State v. Peters, 34,339

Defendant purchased a vehicle from E-Z Credit under a conditional sales arrangement and defaulted on payments.
E‑Z Credit lawfully repossessed the vehicle from Defendant for nonpayment.
Later the same day Defendant went to E‑Z Credit’s unsecured lot, used a spare key, and drove the vehicle off the lot.
Defendant was charged with unlawful taking of a motor vehicle (NMSA 1978, § 30-16D-1(A)) and conditionally pleaded guilty while reserving the right to appeal denial of his motion to dismiss.
Defendant argued he was the vehicle’s owner (via his purchase contract/equitable interest) so the taking could not be “without consent of the owner.”
The district court denied the motion to dismiss; the Court of Appeals reviewed statutory interpretation de novo and affirmed.

Issue	State's Argument	Peters' Argument	Held
Whether a conditional vendee who defaulted and whose vehicle was lawfully repossessed remains an “owner” (so cannot be convicted of taking without owner consent)	A conditional vendee is an owner only if vested with an immediate right of possession; repossession terminated that immediate right, so Defendant was not an owner when he removed the vehicle	Defendant retained an equitable ownership interest under the purchase contract and thus was an owner despite repossession	Court held Defendant was not shown to have an immediate right of possession after lawful repossession; undisputed facts did not entitle him to dismissal as a matter of law

State v. McGruder, 123 N.M. 302, 940 P.2d 150 (N.M. 1997) (defining unlawful taking as taking without owner consent and with criminal intent)
State v. Bernard, 2015-NMCA-089, 355 P.3d 831 (N.M. Ct. App. 2015) (criminal statutes interact with Motor Vehicle Code to protect ownership interests)
State v. Earp, 2014-NMCA-059, 326 P.3d 491 (N.M. Ct. App. 2014) (owner consent requirement defeats conviction when defendant has ownership interest)
Riggs v. Gardikas, 78 N.M. 5, 427 P.2d 890 (N.M. 1967) (conditional purchaser counts as owner only if vehicle is subject to conditional contract and vendee has immediate right of possession)
Baker v. Hedstrom, 309 P.3d 1047 (N.M. 2013) (statutory language should not be rendered superfluous)
State v. Hughey, 142 N.M. 83, 163 P.3d 470 (N.M. 2007) (motions that require resolution of factual disputes cannot be granted prior to trial)