N.M. 2025).
· cites it 2× “” 14 Section 30-1-4. Therefore, we conclude that Section 30-1-9 applies to second degree 15 felonies and excludes them from the benefits of tolling under Section 30-1-9(B)(4).”
State v. Parrish, No. A-1-CA-39449 (N.M. Ct. App. Apr. 25, 2022).
· cites it 2× “NMSA 1978, § 30-1-4 (1963) (defining “crime” as “an act or omission forbidden by law and for which, upon conviction, a sentence of either death, imprisonment or a fine is authorized”); NMSA 1978, § 30-1-5 (1963) (classifying crimes further as “felonies, misdemeanors and petty…”
Pavletich v. Pavletich, 428 P.2d 632 (N.M. 1967).
· cites it 3× “Section 30-1-4, N.M.S.A.1953, requires wills to be in writing, signed by the testator, and “attested in the presence of the testator by two (2) or more credible witnesses.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.