Following is an article published by the online news ABQ Reports on May 2, 2019 and written by reporters Dennis Domrzalski and Charles Arasim regarding New Mexico State Auditor Brian Colon announcing that his office has begun and investigation of APD Public Information Officer Simon Drobik’s overtime pay.

HEADLINE: State Auditor Investigating Human Robot Simon Drobik’s Overtime Claims
May 2, 2019
|
Dennis Domrzalski and Charles Arasim

– Human Robot Officer Simon Drobik made $192,973 last year, making him the highest paid city government employee.

– Drobik put in for 2,809 hours of OT in 2018. Drobik billed the taxpayers for 5,063 hours of work in 2018.

The New Mexico State Auditor’s office has launched an investigation into the massive overtime pay claims by the Albuquerque Police Department’s human robot, PIO Simon Drobik.

Auditor’s office spokesperson Stephanie Telles confirmed the investigation Thursday in a phone call with the ABQReport.

“The office is conducting an examination of the matter,” Telles said. She added that because the probe is ongoing, she couldn’t discuss any details of it, including exactly what the Auditor’s Office is looking at or when the investigation began.

The probe could mean trouble for Drobik, who made $192,000 in 2018, and for APD Chief Mike Geier. Earlier this week Geier refused to even discipline Drobik for apparently violating department rules at least 51 times in claiming 2,809 hours of OT last year. And Geier totally rejected a recommendation by the Civilian Police Oversight Agency that Drobik be fired for violating APD rules.

https://www.abqreport.com/single-post/2019/05/02/BREAKING-State-Auditor-Investigating-Human-Robot-Simon-Drobiks-Overtime-Claims

DROBIK NOT THE ONLY ONE; THERE ARE 123 MORE

On Friday, April 12, 2019, it was reported that the APD Civilian Police Oversight (CPO) Agency recommended the dismissal of APD Master Police Officer 1st Class and Public Information Officer Simon Drobik as well as his former supervisor for overtime pay abuse.

The CPO Agency investigation found that in 2018, Drobik was paid $192,973 making him Albuquerque’s highest-paid employee in 2018. The investigation also found that his supervisor was one of the city’s top 11 paid wage earners. The investigation found that throughout 2018 Drobik violated overtime and pay policies more than 50 times by getting paid simultaneously for being on call as a spokesman for APD and working “chief’s overtime” and paid time and a half stationed at local businesses.

April 30, 2019, APD Chief Michael Geier announced that he was not taking any disciplinary action against Simon Drobik but announced changes were being made to APD overtime and Chief’s overtime.

The recent CPO Investigation found that in reviewing Chief’s Overtime slips, the names of many of the top earners in APD were on the same Chief’s Overtime assignments that Master Police Officer 1st Class and APD Spokesman Simon Drobik was on.

At the end of each calendar year, City Hall releases the top 250 wage earners at city hall. The list of 250 top city hall wages earners is what is paid for the full calendar year of January 1 to December 31 of any given year. The listing of the city’s 250 top wage earners for the calendar year 2018 includes 124 APD sworn police as the top wage city hall wage earners, earning more than most department directors as well as the APD Chief and all of his Deputy Chiefs. The list of 124 include patrol officers first class, sergeants, lieutenants, commanders the deputy chiefs, and the chief with annual pay for the year 2018 ranging from $101,000 a year up to $192,937 all under the Keller Administration.

Base yearly pay for sworn police, depending upon rank and years of experience, is $60,320 to $83,200.The base pay does not include longevity bonus pay at the end of a year of between $2,600 to $15,600 contingent on years of experience.

Following is a breakdown of the numbers of police officers paid in excess of $100,000 in calendar year 2018 as a result of overtime paid:

6 police officers were paid $151,313 TO $192,000
24 police officers were paid $126,162.80 to $144,510.44.
27 police officers were paid $113,498.98 to $125,088.48
22 police officers were paid $109,315.89 to $112,516.27
25 police officers were paid $105,076.20 to $108,946.45
21 police officers were paid $101,633.11 to $104,987.69

The salaries Mayor Keller is paying his top APD command staff are significantly less than many Police Officers 1st Class, Sergeants and Lieutenants and are as follows:

Geier, Michael PD-Police Chief of Police, $159,513.60
(Former APD Chief Gordon Eden was paid $166,699)
Garcia, Eric JPD-Police PDP Deputy Chief, $134,249.53
Gonzalez, Arturo EPD-Police PDP Deputy Chief, $126,199.92
Banez, Rogelio NPD-Police PDP Deputy Chief, $123,856.00
Medina, Harold PD-Police PDP Deputy Chief, $123,856.00
TOTAL RANGE PAID CHIEF COMMAND: $123,856.00 to $159,513.60.

The names and salaries paid to other sworn police other than the APD Chief Command staff include:

PAY RANGE $151,313 TO $192,000

Drobik, Simon – Master Police Officer 1st Class $192,937.23.
Johnson, Brian APD- Senior Police Officer 1st Class: $166,692.01.
Garza, Ramiro JPD- Senior Police Officer 1st Class: $163,223.63.
Hollier, Jeremy BPD-Police, PE1, Senior Police Officer 1st Class: $160,692.06.
Canales, LadioPD-Police, Senior Police Officer 1st Class: $152,876.94.
Redhouse, Leighton – Senior Police Officer 1st Class: $151,313.71.

PAY RANGE $126,162.80 TO $144,510.44.

Bassett, Jeremy, Police Lieutenant, $144,510.44.
Martinez, Yvonne, Master Police Officer 1st Class, $144,421.25.
McCumber, Wayne – Master Police Officer 1st Class $142,033.83.
Correia, Donald RPD- Senior Police Officer 1st Class, $140,755.81.
Maes, Kelly RPD- Senior Police Officer 1st C1ass, $138,318.85.
McElroy, Matthew PD-Police Sergeant, $138,158.09.
Lehocky, Andrew , Master Police Officer 1st Class $137,449.07.
Languit, Luke CPD-Police Lieutenant, $134,328.74.
Price, Bryan HPD-Police Sergeant, $133,880.63.
Mc Carson, Timothy, Senior Police Officer 1st Class $132,742.86.
Rico, Michael KPD-Police Senior Police Officer 1st Class $132,740.13.
Kenny, Sean PPD-Police Sergeant $132,604.80.
Parsons, Scott – Police Lieutenant, $131,519.64.
Frick, Sean, APD Lieutenant, $131,375.48.
Pearson, Nicholas, Master Police Officer 1st Class, $130,077.97.
Hernandez, Francisco Senior Police Officer 1st Class, $128,887.30.
Burchell, Edward – Master Police Officer 1st Class, $127,987.25.
Stockton, Robert MPD-Police Sergeant, $127,612.72.
Patterson, Christopher APD-Police Sergeant, $127,557.19.
Hernandez, Michael FPD-Police Sergeant $127,456.76.
Arnold, Jerry, Police Officer 1st Class $127,409.90.
Martinez, Vicente, Senior Police Officer 1st Class $126,798.71.
Breeden, Charles, Senior Police Officer 1st Class $126,300.45.
Wetterlund, Christopher, Senior Police Officer 1st Class $126,162.80.

PAY RANGE $113,498.98 TO $125,088.48

Economidy III, Byron, Senior Police Officer 1st Class $125,088.48.
Schmidt, Matthew -Police Sergeant $124,581.73.
Sandoval, Albert, PD-Police Sergeant $124,555.16.
The six figure salaries being paid to sworn police are directly attributed to “overtime” worked by those sworn police officers.

CITIZENS POLICE OVERSIGHT AGENCY AND BOARD RECOMMENDATIONS

The April 12, 2019 Police Oversight Agency (CPO) investigative report made two major recommendations to deal with the problem of excessive overtime pay.
Following are the two-recommendation made by the CPO Agency:

1.“The City of Albuquerque should ask for another Audit of APD Overtime which will include and audit of the Chief’s Overtime Program. The audit should explore the actual cost to the City of the Chief’s Overtime program versus what the Chief’s overtime program brings in. The audit should cover how many officers take time off from their regularly scheduled duty to go work a Chief’s overtime during those same hours. The audit should also explore whether or not another officer had to be called in on overtime to handle the off-duty officer’s duties on that shift on that day because the staffing level was below the 70% threshold. Lastly, the audit should determine whether or not the Chief’s Overtime Program violates the Anti-Donation Clause of the State of New Mexico.” (April 12, 2019 Police Oversight Investigation report, page 10.)

2. “APD should immediately revise its policy on overtime. Officers should be limited to working no more than 25 hours per week of overtime and that is inclusive of all overtime. The policy should prohibit officers from taking comp time or vacation from their regularly assigned duties for the sole purpose of working a chief’s Overtime assignment. APD supervisors, prior to approving a leave request, should be required to check with the Chiefs Overtime Program to make sure that the officer is not signed up for Chief’s Overtime and/or they are not taking leave to go to work a Chief’s Overtime assignment during the very same hours they are scheduled to work their assigned shift. Officers should be prohibited from working Chief’s Overtime if they are in an “on call” status. The policy should reflect any recommendations that were made by the City Auditor. Lastly, the policy should be vigorously enforced and adhered to by all APD personnel.” (April 12, 2019, Police Oversight Investigation report, page 11.)

STATE LAW IS CLEAR

In accordance with the New Mexico Audit Act, §§ 12-6-1 to 12-6-14, NMSA 1978, the New Mexico State Auditor’s office has only two statutory purposes:

“(1) to ensure that the financial affairs of every agency shall be thoroughly examined and audited each year by the state auditor, personnel of the state auditor’s office designated by the state auditor or independent auditors approved by the state auditor

(2) cause the financial affairs and transactions of an agency to be audited in whole or in part. (Section 12-6-3, NMSA 1978.)”
These two statutory purposes grant the State Auditor the authority to conduct both financial and special financial audits to identify financial irregularities, waste, fraud and abuse by the government entities.

The Office of the State Auditor conducts and oversees audits of approximately 1,000 government entities, from large state agencies to small political subdivisions.
The authority of the office is to review the financial affairs of government agencies, including contracts, purchases agreements and make sure that the government agencies are not engaged in fraud, waste and abuse of government and taxpayer funds.

The State Auditor does not have any prosecutorial authority and when criminal wrong doing is found in an audit, it is turned over to the appropriate state or federal prosecuting agency.

ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

APD’s overtime have been a chronic problem over the years. The department goes over its overtime budget by millions each year. In 2017, APD was budgeted for $9 million but spent $13 million. APD’s department’s overtime policies underwent an independent audit in 2016 but the recommendations were never implemented.

When Tim Keller was New Mexico State Auditor, he became the “white knight” champion to find and stop “waste, fraud and abuse” of taxpayer money by government officials and employees. As State Auditor, Keller went so far as to create a “fraud investigation unit” hiring investigators to ferret out waste, fraud and abuse by government officials and employees.

Keller’s audits of state and city governments garnered him extensive press coverage and public support that no doubt helped with his successful campaign to become Mayor of Albuquerque over now State Auditor Brian Colon who also ran for Mayor against Keller. Keller became Mayor less than two years after being elected State Auditor and resigned with two years left in his term as auditor. Now that he has become Mayor, its obvious Keller does not have the stomach and not even to want to acknowledge any “waste, fraud and abuse” within his own police department and sanctioned by his appointed command staff.

If New Mexico State Auditor Brian Colon truly wants to get to the bottom of any and all overtime “waste, fraud and abuse” within APD, his audit needs to include t all other police officers within the department, police overtime, annual leave time and the Chief’s Overtime Program. Further, after the audit is completed, the findings need to be forwarded on to the Bernalillo County District Attorneys Office or the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office.

Otherwise, it will appear that New Mexico State Auditor Brian Colon has purchased Tim Keller’s bestselling book “How To Get Headlines Investigating Waste, Fraud and Abuse To Move On To Higher Office”.

Following are links to related stories:

Pathetic But Not Surprising: No Discipline For APD $192,000 Spokesman

APD Spokesman Drobik’s $192,973 Overtime Pay Tip Of Iceberg; “Denied Access” Reason Media Reluctant To Report; Where Is Our Champion To Combat “Waste, Fraud and Abuse” Mayor Tim Keller?

One Down, 124 To Go; “Billing And Being Paid” For Work Not Done Epitome Of Government Waste, Fraud and Abuse

On Monday, March 11, 2019, the following guest opinion column appeared in the Albuquerque Journal.

The article is written by Steven J. Forsberg with the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association.

Below is the article is entitled “Pretrial Detention Is Not A Cure-All” followed by the Journal link and additional Commentary And Analysis:

“No, no!” said the Queen. “Sentence first-verdict afterward.”
“Stuff and nonsense!” said Alice loudly. “The idea of having the sentence first!”

Those lines may be from “Alice in Wonderland,” but they describe all too accurately the kind of justice system that many people would like. Why bother with troublesome things like investigations and trials? Just have the police throw people into the Metropolitan Detention Center and be done with it. After all, everyone knows a criminal just by looking at his or her picture in the paper. But do they?

What if you are accused of a crime? What could happen to you? You could be taken to the Metropolitan Detention Center, have all of your belongings taken from you, get strip-searched and then put into custody with people who have already been convicted. You could stay there for weeks, months and even years before you get an opportunity to have your trial.

And if the jury eventually finds you not guilty? Then you will get a bus ride to Downtown Albuquerque. You may lose your job. You may have been evicted from your residence, with your belongings God knows where. Your booking photo may have been all over the news. You are innocent, you always were, but do not expect a dime in compensation or even an apology as you try to pick up the pieces of your life. If you are lucky, you will have friends and family to support you. Many people are not lucky.

How do the courts try to prevent innocent people from suffering such a travesty of justice? By setting high requirements before a person can be detained pretrial and by following the mandates of legal procedure. Contrary to what The Albuquerque Journal said in its March 1 editorial … judges are not “abdicating their discretion” because they require prosecutors to present enough evidence to convince the judge that a defendant must be detained pretrial. As the United States Supreme Court stated in an important case, “In our society liberty is the norm, and detention prior to trial or without trial is the carefully limited exception.”

The innocent pay the highest price for pretrial detention. The taxpayer also pays for pretrial detention. It is not cheap to keep a person locked up and supervised for 24 hours a day. Money spent on pretrial detention is money that is not available for the kinds of services that help keep people out of jail to begin with. Ironically, the guilty get the most benefit from pretrial detention. They get credit for their pretrial detention against their ultimate sentence.

Keeping everyone locked up until trial is wrong, expensive and illegal. The methods in place to determine who needs pretrial detention are not perfect and probably never will be. Sometimes a person released prior to their trial will commit a noteworthy crime, and the media will be quick to capitalize with sensationalist coverage. As the New Mexico Supreme Court has said, “We are not oblivious to the pressures on our judges who face election difficulties, media attacks, and other adverse consequences if they faithfully honor the rule of law when it dictates an action that is not politically popular. …”

Judges are under pressure to make pretrial detention something that it is not – a cure for all of society’s ills and the preferred method of dealing with people accused of crimes. If judges bend to that pressure, the result will be even more injustice and dysfunction in our criminal justice system. From time to time, a person on pretrial release will commit a newsworthy crime, but the only way to provide absolute security is to deny freedom absolutely. The whole point of our legal system is to prevent that.”

Below is the link to the Albuquerque Journal:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1290450/pretrial-detention-is-not-a-cureall.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

All too often, sensational, violent crimes, especially those involving child abuse, the murder or death of a child, the killing of a police officer, create public reactions of hate, vitriol and at times threats of violence and violence against those charged and at times even a judge.

Our criminal justice system presumes innocence until proven guilty and demands due process of law, even for the most heinous of crimes, and not an “eye for an eye” approach to criminal justice.

Attacking our Judicial system and judge’s rulings is an too familiar tactic of those running for office.

It is way too easy to ignore our U. S. Constitution when you are pandering and running for office and essentially say “catch them and lock them up and throw away the key”.

All judge’s take an oath of office to preserve, defend and protect our constitution.

Judges are strictly prohibited by the Supreme Court Rules and the Code of Judicial Conduct from commenting on pending cases and voicing opinions that call into question their fairness and impartiality, especially in criminal cases.

Vilifying the judiciary is a pathetic, ignorant tactic of politicians who seek to divide in order to get elected.

Threatening a judge over a ruling is an affront to our constitutional rights of due process of law and the presumption of innocence.

Threats against any judge should never be tolerated and condemned by all if we want to live in a free country.

To deny one-person due process of law, no matter how much we think they are guilty, is to deny us all of the constitutional rights we cherish in this country.

Following is an article published by ABQ Reports on April 30, 2019 and written by reporter Dennis Domrzalski regarding APD Chief Michael Geier not firing APD spokesman Simon Drobik as recommended by the Civilian Police Oversight Commission.

HEADLINE: “No discipline for Simon Drobik”

April 30, 2019|

BY: Dennis Domrzalski

“Albuquerque Police Chief Mike Geier said … that he will not–repeat, will not–discipline APD’s human overtime Robot officer Simon Drobik for claiming massive amounts of overtime pay.”

“Geier said in a news release that he will not follow the recommendation of the Civilian Police Oversight Agency that Drobik be fired.”

“Drabik, a patrol officer, was paid $192,000 in 2019, making him the highest paid employee in all of city government.”

Here is APD’s news release on the matter:

Chief Geier Outlines Efforts To Fix Overtime Policies

Addresses CPOA findings with mix of modernized compensation accountability and public information staffing practice changes

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – APD Chief Mike Geier outlined efforts today to fix the department’s outdated overtime policies and practices. Chief Geier announced the effort as part of his response to a report by the Civilian Police Oversight Agency.

“We came into an overtime system based on a set of 2015 policies and procedures that were full of loopholes and contradictions,” Chief Geier said. “Exceptions were made over years to deal with massive understaffing. As a result, many officers used those exceptions as opportunities to earn more money.

“We are moving away from what was essentially an ‘honor system’ and forward with a plan to modernize overtime at APD and clean up the process,” Chief Geier said. “As we continue to hire more officers, the time is right to fix this problem and ensure accountability.”

In his response to the CPOA report, Chief Geier outlined several steps APD is taking, along with the development of new policies to modernize the overtime process.

Modernize the department’s Overtime, Compensatory Time and Work Shift Designation Policy.

The policy was scheduled to be updated in 2017, but work was never completed. An independent audit in 2016 made several recommendations that were not addressed.

Continue to implement changes outlined as part of APD’s budget plan for FY2020, such as:

Provide Commanders with data about overtime usage and hold them accountable for managing overtime.

Hold direct supervisors accountable for adjusting work hours when appropriate.

Develop a training plan that maximizes amount of training completed during normal duty hours and minimizes training completed on overtime.

Explore opportunities to minimize the amount of non-grant funded tact plan activities completed on overtime.

Work with Metro and District Court to limit and better manage officer court appearances.

Separate Chief’s overtime from other sources of overtime.

End the overlap between Chief’s overtime, on call time and comp time accrual.

Review recommendations from the CPOA and consider the impact on APD’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.

In his response to the CPOA report, Chief Geier directly addressed an investigator’s findings related to the use of overtime by Officer Simon Drobik and a supervisor. While Chief Geier agreed with many of the findings of the CPOA about the use of overtime, he disagreed with the recommended level of discipline.

The CPOA investigator identified multiple low-level violations and multiplied sanctions for each instance. In addition, the investigator raised serious concerns about existing policies, yet still recommended outright termination for violating those policies. In fact, the relevant polices had expired under the previous administration, causing inconsistencies and widespread confusion among officers about overtime practices.

Rather than imposing discipline that is unfair and excessive, Chief Geier reiterated that he is modernizing the overtime policy to ensure fiscal accountability. Chief Geier is placing Officer Drobik on administrative assignment, requiring him to report directly to the Deputy Chief of Staff. This will enable APD administration to monitor Officer Drobik’s use of time and ensure a balance between duties related to communications and duties related to field work. Officer Drobik has offered to surrender his existing “comp bucket” to repay the department for the comp time he earned on days he worked a Chief’s Overtime assignment or for unauthorized times he ran with cadets.

APD is in the process of reviewing the PIO position to determine what additional support is needed to best effectuate the goals of the position. A plan will be developed for additional personnel within the department to take on the responsibilities held by Officer Drobik in his position as PIO.

Mayor Keller added, “The department’s commitment to revamping the overtime policy reflects that the particular personnel issue was just the tip of iceberg; their efforts should bring needed accountability to the overtime system, decentralize our PIOs to better align with community policing, and still ensure that our officers have the flexibility to provide the protection our community needs.”

Work on new overtime policies and public information staffing model is expected to be phased in over time and will be completed by the end of summer.”

https://www.abqreport.com/single-post/2019/04/30/No-discipline-for-Simon-Drobik

It was reported that Ed Harness, the CPOA executive director, that he had not received anything from APD regarding the investigation and said:

“I would have expected that he would have informed the board prior to informing the media.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1309301/apd-revamps-overtime-policies.html

DAN KLEIN’S TAKE

Retired and former APD Sergeant Dan Klein posted his take on the story:

“We have all heard this song and dance from APD and different mayors for the last 30 plus years. No one is ever held accountable. No criminal investigation by an outside agency. … APD has, for decades, been unable to manage their own payroll affairs and they are never held accountable. I would like to know, if the CPOA investigation is correct, who at APD was manually over riding the payroll system to allow Drobik to claim all the hours he was claiming. The payroll system knows the rules, so did the person who over rode it. That alone is cause for an investigation by New Mexico State Police. But Geier is just like Eden. He wants no outside review of his agency. Geier says he will fix it. Yeah right, Geier is the same chief of police who doesn’t know that blood in a 7 year old girls underwear might be evidence of a crime. But the CPOA and the City Auditor, they know suspicious activity even when the police chief ignores it. Reporters only have to review years of city audits of APD payroll to see that this problem has been ignored and endorsed for decades. Albuquerque we are screwed, only Tim Keller can now call for an independent criminal investigation. Or is he back in the bunker making sandwiches for the cameras for asylum seekers. Good God Mayor Tim Keller step up and do your job. Request the Attorney General or the New Mexico State Police to open a full investigation, or are you too scared about what it might expose?”

ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

You have to wonder who wrote Mayor Keller’s comments because they do not sound like the former State Auditor who created a reputation to fight “waste, fraud and abuse” demanding that action be taken against individuals when it was found.

APD’s overtime have been a chronic problem over the years to the point the department’s overtime policies underwent an independent audit in 2016 but its recommendations were never implemented.

You know that a police department is being mismanaged when a public information officer (PIO) becomes the news instead of responding to the news agencies with information on criminal cases.

What is even worse is when a Police Oversight Board Agency votes to unanimously to recommend to the APD Chief that not only should the PIO be fired but also his supervisor for abuse of overtime and the APD Chief totally ignores the recommendation as does Mayor Keller.

What is downright pathetic is when the Mayor ignores the recommendations of a civilian Police oversight agency leading one to wonder why bother having one if they have no authority to overrule the Chief when the Chief goes out of his way to protect his own public information officer who is paid $192,000 in one year because of overtime abuse.

POSTSCRIPT

Following are links to related stories:

APD Spokesman Drobik’s $192,973 Overtime Pay Tip Of Iceberg; “Denied Access” Reason Media Reluctant To Report; Where Is Our Champion To Combat “Waste, Fraud and Abuse” Mayor Tim Keller?

