--- title: "Jerry H. Ritter, Jr | KnowJudges" canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jerry-h-ritter-jr-new-mexico-us-magistrate" page_type: "judge_profile" updated: "2026-10-08" --- # Jerry H. Ritter, Jr U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico · U.S. Magistrate Judge ## Profile - Court: U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico - State: New Mexico - Role: U.S. Magistrate Judge - Service status: active - Last verified: 2026-07-29 ## Summary Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge. ## Biography ### Professional career - Jerry H. Ritter, Jr. is a United States Magistrate Judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico, appointed on September 4, 2017 to an 8‐year renewable term that will expire in 2033 - State court service: Judge of the 12th Judicial District Court of New Mexico (Otero and Lincoln counties) from 1997 until September 2017, serving six years as chief judge - Jerry H. Ritter Jr. is a United States magistrate judge for the District of New Mexico, as confirmed by the federal court’s current page - His earlier career encompassed private practice and work as an assistant district attorney ### Education ### Additional information - Magistrate, District Court, D. New Mexico, 2017-present - federal service beginning in 2017. - Before that, he served on New Mexico’s Twelfth Judicial District Court after appointment in February 1997, with subsequent retention elections and retirement from that court in September 2017. - His academic qualifications include an undergraduate degree at New Mexico State University and a law degree at the University of New Mexico. - Judge Ritter has issued rulings on motions such as summary judgment, motions to dismiss, and preliminary injunctions, often recommending dismissal with prejudice in cases where plaintiffs failed to prosecute claims. ## Before you appear - Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed. - Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance. - Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding. ## Courtroom Rules ### civil remote testimony Scope: courtwide In federal district-court civil proceedings, testimony is ordinarily taken in open court; remote contemporaneous testimony requires good cause in compelling circumstances and appropriate safeguards. Evidence excerpt: For good cause in compelling circumstances and with appropriate safeguards, the court may permit testimony in open court by contemporaneous transmission from a different location. [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ### criminal recording and broadcasting Scope: courtwide Federal district courts may not permit courtroom photography or broadcasting during criminal judicial proceedings unless a statute or another federal rule provides an exception. Evidence excerpt: Except as otherwise provided by a statute or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom. [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) Source checked: 2026-07-26 ## Sources - [Official profile](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=110) - [Official roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=110) - [U.S. Courts judicial profile or roster](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/cjra_na_0331.2026.pdf#page=110) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9399/jerry-h-ritter-jr/) - [Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43(a), Testimony in Open Court](https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-civil-procedure) - [Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, Courtroom Photographing and Broadcasting Prohibited](https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/access-court-proceedings/remote-public-access-proceedings/history-cameras-broadcasting-and-remote-public-access-courts) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9399/jerry-h-ritter-jr/) - [CourtListener judicial biographical directory](https://www.courtlistener.com/person/9399/jerry-h-ritter-jr/) ## JSON-LD ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jerry-h-ritter-jr-new-mexico-us-magistrate", "url": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jerry-h-ritter-jr-new-mexico-us-magistrate", "name": "Jerry H. 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Ritter, Jr", "item": "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/jerry-h-ritter-jr-new-mexico-us-magistrate" } ] } ] } ``` ## Published courtroom rules ### Shared court rules - [Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-651872d6e45e0d82319ecccc) — Civil actions in United States District Courts; Rule 81 exceptions apply. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27. - [Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, December 1, 2025](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-8721a344fececced2257fe1d) — Criminal proceedings in United States District Courts; this conservative mapping does not distribute appellate-specific provisions to appellate judges. Section-specific exceptions, waivers, later amendments and case orders remain applicable. This is a source excerpt, not an exhaustive statement of the rule. [Official source](https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/document/federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure.pdf). Collected 2026-10-27.