Criminal defense lawyer to fill vacant judgeship on 11th Judicial District Court
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A Farmington criminal defense lawyer has been named to fill a vacant judicial seat on the 11th Judicial District Court by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
Stephen Wayne, an associate attorney at the Farmington firm of Patscheck Law P.C., has been appointed to fill the seat left open when Judge Karen Townsend retired March 31. Wayne has represented indigenous criminal defendants for the firm.
This will be his second stint as a judge. In August 2020, Wayne was appointed by Lujan Grisham to serve as an Aztec Magistrate Court judge, replacing the retired Judge Barry Sharer.
Before that, Wayne worked as a public defender in Kentucky for three years before moving to San Juan County, according to The Daily Times archives. He began his career in the county working for the New Mexico Law Offices of the Public Defender in the Aztec office for seven years, then moved to the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department, serving as a senior children’s court attorney.
Wayne holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a law degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, according to The Daily Times archives. During his undergraduate years, he served as a placekicker for the school’s football team.
Wayne’s appointment is effective on Saturday, May 25. He will replace Townsend, who served nearly 18 years in the position after being appointed by then-Gov. Bill Richardson in 2006. At the time, Townsend was only the second woman to become a judge in the district.
More: Judge Karen Townsend reflects on lengthy career as retirement approaches
She said she was retiring to spend more time with her family.
The 11th Judicial District serves San Juan and McKinley counties.
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This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Stephen Wayne appointed to judgeship by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham
