New Mexico Statutes
N.M. Stat. § 31-4-14 (2026)
Arrest without a warrant.
✓ current as of May 2026
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The arrest of a person may be lawfully made also by any peace officer or a private
person without a warrant upon reasonable information that the accused stands charged
in the courts of a state with a crime punishable by death or imprisonment for a term
exceeding one year, but when so arrested the accused must be taken before a judge or
magistrate with all practicable speed and complaint must be made against him under
oath setting forth the ground for the arrest as in the preceding section [31-4-13 NMSA
1978]; and thereafter his answer shall be heard as if he had been arrested on a warrant.
History: Laws 1937, ch. 65, § 14; 1941 Comp., § 42-1914; 1953 Comp., § 41-19-14.
ANNOTATIONS
Bondsman arresting third party. — Neither the common-law nor statutory authority of
a bondsman to make a warrantless arrest of his principal absolves a bondsman of
criminal responsibility ensuing from the armed, unauthorized, and forcible entry into the
residence of a third party. State v. Lopez, 1986-NMCA-094, 105 N.M. 538, 734 P.2d
778, cert. quashed, 105 N.M. 521, 734 P.2d 761, and cert. denied, 479 U.S. 1092, 107
S. Ct. 1305, 94 L. Ed. 2d 160 (1987).
A foreign bondsman must comply with this article in seeking the rearrest of his principal.
State v. Lopez, 1986-NMCA-094, 105 N.M. 538, 734 P.2d 778, cert. quashed, 105 N.M.
521, 734 P.2d 761, and cert. denied, 479 U.S. 1092, 107 S. Ct. 1305, 94 L. Ed. 2d 160
(1987); Lopez v. McCotter, 875 F.2d 273 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 996, 110 S.
Ct. 549, 107 L. Ed. 2d 546 (1989).
Retroactive application of State v. Lopez. — The decision of the court of appeals in
State v. Lopez, 1986-NMCA-094, 105 N.M. 538, 734 P.2d 778, holding that a foreign
bondsman must comply with this article in seeking the rearrest of his principal was so
"unexpected" under preexisting law as to prevent its application retroactively. Lopez v.
McCotter, 875 F.2d 273 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 996, 110 S. Ct. 549, 107 L.
Ed. 2d 546 (1989).Notes of Decisions
Cited in 4
cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1987–2024 · leading case: State v. Lopez, 734 P.2d 778 (N.M. Ct. App. 1987).
State v. Lopez, 734 P.2d 778 (N.M. Ct. App. 1987). “A bondsman, while empowered by statute with the authority to arrest his principal under Section 31-4-14, is not immunized from liability for violations of this state's criminal laws perpetrated against third parties or the property of others while carrying out such arrest.”
Skinner v. Prummell (D.N.M. 2024). “) See also N.M. Stat. Ann. § 31-4-14 . There are essentially two ways an individual may be arrested if the demanding state wants to pursue extradition.”
Skinner v. Prummell (D.N.M. 2024). “See N.M. Stat. Ann. § 31-4-14 ; see also Abramson, 33 Baylor L.”
Skinner v. Prummell (D.N.M. 2023). “NMSA 1978, § 31-4-14. In that case, the accused may be held in a county jail for up to thirty days to allow the governor to issue an arrest warrant based on the demand of the other state.”
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