“Diana Garcia has been appointed to the Second Judicial Court bench by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. She will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of the Honorable Benjamin Chavez. Ms. Garcia will be assigned to the Second Judicial District Court’s Children’s Court Division. Ms. Garcia began her career as an Assistant Public Defender in 1996 where she defended children charged with delinquent offenses. She moved to the felony division of the Law Office of the Public Defender five years later. In 2006, Ms. Garcia began working for the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office as a prosecutor in Children’s Court. She was a senior trial attorney until 2017 when she was promoted to Deputy District Attorney and head of the Juvenile Division. In this role, she supervised the day-to-day operations of the division while carrying a caseload.
Ms. Garcia’s passion is Children’s Court. She has 18 years of meaningful experience in Children’s Court as a practitioner of the law. During this time, she has been on numerous committees, commissions, boards, and task forces aimed at improving conditions for our youth. Ms. Garcia has trained both defense attorneys and prosecutors statewide on juvenile issues. Nationally she has been on the Juvenile Advisory Board for the National Association of District Attorneys. She has also worked with the National Council of Family and Children’s Court Judges and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention on juvenile treatment court issues with a focus on the recruitment, training, and the role of treatment court prosecutors. Ms. Garcia is also fortunate to have been selected for specialized training through the Department of Justice, the Secret Service, and Homeland Security.
Ms. Garcia graduated from St. Michael’s High School in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She received her Bachelors of Arts from New Mexico State University where she majored in Philosophy with the supplemental major in Law and Society. Ms. Garcia, received her Juris Doctor from the University of New Mexico School of Law and became a member of the New Mexico Bar in October of 1996. Ms. Garcia is a native of Santa Fe, New Mexico. She is a proud Latina and a 14th Generation New Mexican. With this appointment, Ms. Garcia, will continue her family’s legacy of working to improve the lives of New Mexicans through public service. Ms. Garcia will be a second generation jurist. She follows in the footsteps of her uncle and mentor, The Honorable Lorenzo F. Garcia, Chief Magistrate Emeritus of the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico. Chief Judge Ward stated ‘the Court is fortunate to gain a judge with such a strong and distinguished background in children’s court matters, and we look