One Down, 124 To Go; “Billing And Being Paid” For Work Not Done Epitome Of Government Waste, Fraud and Abuse

The April 29, 2019 Albuquerque Journal front page headline in red letters read “IN BERNALILLO COUTY” followed by “114 people shot in 112 days” in black letters.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1308316/in-bernalillo-county-114-people-shot-in-112-days.html

Below the headline was a color photo of two of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) Mobile Crime labs used to investigate homicide scenes and gather evidence. Below the photo of the APD Mobile Crime Labs was a color photo of 47-year-old Jose Hernandez, dressed in his military uniform. Jose Hernandez is the US Mail Carrier who was shot and killed on his postal route allegedly by a 17-year-old in the Southwest Albuquerque when he intervened in a fight between a mother and her teenage son. The 17-year-old suspect has been arrested. Hernandez was one of 4 people shot, with 3 killed, in a 24 hour period.

KOAT TV Channel 7 had the same lead story headline: “… 100 Shooting in 112 days.”

https://www.koat.com/article/disturbing-trend-in-bernalillo-county-more-than-100-shootings-in-112-days/27312922

The Journal reported that with the killing of Jose Hernandez, Bernalillo County surpassed 100 shootings for the year. Jose Hernandez was the 114-person shot and killed since January 1, 2019 and a mere 112 days into the year.

The January 17, 2019 front page Albuquerque Journal headline read:

“Albuquerque Police Deal With A Day Of Mayhem”

According to the January 17, 2019 report:

“There were two homicides – one of which sparked an all-day manhunt in the Bosque. An infant died at a county-run substance abuse treatment center. A person was shot in the leg in the northeast area. And officers conducted a search for a stolen vehicle suspect off East Central. … Traffic was snarled for hours at the Central river crossing due to the manhunt in the Bosque. Tingley Beach and other parts of the Albuquerque BioPark were put on lockdown, according to police. The nearby Dolores Gonzales Elementary School canceled all after-school programs and bus services because of the search. … [S]hortly before 8 a.m., officers were called to a shooting in front of Central Grill and Coffee House on Central near Rio Grande Boulevard and the Old Town community police substation. “Upon arrival, they observed rescue attending to a male who had been shot. … Rescue immediately transported the subject to the hospital, where he was subsequently pronounced dead from a gunshot wound.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1269426/albuquerque-police-deal-with-a-day-of-mayhem.html

The news headlines for April 4, 5, 6 and 7, 2019 included reports of eight dead, including a child of 5 beaten to death by her father with a rubber shoe and an 8-year-old girl was shot and critically injured in a Northeast Albuquerque home from a stray bullet, all in four days.

The news stories for the four days in April were:

Thursday, April 4, 2019, Carlos Armijo, 42, was gunned down outside his South Valley home; Bernalillo County sheriff’s deputies say it was retaliation after a fight outside a taco truck.

Friday, April 5, 2019, morning, first respondents found the battered and unresponsive body of 5-year-old Sarah Dubois-Gilbeau. The child’s father has been charged in her death, allegedly beating her with a rubber water shoe for not doing homework he assigned.

Friday, April 5, 2019, 19-year-old Eric Apisa was pronounced dead, three days after being shot in the head during an apparent drug deal.

Friday, April 5, 2019,, BCSO deputies found a body with signs of trauma in a ditch in the 1700 block of Bridge SW. They identified the man as Manuel Barraza, 49.

Friday night, April 5, 2019, APD officers shot Pedro Escalante, after he fled an “altercation” in a stolen vehicle, crashed into a car and pointed a gun at police during a foot chase.

Saturday April 6, 2019, a woman was found slain in a home in the 1100 block of Via Chamisa, NE.

Saturday April 6, 2019, a couple was found dead in a home in the 600 block of Princeton SE, south of the University of New Mexico.

Sunday, April 7, 2019, a young child was hospitalized after being shot in a Northeast Albuquerque home.

On April 8, 2019, a man was shot and killed on Albuquerque’s West Side.

https://www.koat.com/article/violent-weekend-plagues-the-duke-city/27080087

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-man-shot-killed-on-albuquerques-west-side/5309212/?cat=500

SOBERING STATISTICS

According to the Bernalillo County District Attorney Office (DA) there were 36% more killings this year than over the same time period last year, despite all other major categories of crime declining.

The DA’s Office Crime Strategies Unit disclosed to the Journal that it has been compiling a database of all instances in which a person was shot since January 1, 2018. The DA’s newly created office of “Crime Strategies Unit” found that throughout all of 2018 there were 232 shootings where someone was struck, 64 or 65 of which resulted in a killing.

Thus far, the youngest victim killed this year was 8-year-old Diamond Williams, no arrests have been made and APD has said they are not looking for any suspects.

APD STATISTICS PROVIDED

APD provided the Journal with statistics in 4 areas:

1. Murders
2. Shootings with injuries
3. Shootings with no injuries and
4. Shootings with property damage.

The data APD provided did not include suicides, accidental shootings, homicides done in self-defense, or shootings by law enforcement. APD’s preliminary numbers show a total of 312 shootings with fatalities, with injuries, without injuries, and property damage so far this year, an increase of 11 percent over the same time last year when there were 281.

BERNALILLO COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY STATISTICS

The Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office has implemented a data collection program called “Ceasefire”. Ceasefire is a data-driven approach to combat gun violence.

According to the DA’s office a breakdown of data from January 1, 2019, to April 23, 2019 is as follows:

There were 101 shootings in which individuals were injured or killed, several of which had multiple victims

114 people were shot, 17 of whom were killed.

95 incidents happened in the city.

6 incidents happened outside the city but within the county.

2 people were shot by law enforcement.

10 cases were self-inflicted shootings.

The shortest time between shootings was 16 minutes.

The longest time was a five-and-a-half-day stretch in early January.

The average number of shootings was just over one shooting per day.

