By Joline Gutierrez Krueger
Tribune Reporter
BERNALILLO - Former Chief District Judge W. John Brennan of Albuquerque will serve no jail time in what the state's chief defense attorney called "no sweetheart deal" for drug and DWI charges.
A contrite and somber Brennan apologized today to his family, the legal community and the public he served for 25 years for the shame and hurt he caused May 29 when he and co-defendant Patricia Mattioli were arrested at a DWI traffic stop in Albuquerque.
"I feel embarrassed and humiliated as a result of my actions," Brennan, 57, said after pleading guilty to aggravated DWI and cocaine possession charges. "And I deserve to feel that way."
Brennan entered his plea at the Sandoval County Judicial Complex in the town of Bernalillo. He was immediately sentenced by retired state District Judge George Perez. Perez, who is in private practice in Bernalillo, was tapped by the state Supreme Court to hear the case.
Under the sentencing, Brennan must serve the mandatory two-day jail sentence for the aggravated DWI but will be allowed to do so under the Community Custody Program, which allows him to remain free but wear an ankle monitor.
Brennan's attorney, Tim Padilla, argued that because his client was a longtime Bernalillo County judge his life would be endangered in the Metropolitan Detention Center.
But Santa Fe District Attorney Henry Valdez, the special prosecutor in the case, urged the court to impose jail time.
"There are many measures that can be taken to assure Mr. Brennan's safety," Valdez said.
Brennan must also install an interlock device onto his vehicle, which would prohibit him from driving should the device detect alcohol in his system.
Perez also ordered that Brennan be given a conditional discharge from the cocaine possession charge, saying "the evidence is overwhelming that it is a very appropriate disposition."
Under the discharge, Brennan would serve a year of unsupervised probation, continue psychological counseling and undergo monthly urinalysis.
If he successfully completes the year, the felony charge would be dropped from his record, and he would not suffer the continuing consequences of being a convicted felon.
Padilla argued that out of the 20 sentencings for similar drug possession charges tried in the last three months in Bernalillo County, only five resulted in prison terms.
He called the May 29 incident "an aberration and something that happened that he has taken full responsibility for."
He said Brennan has completed a 60-day inpatient program at the Betty Ford Center in California and is continuing in after-care.
Ralph Odenwald, the chief public defender in New Mexico, also testified Brennan had taken more positive steps than any other client he has known in his more than 25 years of practice. He said Brennan has no previous criminal history and had an illustrious career that greatly benefited the community before his arrest.
"This is no sweetheart deal," Odenwald said. "He's not getting any special treatment."
Mattioli, 43, also received a conditional discharge and one-year unsupervised probation after she pleaded guilty to cocaine possession.
Valdez told the court the state did not oppose conditional discharges for either Brennan or Mattioli.
By entering guilty pleas today both avoided the typically lengthy and public process of being indicted either by a grand jury or through a preliminary hearing.
Both also will not have to be formally arraigned. Both will not have to go to trial.
And both will never be forced to disclose what happened before Brennan's white SUV was snared at the DWI checkpoint and the state judicial system was shaken.
"The tragedy, of course, is twofold," Odenwald said. "Not only for him but for the community."
Brennan, whose face remained downcast and solemn through much of today's proceedings, told the court that cocaine and alcohol never influenced the thousands of decisions he made on the bench during his 25 years as judge of the 2nd Judicial District, 20 of those years as its chief judge.
Brennan also promised he would never enter a courtroom again - either behind or in front of the judge's lectern.
"I can promise to your honor and the public that they will never see me in court again," he said.
Brennan, accompanied by a scrum of brothers and sisters and several members of the judiciary, gave no explanation for what happened the night of his arrest.
"There's no excuse for my actions," he said.
Today was the first time Brennan and Mattioli have been in the public eye since their Albuquerque arrests, which followed an apparent attempt to avoid a DWI checkpoint near Menaul and University boulevards Northeast.
Mattioli had been the state Commission on Higher Education's Gear-Up program director. She resigned in June after her arrest.
Brennan left the bench immediately after his arrest. He retired in July.
Brennan and Mattioli could have also faced up to 18 months in prison for the cocaine possession charge - a fourth-degree felony.
Brennan also faced up to a 90-day sentence for the aggravated DWI.
Criminal information documents filed Wednesday include for the first time Brennan's blood alcohol level - .16, twice the legal limit of intoxication and the reason the DWI charge is aggravated.
Valdez in court today said the level was actually .169.
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