N.M. Stat. § 30-1-16

This is the official text of N.M. Stat. § 30-1-16, part of New Mexico’s Stat — part of the compiled statutory law of New Mexico, published by the state as "Stat." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

§ 30-1-16. Defense based on victim's gender, gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation prohibited

Official statutory text

A. It shall not be a defense, justification or excuse in a criminal proceeding that the defendant's conduct was a reaction to the discovery of, knowledge about or potential disclosure of a victim's or witness's actual or perceived:

(1) gender;

(2) gender expression;

(3) gender identity; or

(4) sexual orientation.

B. It shall not be a defense, justification or excuse in a criminal proceeding that the defendant was romantically propositioned in a nonviolent or non-threatening manner by a person of the same gender or a person who is transgender.

C. Nothing in this section shall prevent a defendant from raising other recognized affirmative defense.

D. As used in this section:

(1) “ gender expression ” means the external appearance of a person's gender identity, often expressed through the person's behavior, physical appearance or voice, which expression may or may not conform to socially defined behaviors and characteristics typically associated with masculinity or femininity;

(2) “ gender identity ” means a person's self-perception, or perception of that person by another, of the person's identity as a male or female based upon the person's appearance, behavior or physical characteristics that are in accord with or opposed to the person's physical anatomy, chromosomal sex or sex at birth; and

(3) “ sexual orientation ” means heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality, whether actual or perceived.

Status: in_force

Need a lawyer in New Mexico?

Find a New Mexico lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.