On November 6, 2018, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham was elected to her first 4-year term, winning the election with 57.2% of the vote (398,368) to 42.8% of the vote (298,091) cast for former Congressman Steve Pearce. By any measure, a more than 100,000 margin in votes is a blowout win.

On June 3, 2021, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham made it official that she is running for a second 4-year term. Since making her announcement, there have been 2 major polls on her performance and approval and disapproval ratings as well as revolving issues that will likely help her in the long run as she seeks a second term, including weak Republican opposition with Der Führer Trump looming large over them.

GOV. MLG’s DECLINING POLL NUMBERS

Since making her announcement for a second term, there have been two polls done on the approval rating for Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. Those polls are a SurveyUSA poll and a PPP poll.

SURVEYUSA POLL

On June 30, KOB 4 published the results of a SurveyUSA poll it commissioned on the Governor’s approval rating. The report was prepared by KOB 4 reporter Chris Ramirez. Below is the link to the Channel 4 news report and poll data:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/poll-gov-lujan-grisham-has-50-approval-rating/6158319/

SurveyUSA is a polling firm in the United States that conducts market research for corporations and interest groups but is best known for conducting opinion polls for various political offices and questions. SurveyUSA conducts these opinion polls under contract by over 50 television stations The difference between SurveyUSA and other telephone polling firms is twofold. First, SurveyUSA does not use live call center employees, but an automated system and taped questions. Secondly, SurveyUSA uses more concise language, especially for ballot propositions, than competitors and this can lead to diverging results.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SurveyUSA

The SurveyUSA poll asked 6 major questions. Following are the questions with the poll results:

1. Do you approve or disapprove of the job Michelle Lujan Grisham is doing as governor of New Mexico?

APPROVE: 50% DISAPPROVE: 32% NOT SURE: 18%

2. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Governor Lujan Grisham is handling the Coronavirus?

Strongly Approve: 31% Somewhat Approve: 28% Somewhat Disapprove: 12% Strongly Disapprove: 22% NOT SURE: 8%

3. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Governor Lujan Grisham is handling the economy?

Strongly Approve: 19% Somewhat Approve: 30% Somewhat Disapprove: 18% Strongly Disapprove: 24% NOT SURE: 9%

4. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Governor Lujan Grisham is handling crime?

Strongly Approve: 13% Somewhat Approve: 27% Somewhat Disapprove: 19% Strongly Disapprove: 25 % NOT SURE: 17%

5. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Governor Lujan Grisham is handling Policing issues?

Strongly Approve: 15 % Somewhat Approve: 25% Somewhat Disapprove: 18% Strongly Disapprove: 25 % NOT SURE: 17%

6. Is New Mexico headed in the right direction? Or is it off on the wrong track?

RIGHT DIRECTION: 48% WRONG TRACK: 35% NOT SURE: 17%

Which of the following issues is most important to you right now?

Crime: 18%
Corona Virus: 15%
Unemployment: 9%
Economy: 25%
Education: 11%
Homeless: 11%
Other: 7%
Not Sure: 4%

The link to the full poll is here:

https://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReport.aspx?g=3247819a-cbc2-4164-8a9c-8cf1f865c23e

PUBLIC POLICY POLLING

Public Policy Polling (PPP) is a Democratic public opinion research organization headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. It describes itself as “…the highest quality polling at the most affordable price of any company out there.” In 2008, The Wall Street Journal described PPP’s polls as “as accurate as live-interview surveys,” and ranked them fourth among interactive voice response survey operations.

https://ballotpedia.org/Public_Policy_Polling

The PPP poll was conducted on August 16 and 17 by PPP and surveyed 682 registered voters throughout New Mexico. The poll has a 3.8% margin of error. The PPP was conducted for NM Political Report. The poll found that 46% of New Mexico voters approve of Michelle Lujan Grisham’s job performance as governor compared to 45% who disapprove. The previous June 3 SurveyUSA poll gave the Governor 50% approval, 32% disapproval with 18% responding not sure.

Lujan Grisham has her highest approval rating among Democrats with a 79% approval and 13% disapproval. Only 9% of Republicans approve of her job performance and 84% disapprove. The Governor did worst with independents, with 33% who approve and 54% who disapprove.

Lujan Grisham has higher than average approval ratings among those who identify as Hispanic or Latino. She polled at 53% approval to 35% who disapprove amongst Hispanic or Latino. She polled lower among those who said they were white with 40% approving and 55% disapproving. Those identifying as other ethnicities approved 56% t to 29% disapproval.

https://nmpoliticalreport.com/2021/08/23/poll-lujan-grisham-at-46-approval-45-disapproval/

https://www.fairfieldsuntimes.com/business/energy/poll-gov-lujan-grishams-job-approval-below-50/article_731ba087-3d75-5653-9128-3cb1e7f9d99c.html

EVOLVING ISSUES

Polls taken over a year from an election are more for the benefit of the media and news outlets and those running for office and such polls are generally ignored by the public. At this point there are any number of evolving issues that will likely have an effect on improving the Governor’s chances for a second term. Those issue include crime and changes to the criminal justice system to deal with it, the economy and the pandemic.

STATE POLICE TO THE CITY

In the wake of the killing of 13-year-old, eighth grader Bennie Hargrove being shot and killed at Washington Middle school by another student as well as the city breaking the all-time homicide rate, Lujan Grisham announce she was sending 35 New Mexico State Police Officers to the city to help address its spiking murder and violent crime rates. She also announced that she is open to adding firearms legislation to the 2022 thirty-day legislative session that begins in January as well as considering other changes in the criminal laws.

On Monday, August 16, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that she had order 35 New Mexico State Police ( NMSP) officers to begin “proactive operations” and crime suppression operations in the Albuquerque area starting on Tuesday, August 17. The 35 NMSP officers will be assigned to a 3-week-long operation in Albuquerque. State Police Officers will conduct operations along I-25 and I-40 in Bernalillo County. They will also be on highways during peak traffic hours. Currently, 42 state police officers are stationed in the metro area, but they patrol the area from Bernalillo to Los Lunas and Grants to Edgewood. The additional 35 State Police will concentrate on Albuquerque.

According to a news release, NMSP will be working with the New Mexico Department of Corrections and Adult Probation and Parole Department. The state department will work together to target criminals who have outstanding warrants for violent crimes and are believed to be involved in ongoing criminal activity in the city.

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham had this to say:

“We know from our last effort there were a lot of arrests made. We think this is going to make an impact and we’re going to continue to go after fugitives right and we’ve got felony warrants, people out. It takes all of us working together to get these people picked up and held.”

Tim Johnson, Chief of the New Mexico State Police, had this to say in a news release:

“Proactive crime suppression efforts can help solve crimes and often help prevent crime in the Albuquerque Metro area. … “Citizens have described the driving on the interstates in Albuquerque as chaotic, often leaving them feeling unsafe or frightened. Shootings, murder and overall violent crime feels like a daily occurrence in the metro, we hope our plan can help slow this trend.”

The assignment of State Police will be the second time in as many years that the Governor has ordered state police to the city, but this second time is dramatically different. It was in May, 2019 following the shooting of the University of New Mexico baseball player Jackson Weller outside of a Nob Hill bar that 50 state police officers were pulled from communities all over the state and patrolled the metro for two months. The state police arrested 738 people and doing more than 14,000 traffic stops. The 35 state police being sent this time will be tasked with concentrating on outstanding warrants for violent crimes.

BACKING CHANGES IS PRE-TRIAL DETENTION SYSTEM

It was in 2016 that New Mexico voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment that did away with the money bail bond system. The change in the law resulted in doing away with defendants charge with low level nonviolent crimes being held simply because they lacked the ability to post a bond. It further authorized judges to order defendants charged with violent crimes held in custody without bond only if prosecutors can show the accused represents a danger to the community and that there are no conditions of release that will protect the community.

On August 28, Governor Lujan Grisham made it known now that she wants to see changes in the state’s pretrial detention system now viewed as too lenient in releasing violent criminals pending trial. According to the Governor, she wants to shift the burden of proof so that people charged with violent offenses are required to show they can safely be released into the community pending trial. In a statement, Lujan Grisham had this to say:

“I believe a rebuttable presumption for individuals accused of violent crimes can be a wedge in the revolving door of repeat violent offenses that have characterized the worst aspects of the crime our state continues to experience.”

Since being elected to his first term as Bernalillo County District Attorney in 2016, DA Raúl Torrez has pushed for the changes. Not at all surprising is that Chief Public Defender Bennett Baur opposes the shift in the burden of proof making it the burden of the accused to establish they are not a danger to the community and should be released pending trial. According to Bauer, only 3% of people released prior to trial commit a violent crime after their release pending trial and said:

“I’m extremely concerned about allowing the government to hold people in jail for months just because someone said you did something.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/2424184/pretrial-detention-to-be-reviewed-violent-offenders-should-be-in-jail-before-trial-governor-says.html

NEW MEXICO REVENUE OUTLOOK REBOUNDS DRAMATICALLY

On Friday, August 28, during a Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) held in Taos, it was revealed that the State is experiencing an all-time high windfall of more than nearly $1 billion higher than what was projected in February. The estimates released to the committee by executive and legislative economists project New Mexico lawmakers will have nearly $1.4 billion in additional money in the coming year, an amount that represents the difference between expected revenue and the state’s current $7.4 billion budget. The cause of the windfall is surging oil and natural gas production and a rise in consumer spending.

The projected revenue total does not include more than $1.5 billion that will automatically flow into a state “rainy day” fund and an early childhood endowment fund over the next two years nor does it include the $1.75 billion in federal relief funds that have only been partially earmarked by the Lujan Grisham administration.

The $1.4 Billion in additional revenue will allow for spending that could make a major difference in public schools, roads, health care programs and help fund new initiatives by the Legislature and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The 2022 legislative session is a 30 day session, called a sort session, to deal almost exclusively with the budget, financial matters and taxation and it is the Governor who set the agenda is such sessions.

Sen. George Muñoz, D-Gallup, the LFC’s vice chairman, suggested the revenue windfall should be spent on one-time expenditures not part of the state budget and had this to say:

“There’s going to be a lot more money than we know what to do with in the next few years, but it’s not going to last forever. … Now is the time to tackle the structural issues of New Mexico. ”

The link to quoted news sources material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2423653/nm-revenue-levels-projected-to-soar-to-all-time-high.html

JOBS AND THE ECONOMY

New Mexico has one of the nation’s highest unemployment rates in the country. In July, it was tied for second-highest nationally at 7.6%. New Mexico posted 4.3% job growth from July 2020 through June 2021 and the state is down roughly 64,000 jobs, which is 7.4%, from its pre-pandemic peak. Taxation and Revenue Secretary Stephanie Schardin Clarke said she did not expect the State to get back to the pre-pandemic employment level until 2026.

Notwithstanding the state’s current unemployment numbers, the Lujan Grisaham Administration over the last 2 and a half years has made significant progress to diversify New Mexico’s economy.

The progress has included the film & television industry as reflected by NETFLEX buying Albuquerque Studios and expanding their operations to make Albuquerque its North American production headquarters employing thousands and the NBC opening a studio in Albuquerque as part of a 10-year venture projected to generate an economic impact of $1.1 billion over a 10-year period.

Lujan Grisham is making a major effort to bring high paying technology-based jobs to communities all across the state and is making real progress in the area. On May 3, 2021, Intel Corporation announced it will be investing $3.5 billion to equip its New Mexico operations for the manufacturing of advanced semiconductor packaging technologies, including Foveros, Intel’s breakthrough 3D packaging technology. The multiyear investment is expected to create at least 700 high-tech jobs and 1,000 construction jobs and support an additional 3,500 jobs in the state. Planning activities began immediately, with construction expected to start in late 2021.

The Areo Space industry is also rapidly expanding with the Spaceport and Virgin Galactic successfully completing its first commercial flight. The “Orion Center ”, an aerospace and technology facility which will be building a 122-acre campus facility in Albuquerque creating more jobs. “Group Orion”, the developer, is a subsidiary of Theia Group Inc., a Washington D.C. based, privately held aerospace company. The Theia Group is attempting to develop a network of satellites to digitally image and collect data on the physical world, providing solutions in areas from logistics to biology.

In the biosciences sector, more than a hundred new high-paying jobs are expected in Rio Rancho. The company Nature’s Toolbox specializes in bio-manufacturing to speed up the development of vaccines and pharmaceuticals. The average salary is $74,000.

The recreational cannibus industry will also be kicking into high gear come January, 2022. Advocates of recreational legalization argue it will generate at least 13,000 jobs and millions of dollars for the economy. According to some reports, legalizing recreational marijuana will generate up to $800 million a year, a $200 million increase from the last years estimate of $600 million.

On August 30, it was announced that MTX Group Inc, a Texas-based technology consulting firm, has selected Albuquerque as its base of operations in the Southwest. The firm is planning to hire 250 employees in the city with an average salary of more than $100,000. The firm provides technology designed to help partner organizations modernize their operations. Das Nobel, CEO and co-founder of MTX, said the company plans to use its Albuquerque office as a hub for operations taking place in Nevada, Utah and other parts of the Southwest.

Link to news source is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2424743/texas-firms-move-to-bring-highpaying-jobs-to-abq.html

THE REPUBLICAN OPPOSITION

There are 6 candidates who have announced that they are seeking the Republican nomination for Governor in 2022. Those candidates in the order of their announcements are:

1. SANDOVAL COUNTY COMMISSIONER JAY BLOCK

On April 18, 2021 Sandoval County Commissioner Jay Block announced he is running for the Republican nomination for Governor. Block, a retired lieutenant colonel who spent 21 years the Air Force and moved to Rio Rancho in 2015.

Block has fully aligned himself with former President Der Führer Donald Trump. In his announcement he said he is in favor of defunding abortion services and restoring qualified immunity for police officers.

In his announcement video Block said:

“This is a movement of shared values. … It’s time Michelle Lujan Grisham is out of office so we can start a new era of prosperity for New Mexicans.”

Block has already gotten nasty with his remarks about the Governor when he said:

“Michelle is proud of where New Mexico stands today. Michelle is proud New Mexico ranks last in education. Michelle is proud New Mexico ranks first in child poverty.”

https://www.koat.com/article/race-for-governor-of-new-mexico-heating-up/36974820

2. KAREN BEDONIE

On April 25, 2021, Republican and retired teacher Karen Bedonie of Farmington announced she is running for the Republican nomination for Governor. Her announcement video featured photographs of Bedonie holding a rife, posing with law enforcers, her husband, and her family, and portrayed her campaign’s focuses on a family, faith, and freedoms-based message.

In her announcement Bedonie said:

“I am a woman of courage and I have worked tirelessly to formulate a liberating plan for the beautiful state of New Mexico. … I believe the Second Amendment of the Constitution is absolute, written so beautifully that the builders of this nation installed these rights to withstand tyranny and the trampling of our liberties and freedoms. As a mother of five daughters, we will bear arms to protect ourselves. Missing, murdered, and indigenous women is real and is also unresolved.”

https://pinonpost.com/karen-bedonie-announces-candidacy-for-new-mexico-governor/

3. GREG ZANETTI

On June 14, Republican Greg Zanetti announced his campaign. Zanetti is a former Bernalillo County Republican Chairman and a former New Mexico National Guard Brigadier General who now works in the business of wealth management. He has said in the past that he does not intend to get vaccinated for covid. With respect to the Governor, Zanetti had this to say:

“We had this autocratic governor come down and impose all these rules where we shut down businesses, locked down the kids, we shut the state down, and as the facts changed and we learned more about COVID, she didn’t adjust.”

Surprisingly, Republican conservative Zanetti is distancing himself from Der Führer former president Donald Trump and said:

“This isn’t about Donald Trump. It’s not about one person, it’s about a bigger message.”

Ostensibly, Zanetti did not get the memo from New Mexico Republican Party Chairman Steve Pierce that the Republican Party in the state and nationally are very much in lock step with Der Führer Trump.

4. TIM WALSH

On June 30, Albuquerque retired teacher Tim Walsh, age 74, announced he is running for the Republican nominations for Governor. Walsh previously worked as an education adviser to former Republican Governor Gary Johnson and describes himself as the same type politically as Johnson. That likely means being nothing but a libertarian who has decided to become a Republican but who smokes cannabis without telling anyone until he gets termed out.

In his announcement Walsh said if elected Governor he would push to overhaul the state’s public pension funds to a 401(k) model to address unfunded liabilities and do away with the state’s high-profile film incentive program.

https://www.abqjournal.com/2405298/gop-candidate-tim-walsh-announces-gubernatorial-bid.html

5. REBECCA DOW

On July 7, three term Republican State Representative Rebecca Dow of Truth or Consequences announced that she is running for the Republican nomination for Governor. In her announcement, she vowed to address “hard truths” related to the state’s high unemployment rate, low education rankings and chronic child welfare issues. She is a former early child care professional.

Dow, like the other Republican Governor candidates also immediately attacked Governor Lujan Grisham and described the governor as a “power hungry” career politician whose policies have hurt New Mexico and said:

“As a state, we have never experienced more dire conditions than we are currently struggling through right now.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/2415471/sanche-zjoins-gop-field-for-governor.html

HEINRICH ENDORSES MLG

On September 8, New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich endorsed the Governor’s candidacy for a second term. In a statement, he had said in part:

. . . Lujan Grisham has set bold statewide renewable energy standards — putting New Mexico at the forefront of the clean energy industry that will produce good jobs. . .She has aggressively pursued polluters and established nation-leading rules that will reduce harmful emissions and create even more jobs through detecting and capping gas leaks that harm our air. Governor Lujan Grisham has made New Mexico a national leader in the fight against climate change. I am pleased to endorse Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham so she can continue delivering for. . .New Mexico.”

Heinrich’s strong appeal with progressive environmentalists will help to discourage any Democratic primary challengers.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The PPP poll finding that 46% of New Mexico voters approve of Michelle Lujan Grisham’s job performance as governor compared to 45% who disapprove no doubt is concerning, but is not surprising for a Governor that has shown real leadership making difficult decisions and who has been very effective in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. Placing too much reliance on polls 14 months out before a general election would be a major mistake in that there is more than enough time for her to turn things around. Further, the 2 polls do not reflect at all how the Governor would fair in a one-on-one race with a generic Republican, let alone any one of the announced Der Führer Republican candidates for Governor.

The 59% approval rating dealing with the pandemic and the 49% approval rating dealing with the economy in all likely will increase as the state begins to reopen and things get back to normal. Low approval ratings in both crime and policing issues is what Governors’ and Mayors’ across the country are dealing with as violent crime is a national trend. However, Governor Lujan Grisham has not totally ignored either issue and in fact is now taking action to deal with crime and getting behind legislation to deal with it, something that will be fleshed out during the upcoming legislative session and as her bid for a second term gains full speed in the months ahead.

The one constituency that the Governor appears to need to work on is her 47% approval rating among Hispanics. 30% of Hispanics disapprove and 23% saying they were not sure of her job performance. Governor Lujan Grisham still has 79% approval rating amongst Democrats. She has a 59% approval rating dealing with the pandemic and the 49% approval rating dealing with the economy. With such a high approval rating from people who identify as Democrats, it is more likely than not Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham will have no opposition in the Democratic primary, and if so, it will be weak at best.

As for the announced Republican candidates, most, if not all 6, are viewed within political circles as weak unknowns at best and at worst way too conservative and too pro Der Führer Trump to become viable in a solid blue state such as is New Mexico. At this point in time, the biggest hope that all 6 Republican candidates have, if they are the Republican nominee, is that Governor Lujan Grisham will be viewed with nothing but extreme hostility destroying her support within the Democratic party. That is not all likely to happen and its not at all likely Democrats will want to support a Der Führer Republican Party candidate for Governor.

The link to a related blog article is here:

Six Run For Republican Nomination For Governor; In A Statewide Race, Republican Nomination May Not Be Worth Much Unless Governor Lujan Grisham Does Something Really Stupid

On Tuesday, April 6, Mayor Tim Keller held a press conference in front of the Gibson Lovelace Medical Center to officially announce the city had bought the massive 572,000-square-foot complex for $15 million and will transform it into a Gateway Center for the homeless. The complex currently has a 201-bed capacity, but remodeling could likely increase capacity significantly to at least 300 beds as was originally envisioned for the Gateway center.

In making the announcement, Keller had this to say in part:

“The City of Albuquerque has officially bought the Gibson Medical Center, the cornerstone of our Gateway Center network. In total, this represents the largest capital investment that Albuquerque has ever made for the unhoused. We have roughly 5,000 homeless people.
…
For us, this is about actually doing something. Not just talking about it, not just discussing it, not just harping about the details. This is about action. … This is never meant to be permanent. It’s meant to be a gateway to services that can then lead to people enabling and changing their lives.

“And so really what we’re looking at here is to move past this question of where … No matter how you feel about it, we’ve answered that question.”

HIGHLIGHTS OF GATEWAY OPERATIONS PLAN

The City of Albuquerque posted on its internet web site an 11 page draft of the “Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub Operations Plan” for the homeless shelter that will be inside the Lovelace Hospital complex the city.

The draft the operations plan is dated August, 2021. The link to the 11 page “Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub Operations Plan” is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/family/documents/operations-plan-draft-8-21-conditional-use-app.pdf

The Gateway Operations Plan highlights include the following:

The Gibson Health Hub (GHH) is to be an anchor facility to fill healthcare and social service gaps. The Gateway Center will comprise a portion of the facility to provide shelter and services to the homeless. The mission of the Gateway Center will be to “provide a safe and welcoming place that provides a low-barrier, trauma-informed shelter along with services to the homeless using a client-centered approach.”

SECURITY AND PUBLIC SAFETY DISTRICT

The Gateway Center Shelter will be open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The Gateway Center Shelter will have a secured entrance that will be staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to ensure the safety of those sheltered, staff, volunteers, service provider partner agency staff and volunteers. Only enrolled Gateway Center Shelter guests, staff, program staff and volunteers, and registered partner agency staff and volunteers will be allowed to enter the Gateway Center shelter.

Personal visitors will not be allowed at the Gateway Center Shelter, except under limited conditions with express permission. Residents can come and go as needed while following a curfew policy, with exceptions to include work and personal needs and unanticipated issues such as family crisis. Weapons will not be allowed at the Gateway Center. There will be a weapons policy & procedure to address weapons brought on site. Clients will be required to sign a form acknowledging that they are aware of the weapons policy & procedure.

The City intends to establish a public safety district around the Gateway Center, which will be a concentrated, coordinated effort between City Departments that address public safety, including Albuquerque Community Safety, APD, Albuquerque Fire and Rescue, Family and Community Services, Parks and Recreation and Solid Waste. The purpose of the Public Safety District will be to better coordinate existing resources and efforts. Community policing will be included.

CRITICAL INCIDENCE RESPONSE AT FACILITY

The City of Albuquerque will work with the organizations operating the Gateway Center to establish procedures for critical incident response. Threats and assaults to staff and clients will not be tolerated. A 9 policy and procedure addressing threats and assaults to client and staff will be established. Any guest who threatens or assault staff or clients will be exited from the Gateway Center, and will receive transportation to their exit destination. De-escalation procedures will be established. All Gateway Center staff will receive training in conflict resolution and de-escalation techniques. The procedures will address appropriate use of APD to resolve safety issues at the Gateway Center

SERVICES TO BE PROVIDED

The Gateway Center service staff will conduct a general assessment with individuals and families to verify that the Gateway Center is an appropriate option. As part of this assessment, Gateway Center staff will assess whether the presenting individual or family can be safely diverted to a non-shelter alternative. The Gateway Shelter will establish a referral process for community organizations, including other homeless assistance providers and other local service agencies. Gateway Center staff will conduct an assessment that will address any immediate issues that need to be resolved, including physical or medical health issues that may require a triage to more appropriate options. This may include, medical respite, detox or recovery programs. The Gateway Center programming will incorporate a trauma-informed approach that is equitable, culturally and spiritually accommodating, and supportive of LGBTQ+, people of color and people living with disabilities.

“The Gateway Center will be a low barrier shelter that follows the Housing First principles to address immediate and long-term housing needs. As a low-barrier and inclusive shelter, the Gateway Center will accept unhoused people who may have complex histories, including a criminal history. The Gateway Center will leverage existing services and develop partnerships for referrals into the community to foster collaboration and not competition. This includes creating space within the Gateway Center for other community partners to connect with guests and provide services, such as satellite office space. The Gateway Center will operate with a harm reduction philosophy to address substance use disorders. Guests do not need to be clean and sober to access the Engagement Center or Shelter, but they cannot use drugs on site.”

TWO MAJOR COMPONENTS

The Gateway Center will have two major components: an Engagement Center and the Shelter. The Engagement Center will serve as a “warm and welcoming access point to services”, while also helping to meet the most immediate needs of unhoused people coming to the Shelter. The Shelter will provide low barrier, trauma-informed shelter that meets people where they are at with a client-centered approach to develop a plan to achieve housing stability. Through the “Engagement Center”, the Gateway Center will provide person-centered services that “meet people where they are at” to achieve housing and behavioral health stability. Intake to services will be staged according to client need and interests. “Programs will embody a person-centered approach to support connections to community, and attain housing and behavioral health stability so that homelessness is a brief, rare, one-time experience.”

ADMINISTRATION

The City will have an onsite Gateway Center Administrator to oversee operations. One onsite Community Outreach Coordinator and a Gateways Systems Analyst will report to the Administrator. The Gateway Center Administration will be responsible for overseeing all Gateway Center Operations. The Systems Analyst will be responsible for ensuring systems are place to implement and evaluate effective service delivery, including data systems. The Community Outreach Coordinator will be responsible for coordinating day-to-day operations with the organizations selected to operate the Gateway Center.

TRANSPORTATION AND DINING TO BE PROVIDED

“The Gateway Center will operate a shuttle system. The shuttle system will transport referred guests to the Gateway Center for intake and assessment. The shuttle system will provide transportation to 6 individuals and families exiting the Gateway Center to their exit destination. Some Gateway Center clientele will also utilize public transportation.”

The Gateway Center will have a dining area that will be open daily for three meals per day, and a facility shuttle system will transport referred clients into the shelter and, eventually, to their “exit destination.” The initial anticipated hours for dining will be 7:00am-9:00am; 11:00am1:00pm; 5:00pm-7:00pm, and food donations will be accepted.

NO ENCAMPMENTS ALLOWED

No Encampments will be allowed on the Gibson Gateway Shelter property. The Department of Family and Community Services (DFCS) public outreach team will be responsible for addressing encampments on all public property. Two of the public outreach team members will be based at the Gibson Gateway facility. According to the operation plan, the DFCS public outreach team will monitor the ¼-mile radius from Gibson Gateway Shelter daily for encampments on public or private property. For encampments on public property, DFCS will post notice the same day the encampment is observed. The DFCS outreach team will refer any encampments located on private property to the Planning Department Code Enforcement Division.

ZONING APPLICATION FOR CONDITIONAL USE REQUIRED

On Tuesday, August 3, the city posted the 11-page operations plan on its website as it applied for a “conditional use” permit needed to run an overnight. A zoning hearing is scheduled for September 21, and it is more likely than not that the hearing officer will approve the permit. The city application for the conditional use argues there is a strong need for it to enhance Albuquerque’s demand for homeless services to an ever-expanding homeless population. It has been reported that more than 700 people have used the city’s shelter-and-hotel system the city provides for emergency shelter, especially during the winter.

The zoning for the Gibson Medical Center facility does allow an “overnight shelter” but only as a “conditional use,” something the city is now pursuing by application. It is the City of Albuquerque Planning and Zoning Department that enforces the City’s Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO). The Planning Department has within it a Zoning Hearing Examiner (ZHE) filing and adjudication process.

The Zoning Hearing Examiner conducts monthly quasi-judicial public hearings regarding special exceptions to the Integrated Development Ordinance. Once application for a zone change or special use is made, the city must give notice to all surrounding neighborhood associations, residents and business owners and conduct hearings.

The City’s “Comprehensive City Zoning Code defines CONDITIONAL USE as follows:

“One of those uses enumerated as conditional uses in a given zone. Such uses require individual approval on a given lot.

(a) Will not be injurious to the adjacent property, the neighborhood, or the community;
(b) Will not be significantly damaged by surrounding structures or activities.”

https://www.cabq.gov/planning/documents/ZHEConditionalUse.pdf

The Zoning Hearing Officer makes the decision to approve or disapprove the conditional use. The decision of the Zoning Officer can be appealed to “Land Use Planning, and Zoning Committee” (LUPZ). The LUPZ is a committee of 5 made up of city residents appointed by the Mayor who volunteer their time. Their decisions are subject to appeal to the City Council.

KELLER ABANDONS SINGLE GATEWAY CENTER CONCEPT

It was on Wednesday, May 7, 2020, Mayor Tim Keller said that the city was abandoning the development concept of a single, 300-bed homeless shelter. The city owned shelter was intended to assist an estimated 300 homeless residents and connect them to other services intended to help secure permanent housing. The new facility would have served all populations of men, women, and families. Further, the city wanted to provide a place anyone could go regardless of gender, religious affiliation, sobriety, addictions, psychotic condition or other factors.

In his May 7 announcement, Keller said the city would be proceeding with a “multi-site approach” to the city’s homelessness crisis. Mayor Tim Keller went so far as to state that the 300 bed Gateway Center was “off the table”. Keller said the corona virus crisis has highlighted the need for an alternative to the city’s existing shelter, which is the former jail 20 miles from downtown. :

The link to the press conference is here:

https://www.facebook.com/MayorKeller/videos/290814465247439/UzpfSTEwNTQ4MTY4OTY6MTAyMjAwNDA5NDYxMDgwMTQ/

MULTI-SITE APPROACH

When the city abandoned plans to build one large homeless shelter, city officials said the new multi-site approach could mean a series of “smaller facilities” throughout the community. Ostensibly, there would be no single resource hub in one large facility as was originally proposed with the 300 bed Gateway Center.
City Family and Community Services Director Carol Pierce offered insight into what the city means when it refers to small shelters and had this to say:

“We’re often talking 100 to 150 beds of emergency shelter that could be defined as a smaller shelter.”

City officials have also said the tentative strategy includes 150 to 175 standard shelter beds to accommodate men, women and families, plus 25 to 50 medical recovery beds.
Critics are saying 150-175 beds is way too big.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The single most glaring shortcoming of the Gibson Gateway Operations Plan is that it avoids answering the most contentious question of the number of beds the shelter will have and the number of homeless it will accommodate on a nightly basis once the remodeling is complete. The Gibson Gateway facility already has a 201-bed capacity and the massive 572,000-square-foot complex could easily be remodeled to accommodate 99 more bed capacity to reach the original 300 facility Mayor Keller wanted.

According to Family and Community Service Director Carol Pearce, the Gibson Gateway shelter will ultimately be just “a slice” of the facility. Pearce has noted that existing mental health care and counseling provider tenants are already on the property that currently occupy about a quarter of the square footage with the city is looking to recruit more.

Lisa Huval, Albuquerque’s deputy director for housing and homelessness said the city should have a number by the time of the conditional use hearing and said the city is still reviewing a consultant’s report and continuing their own research .

Huval has said:

“We know we owe the community an answer on [how many homeless will be sheltered] … we are still in the process of evaluating what the right bed capacity is for the Gateway Center” .

https://www.abqjournal.com/2416213/city-releases-draft-operating-plan-for-gateway-center.html

A failure to disclose the number of beds the shelter will have and sticking with that number after the conditional use is granted will likely result in mistrust and resentment by the surrounding neighborhood and cause extreme hostility. You can expect that the September 21 Conditional Use Application hearing will be contentious, mainly because Mayor Keller has given mixed messages on what he really wants ultimately and as he failed to work with the surrounding neighborhoods. When Mayor Keller says “One Albquerque” he needs to add “under Keller.”

The link to a related blog article is here:

Neighborhood Protests Erupt After Mayor Keller Announces Gibson Medical Facility For Gateway Homeless Shelter; Area Residents Say Keller Gave Them “Middle Finger” When They Asked To Give Input After $15 Million Purchase

On Friday, August 27, Santa Fe District Judge Bryan Biedscheid reversed Albuquerque City Clerk Nathan Watson’s decision denying Sheriff Manuel Gonzales $661,000 in public financing for his mayoral campaign. The Court ruled that Watson denied Gonzales due process of law. Santa Fe District Judge Bryan Biedscheid was assigned the case by the New Mexico Supreme Court after virtually all 2nd Judicial District Court Judges for Bernalillo County recused themselves from hearing the case.

In making the ruling, Judge Biedscheid emphasized that Gonzales was denied the opportunity to answer the allegations of fraud against him in the collection of the $5 qualifying donations for public finance. Instead, the City Clerk decided to withhold certification of the funding unilaterally by interpreting and applying election rules and regulations he wrote an issued in September of 2020.

The Judge also ruled the city clerk could ultimately deny Gonzales the public financing, but to do so, the City Clerk will need to determine that Gonzales has been found to have violated regulations and make specific factual findings on those allegations. The judge further ordered the City Clerk must establish and carry out a process by next week giving Gonzales due process. The judge stressed that Gonzales has to be given the opportunity to answer the allegations against him.

In his ruling, Biedscheid announced from the bench after the hearing:

“At the very least, the candidate needs to be informed of the allegations against him or her; the candidate needs to receive an adequate explanation of the evidence against him or her, and the candidate needs to have an adequate opportunity to explain his or her position. The court understands none of that was afforded in this matter.

If the clerk does not find that Sheriff Gonzales has been found to have committed the [violations he is accused of] in a proceeding that afforded him due process or does not elect to set forth a proceeding to provide that due process on the time frame I just stated, then the clerk shall certify Sheriff Gonzales to receive public financing. ”

Judge Biedscheid gave City Clerk Watson a Monday, 5 p.m. deadline to decide which course to take. In a written statement, city clerk Ethan Watson had this to say:

“We appreciate the court’s ruling and the procedural guidance offered. We are deciding the steps forward for next week.”

Links to news sources and quotes are here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2423790/ethics-board-rules-against-gonzales-fines-him-500.html

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/judge-reverses-city-clerks-decision-to-deny-public-financing-to-sheriff-gonzales/6220075/?cat=500

https://www.koat.com/article/judge-reverses-city-clerks-decision-denying-sheriff-manny-gonzales-public-financing/37419457

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/2354357099318/judge-reverses-city-clerk-s-decision-denying-sheriff-manny-gonzales-public-financing

https://www.abqjournal.com/2423790/ethics-board-rules-against-gonzales-fines-him-500.html

EVIDENCE RELIED UPON BY CITY CLERK WATSON

The Keller campaign submitted to the City Clerk 149 examples of alleged forgeries on documents submitted to the City Clerk. The Keller campaign also filed signed statements from upwards of 40 people contacted by a private investigator hired by Keller campaign. Most of those contacted said the signatures on Gonzales’ nominating petition was theirs and half confirmed they had contributed $5 to Gonzales’ public financing effort. Nearly all said signatures on the $5 public finance receipts were not their legitimate signature.

The Gonzales campaign denied all wrongdoing and accused the city clerk of trying to “silence the political opposition.” The Gonzales campaign said that Gonzales submitted hundreds more $5 contributions than necessary to qualify for public financing, and the ethics complaints involve what it deemed a “small handful of alleged invalid” contributions.

The links to quoted news source material are here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2407951/gonzales-bid-for-public-financing-denied.html

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/city-clerk-blocks-manny-gonzales-bid-for-public-financing-following-fraud-forgery-claims/6166686/?cat=500

https://www.koat.com/article/sheriff-manny-gonzales-denied-campaign-financing-for-mayor/36986156

It was on June 18 that City Clerk Ethan Watson posted on the city web site his office had reviewed and verified that Gonzales submitted more than the required 3,000 signatures and more than the 3,771 qualifying donations. At issue is whether the City Clerk had the authority to deny public financing after the City Clerk found and posted that enough $5 donations were submitted ostensibly without fraud nor forgeries and before there is a decision made by the City Board of Elections and Campaign Practices as to any fraud.

Complicating things for Gonzales is he admitted that signature forgeries were on both nominating petitions and the $5.00 qualifying donations. On July 14, after repeated denials of any wrong doing by the Gonzales campaign, and in a written response to an ethics complaint filed with the Board of Ethics and Campaign Practices, Gonzales’ campaign stated.

“It does appear, upon the Gonzales campaign’s own investigation, that many of the qualifying-contribution (“QC”) receipts…were signed by someone other than the voter.”

In his letter to the Gonzales campaign deny certification for public finance, City Clerk Ethan Watson stated:

“This office cannot provide that certification because…documents presented to my Office show different signatures for the same voters on different official documents in possible violation of numerous provisions of our regulations and other laws.”

https://abq.news/2021/07/manny-gonzales-mayoral-campaign-admits-to-forgery-of-voter-signatures/

On the same day Watson denied Gonzales’ certification for public financing, he certified Mayor Tim Keller’s campaign having qualified for the public financing. The Keller campaign received the money more than a month ago.

CITY RULES AND REGULATIONS GIVING CITY CLERK AUTHORITY NOT TO CERTIFY

On September 21, 2020 and October 2, 2020, City Clerk Ethan Watson and the Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair, respectively, sign off on regulations for the City Clerk to administer the “Open and Ethical Elections Code” (OEEC) for the 2021 municipal elections.

The link to those regulations is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/vote/documents/2021-regulations-for-the-open-and-ethical-election-code.pdf

It is PART C of the regulations entitled QUALIFYING PERIOD AND QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTIONS that outlines the certification process relating to the $5 qualifying donations for all the candidates.

Paragraph 15 entitled “Certification of Participating Candidates for Public Financing” provides in part as follows:

“The City Clerk shall certify as a Participating Candidate, all Applicant Candidates who meet the requirements of the OEEC and submit an Application for Certification.

c. An Applicant Candidate whose certification has been denied may appeal the Clerk’s determination [within 3 business days.]

BOARD OF ETHICS AND CAMPAIGN PRACTICES RULING

Judge Biedscheid’s afternoon ruling was made within hours after a separate proceeding before the city of Albuquerque’s Board of Ethics and Campaign Practices. The Ethics Board ruled unanimously to fine Gonzales $500 for violating rules in his public financing qualifying bid. It is unclear if the Ethics Board hearing, ruling and fine can be considered as meeting Biedscheid’s requirement that Gonzales have due process.

The Keller for Mayor campaign has filed two ethics complaints against Gonzales. They allege widespread fraud and forgery. Gonzales’ campaign is accused of forging the names of more than 140 registered voters to secure public financing or providing the $5.00 qualifying donations.

The first ethics complaint includes a written statement from a voter who said Gonzales told him he did not have to submit a $5 contribution and that his campaign would pay. Gonzales for his part adamantly denies the allegation. This is the complaint that was decided by the Ethics Board on Friday, August 27.

The second ethics complaint alleges Gonzales’ campaign volunteers forged voter signatures on qualifying public finance receipts. The complaint cites disparities between signatures on $5 contribution receipts and the same voters’ signatures from other places, including on nominating petitions to get Gonzales’ name on the ballot. The second ethics complaint still pending before the Ethics Board

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

WHAT A MESS!

At first blush, it appears that the City Clerk does indeed have authority to deny Gonzales the $661,000 in public finance. The rules and regulations for the election say the city clerk shall determine whether the candidate has “been found to have made a materially false statement in a report … submitted to the City Clerk” and “been found to have submitted any fraudulent Qualifying Contributions or any falsified acknowledgement forms for Qualifying Contributions or Seed Money Contributions.”

The rules are also clear “if the Clerk makes any of the findings … the Clerk shall not certify the Applicant Candidate as a Participating Candidate.”

The problem is that City Clerk Watson made his decision without any public hearing giving Gonzales an opportunity to be heard and challenge the allegations. In law school, the class would be called “Due Process 101”. As experienced attorneys, City Clerk Ethan Watson and Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair should have known better to allow a unilateral disqualification of $661,000 public financing after the candidate had submitted more than enough qualifying $5.00 donations. Now the City is stuck with an order to set and establish a process by Monday, August 30. In doing so, it is more likely than not the Gonzales campaign will seek to have Watson disqualified from the case based on prejudice and failure to be fair and impartial with Watson having already decided to refuse certification before without an opportunity to be heard nor a hearing.

The best option for the City, the City Clerk and the Gonzales campaign is to seek an emergency hearing on Monday, August 30, and request Judge Biedscheid to disqualify and prohibit City Clerk Ethan Watson from taking any further action. The parties should ask the Court to delegate and assign the case to the Board Of Ethics And Campaign Practices and to conduct a hearing within 5 days affording due process of law to Gonzales and allow the Ethics Board to rule on the one pending ethics case against Gonzales and also to decide if Gonzales should be certified for public finance or fined.

Still another option for the parties would be a Stipulated Order between the parties to be signed by Judge Biedscheid disqualifying City Clerk Ethan Watson from taking any further action and enter an order to the city Board Of Ethics And Campaign Practices allowing the Ethics Board to rule on the one pending ethics case against Gonzales and also to decide if Gonzales should be certified for public finance, fined or reprimanded or any other remedy.

In the aftermath of the 4 APD offers who were shot by a violent felon on probation out of California, APOA Union President Shaun Willoughby was interviewed by virtually all the local news stations and the Albuquerque Journal and asked why he felt the shooting happened. On Friday, August 20, Willoughby was quoted as saying:

“It’s officers that are hesitating to do their job because they don’t want to get in trouble … It’s the brazen acts of criminals that know that Albuquerque police officers are handcuffed … We have stepped away and de-policed this city. From the very beginning our officers are carrying a card of misdemeanors that they’re not supposed to arrest on.”

The link to the quoted news source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2421142/california-man-charged-in-shooting-of-apd-officers.html

In an interview with KOB 4, Police Union President Shaun Willoughby said increases in deadly situations involving police, such as what happened to the 4 APD officers, is frustrating and angers his union membership. He also increased his false political rhetoric laying blame for the violent crime in the city and said:

“We’ve been telling this community that this was going to happen. … I believe that the violent crime and the uptick of violent crime is directly related to this police department being de-policed and having policies where they are not able to do their job. … We have de-policed the city of Albuquerque to the extent where officers carry around a little card with a list of misdemeanors that they can’t even arrest people on.”

Willoughby added that over the years laws passed through the legislature have prevented officers from not only doing their jobs but have led to dozens of officers quitting.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/police-officers-association-demands-change-following-shooting-that-left-4-officers-injured/6213550/?fbclid=IwAR0sXEzSZcF0KVwlVL3o1Fa4KjXfNcV15yEgC4IxYJ-N67TvAwlDz_X-aQE#.YSALBrgluvs.facebook

SPECIAL ORDER 17-53 AND SOP 2-80

When Willoughby claims “officers carry around a little card with a list of misdemeanors that they can’t even arrest people on” he ostensibly is referring to a May 10, 2018 Special Order 17-53 as well as SOP 2-80. (Standard Operating Procedure)

On May 10, 2018, in a memo addressed to all sworn APD personnel by then APD Chief Gorden Eden issued Department Special Order 17-53. The Special-Order states that

“[A]ll officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrests on non-violent misdemeanor offenses. … “officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrest on non-violent misdemeanor offenses when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest.”

Special Order 17-53 was then made into SOP 2-80 that deals with arrests of “Felony Arrest Authority” and “Misdemeanor Arrest Authority” SOP 2-80 is very succinct and provides as follows:

“2-80 ARRESTS, ARREST WARRANTS AND BOOKING PROCEDURES

2-80-1 Policy Department policy is to arrest a felony violator of laws which its officers are empowered to enforce. Officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrest on non-violent misdemeanor offenses (not to include DWIs) when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest. In all cases, officers shall follow correct legal procedures required in arresting, booking, and filing charges against such violators.

2-80-2 Rules Procedures

A. Felony Arrest Authority.

1. Felony arrests may be made through the authority of a warrant, or on probable cause when there are exigent circumstances preventing the officer from obtaining a warrant. (State v. Panaanan, 2015 NMSC 031, 357 P.3d 958)

2. Probable cause arrests may be made for all felonies when there are exigent circumstances preventing the officer from obtaining a warrant.

3. Exigent circumstances include emergency situations requiring swift action:

a. to prevent imminent danger to life or serious damage to property; or

b. to forestall the imminent escape of a suspect; or

c. to forestall potential destruction of evidence; or

d. an exigency may also exist where it is not reasonably practical to secure a warrant under the circumstances, such as where the additional time to obtain a warrant makes it impractical.

4. The New Mexico Supreme Court has held that “exigency will be presumed” where an officer observes the commission of a felony, without reference to imminent danger, escape, or destruction of evidence, and that an on-the-scene arrest supported by probable cause will usually supply the requisite exigency.

a. However, an officer must obtain a felony arrest warrant if there is ample time to do so before making the arrest, provided that there is no concern that the additional time to secure an arrest warrant may result in failing to prevent imminent danger to life or serious damage to property, forestalling the imminent escape of a suspect, or the potential destruction of evidence.

b. Examples of situations when felony arrests require an arrest warrant include:

6. For those felony offenses that do not fall within the above listed categories, an officer when deciding whether to effect an arrest or to merely submit the case for indictment consideration may make a probable cause felony arrest when probable cause clearly exists, under the following circumstances:

a. When the offender has no community ties to the Albuquerque metropolitan area, e.g. transient, out of town resident, etc.; or

b. When one or more prior felonies or multiple offenses have been committed by the offender; or

c. When the arrest is approved by a supervisor based on extenuating circumstances; and d. One or more exigent circumstance as described under A. 3 (1) through (4) above must be present.

B. Petty Misdemeanor/Misdemeanor Arrest Authority

1. Officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrest on non-violent misdemeanor offenses (not to include DWIs) when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest. Whether or not the person has a permanent address may not be the sole factor in determining to arrest the person rather than issuing a citation. If the officer issues a non-traffic citation, the officer must complete an incident report. If an arrest is necessary, the officer will include the reason in the narrative of the corresponding incident report.

2. When exigent circumstances justify the arrest.

C. Use of the Metropolitan Court Bonding Window

1. Officers will use the bonding window at Metropolitan Court located at 401 Lomas Blvd. NW to post a bond, pay a fine, or to resolve or quash a warrant in lieu of taking an arrested person to the Prisoner Transport Center (PTC) or the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) when feasible.

2. The outdoor walk-up bonding window is located on the building’s south side. The bonding window closes for a brief time at the end of each shift (currently, from 6:00 a.m.-7:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m., 10:00 p.m.-12:00 a.m.)

3. Officers can take an arrested person to the bonding window whenever they are arresting such individual for lower-level warrants, such as for traffic or petty misdemeanor charges. This allows the person to pay fines or post a bond without having to be booked into MDC.

4. The bonding window will accept all misdemeanor warrants including out-of-county warrants.

5. The bonding window does not deal with felony charges or cases.

6. The bonding window accepts cash only – credit cards, debit cards or checks are not accepted.

7. The person will be required to pay the full amount of a cash or surety bond at the bonding window. This means that the person cannot go through a bonding agency to pay ten percent (10%) of the bond at the bonding window.

8. Officers should check to see if the person has cash before taking that person to the bonding window. Officers should not wait for the person to get money from a friend, relative or acquaintance.

9. Metropolitan Court requests officers to have their agencies fax the warrant to the bonding window prior to arriving with the person.

10.Once the person completes the transaction at the bonding window, the officer may take that person back to their previous location if time or the situation permits.”

APD publishes on line all the departments Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). The link is here:

https://documents.cabq.gov/police/standard-operating-procedures/2-80-arrests-arrest-warrants-and-booking-procedures.pdf

The misdemeanor offenses affected by the special order include criminal trespass, criminal damage to property under $1,000, shoplifting under $500, shoplifting under $250, prostitution, and receiving or possessing stolen property under $100. Because of the court order, the policy remains in place to this day.

The SOP 2-80 makes it clear that any APD officer may make an arrest if it is necessary, but will have to include the reasons why in an incident report. SOP 2-80 also makes it clear officers can take offenders wanted for non-violent misdemeanor offenses to Metropolitan Court to resolve warrants or fines instead of hauling them off to jail. A caveat is that the arrested individual must have the full amount of the fine or bond in cash. Those arrested also cannot go through a bonding agency.

At the time the Special Order was issued, City and police officials pointed out that it made no changes to police policy. APD Chief Jerry Galvin in 2001 issued a similar order, and since then department policy has been to advise officers to issue citations for such crimes where they deem it appropriate, and officers have discretion in deciding when to arrest someone. According to then City Attorney Jessica Hernandez:

“If there is any part of a situation that makes an officer think an arrest is warranted, they’ll make the arrest.”

At the time the special order was issued, then Assistant Chief Robert Huntsman also issued a statement to clarify the policy and said:

“This order in no way restricts officers’ discretion to make arrests when necessary to protect the public. Citations have always been an available option for certain non-violent misdemeanor offenses. This special order and video remind officers to issue citations ‘when appropriate’ and ‘when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest.’ We are still aggressively pursuing repeat offenders, and this order does not change an officer’s ability to arrest.”

APD further made it clear the order would not affect DWI arrests. The special order has enabled APD to dedicate resources to more serious felony offenses and violent crimes.
When the special order was first issued, Willoughby falsely proclaimed:

“The word ‘shall’ scares me a lot. In the past we could use our discretion when dealing with misdemeanor offenses. You’re basically telling the entire criminal element that police officers are further handcuffed. … It’s a weak policy. It’s bad for public safety and we’re all going to suffer from it. … [The special order] is the last thing Albuquerque and the community needs right now.

The link to quoted source material is here:

https://www.krqe.com/news/officers-to-issue-citations-instead-of-making-arrests-for-non-violent-misdemeanors/

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-no-longer-to-make-arrests-for-non-violent-misdemeanor-crimes/9662869

https://www.abqjournal.com/1006784/apd-citations-ok-for-some-crimes.html

THE REASON FOR THE POLICY

The new Special Order 17-53 and 2-80 were a result of the 20-plus year McClendon Lawsuit that was settled by United States Federal Judge. That lawsuit, filed against the City of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County by an inmate arrested for a non-violent misdemeanor, primarily focused on the conditions within the City/County lockup.

At the time the lawsuit was filed, the then Bernalillo County detention center had a maximum capacity of 800, but the jail was repeatedly overcrowded with as many as 1,400 inmates who were often doubled up and living conditions were abhorrent. The overcrowding became to bad that the federal court would hold weekly and monthly status conferences and order the release of none violent defendants to reduce the overcrowding.

COMMUNITY POLICING COUNSELS (CPCs)

On April 10, 2014, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Civil Rights Division, submitted a scathing 46-page investigation report on an 18-month civil rights investigation of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD).

You can read the entire report here.

https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/crt/legacy/2014/04/10/apd_findings_4-10-14.pdf

The DOJ investigation included a comprehensive review of APD’s operations and the City’s oversight systems of APD. The DOJ investigation “determined that structural and systemic deficiencies — including insufficient oversight, inadequate training, and ineffective policies … .”

It was in November 2014, that the City and the Department of Justice entered into the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA). The link to the CASA is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/mental-health-response-advisory-committee/documents/court-approved-settlement-agreement-final.pdf

The federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) contains 271 mandated reforms. One of the deficiencies addressed was APD’s failure to interact with the community stakeholders. The CASA mandated the creation of Community Policing Councils in all area commands.

The goal of each Community Policing Council is to engage in candid, detailed and meaningful dialogue between Albuquerque Police and the citizens they serve. Councils are independent from the City and Department. They are encouraged to formally recommend changes to Albuquerque Police Department policies and procedures. They are also asked to make recommendations and identify concerns, problems, successes and opportunities within each area command and for the department as a whole.

Each of the six Community Policing Councils is composed of members from the community and voting members. Voting members must reside within or have businesses within the boundaries of their area command.

https://www.cabq.gov/cpoa/community-policing-council

2022 ADOPTED APD BUDGET CONTAINS TOTAL ARRESTS FOR 2019 AND 2020

The City’s 2022 adopted budget for APD on page 151 contains APD’s arrests statistics for 2019 and 2020. APD’s budget is a peformance based budget and the department is required to submit a number of statistics to justify its budget. Arrest numbers for felonies, misdemeanors as well as DWI are revealed in the budget. APD’s budget also outlines full time personnel and breaks it down between sworn and civilian employees.

The link to the budget is here:

https://documents.cabq.gov/budget/fy-22-proposed-budget.pdf

Following is the breakdown of arrest for the years 2019 and 2020:

NUMBER OF FELONY ARRESTS:

2019: 10,945
2020: 6,621 (DOWN 39.51%

NUMBER OF MISDEMEANOR ARRESTS

2019: 19,440
2020: 16,520 (DOWN 15%)

NUMBER OF DWI ARRESTS

2019: 1,788
2020: 1,230 (DOWN 26%)

(2022 APD Budget, page 151)

TOTAL NUMBER OF ARRESTS FOR 2019: 32,173
TOTAL NUMBER OF ARREST FOR 2020: 24,371
DOWN 25%

APD SWORN PERSONNEL FOR 2019 AND 2020

According to APD’s approved 2021-2022 budget, in 2019 APD had 924 full time police. In 2020 APD had 1,004 sworn police or 80 more sworn in 2020 than in 2019, yet arrests went down during the first year of the pandemic and crime rates continued to rise.

APD SWORN PERSONNEL FOR 2019 AND 2020

According to APD’s approved 2021-2022 budget, in 2019 APD had 924 full time police. In 2020 APD had 1,004 sworn police or 80 more sworn in 2020 than in 2019, yet arrests went down during the first year of the pandemic.

VIOLENT CRIME

In 2018 during Mayor Keller’ first full year in office, there were 6,789 violent crimes, 3,885 Aggravated Assaults and 491 Non-Fatal Shootings. In 2019, the category of “Violent Crimes” was replaced with the category of “Crimes Against Persons” and the category includes homicide, human trafficking, kidnapping and assault. In 2019 during Keller’s second full year in office, Crimes Against Persons increased from 14,845 to 14,971, or a 1% increase. The Crimes Against Person category had the biggest rises in Aggravated Assaults increasing from 5,179 to 5,397.

https://www.petedinelli.com/2021/06/04/mayor-keller-and-apd-chief-medina-embellish-success-of-violence-intervention-program-apds-arrest-numbers-drop-by-7-802-in-2020-compared-to-2019-apd-under-performs-statistically-even-w/

READERS RESPOND TO BLOG ARTICLE

On August 25, 2021, the blog article “APD Police Union President Willoughby “Gaslights” And Falsely Shouts Fire In A Crowded Theater To Promote His Big Lies” was posted

The link to the article is here:

https://www.petedinelli.com/2021/08/25/the-4-apd-police-officers-injured-in-line-of-duty-served-the-city-with-distinction-and-honor-apd-police-union-president-willoughby-gaslights-and-falsely-shouts-fire-in-a-crowed-th/

On August 25, 2021, one reader who is a member of a Community Policing Counsel sent an email expressing concern over the blog article’s content. The person addressed the conduct of the police union president. A second email raised the issue that police officers are giving excuses not to make misdemeanor arrests. Following are both emails with identities kept confidential for privacy reasons and to allow publication on this blog article without fear of any reprisal:

FIRST READER INPUT

“ … I have attended the court hearings both in-person and virtually … My feeling is that there is still a substantial degree of “delay, deny, and deflect” among police brass, with most of that seeming to be located at headquarters.

Our CPC hears many concerns and issues in the course of our volunteer efforts… but we don’t hear persistent complaints about “cops”. It is situations, conditions, and trends that concern people, and that’s where we place our emphasis – on things that need to be changed and improved to support our police and to make life better in all the neighborhoods of our city.”

SECOND READER

Another reader wrote, quoted and took issue with the following blog commentary:

“It was simply false and misleading for Willoughby to say that officers lost the discretion when dealing with misdemeanor offenses. The truth is and has always been APD police officers have the discretion to make arrests when they deem it necessary. For the past 4 years, the special order has enabled APD to dedicate resources to more serious felony offenses and violent crimes.”

The reader wrote:

“I don’t believe this is entirely true for misdemeanors since every police officer on the beat MUST call his supervisor for approval before making a non-threatening or life-concerning arrest on the street.

I talked to 4 beat officers [in an area command] … even the Lieutenant [and they] say they must have approval from their supervisor before making a misdemeanor arrest without threat of bodily harm. I’m just telling you what they are saying they do currently (as of 2 weeks ago). Maybe someone should tell them that that is NOT the policy or the protocol.”

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The comments offered by both readers are very disturbing and are a reflection of a police depart that many rank and file do not want to do their jobs and that excuses are being made by them to members of the CPCs.

In a revealing March 28, 2021 letter to the Albuquerque Journal a decade long retired APD Area Commander had this to say in part:

“Crime is up and directly related to the settlement agreement, an absurd use-of-force policy and the required investigations. These decrees can last for a decade or more. Seattle and Portland have been under one since 2012, Detroit since 2003. Crime escalates wherever they are implemented. The monitor has every financial reason to prolong this decree while he drains our coffers.
…
I believe I can speak for an overwhelming number of retired/former officers when I say this entire mess, settlement agreement/dual leadership is an unmitigated disaster that was preventable. We arrived here by the political inactions and lack of courage by our mayors and councils. They should have been the oversight when the chain of command faltered.”

The comments written by the former commander are nothing more than a pathetic attempt to undercut and discredit the need for the reforms and deflect the blame where it belongs: APD management, the union and rank and file police.

Based on the statistics for the budget years of 2019 and 2020, a very strong argument can be made is that crime is up because APD is not doing its job and arresting people as reflected in the statistics that arrests for both felony and misdemeanor offenses are down dramatically. APD statistics for the budget years of 2019 and 2020 reflect the department is not doing its job of investigating and arresting people. APD felony arrests went down from 2019 to 2020 by 39.51% going down from 10,945 to 6,621. Misdemeanor arrests went down by 15% going down from 19,440 to 16,520. DWI arrests went down from 1,788 in 2019 to 1,230 in 2020, down 26%. The total number of all arrests went down from 32,173 in 2019 to 24,371 in 2020 or by 25%. In 2019 APD had 924 full time police. In 2020, APD had 1,004 sworn police or 80 more sworn in 2020 than in 2019, yet arrests went down during the first year of the pandemic. APD’s homicide unit has an anemic clearance rate of 36%. The police union falsely proclaims officer’s hands are tied by the DOJ reforms and are afraid of doing their jobs for fear of being disciplined.

The Court Approved Settlement Agreement was indeed preventable had APD in fact followed constitutional policing practices in the first place. It had nothing to do with “politically correct politicians” throwing APD under the bus. It was APD that brought the DOJ here in the first place and mandated the Federal Court to come down on it.

DERELICTION OF DUTY

It is totally unacceptable that any APD police officer would ever give the excuse that they cannot make a misdemeanor arrest that occurs in their presence. It also unacceptable that any police officer would say they need get authorization from a superior to make a misdemeanor arrest. A confidential source within APD reveals that there are no written policies that police officers below the rank Sergeant must get authorization to make a misdemeanor arrest. The source did say that police are simply no longer making misdemeanor arrests. What is disturbing is that the police union president repeatedly parrots that APD officers feel their hands are tied and they are afraid to do their job for fear of being disciplined or that the DOJ reforms are the cause of the city’s high crime rates and officers being shot.

To be blunt, if any police officer does not want to do their job, refuse to make misdemeanor arrests, and for that matter violent crime arrests, committed in their presence and or follow SOP 2-80, they are derelict in performing their jobs and are part of the problem and need to leave APD or find another line of work. Same goes for police officers who do not want to follow constitutional policing practices as mandated by the consent decree.

The problem always has been and continues to be that APD management, the police union and its membership have not fully embraced the reforms. In fact, 3 Chiefs have resisted the reforms from time to time, at different times, as has been repeatedly documented by the federal monitor in at least 4 reports over the last 3 years.

Mayor Tim Keller and his second appointed Chief Harold Medina are also in dereliction of their duty to protect the community if they allow any police officer to give the excuse not to make misdemeanor arrest, say their hands are tied or saying they are afraid to make an arrest and that they need to get the permission of a superior.

On July 26, Eddy Aragon registered with the City Clerk to run as a privately finance candidate for Mayor. Privately Finance Candidates for Mayor were required to gather 3,000 signatures from registered voters within the City. The time for privately financed candidates for Mayor to collect 3,000 signatures was from June 8 to August 10, 2021.

On August 10, the Albuquerque City Clerk certified the signatures on Aragon’s nominating potions and posted the following petition verified signature counts:

Required Petition Signatures: 3,000
Verified Petition Signatures: 3,305
Rejected Petition Signatures: -0-
Remaining Petition Signatures Needed: – 0 –
Percentage of Verified Petition Signatures Met: 100%

The link to the city clerk’s petition signature tally is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/vote/candidate-information/2021-candidates

EDDY ARAGON FORMALY ANNOUNCES FOR MAYOR

Aragon first toyed with running for in May. It was in April that Eddy Aragon submitted his candidate registration paperwork to run for Mayor the first time this year. On April 27, it was reported Aragon decided not to run for Mayor and said at the time:

“I don’t have the motivation to run. I have a business to attend to but I will continue to point out the wrong direction the [New Mexico] GOP is taking including the role of Steve Pearce and Jay McCleskey. Republicans are backing Democrat Gonzales and that is traitorous. Not to mention that the current crime wave has happened under Gonzales’ watch.”

On Tuesday, August 24, Eddy Aragon changed his mind and formally declared his candidacy in the 2021 Albuquerque mayor’s race after qualifying for the ballot by collecting the required number of nominating signatures in two weeks. He made his announcement by calling a press conference to answer questions.

ABOUT EDDY ARAGON

Eddy Aragon is the CEO of ‘The Rock of Talk’ at ABQ.FM/AM 1600 KIVA on the Fox News network. He has owned the radio station for upwards of 8 years and has spent that time building on talk radio programming and developing new ways of consuming audio entertainment including news and music. Mr. Aragon is an 11th Generation New Mexican, a graduate of St. Pius High Scholl and a graduate of the University of New Mexico with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics. Mr. Aragon has been divorced for about the past 6 years and has twin sons, Sebastian and Samuel.

Aragon worked in Washington D.C. for Democrat progressive and former United State Senator Jeff Bingaman, and worked on several campaigns including progressive Democrats and then congressman Tom Udall and progressive former long serving Speaker of the New Mexico House Raymond Sanchez. He later organized Arizona for Presidential Candidate, General Wesley Clark who placed 2nd in that state in 2004. At some point Aragon went from a decisively registered progressive Democrat to a decisively right wing conservative Der Führer Republican party member.

In the private sector, Mr. Aragon worked for 13 years in the Commercial Real Estate industry in Phoenix, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada for CBRE. From 2007-2009 he was the number one Commercial Real Estate Broker by number of transactions completed in Las Vegas, Nevada.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/eddyaragon

During this year, he ran against former Congressman and Republican State Chairman Steve Pierce and lost and then ran for the Republican Party’s nomination in a special election for the Albuquerque based Congressional District vacated by Deb Haaland when she was appointed cabinet Secretary of the Interior by President Biden. Aragon lost to Republican Mark Moores when the Republican Party’s State Central chose Moores to be the nominee and who then went on to lose to Democrat Melanie Stansbury in a landslide.

Aragon currently hosts the afternoon talk program called “The Rock of Talk”. He is a regular contributor on New Mexico In Focus, CNN, Fox News and the Sean Hannity Show as well as on over 40 radio interviews on radio stations throughout the country.

In making his formal announcement for Mayor, Aragon had this to say:

“I am absolutely ready for this endeavor. … [As a radio station owner and talk radio host] I prepared for this every day for the last six years without knowing. … I started out as a Democrat; I know the Democrat Party pretty well. I think I have crossover appeal. I’m Hispanic, and that actually matters, I think, a heck of a lot more sometimes than party does.”

In his announcement, Aragon boldly proclaimed he can appeal to the city’s significant independent voter base and maybe attract Democrats, even though he is a staunch supporter of Der Fuher Donald Trump who lost New Mexico in a landslide vote to Democrat Joe Biden. The fallacy of Argon’s optimism is that according to the Bernalillo County Clerk’s Office, only 27% of Albuquerque voters are registered Republicans while 47.3% are registered Democrats. Over the last 15 years, the city has voted solid blue city by Democrats and Independents in state wide and local elections. The city council is currently made up of 7 Democrats and 2 Republicans.

Links to related or quoted news stories herein are here:

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/conservative-radio-talk-show-host-joins-mayoral-race/6218160/?cat=500

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/elections/conservative-talk-show-host-joins-albuquerque-mayoral-race/

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/elections/conservative-talk-show-host-joins-albuquerque-mayoral-race/

https://www.abqjournal.com/2422508/aragon-formally-declares-mayoral-candidacy.html

ARAGON’S “DR. NO PLATFORM”

During his news conference, Aragon offered his potions on a number of major issues facing the city. This blog article identifies those issues and provides commentary and analysis on each one.

The issues discussed by Eddy Aragon in his announcement include the following:

1. ARAGON IS AGAINST ALBUQUERQUE’S CITY COUNCIL-APPROVED SANCTUARY CITY POLICY AND SEVERAL OTHER POLICIES AND PROGRAMS IN PLACE CREATED BY MAYOR TIM KELLER

EDITOR’S COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Simply put, Aragon is ignorant on this issue. He does not know the difference between a “sanctuary city” versus an “immigrant friendly” city, and there is a huge difference. The use of the term “sanctuary city” is a tried-and-true ploy by Der Führer Republicans to gin up hostility towards minorities, especially the undocumented.

The City is not and has never been a “sanctuary city”. Since 2001, city councils have never enacted a sanctuary city ordinance.

A “sanctuary city” denies cooperation with federal immigration officials and does not use city law enforcement resources to identify or apprehend illegal immigrants and does not use city law enforcement resources to enforce immigration laws.

An “immigrant friendly” city is one that implements “welcoming city” policies and does not provide for city enforcement of federal immigration laws and addresses city services including licensing and housing and the focus is to create inclusive, immigrant friendly and welcoming policies.

In 2001 the Albuquerque City Council enacted a resolution that declared Albuquerque an “immigrant friendly” city. An interesting note is that the ordinance was sponsored by Republican and very conservative City Councilor Hess Yntema whose wife is a naturalized American citizen from South America. Yntema served 2 terms on the city council representing the South East heights area that has the largest population of immigrant’s in the city.

Albuquerque’s “immigrant friendly” designation welcomes immigrants to the city and is largely symbolic and that was no mistake. Yntema, as well as his son, are respected attorneys in Albuquerque. In February, 2017, the City Council enacted a symbolic memorial that reaffirmed that Albuquerque’s “immigrant friendly” status, but not as a “sanctuary city”.

Policies and programs that Aragon likely is referring to that he opposes is the “Office of Equity and Inclusion”, which is the former Human Rights Office and the Office of Immigrant & Refugee Affairs. Both offices are critical to a city as diversified as Albuquerque, but Aragon no doubt feels the city is helping the undocumented who should be arrested and deported for seeking refuge in the United States.

2. ARAGON IS OPPOSED TO HIRING BONUSES THE CITY OFFERS NEW EMPLOYEES IN CERTAIN HARD-TO-FILL MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT JOBS

EDITOR’S COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

What Aragon did not make clear is that he is targeting the bonuses being paid to recruite Albuquerque police officers. He has also objected to the excessive overtime paid to police and did so at the last debate between the candidates. The hardest to fill municipal government jobs are sworn police. For the last 12 years APD has been unable to keep up with APD retirements, let alone grow to the 1,200 full time sworn police the city needs to deal with crime. Currently APD has 950 sworn police with APD having an annual budget of $220 million which includes funding for 1,100 sworn police. Aragon’s opposition no doubt includes the recent hiring bonuses being offered of $15,000 to lateral police hires, $5,000 to new cadets and $1,500 for new police service aides. Recruitment of new officers has been difficult to the point that APD is now offering the hiring bonuses.

3. ARAGON IS OPPOSED THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVES PROVIDED TO COMPANIES LIKE NETFLIX

EDITOR’S COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Aragon’s opposition to economic development incentives such as NETFLEX is a reflection of just how little he knows about the issue of economic development. It is very critical for the city to diversify its economy and wean itself off of federal government funding. Such incentives have worked very well not only for the city but the state as well as represented by the Netflex deal and the NBC deal.

THE NETFELEX DEAL

On October 8, 2018, it was announced that Netflix was buying Albuquerque Studios. The State contributed $10 million of Local Economic Development Act funds. The City of Albuquerque contributed another $4.5 million of Local Economic Development Funds. Originally it was estimated that at least 1,000 well-paying jobs per year will be created. The jobs will run the gamut of film and TV production work, most of which is project-based contract labor. Many of the jobs are expected to pay $70,000 a year. The purchase deal also calls for $1 billion worth of production spent over 10 years which will have a dramatic effect on the City and State economies.

On November 23, 2020, it was reported that Netflix will be expanding its presence in New Mexico by more than 10 times as it already exists by adding 300 acres to its existing 30-acre property located at Mesa Del Sol at the South border of the City. Netflex said it intends to make Albuquerque its North American production headquarters. The expansion comes a mere 2 years after the media giant purchased the ABQ Studios.

THE NBC DEAL

On July 22, 2019, NBC Universal announced it would open a studio in Albuquerque as part of a 10-year venture. The media giant took over and renovated and created sound stages at a vacant industrial building south of I-40 on Commercial Street, north of downtown in the vicinity of historic Martinez town. The media giant is expected to provide more than 330 full-time jobs year-round at the film studio.

NBC Universal employees earn about $58,000 a year which is a far cry from the minimum wage jobs the city is use to announcing with the arrival of new businesses. The studio operation is projected to generate an economic impact of $1.1 billion over a 10-year period.

The state’s Economic Development Department is providing $7.7 million through the Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) to the redevelopment and production commitment. The City of Albuquerque will provide another $3 million from its LEDA fund which was approved by the Albuquerque City Council on June 17, 2019 by a unanimous vote.

RETURN ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVES

On Thursday June 24, 2021, the Lujan Grisham Administration announced that the New Mexico film industry has brought in $623 million in what is known as a “direct spend” with one week left to go in the fiscal year. The film industry broke the record of $525.5 million set in fiscal year 2019. In fiscal year 2020, the film industry had a direct spend of $386.8 million despite the closure of the state during the pandemic. NBCUniversal has been able to kept production going during the pandemic.

According to the New Mexico Film Office, there have been 28 productions announced by the film office during the 2020-2021 fiscal year. The number of New Mexico crew hired for the 28 productions is 3,302 with 986 New Mexico actors within those productions. The biggest impact is with background actors, which is 7,963 New Mexicans hired.

Contributing to the record-breaking year, there are film production public-private partnerships with NBCUniversal and Netflix. Both have signed a 10-year commitment to bring film and TV projects to the state.

In addition to making the announcement on the $623 direct spend, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham participated in the official opening for NBCUniversal’s production facility in Martinez town.

4. ARAGON IS OPPOSED TO THE $133 MILLION ALBUQUERQUE RAPID TRANSIT PROJECT. ARAGON WENT SO FAR AS SAYING HE WOULD EVALUATE AND DISMANTLE THE BUS LINE IF IT IS COST COST-EFFECTIVE

EDITOR’S COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

This is Aragon trying to pick low hanging and now rotting on the vine fruit. Aragon sat behind a microphone beating his jaw and gums on the ART Bus project on his program with many, many others taking time to attend city council meetings, public hearings in city council districts, attended federal court hearings on an injunction to stop Berry’s legacy project and even donated money to help oppose the project. Despite all the efforts to stop the ART Bus project, it was futile and it was completed. ART has completely destroyed historical route 66 and put a lot of people out of business. Now Aragon says he would “evaluate” dismantling the bus line if it is cost cost-effective. Aragon apparently does not know that has already been rendered moot and Mayor Keller announced the cost would be at least the $133 million to return central to what it was before construction of ART and that is why Keller decided to finish the project which took 2 years of Keller’s 4 year term.

5. ARAGON QUESTIONS THE “WISDOM” OF OPENING THE GATEWAY CENTER HOMELESS SHELTER AT THE LOVELACE GIBSON HOSPITAL COMPLEX ON GIBSON AND PURCHASED BY THE CITY. HE ALSO QUESTIONED THE CITY’S INVESTMENT IN OTHER GOVERNMENT INVESTMENTS IN HOMELESS SERVICES. ARAGON WENT SO FAR AS SAYING HE WANTS TO “RECRIMINALIZE” HOMELESSNESS SO THAT THE CITY’S APPROACH INCLUDES “PENALTIES IN ADDITION TO HELPING” PEOPLE WHO LIVE ON THE STREETS

EDITOR’S COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Aragon went out of his way to note that his grandmother experienced homelessness ostensibly as a showing he understands the homeless crisis but nonetheless said:

“I think the solutions that we’ve proposed thus far have not reduced the level of homelessness.”

What kind of crazy talk is “recriminalize” homelessness? It’s never been illegal to be homeless in this country, but Aragon wants to change it. Now that’s the ticket for Eddy Aragon to win the Mayor’s race: do a homeless sweep and arrest, charge and convict the homeless in order to warehouse them behind bars. No doubt Aragon thinks that jail will give the homeless a safe place to live, sleep, and be provided 3 meals a day. As an added measure, we need to arrest, prosecute and jail grandma to bring down the city’s spiking homeless count. Argon appears to be ignorant to the fact that voter’s approved in $15 Million in bonds in 2020 for the specific purpose of building a 24-7 homeless shelter. He also failed to say what he would do to reduce homelessness, except of course to prosecute and jail and shoot his mouth off.

6. ARAGON SAID HE WILL DO WHATEVER HE CAN TO FIGHT POTENTIAL FUTURE PANDEMIC-RELATED BUSINESS LOCKDOWNS

It’s very embarrassing, if it were not so damn crazy, that Aragon would say he will do whatever he can to fight potential pandemic-related business lockdowns. The truth is that as Mayor there is absolutely nothing Aragon can do to stop such closures if they are in fact ordered again. If he tries, he will likely be slapped silly with a civil lawsuit and then be fined for violating public health care closure orders.

The New Mexico “Public Health Act” (NMPHA), and the “Public Health Emergency Response Act” (PHERA) give the Governor broad powers to mandate closures.

Links to review the entire Public Health Act can be found are here:

https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/2013/chapter-24/article-1/

https://www.lawserver.com/law/state/new-mexico/nmstatutes/new_mexico_statutes_24-1-1

Link to the New Mexico Public Health Emergency Response Act are here:

https://law.justia.com/codes/new-mexico/2006/nmrc/jd_ch12art10a-712b.html

It is recommended that Aragon pick up the phone and call Grants Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks who vowed to defy the governor’s lockdown orders that shuttered nonessential shops to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. On May 28, 2020, the New Mexico Supreme Court granted the writ against the unhinged Grants Mayor Hicks that was sought by Attorney General Hector Balderas, prohibiting him from operating city facilities in defiance of state public health orders and prohibiting him from issuing directives that contradicted the health care orders. The New Mexico Supreme Court ruled that the New Mexico Department of Health has the authority to enforce emergency public health orders and may issue a civil penalty of $5,000 per day.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1460567/court-grants-mayor-must-follow-health-orders-ex-mayor-had-urged-local-businesses-to-defy-the-governors-ruling.html

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-grants-new-mexico-mayor-martin-hicks-showdown-police-lockdown/

7. ARAGON SAID HE WOULD OPPOSE A VACCINE MANDATE FOR THE CITY’S WORKFORCE

EDITOR’S COMMENTATY AND ANALYSIS

This is not at all surprising given Aragon’s denial of science.

“Nearly all COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. now are in people who weren’t vaccinated, a staggering demonstration of how effective the shots have been and an indication that deaths per day — now down to under 300 — could be practically zero if everyone eligible got the vaccine. An Associated Press analysis of available government data from May shows that “breakthrough” infections in fully vaccinated people accounted for fewer than 1,200 of more than 107,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations. That’s about 1.1%.”

The link to the complete quoted article is here:

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/23/fda-pfizer-biontech-covid-vaccine-wins-full-approval-clearing-path-to-mandates.html

https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-health-941fcf43d9731c76c16e7354f5d5e187

On Monday, August 23, The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted full approval to Pfizer and BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine making it the first in the United States to win the coveted designation and giving even more businesses, schools and universities greater confidence to adopt vaccine mandates.

On August 28, during a Near North Valley Coalition Mayoral forum held live in real time and posted on Youtube, Aragon boasted to the audience he has not been vaccinated as he pandered to Der Führer Republican voters. The single most obscene argument made by Aragon during the debate for not taking the vaccine was his sick or very warped use of the term “my body, my right to choose” a term used by people who support the “right to choose” when it comes to abortion. A person has every right to choose not to take any vaccine to protect themselves from a disease, but there is absolutely no constitutional right to catch a contagious disease and then spread it to others resulting in death. A woman’s right to choose should never be compared on the same level as receiving inoculation for a contagious disease.

