A Santa Fe County magistrate judge who was arrested over a month ago for DWI has been suspended.
The state Supreme Court issued an order Friday temporarily suspending Magistrate Judge Dev Atma Khalsa without pay. Initially, he was put on indefinite administrative leave with pay pending an investigation by the Judicial Standards Commission.
The court also unsealed filings related to Khalsa's disciplinary case.
Khalsa's attorney, Kitren Fischer, declined to immediately comment since she had not spoken with him yet.
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In February, Santa Fe police responded to a rollover car crash on Interstate 25. Officers found Khalsa standing outside his car. His breath also emitted the smell of alcohol and his speech was slurred, according to authorities.
Khalsa was transported to a hospital but was uncooperative and refused to submit to a blood or chemical test.
He was booked on suspicion of aggravated driving while intoxicated and driving with an expired license and then released the same day.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges in March.
Khalsa began his first term last year and previously worked as prosecutor in the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office. Police said Khalsa didn't appear to have any other DWI charges on his record.
