Damon Martinez


Damon P. Martinez is an American attorney who served as the United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico from 2014 to 2017.

Early life and education

Martinez was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science from the University of New Mexico in 1989. In 1992, he earned his Juris Doctor from the University of New Mexico School of Law, followed by a Master of Business Administration from the Anderson School of Management in 1993.

Career

From 1993 to 1996, Martinez worked as Legislative Assistant for Senator Jeff Bingaman. In 1999, worked as Legislative Director for Senator Tom Udall. Martinez began working for the Las Cruces Branch Office of the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico in 2000. He transferred to the Albuquerque office in 2005, where he worked as First Assistant US Attorney and Supervisor of the Organized Crime and Gangs section.
Martinez was appointed United States Attorney by President Barack Obama in 2013 and unanimously confirmed in the United States Senate in 2014. As United States Attorney, Martinez investigated sexual assault reporting at New Mexico universities. After finding inadequate policies and enforcement at the University of New Mexico, the United States Department of Justice reached an agreement to improve sexual assault tracking and increase student trainings on sexual misconduct.
Martinez took part in a $143 million settlement with the Chevron Corporation to clean up the Questa Mine near Taos, New Mexico in 2016. Under the agreement, Chevron Mining Inc. was required to open a wastewater treatment plan and cover more than 245 acres of mine tailings.
Martinez stepped down from his office at the request of the newly-appointed Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, on March 11, 2017. Martinez was one of 40 US Attorneys asked to resign amid President Donald Trump’s transition to power.
On July 10, 2017, he announced his candidacy for New Mexico's 1st congressional district. He lost the primary election to Deb Haaland.
Since leaving government service, Martinez has worked as an attorney at Modrall Sperling, a law firm with offices in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico.