According to the Hobbs News-Sun, on Friday, a citizen petition asking the Lovington District Court to form a grand jury to investigate scandal-ridden alleged serial groper Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was filed regarding her public health orders and virus restrictions since 2020.
Approximately 1,000 Lea County voters signed the petition being sponsored and filed by state Sen. David Gallegos (R-Eunice) and Larry Marker of Roswell.
According to the petition, it requests that the “District Court convene a grand jury to investigate Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham ‘Defendant’ for crimes of Malfeasance in Office, Misfeasance in Office, Violation of oath of office and Maladministration.”
“The legally and factually unjustified actions of Defendant during her term as Governor include but are not limited to the abuse of authority related to the numerous constitutionally prohibited renewals of a public health emergency. Defendant under guise of emergency authority ordered and authorized numerous illegal actions that included invasions of the constitutionally protected rights of citizens of New Mexico. Defendant has abused and exceeded her legal authority with numerous consecutive sua sponte renewals of a public health emergency citing an unconstitutional misinterpretation of Section 12-10A-5 NMSA 1978,” the petition notes.
The petition alleges Lujan Grisham “manipulated her misinterpretation of her self-appointed unlimited emergency authority to issue public health orders and mandates that were a violation of most if not all of the constitutionally protected substantive and procedural rights of the citizens of New Mexico.”
“The invasion of these rights inflicted severe, long term and irreparable harm on the citizens of New Mexico. Mandates and public health orders issued by Defendant were not supported by facts”
“Substantial documentation is evidence that indicates Defendants mandates including but not limited to business and school closures, stay home and lock down orders served no practical purpose as to a reduction in number of covid infections and deaths in New Mexico comparative to other less regulated states. Defendant’s motives are shown to be questionable by the documented inequitable application of her draconian orders, mandates and reopening policies.”
According to the Sun-News, the two petitioners see a “grand jury as a way to hold the governor accountable for the public health orders, up to and including removing her from office.”
The report notes that a judge may only dismiss the petition for three reasons, including, “lack of valid signatures, specific charges not within the scope of grand jury inquiry, or the violation occurred outside of the geographical area. If the petition meets all three criteria, then it will proceed to grand jury.”
Gallegos notes that the petition only started less than a month ago, saying, “We actually did all those signatures during the fair. We had a really good crowd during the fair.”
“This is the first citizens petition to be filed, ever, in Lea County and is truly a historic event,” Markers stated in a press release.
The News-Sun notes that “If the grand jury based on a citizens petition is formed to investigate the governor, Gallegos said to his knowledge it would a first in the state’s history, but added the process brings up a lot of unknowns.”