Suspects have been identified in 42 cases, although it’s unclear how many have resulted in an arrest.

There were 27 more shootings so far in 2019 compared to the same time period in 2018 when there were 74 shootings.

Dr. Steve McLaughlin, the UNM chairman of the department of emergency medicine, said the University of New Mexico Hospital Emergency Room has gunshot victims admitted to the ER almost every day. According to Dr. McLaughlin, national data indicates that about one third of gunshot victims die, the remaining two thirds survive their wounds but the majority of those who do survive are never the same.

FOCUS ON VIOLENT CRIME FOR TWO YEARS

The yearly numbers of homicides, aggravated assaults, which are defined as assaults with a deadly weapon, non-fatal shootings, robberies and rape for the last two years and the first quarter of 2019 brings into focus the picture of the city’s violent crime problems with guns.

Following are the sobering statistics:

HOMICIDES FOR TWO YEARS
2017: 72 (First 6 months: 33)
2018: 65 (First 6 months:39)
Change: -10% (First 6 months -18.2%)

AGGRAVATED ASSAULT FOR TWO YEARS
2017: 4,213 (First 6 months: 1,957)
2018: 3,885 (First 6 months: 1,851)
Change: -8 (First 6 months: -5.4)

NON-FATAL SHOOTINGS FOR TWO YEARS
2017: 470 (First 6 months: 60)
2018: 491 (First 6 months: 63)
Change: +4 (First 6 months: +5.0%)

ROBBERY FOR TWO YEARS
2017: 2,930 (First 6 months: 1,467)
2018: 1,887 (First 6 months: 1,012)
Change: -36% (First 6 months: -31%)

RAPE FOR TWO YEARS
2017: 473 (First 6 months: 236)
2018: 461 (First 6 months: 226)
Change: -3% (First six months -4.2)

On March 30, 2019, the Albuquerque Police Department released the City’s crime statistics for the first quarter of 2019 which runs from January to March of 2019.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-most-crime-is-down-but-non-fatal-shootings-are-up/5299172/?cat=500

The specific highlights in violent crime categories for the first quarter of 2019 were:

Homicide: down 24% with 14 homicides reported (Spiked to 21 by April 16)
Rape: down 7%
Robbery: down 22%
Aggravated Assault: down 4%

In the first quarter 2019 report, the city saw an increase in nonfatal shootings. According to the statistics, non-fatal shootings went up 12% and there have been 131 nonfatal shootings the first quarter of the year compared to last year’s number of 114.

DECLARING GUN VIOLENCE “PUBLIC HEALTH THREAT”

On April 8, 2019, APD Officials announced several proactive and reactive initiatives designed to combat gun violence in the City and declaring gun violence a public health risk.

The specific initiatives announced include:

1. Using data from APD’s Real Time Crime Center to focus on areas with a heavy concentration of gun violence and identify any patterns and putting more officers in those areas.
2. Forming units of officers called Problem Response Teams in each area command. The Problem Response Teams will be made up of officers who don’t take calls for service but will be available to help community members as they need it. After a violent crime, the teams, along with Albuquerque Fire Rescue, will visit the neighborhood and provide resources or information.
3. Identifying those who are selling firearms illegally to felons or juveniles.
4. Working with agencies and universities to conduct research on gun violence as a public health issue.
5. Implementing a standardized shooting response protocol that police must follow within the first 72 hours of a reported crime. APD intends to collect and test all casings at shooting scenes and intends to purchase new equipment and technology that can assist detectives in investigating gun crimes.
6. APD is in the process of hiring additional personnel for the crime lab and securing technology that will increase efficiency around DNA testing including automating the entire unit. The unit that tests DNA and the unit that tests latent fingerprints will be split in an attempt to reduce a backlog of evidence that needs to be tested.
7. Increasing the use of the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network and the Problem Response Teams. The National Integrated Ballistic Information Network program is used to identify which guns have been used in multiple crimes by analyzing all casings they can find at violent crime scenes where a firearm has been discharged.
8. Use of a placard police officers can hang on doors to encourage residents to call with information about a crime.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1301057/police-to-focus-on-gun-violence.html

Mayor Tim Keller had this to say in commenting on the APD initiatives to combat and reduce gun violence:

“[The initiatives are] just not going to happen overnight so we’re trying to push them as fast as we can and encourage our partners to do the same.”

DECLINING CRIME RATES

On March 30, 2019, the Albuquerque Police Department released the City’s crime statistics for the first quarter of 2019 which runs from January to March of 2019. For the second time, APD reported that crime is continuing to drop from 10 years of historic highs in all major categories but nonfatal shootings are up.

Property crimes, robberies, auto thefts and auto burglaries all dropped.

Auto burglary decreased by 28%, auto theft decreased by 29%, and residential burglary decreased by 32% compared to last year’s numbers during the same time period.

Property crimes, like theft and burglaries, have had a 17% drop from 2017 to 2018 for the same time period last year.

The decline represents a dramatic decrease to the numbers reported last year.

The bad news in the report was that the city saw an increase in nonfatal shootings.

According to the statistics, non-fatal shootings went up 12% and there have been 131 nonfatal shootings the first quarter of the year compared to last year’s number of 114.

You can review the news stories here:

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-most-crime-is-down-but-non-fatal-shootings-are-up/5299172/?cat=500

https://www.abqjournal.com/1298419/crime-stats-show-another-drop-in-abq-crime.html

https://www.petedinelli.com/2018/12/28/abqs-crime-rates-going-down-but-abq-still-a-violent-city/

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

“114 People Shot In 112 Days” and “Albuquerque Police Deal With A Day Of Mayhem” are the very type of headlines, color photos and TV news lead stories that likely cause many sleepless nights for the Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales, APD Chief Michael Geier, Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez and Mayor Tim Keller.

Bringing down violent crime involving guns, such as murders and domestic violence, is always more difficult because of entwined issues such as substance abuse, the disintegration of families and many times the failure of law enforcement to respond and social services to respond to warning signs. A murder is usually committed when another crime is being committed such as armed robbery or domestic violence or it’s a crime committed in the heat of anger and a gun is readily available. Most victims who are murdered know their killer. It’s difficult at best to bring down homicide rates, but it can be done when you bring down other violent crime such as armed robbery, aggravated assaults, illicit drug offenses and domestic violence.

The increase in nonfatal shootings is a reflection that Albuquerque is a violent city with a culture of violence that will be extremely difficult at best to eliminate. Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez and Mayor Tim Keller probably understand the impact headlines like “114 People Shot In 112 Days” and “Albuquerque Police Deal With A Day Of Mayhem” can have on their political careers, more so on Torrez because he is running out of time given he is up for election to a second term in 2020 while Keller is up in 2021.

Both Torrez and Keller campaigned to get elected DA and Mayor on a platform that they could and would bring down our skyrocketing crime rates. No at all surprising, Mayor Tim Keller and Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez have tried to take credit for crime rates being on the decline in all other categories other than gun violence offenses for the first time in nine years.

In 2016, Raul Torrez campaigned on a platform of reducing crime arguing that crime rates were too high, our criminal justice system was broken and that he was the guy to fix it. Torrez during his first year in office blamed judges for our high crime rates because of reduced sentences given to violent criminals and dismissal of cases until it was revealed that his office voluntarily dismissed cases at much higher rates than the courts. After more than two years in office, blaming judges for high crime rates and constant complaining about lack of resources without filling over 41 vacancies in his office, DA Torrez only now realizes that has not worked and finally reached out to other cities to find better strategies, such as his “Ceasefire Program” and his “Crime Strategies Unit” .

https://www.abqjournal.com/1308746/san-francisco-da-analyzing-data-helpful-in-fighting-crime.html

https://www.koat.com/article/bernalillo-county-da-showcases-tech-based-crime-fighting-tools-to-prosecutors-across-us/27327157

In 2017, then State Auditor Tim Keller campaigned for Mayor proclaiming he had the right plan for reducing crime, police reform and community-based policing. To his credit, Mayor Tim Keller is spending $88 million dollars, over a four-year period, with 32 million dollars of recurring expenditures to hire 350 officers and expand APD from 878 sworn police officers to 1,200 officers by implementing a hiring and recruitment program to offer incentives, pay raises and bonuses to join or return to APD in order to return to community-based policing. By July, 2019, APD should have up to 950 sworn police. Despite Mayor Keller’s increases APD budget and personnel, he has not shaken the stark reality that the city is way too violent and he is relegated to issuing uninspiring and idealistic statements to the Albuquerque Journal like:

“This is the number one problem facing our city and it has been for some time. … It’s something that’s going to take all of us coming together to deal with.”

As the shootings, assaults and killings continue to rise, Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez and Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller are increasingly focused on the gun violence and the city’s murder rates, but time may be running out for both of them despite their efforts. Both DA Torrez and Mayor Keller have initiated programs in an effort to bring down violent crime rates and gun violence. What is becoming increasingly concerning for the City is that all the increases in APD budget and personnel and increases and new programs at the DA’s Office may not have any effect on be bringing down the violent crime and murder rates. Only time will tell if APD’s and the DA’s new initiatives are successful, and we all must hope they are for the safety of our families and ourselves.

Notwithstanding, voters are very fickle and unforgiving when politicians make promises they do not or cannot keep. The Bernalillo County District Attorney’ s Office is now Torrez’s full responsibility and he cannot blame his predecessor for continuing increases in our crime rates and bungled prosecutions. APD is now fully in the hands of Mayor Tim Keller and his appointed command staff, and he cannot blame his predecessor for continuing increases in our crime rates.

No doubt DA Raul Torrez and Mayor Tim Keller have high hopes that their efforts will bring down gun violence and the murder rates.

Otherwise, both District Attorney Raul Torrez and Mayor Tim Keller may wake up the day after their next election bids to read media headlines that they have lost their election for a second term.

After over two years, Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s “Report On The Investigation Into Russian Interference In The 2016 Presidential Election” was released. It is 448 pages long and in two volumes.

Succinctly put, it found that there was Russian interference with the election but “no collusion” between the Russians and the Trump campaign to interfere with the 2016 election.

The Mueller report identifies at least 10 instances of possible obstruction of justice and gives details how President Trump sought to use top White House staffers, aides and the Justice Department to impede the Russia investigation.

You can read the entire redacted Mueller Report Here:

http://abcnews.go.com/images/Politics/Mueller-Report-Redacted-April-18-2019.pdf

This article is a deep dive into the Mueller Report and the 10 instances of possible obstruction of justice by Trump and his campaign.

Much of the special counsel’s findings were linked to Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election and whether the Trump campaign actually colluded with Russia.

Mueller wrote that his investigation “identified numerous links between the Russian government and the Trump campaign … but did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.”

In other words, there was no “collusion” when it came to interfering with the election process.

Although there was no collusion, Trump personally and very publicly solicited help from the Russians and they accommodated him.

The Trump campaign had numerous contacts and communications with Russians during the campaign and after the election but “contact” is not collusion.

What would have been criminal is if Trump and his campaign actually solicited the Russians to interfere with the election vote and then the help was accepted but based on the report, no such evidence was found.

What was found is that Russia did interfere with the election, but not at the Trump campaign’s request.

After the Mueller report was released, Trump proclaimed he was having a “good day” boasting “It’s called no collusion, no obstruction.”

The problem is, no collusion may have been found by Mueller but Trump lied when he said he was cleared of “Obstruction of Justice” when he boasted “no obstruction”

The Mueller Report states:

“If we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state. Based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, however, we are unable to reach that judgment.”

The Mueller report makes it clear that it did not take a position on any potential obstruction of justice because Mueller was strictly limited by a Department of Justice rule that a sitting president cannot be indicted, at least not by the federal government.

There are approximately 12 pending criminal investigations in state jurisdictions relating to the Trump organizations and finances.

