SANTA FE — Newly released video shows Senate President Pro Tempore Mimi Stewart telling Santa Fe police she had called the Governor’s Office to bring in state police after her 2024 collision with a pedestrian, The Santa Fe New Mexican reported Wednesday.
The newspaper obtained the lapel camera footage through a public records request. On it, Stewart, D-Albuquerque, identifies herself as the Senate’s presiding officer and tells officers state police would handle the investigation. “I called the Governor’s Office,” she says.
The crash happened Jan. 16, 2024, the first day of that year’s legislative session, at Bishops Lodge Road and Paseo de Peralta. It came shortly after Stewart left a reception at the governor’s mansion. Stewart, 79, was turning right when a tire rolled over a pedestrian’s foot. Court documents cited by KOB say he suffered multiple fractures.
Stewart told officers she had a green light and did not see the man. The pedestrian told police he had a walk signal. The responding officer could not determine fault, and no citation was issued. Police have said no sobriety tests were given that night. Stewart told officers she had been drinking only water.
One officer told his supervisor on the video that Stewart said she had asked the Governor’s Office to send state police. She then agreed Santa Fe police could take the lead. A state police officer arrived after she had been released. The police report does not mention her Senate role or a call to the Governor’s Office, the New Mexican reported.
In a statement through Senate Democrats, Stewart said state police are routinely involved in incidents involving legislators and that she called the office to keep it informed. She said she received no special treatment. The Governor’s Office has not been quoted in the coverage reviewed.
Stewart pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated in 1999, the newspaper noted. Her attorney, Geoff Romero, has called allegations of impairment in the 2024 crash fabricated.
Stewart’s insurer settled the pedestrian’s civil suit, which was dismissed in June, Romero said. He said the settlement carried no admission of liability.
On Sept. 22, Senate Minority Leader Bill Sharer, R-Farmington, demanded Stewart resign, citing what he called a pattern of abusive and reckless behavior. Stewart has rejected a Senate GOP social media post that used an AI-generated mugshot, calling it a smear.
The Santa Fe New Mexican and KOB first reported elements of this story.
