Belen is a city in Valencia County, New Mexico, United States. Belen is Spanish for Bethlehem and over time has gained the nickname "Hub City" because of the Belen Cutoff of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The Cutoff made it possible for many more trains to traverse east and west across the United States. Prior to the Belen Cutoff train traffic came through the steep Raton Pass on the Colorado and New Mexico border. To this day, an average of 110 trains travel through Belen in a 24-hour period on the Southern Transcon. Belen also has the only Harvey House Museum in the state of New Mexico. The population was 6,901 at the 2000 census. Belen is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area.

What is criminal appeals law?

A criminal appeal is a formal request to rehear a case that has already been decided -- a request that a new court reconsider the decision of the first court. When one or both sides of a case that has already been decided think there was a mistake made at trial, they can file an appeal. An appeal is entirely different than a jury trial. There is no testimony taken. The court of appeals decides the case entirely upon the written briefs filed by your attorney and the offie of the Attorney General who represents the prosecution and asks that the conviction be upheld.

Answers to criminal appeals law issues in New Mexico

After conviction and sentencing, a defendant has the opportunity to file an appeal of his sentence. If the conviction...