Magistrate judge resigns

Tucumcari Magistrate Judge Timothy O'Quinn resigned Thursday after serving on the bench for about 4 1/2 years.

Marion Payton, CEO of the 10th Judicial District Court, said O'Quinn resigned by email Thursday night, effective immediately. She said he did not give a reason for his departure.

District Judge Albert Mitchell Jr. said Monday morning between court cases at the Quay County courthouse in Tucumcari that O'Quinn had not discussed to him his reason for resigning.

"Judge O'Quinn has been a judge for 4 1/2 years," Mitchell said. "It's not a job for everyone.

"We have a vacancy," he added. "If anyone's interested, they can go to the governor's website, and there's an application there."

Mitchell said in his experience, the duration for a governor to fill a judge vacancy can vary widely - from a few days to as long as 18 months.

District Attorney Timothy Rose wrote in an email Monday: "On behalf of the Office of the District Attorney, I would like to thank Judge O'Quinn for his service to Quay County and wish him and his family the very best moving forward."

A phone message to O'Quinn on Monday morning was not immediately returned.

O'Quinn was appointed in November 2016 as magistrate judge by then-Republican Gov. Susana Martinez. He succeeded retiring magistrate judge David Joel Garnett.

O'Quinn was retained in June 2018 after easily winning a three-way race the Republican primary. He defeated the runner-up by more than a 2-to-1 margin. O'Quinn was unopposed in the general election.

He received his law degree from the University of New Mexico and took on criminal and civil cases in private practice, including filing briefs to the Court of Appeals and New Mexico Supreme Court, before being appointed judge.