N.M. Stat. § 31-18-14 : — CRIMINAL PROCEDURESENTENCING OF OFFENDERS —18-14 - Sentencing authority; capital felonies TEXT PDF When a defendant has been convicted of a capital felony, the defendant shall be sentenced to life imprisonment or life imprisonment without possibility of release or parole. NMS § 31-18-14 1978 Comp., § 31-18-14, enacted by Laws 1979, ch. 150, § 1; 1993, ch. 77, § 5; 2009, ch. 11, § 1.