DA wants changes to New Mexico's pretrial detention system

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The top prosecutor in New Mexico's busiest court district is calling for another constitutional amendment that would further change how judges decide who remains jailed before trial.

Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez said Tuesday that the current system under a 2016 voter-approved amendment has been successful in ensuring fewer petty and low-level criminals are jailed. But it needs fixing to better safeguard against violent defendants being released from jail before trial.

The current system requires prosecutors to present evidence showing defendants are a danger in order for them to remain held.

Torrez says he would like to see a system in which judges presume defendants charged with a limited range of crimes should remain jailed — unless defendants make a successful case for their release.

Legislators approve constitutional amendments before they go before voters.