N.M. Stat. » N.M. Stat. / Chapter 30 / Article 18
New Mexico Statutes

N.M. Stat. § 30-18-9 (2026)

Dog fighting and cockfighting; penalty.

✓ current as of May 2026
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    A. It is unlawful for any person to cause, sponsor, arrange, hold or participate in a
fight between dogs or cocks for the purpose of monetary gain or entertainment.
Participation in a fight between dogs or cocks for the purpose of monetary gain or
entertainment consists of an adult knowingly:

      (1)     being present at a dog fight without attempting to interfere with or stop the
contest; or

       (2)    owning or equipping one of the participating dogs or cocks with knowledge
of the contest.

   B. It is unlawful to train, equip or sponsor a dog or cock for the purpose of having it
participate in a fight with another dog or cock, respectively, for monetary gain or
entertainment.

   C. Any person violating the provisions of Subsection A or B of this section, as it
pertains to dogs, is guilty of a fourth degree felony.

   D. Any person violating the provisions of Subsection A or B of this section as it
pertains to cocks:

       (1)    upon a first conviction, is guilty of a petty misdemeanor;

       (2)    upon a second conviction, is guilty of a misdemeanor; and

       (3)    upon a third or subsequent conviction, is guilty of a fourth degree felony.

History: Laws 1981, ch. 30, § 1; 2007, ch. 6, § 2.

                                     ANNOTATIONS

The 2007 amendment, effective June 15, 2007, added "or cocks" after the word "dogs"
in Subsection A; changed "such a fight" to "a dog fight" in Paragraph (1) of Subsection
A; added "or cock" and "or cock, respectively" after the words "dog" in Subsection B;
added "as it pertains to dogs" after the word "section" in Subsection C; and added
Subsection D to provide penalties.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases, 1985–2016 · leading case: New Mexico Gamefowl Ass'n v. State Ex Rel. King, 215 P.3d 67 (N.M. Ct. App. 2009).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
New Mexico Gamefowl Ass'n v. State Ex Rel. King, 215 P.3d 67 (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 30× “The amendment to Section 30-18-9 created a criminal penalty for persons involved with eockfighting.”
State v. Duttle, 2017 NMCA 001 (N.M. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 4× “{1} Defendant Sharon Duttle was convicted of one count of dogfighting contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-18-9 (2007); one count of conspiracy to commit dogfighting, contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-28-2 (1979) and Section 30-18-9; ten counts of cruelty to animals, contrary to NMSA 1978, §…”
State v. Rushing, 706 P.2d 875 (N.M. Ct. App. 1985). · cites it 2× “FACTS Defendant was convicted on August 23, 1983 of dogfighting, a fourth degree felony, in violation of NMSA 1978, Section 30-18-9 (Repl.Pamp.1984). During the sentencing hearing held November 17, 1983, defendant stated that he kept pit bulls as pets, but that he did not fight…”
State v. Duttle, 2017 NMCA 1 (N.M. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 4× “{1} Defendant Sharon Duttle was convicted of one count of dogfighting contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-18-9 (2007); one count of conspiracy to commit dogfighting, contrary to NMSA 1978, § 30-28-2 (1979) and Section 30-18-9; ten counts of cruelty to animals, contrary to NMSA 1978, §…”
State v. Ochoa (N.M. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 4× “” In the present case, 12 ample evidence was presented at both the suppression hearing and the bench trial to 13 support Defendant’s conviction. We note that the district court, in accordance with 14 the parties’ stipulation, incorporated into the bench trial all of the evidence…”
State v. Solis (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 2× “r of 4 American Pitbulls or American Staffordshire Terriers chained in such a manner; 5 that, based on the officer’s experience, hobbyist dog fighters train dogs to fight 6 with tools such as horse trainers; and, that one dog was chained to such a training 7 device in…”
— N.M. Stat. § 30-18-9(A) — 1 case
New Mexico Gamefowl Ass'n v. State Ex Rel. King, 215 P.3d 67 (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). “The amendment to Section 30-18-9 created a criminal penalty for persons involved with eockfighting.”
— N.M. Stat. § 30-18-9(A)(2) — 1 case
New Mexico Gamefowl Ass'n v. State Ex Rel. King, 215 P.3d 67 (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). “The amendment to Section 30-18-9 created a criminal penalty for persons involved with eockfighting.”
— N.M. Stat. § 30-18-9(B) — 3 cases
New Mexico Gamefowl Ass'n v. State Ex Rel. King, 215 P.3d 67 (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). “The amendment to Section 30-18-9 created a criminal penalty for persons involved with eockfighting.”
State v. Ochoa (N.M. Ct. App. 2012). “” In the present case, 12 ample evidence was presented at both the suppression hearing and the bench trial to 13 support Defendant’s conviction. We note that the district court, in accordance with 14 the parties’ stipulation, incorporated into the bench trial all of the evidence…”
State v. Solis (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). “r of 4 American Pitbulls or American Staffordshire Terriers chained in such a manner; 5 that, based on the officer’s experience, hobbyist dog fighters train dogs to fight 6 with tools such as horse trainers; and, that one dog was chained to such a training 7 device in…”
— N.M. Stat. § 30-18-9(D) — 1 case
New Mexico Gamefowl Ass'n v. State Ex Rel. King, 215 P.3d 67 (N.M. Ct. App. 2009). “The amendment to Section 30-18-9 created a criminal penalty for persons involved with eockfighting.”
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.