The You Tube link to the debate is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MNNOYT9wYs

MANDATORY VACINATIONS CAN BE ORDERED BY GOVERNMENT

It was in 1905 that the United States Supreme Court in the case of Jacobson v. Massachusetts, (Citations: 197 U.S. 11 (more)25 S. Ct. 358, 49 L. Ed. 643, 1905 U.S. LEXIS 1232) where the justices held that a health regulation requiring smallpox vaccination was a reasonable exercise of the state’s police power that did not violate the liberty rights of individuals under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Theoretically, but not at all likely, is that Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and the Department of Health could issue mandatory health care orders that all those who reside in New Mexico must get the vaccine, and it would be within the powers granted by the New Mexico legislature and the the New Mexico “Public Health Act” (NMPHA), and the “Public Health Emergency Response Act” (PHERA). Further, the Albuquerque City Council could enact a resolution that mandates all city employees must get the vaccine as a condition of employment.

The link to a related blog article entitled “Over 100 years Of Government Mandated Vaccines And Masking Mandates In The Context Of Employment, Religion, Disability And The Schools” is here:

https://www.petedinelli.com/2021/08/24/over-100-years-of-government-mandated-vaccines-and-masking-mandates-in-the-context-of-employment-religion-disability-and-the-schools/

8. ARAGON SAID HE WOULD NOT FIGHT THE FEDERAL COURT APPROVED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT THAT MANDATES REFORMS WITHIN THE ALBUQUERQUE POLICE DEPARTMENT. HE DID SAY THE CITY NEEDS TO HASTEN COMPLIANCE IN ORDER TO GET PAST THE COURT OVERSIGHT

EDITOR’S COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Aragon said about the settlement: “it’s something that we have to do, and we should shut up about it.”

This is the only issue that Aragon seems to understand to a limited extent and what needs to be done. For the last 6 years, the city has been struggling to implement the 271 agreed to and court ordered reforms all the while APD command staff and the police union has resisted. At least Aragon understands that you have to do what a federal court has ordered.

FINAL COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The race for Mayor has change dramatically in just a few weeks on a number of levels. City races are officially nonpartisan, but that has not been the case for a number of decades. Aragon is the only Republican who qualified for the mayoral ballot and is now running against Progressive Democrat Incumbent Tim Keller and Conservative “Democrat in Name Only” Sheriff Manny Gonzales who is running on a “law and order” platform and consolidating APD and BCSO, something he has no power as Mayor to do.

EDDY ARAGON

Aragon is a staunch supporter of Der Führer Trump. Aragon is as qualified to be Mayor of Albuquerque as was Der Führer Trump was to be President, which is not qualified at all. Aragon would be just as big of a disaster as the Trump crazy. Aragon with his talk show is on the same level as FOX News and the likes of Sean Hannity. Aragon enjoys badgering and taking issue with anyone who is Democrat or he considers progressive. There is no doubt that the Der Führer Republican voters in the city will be far more likely to vote now in the Mayor’s race and vote for Aragon. Aragon ostensibly is not aware that the City Charter makes the Mayor a full time job and he can not be employed by his radio station and do his daily ramblings. The problem Aragon has is that despite what he may think, he is not as popular in the Republican Party as he thinks he is. Within the last year, Aragon ran and lost the race for State Party Chairman against Steve Pierce and ran and lost the Republican Party’s nomination to Mark Moores in a special election to determine the Albuquerque area’s representative in the U.S. House of Representatives.

SHERIFF MANNY GONZALES

Gonzales brings to the table his law enforcement credentials, but that’s it. He is well-known for his opposition to civilian oversight and inability to work with other elected officials, often being at odds with the County Commission and the District Attorney’s Office. As mayor, Manny Gonzales will not listen to nor work with the City Council, let alone respect the Police Oversight Board and the Community Policing Councils. Gonzales is a throwback to the way law enforcement was many years ago before the Black Lives movement. He failed to keep up with the times by implementing constitutional policing practices within BCSO. He opposes many of the DOJ reforms. When Gonzales says, “I answer to the people who voted me into office” he is saying he answers only to those who support him.

After Gonzales traveled to the White House last summer to appear with Der Führer and after working and appearing with former Republican Attorney General William Barr, Gonzales became “persona non gratis” within the Democratic Party to the point some within the party demanded he resign. He is now considered a Democrat In Name Only (DINO). Gonzales appearing on FOX News to oppose Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s public health orders also alienated many Democrats.

On December 19, a defiant Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales on a video proclaimed he would not enforce “unconstitutional laws” when it comes to the corona virus pandemic. Gonzles does not understand that a badge does not give him a license to practice law. In a video posted to YouTube, Gonzales said he sympathizes with business owners and houses of worship, and accused politicians of “turning everyday citizens into villains.” Gonzales got the publicity he covets when local news agencies covered the story. Gonzales had this to say:

“I choose to direct this agency’s time and resources to the laws deemed to keep people free of crime. … Overreaching restrictions will harm our community. For that reason, we will not follow along with any orders that subvert constitutional rights.”

A link to the YouTube Video is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v95B1lpt_PM

It’s no secret that Manny Gonzales was attempting to build a coalition of conservative democrats, Independents and traditional Republicans and include Der Führer Trump Republicans. Eddy Aragon is adopting the same coalition strategy as Gonzales.

MAYOR TIM KELLER

Keller is the front runner because of incumbency, but that may not last long if the race continues to get as ugly as it already is with ethics complaints being exchanged between Keller and Gonzales who both have a history of being ethically challenged. Over the last 4 years, Mayor Keller’s accomplishments have been less than stellar. The city’s high murder rate is rising even further. Violent crime has only gotten worse with the killing of 13-year-old by another 13-year-old boy in a school yard who took his dad’s gun to school and with APD officers now being shot 4 at a time as they try to make an arrest. Keller has not come close to the change he promised in 2017. After being elected, Keller signed a tax increase after promising not to raise taxes without a public vote. Keller failed to make the sweeping changes to the Albuquerque Police Department, and his promised implementation of the DOJ reforms stalled so much that he fired his first chief. Keller has appointed Harold Medina – who has a nefarious past with the use of deadly force against two people suffering from psychotic episodes – permanent chief. Keller is not even close to reaching the 1,200 sworn police officers promised nor to community-based policing. Keller’s promise to bring down violent crime never materialized and four programs to bring down violent crime have failed. For 4 years, murders have hit an all-time record, with many still unsolved. But what the hell, we got a Mayor who wants the public to pay for and build a $60 million dollar soccer stadium so he can run around reliving his high school glory days.

CONCLUSION

The city is facing any number of problems that are bringing it to its knees. Those problems include the coronavirus pandemic, business closures, high unemployment rates, exceptionally high violent crime and murder rates, continuing mismanagement of the Albuquerque Police Department, failed implementation of the Department of Justice reforms after a full six years and millions spent, declining revenues and gross receipts tax, increasing homeless numbers, lack of mental health programs and little to no economic development actually being done by the city.

With all 3 of the candidates for Mayor, what we will get is a continuation of mayor who makes promises and offers only eternal hope for better times that result in broken campaign promises. We will not be getting a mayor who actually knows what they are doing, who can make the hard decisions without an eye on the next election. With all 3, we will get a Mayor that will make decisions only to placate their base and please only those who voted for them.

There are way too many reasons that a Mayor Manny Gonzales or a Mayor Eddy Aragon would be an absolute disaster for the city as Mayor. You do not replace one disaster with an even bigger law enforcement disaster such as Gonzales or a Der Führer Trump Republican such as Eddy Aragon. Voters now have the choice of the lesser of 2 evils and 1 Der Führer Republican Party Trumpster. Voters will likely be more comfortable keeping the disaster and failure we already have as Mayor.

Links to related blog articles are here:

Der Führer Trump’s Favorite Democrat Sherriff Manny Gonzales Runs For Mayor; A DINO And Law Enforcement Dinosaur

Der Führer Trump’s Favorite Democrat Sherriff Manny Gonzales Runs For Mayor; A DINO And Law Enforcement Dinosaur

On Friday, August 21, the Albuquerque Police Department released the names of the 4 police officers that were seriously injured in the line of duty on August 19 responding to an armed robbery by the Dutch Bros. near Mountain and Juan Tabo. 3 of the officers are still hospitalized, with one in critical condition, the 4th has been treated for his injuries and released.

Two suspects are in custody related to the incident with one charged. APD Police has charged a person identified as James Ramirez, 27, of Los Angeles with three counts of aggravated battery against a police officer, armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon and resisting, evading or obstructing an officer. Ramirez has no criminal history in New Mexico but, according to court records, is a convicted felon in California served time and is on probation.

A link to a related blog article on the incident is here:

https://www.petedinelli.com/2021/08/20/officer-down-1-apd-officer-in-critical-condition-3-officers-wounded-2-suspects-arrested-with-1-injured-man-charged-with-felonies-chief-medina-blames-justice-system-union-blame/

INJURED OFFICERS IDENTIFIED

All 4 of the injured officers have each been with APD for more than 10 years. They are Mario Verbeck, James Eichel Jr., Harry Gunderson, and Sean Kenny

Officer Mario Verbeck: It was Verbeck who dispatched to the call. He was shot in the neck and arm. On Friday, August 20, he remained in critical condition at the University of New Mexico Hospital. Officer Verbeck is a a 17-year veteran with the department and joined the department in2004.

Officer James Eichel Jr.: Eichel was sent to assist Verbeck on the call. He was shot in the forearm and is still hospitalized. He has been with APD since 2009.

Officer Harry Gunderson: He was struck in the eye by shrapnel. He has been with the department since 2004.

Sgt. Sean Kenny: He was shot in his bulletproof vest, sustained minor injuries and was released from the hospital. He has been with APD since 1999.

CHIEF HAROLD MEDINA REACTS

APD Chief Harold Medina said in a news release:

“We are incredibly grateful to the physicians and all the hospital staff at UNMH. … We continue to pray for the recovery of the brave officers who put their lives in harm’s way to keep the public safe.”

APD UNION PRESIDENT REACTS

Shaun Willoughby, President of the Albuquerque Police Officers’ Association, said all 4 police officers injured are senior officers and are all highly respected by all other sworn police and said:

“I would be praying that one of these guys or all of these guys were there to assist me if faced with the same situation [as the robbery victim.] … They dedicated their lives to serving this community, they are proud Albuquerque police officers. And it’s important to understand they’re not just officers, these are fathers, husbands, I’m sure they have been coaches. They’re just very, very good men, all of them.”

Willoughby then went on to state that police officers are angry about an upswing in violent crime and frustrated by understaffing, politicians and the court-ordered reform efforts. Willoughby had this to say:

“It’s officers that are hesitating to do their job because they don’t want to get in trouble … It’s the brazen acts of criminals that know that Albuquerque police officers are handcuffed … We have stepped away and de-policed this city. From the very beginning our officers are carrying a card of misdemeanors that they’re not supposed to arrest on.”

The link to the quoted news source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2421142/california-man-charged-in-shooting-of-apd-officers.html

In an interview with KOB 4, Police Union President Shaun Willoughby said increases in deadly situations involving police, such as what happened to the 4 APD officers, is frustrating and angers his union membership. He also increased his false political rhetoric laying blame for the violent crime in the city and said:

“We’ve been telling this community that this was going to happen. … I believe that the violent crime and the uptick of violent crime is directly related to this police department being de-policed and having policies where they are not able to do their job. … We have de-policed the city of Albuquerque to the extent where officers carry around a little card with a list of misdemeanors that they can’t even arrest people on.”

Willoughby added that over the years laws passed through the legislature have prevented officers from not only doing their jobs but have led to dozens of officers quitting.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/police-officers-association-demands-change-following-shooting-that-left-4-officers-injured/6213550/?fbclid=IwAR0sXEzSZcF0KVwlVL3o1Fa4KjXfNcV15yEgC4IxYJ-N67TvAwlDz_X-aQE#.YSALBrgluvs.facebook

WILLOUGHBY’S FALSE CLAIMS THAT SPECIAL ORDER TOOK AWAY POLICE DISCRETION

When Willoughby claims “officers carry around a little card with a list of misdemeanors that they can’t even arrest people on” he ostensibly is referring to a memo dated May 10, 2018. It is a memo addressed to all sworn APD personnel by then APD Chief Gorden Eden issuing Department Special Order 17-53. The Special Order states that “all officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrests on non-violent misdemeanor offenses.” According to the memo, “officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrest on non-violent misdemeanor offenses when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest.”

Special Order 17-53 was then made SOP 2-80 that deals with arrests on misdemeanor cases. SOP 2-80 can be found below in the postscript. APD publishes on line all the departments Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). The link is here:

https://documents.cabq.gov/police/standard-operating-procedures/2-80-arrests-arrest-warrants-and-booking-procedures.pdf

The new Special Order 17-53 directive was a result of the 20-plus year McClendon Lawsuit that was settled by a federal judge. That lawsuit, filed against the city and Bernalillo County by an inmate arrested for a non-violent misdemeanor, primarily focused on the conditions within the county lockup. At the time the lawsuit was filed, the then Bernalillo County detention center had a maximum capacity of 800, but the jail was repeatedly overcrowded with as much as twice that capacity. The misdemeanor offenses affected by the special order include criminal trespass, criminal damage to property under $1,000, shoplifting under $500, shoplifting under $250, prostitution, and receiving or possessing stolen property under $100. The policy remains in place to this day.

