By CYNTHIA FRY
Retired Judge
New Mexico Court of Appeals

Deb Haaland’s campaign for Governor has chosen a troubling line of attack, often used against lawyers, criticizing Sam Bregman for representing people accused of crimes. It may be convenient politics, but it is fundamentally at odds with our Constitution and with the very principles that define our justice system. Our system accepts that both the government and the accused have attorneys. They battle it out in a courtroom and a jury decides guilt or innocence. This system protects all of us from government abuse.

At the core of this system are two guarantees: the right to a day in court and the right to competent legal representation. These are not loopholes. They are not favors. They are bedrock protections.

Our justice system is not designed to rack up convictions. It is designed to pursue truth while restraining the immense power of the government. When someone is accused of a crime, the government brings its full weight – police, prosecutors, investigators, laboratories. Without a proper defense, the scales are not just tipped, they are shattered.

A “day in court” ensures that accusations are tested, evidence is challenged, and the government is forced to prove its case. Without that process, we drift toward something far darker, an authoritarian system, where accusation alone assures convictions.

Lawyers opposing the government hold the government accountable. They force the system to prove, not assume. Because if we allow constitutional rights to be abridged for someone whom we believe is guilty today, we open the door to those same abuses against the innocent tomorrow.

What is most frustrating, and frankly most disappointing, is how easily this fundamental truth is cast aside for political gain. Deb Haaland’s attacks on Sam Bregman may score points in a campaign, but they undermine the right to counsel and erode public trust in the very system that protects us all.

We have a lot of divisions in our country. But one of many truths that we should all agree on is the importance of protecting a single citizen from the enormous power of the government by assuring that a person accused of a crime has the right to an attorney.

The fact that Sam Bregman filled that role is to be applauded, not castigated for political gain.