The New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously ruled that statements Alexee Trevizo made to her emergency room physician after the discovery of her dead newborn in an Artesia hospital bathroom are protected by physician-patient privilege and cannot be used as evidence at trial.
Prosecutors in New Mexico cannot use any emergency room statements made by a woman accused of murdering her newborn by disposing of the baby in a hospital bathroom, the state’s highest court ruled in a unanimous opinion that affirmed a trial court ruling suppressing evidence obtained by law enforcement.
The case was brought against Alexee Trevizo, 22, when she was 19 years old in May 2023 over the birth and death of the baby in January of that year.
With their lapel cameras rolling, Artesia police stood inside Alexee Trevizo’s hospital room as an emergency department doctor informed her of the discovery of a dead newborn in a restroom trash bin down the hall, and Trevizo’s response was “I’m sorry — it came out of me — I didn’t know what to do,” which became key evidence for prosecutors.
Trevizo’s attorney Amber Fayerberg told the justices at oral arguments in September 2025 that “It’s the ramifications of this case that are extraordinary for Ms. Trevizo and for every vulnerable patient in New Mexico and for the state’s commitment to safe, confidential reproductive health care.”
Fayerberg said upholding the suppression ruling will be important to “maintaining the line that separates medical care from police investigation.”
The court ruled “Due to Defendant’s medical condition, she lacked capacity to waive her physician-patient privilege.”
Justice Michael E. Vigil, writing for the court, rejected prosecutors’ argument that Trevizo waived physician-patient confidentiality because police officers and her mother were present in the hospital room.
The state argued Trevizo waived her rights because her mother and police were present when the attending physician finally mentioned the dead newborn, but the court rejected that argument because the doctor himself had invited police into Trevizo’s room.
During oral arguments in September 2025, attorney Michael Thomas of the state Department of Justice told the justices that a Miranda warning wasn’t necessary because police didn’t ask her any questions and she wasn’t formally placed in custody.
Before a criminal trial could occur, a state district judge in Eddy County suppressed all the statements Trevizo made in the presence of police and medical staff, concluding she wasn’t given a required Miranda warning and her doctor acted as an agent of law enforcement and violated physician-patient privilege.
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, the National Police Accountability Project and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) submitted briefs to the Supreme Court in support of Trevizo’s motion to suppress.
Prosecutors charged Trevizo with first-degree murder and tampering with evidence, claiming that the then-teenager gave birth to a baby boy in the bathroom of a hospital during a visit to the emergency room and put the baby inside a trash can, then returned to her hospital bed and allegedly said nothing about what happened until she was informed that staff had discovered a dead baby in the trash.
Trevizo went with her mother to Artesia General Hospital on January 27, 2023, experiencing severe back pain and bleeding, unaware she was pregnant.
Four months later, Trevizo was arrested and charged with first-degree murder after an autopsy determined that the child — posthumously named Alex Ray Fierro — had been breathing outside the womb.
The decision upholds an Eddy County district court ruling that prosecutors had challenged on appeal.