The memo elaborates that officers may make an arrest if it is necessary, but will have to include the reasons why in an incident report. The letter states that officers have the opportunity to take offenders wanted for non-violent misdemeanor offenses to Metropolitan Court to resolve warrants or fines instead of hauling them off to jail. However, the arrested individual must have the full amount of the fine or bond in cash. Those arrested also cannot go through a bonding agency.

At the time the Special Order was issued, City and police officials pointed out that it made no changes to police policy. APD Chief Jerry Galvin in 2001 issued a similar order, and since then department policy has been to advise officers to issue citations for such crimes where appropriate, and officers have discretion in deciding when to arrest someone. According to then City Attorney Jessica Hernandez:

“If there is any part of a situation that makes an officer think an arrest is warranted, they’ll make the arrest.”

At the time the special order was issued, then Assistant Chief Robert Huntsman also issuing a statement:

“This order in no way restricts officers’ discretion to make arrests when necessary to protect the public. Citations have always been an available option for certain non-violent misdemeanor offenses. This special order and video remind officers to issue citations ‘when appropriate’ and ‘when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest.’ We are still aggressively pursuing repeat offenders, and this order does not change an officer’s ability to arrest.”

APD further made it clear the order would not affect DWI arrests. The special order has enabled APD to dedicate resources to more serious felony offenses and violent crimes.

When the special order was first issued, Willoughby falsely proclaimed:

“The word ‘shall’ scares me a lot. In the past we could use our discretion when dealing with misdemeanor offenses. You’re basically telling the entire criminal element that police officers are further handcuffed. … It’s a weak policy. It’s bad for public safety and we’re all going to suffer from it. … [The special order] is the last thing Albuquerque and the community needs right now.

It was simply false and misleading for Willoughby to say that officers lost the discretion when dealing with misdemeanor offenses. The truth is and has always been APD police officers have the discretion to make arrests when they deem it necessary. For the past 4 years, the special order has enabled APD to dedicate resources to more serious felony offenses and violent crimes.

The link to quoted source material is here:

https://www.krqe.com/news/officers-to-issue-citations-instead-of-making-arrests-for-non-violent-misdemeanors/

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-no-longer-to-make-arrests-for-non-violent-misdemeanor-crimes/9662869

https://www.abqjournal.com/1006784/apd-citations-ok-for-some-crimes.html

WILLOUGHBY’S PATTERN OF CONDUCT

The year 2021 has become a banner year for APD Union President Shaun Willoughby to undercut APD policy and the Court Approved Settlement Agreement by use of false and misleading statements.

In a February 11, 2021 target 7 news Willoughby had this to say:

“The whole [reform effort] system is set up to fail and the taxpayers and the people that live in this community like me and my family are the ones that are taking the brunt of [violent crime]. … Really look at this process. … It is absolutely out of control. … The entire department and the processes within it are out of control. Your officers are running out the door. Really look at every single state or agency that’s been involved in this process. … What is happening? Did it bring harmony and trust with the community? I don’t think so.”

Links to news sources quotes are here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2384284/apd-union-launches-campaign-against-doj-oversight.html

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/albuquerque-police-union-starts-campaign-to-push-back-against-doj-requirements/6087348/

https://www.koat.com/article/as-murder-rate-climbs-apd-union-launches-campaign/36257496

https://news.yahoo.com/apd-union-launches-campaign-against-040100177.html

https://www.petedinelli.com/2021/04/27/police-union-spends-70000-to-discredit-federal-court-order-after-impeding-and-resisting-apd-reforms-for-6-years-tactic-likely-grounds-for-contempt-of-court-by-a-party-for-interfering-with-court/

It was on April 27, 2021 when it was widely reported that the police union launched a $70,000 political ad campaign to discredit the Department of Justice (DOJ) mandated reforms. The ad campaign said the police reforms are preventing police officers from doing their jobs and combating crime and actually increasing crime.

The Police Union political ad campaign consisted of billboards around the city and testimonials on TV, radio and social media from former Albuquerque Police Department officers. The public relations campaign is urging the public to tell city leaders that crime matters more than the Police reforms mandated by the settlement. The political ad campaign included providing an email template for people to use and contact civic leaders. The template says APD has made progress with the reforms and says we are “tired of living in a city filled with murder, theft and violence. … I’m urging you to fight for this city, stand up to the DOJ, and help us save the city we love, before it’s too late. ”

Police Union President Shaun Willoughby described the need for the political public relations campaign this way:

“You can either have compliance with DOJ reforms or you can have lower crime. You can’t have both. We think it’s time that our city leaders hear from the public that crime matters more because it does. … They want to focus on the growing crime problem, instead of wasting millions of dollars on endless Department of Justice oversight. … This conversation of reform needs to come back to common sense. … Right now, the City of Albuquerque capitulates to everything the DOJ wants and that might not necessarily be the right direction for the City of Albuquerque. … You don’t need enemies when you have friends like the city attorney. … We believe that our community deserves better from this police department. … We believe our community deserves better from this consent decree process.”

“[We are asking] for the city of Albuquerque to stand up and support Albuquerque police officers and support common sense reforms that allow our officers to succeed. … . We’re talking about the bureaucracy of police officers being taken off the street because somebody that was not used force on said “ow”. And how that impacts this community, our ability to respond to the community and this community’s ability to control crime. Your Albuquerque police officers are terrified that they will lose their job for simply doing their job and it’s not fair.”

The APOA also used its FACEBOOK page to get the word out with one post saying:

“Are you tired of the growing crime problems facing the city of Albuquerque? Are you tired of break-ins, stolen cars, vandalism, theft and murder being part of everyday living in our community? Then do something! If you don’t speak up and get involved right now, things will get worse. Tell your City leaders that you care more about fighting crime then than wasting millions on endless Department of Justice oversight. Share and make your voices heard because crime matters more.”

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The citizens of Albuquerque owe Officers Mario Verbeck, James Eichel Jr., Harry Gunderson, and Sean Kenny a tremendous thank you, gratitude and appreciation. Each one is thanked for the decades of dedicated service they have given to the city. With their actions on the day they were injured, it is clear that they embody the true meaning of APD’s motto of to “serve and protect.” Many thanks to each one of them and best wishes for speedy recoveries, safe return to their families and best wishes to their families who have also been through a lot.

APD UNION PRESIDENT GASLIGHTS TO PROMOTE BIG LIES AND POLITICAL AGENDA

United States Supreme Court justices Oliver Wendell Homes (December 4, 1902 – January 12, 1932), who wrote many opinions on civil liberties and American constitutional democracy, opined that freedom speech does not give anyone the right to “falsely shout fire in a crowded theater”. For the last 6 years, all APD Police Union President Shaun Willoughby has done is falsely shout fire when it comes to APD, the Court Approved Settlement Agreement reforms and standard operating procedures he opposes.

Rather than simply conveying his support and commendation to the 4 police officers who were injured and expressing support to their families, APD Police union president Shaun Willoughby just could not resist into descending into the sinister world of gaslighting to promote his “big lies” to the general public. Willoughby is reckless and insults the 4 police officers who were shot in the line of duty when he attributes the upswing in violent crime on the federal court-ordered reforms efforts when he says:

“It’s officers that are hesitating to do their job because they don’t want to get in trouble. … It’s the brazen acts of criminals that know that Albuquerque police officers are handcuffed … We have stepped away and de-policed this city.”

The police unions own attorneys have said in open court twice that the federal reform mandates have not contributed to the city’s violent crime, yet Willoughby repeatedly promotes his “big lie” in an effort to undermine the consent decree and get it dismissed.

OFFICERS DID THEIR JOBS AND DID IT HONORABLY

The 4 injured officers were indeed doing their jobs. Their heroic actions reflect they were not afraid to “get in trouble” as Willoughby suggests or implies with his news station interviews. All 4 of the officers followed constitutional policing practices as trained using deadly force to defend themselves and to take suspects into custody.

The 4 officers lapel cameras were on and what happened was recorded and the recording will likely be released very soon. Mandatory use of lapel cameras is part of the settlement.

Under the Federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA), there was a complete rewrite of APD’s use of force and use of deadly force policies. Willoughby was at the bargaining table when the use of force and deadly force policies were written. Willoughby obstructed the process of writing the policies for a year making objections and mandating changes. All of APD sworn officers have been trained on the constitutional policing practices and the new policies that Willoughby helped write.

The use of the term “de-police” by Willoughby is irresponsible. This is blatantly false given that APD has the biggest budget of all city departments with an approved budget of $222 million and includes funding for 1,100 sworn police. For decades, APD’s budget has never been cut but only increases. The term “de-police” used by Willoughby is nothing more than a “dog whistle” or a buzzword used in an effort stoke fear and anger amongst the community.

Simply put, the term “de-police” is a sinister play on words that the city has become part of the “defund the police” movement started by the Black Lives Matter movement. The “defund the police movement” has spread across the United States as a result of the killing of African American George Floyd who was killed by Minneapolis Police Officer Derick Chauvin who was charged and found guilty of murder and sentenced to 22 ½ years in prison.

SIX YEARS OF OBSTRUCTION

One thing is for certain, during the past 6 years Willoughby and some police union members have done everything they can to undercut the police reforms brought on by the Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation that found a “culture of aggression” and repeated use of deadly force and excessive use of force.

The Federal Court Appointed Monitor has labeled the union interference with the reforms as the “County Casa Effect”. The Federal monitor has defined the Counter Casa Effect as a group of “high-ranking APD officers” who are union members and hold the ranks sergeants and lieutenants and who are thwarting the settlement reform efforts. According to the Federal Monitors 10th report:

“Sergeants and lieutenants, at times, go to extreme lengths to excuse officer behaviors that clearly violate established and trained APD policy, using excuses, deflective verbiage, de minimis comments and unsupported assertions to avoid calling out subordinates’ failures to adhere to established policies and expected practice. Supervisors (sergeants) and mid-level managers (lieutenants) routinely ignore serious violations, fail to note minor infractions, and instead, consider a given case “complete”.

FINAL COMMENT

Union President Shaun Willoughby has reached an all-time sinister low in his public relations campaign to discredit the DOJ reforms by using the tragedy of 4 of his union members being shot and essentially blaming it on the DOJ consent decree.

There have been way too many times that Willoughby has shot his mouth off proclaiming his right to freedom of speech and falsely yelling fire in a crowded theater. Willoughby needs to knock it off because he dishonors the work of the 4 police officers who were injured when he essentially says they were afraid to do their jobs for fear of being disciplined.

________________________

POSCRIPT

It is SOP 2-80 that deals with arrests on misdemeanor cases. SOP 2-80 provides in part:

2-80 ARRESTS, ARREST WARRANTS AND BOOKING PROCEDURES

2-80-1 Policy Department policy is to arrest a felony violator of laws which its officers are empowered to enforce. Officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrest on non-violent misdemeanor offenses (not to include DWIs) when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest. In all cases, officers shall follow correct legal procedures required in arresting, booking, and filing charges against such violators.

2-80-2 Rules Procedures

A. Felony Arrest Authority. …

B. Petty Misdemeanor/Misdemeanor Arrest Authority

1. Officers shall issue citations when appropriate in lieu of arrest on non-violent misdemeanor offenses (not to include DWIs) when there are no circumstances necessitating an arrest. Whether or not the person has a permanent address may not be the sole factor in determining to arrest the person rather than issuing a citation. If the officer issues a non-traffic citation, the officer must complete an incident report. If an arrest is necessary, the officer will include the reason in the narrative of the corresponding incident report.

2. When exigent circumstances justify the arrest.

C. Use of the Metropolitan Court Bonding Window

1. Officers will use the bonding window at Metropolitan Court located at 401 Lomas Blvd. NW to post a bond, pay a fine, or to resolve or quash a warrant in lieu of taking an arrested person to the Prisoner Transport Center (PTC) or the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) when feasible.

2. The outdoor walk-up bonding window is located on the building’s south side. The bonding window closes for a brief time at the end of each shift (currently, from 6:00 a.m.-7:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m., 10:00 p.m.-12:00 a.m.)

3. Officers can take an arrested person to the bonding window whenever they are arresting such individual for lower-level warrants, such as for traffic or petty misdemeanor charges. This allows the person to pay fines or post a bond without having to be booked into MDC.

4. The bonding window will accept all misdemeanor warrants including out-of-county warrants.

5. The bonding window does not deal with felony charges or cases.

6. The bonding window accepts cash only – credit cards, debit cards or checks are not accepted.

7. The person will be required to pay the full amount of a cash or surety bond at the bonding window. This means that the person cannot go through a bonding agency to pay ten percent (10%) of the bond at the bonding window.

8. Officers should check to see if the person has cash before taking that person to the bonding window. Officers should not wait for the person to get money from a friend, relative or acquaintance.

9. Metropolitan Court requests officers to have their agencies fax the warrant to the bonding window prior to arriving with the person.

10.Once the person completes the transaction at the bonding window, the officer may take that person back to their previous location if time or the situation permits.

https://documents.cabq.gov/police/standard-operating-procedures/2-80-arrests-arrest-warrants-and-booking-procedures.pdf