What is ironic in reading the report is that the only thing that ended up protecting Trump was many of those who are now gone, who have resigned or been fired by Trump, did not follow through on his direct orders. In other words, Trump’s own employees saved him from himself.

A ROADMAP FOR IMPEACHMENT BUT NOT REMOVAL

Despite the fact that the special counsel’s report on Russian interference did not come to a conclusion as to whether President Trump obstructed justice, the Mueller Report did examine and disclose at least 10 “discrete acts” in which Trump may have “obstructed justice”.

Mueller left it up to congress to decide for themselves if there was obstruction of justice.

Any one of the 10 acts could form the basis of impeachment by the Democratic Controlled US House of Representatives, but not necessarily result in a conviction by the Republican US Senate.

The Mueller Report says the 10 instances of potential obstruction of justice can be divided into “two phases, reflecting a possible shift in the president’s motives.”

The first phase of obstruction of justice took place before Trump fired FBI Director James Comey after Trump had been reassured by Comey he was not personally under investigation.

After Comey was fired by Trump and after Mueller’s appointment as special counsel, the report states Trump realized or knew he was under investigation for possibly obstructing justice and he changed course and became more aggressive to discredit the investigation.

The Mueller report states:

“At that point, the president engaged in a second phase of conduct, involving public attacks on the investigation, non-public efforts to control it, and efforts both in public and private to encourage witnesses not to cooperate with the investigation.”

CBS News did an exceptional summary of the 10 times Trump may have obstructed justice.

Following are the 10 times Trump may have obstructed justice quoting a CBS News article with the link below:

1.”THE CAMPAIGN’S RESPONSE TO REPORTS ABOUT RUSSIAN SUPPORT FOR TRUMP”

“The first instance of possible obstruction detailed in the report occurred during the 2016 campaign, when questions first “arose about the Russian government’s apparent support for candidate Trump. The report states that while Mr. Trump was publicly skeptical Russia had released emails from Democratic officials, he and his aides were also trying to get information about “any further Wikileaks releases.”The report also notes that despite Mr. Trump’s insistence he had no business connections to Russia, his namesake company was trying to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. And once the election was over, Mr. Trump “expressed concerns to advisers that reports of Russia’s election interference might lead the public to question the legitimacy of his election.”

2.”CONDUCT INVOLVING FBI DIRECTOR COMEY AND MICHAEL FLYNN”

“The second instance involves Mr. Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who left the administration just weeks into Mr. Trump’s presidency after he misled FBI agents and top administration officials — including Vice President Mike Pence — about his conversations with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Flynn had said he had not discussed sanctions on Russia with Kislyak, a lie that Pence and others then repeated. The day that Mr. Trump found out Flynn had lied to Pence and the FBI, he had dinner with Comey, whom he asked for “loyalty.” Mr. Trump then secured Flynn’s resignation on Feb. 13, 2017. “Now that we fired Flynn, the Russia thing is over,” he told an outside adviser, who disagreed with the president’s assessment. That same day, Mr. Trump had another meeting with Comey and encouraged him to stop investigating Flynn. “I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go. He is a good guy. I hope you can let this go,” Mr. Trump said. The president then asked Deputy National Security Adviser K.T. McFarland to draft an internal memo “stating that the president had not directed Flynn to discuss sanctions with Kislyak. McFarland declined because she did not know whether that was true, and a White House Counsel’s Office attorney thought that the request would look like a quid pro quo for an ambassadorship she had been offered.”

3.”THE PRESIDENT’S REACTION TO THE CONTINUING RUSSIA INVESTIGATION”

“The third instance involves then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was debating whether to recuse himself from the Russia investigation in February 2017, as well as Comey. Mr. Trump asked White House Counsel Don McGahn to talk Sessions out of recusal, and became angry when Sessions announced he would recuse himself on March 2. The president then asked Sessions to “unrecuse” himself. After Comey testified to Congress that there was an FBI investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, Mr. Trump reached out to his CIA and NSA directors to help “dispel the suggestion that the President had any connection to the Russian election-interference effort.” Comey had told Mr. Trump he wasn’t under investigation and, against Mc Gahn’s advice, the president twice called the FBI director to ask him to say that publicly.”

4.”THE PRESIDENT’S TERMINATION OF COMEY”

“The fourth instance stems from Mr. Trump’s decision to fire Comey, which directly led to Mueller’s appointment. Mr. Trump decided to fire Comey in May 2017 — days after the FBI director declined to tell Congress that Mr. Trump wasn’t under investigation. After Mr. Trump dismissed Comey, the White House insisted he had done so at the recommendation of the Department of Justice. In reality, Mr. Trump had not consulted with the Justice Department before deciding to fire Comey. In conversations that followed, Mr. Trump indicated the Russia investigation was the real reason he had let Comey go: “The day after firing Comey, the president told Russian officials that he had ‘faced great pressure because of Russia,’ which had been ‘taken off’ by Comey’s firing. The next day, the president acknowledged in a television interview that he was going to fire Comey regardless of the Department of Justice’s recommendation and that when he ‘decided to just do it,’ he was thinking that ‘this thing with Trump and Russia is a made-up story.'”

5.”THE APPOINTMENT OF SPECIAL COUNSEL AND EFFORTS TO REMOVE HIM”

“The fifth instance revolves around Mr. Trump’s reaction to Mueller’s appointment. Upon hearing the news that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein had tasked Mueller with investigating the Russia matter in May 2017, the president privately declared it was “the end of his presidency.” Mr. Trump then demanded Sessions’ resignation, although he did not accept it at the time, and told aides Mueller had conflicts of interest that should preclude him from acting as the special counsel. It was then reported in June that Mueller was investigating Mr. Trump for obstruction of justice, prompting the president to publicly attack Mueller and the Justice Department. Within days of the first report, he told Mc Gahn to tell Rosenstein that Mueller had conflicts of interest and must be removed. Mc Gahn ignored the request, explaining that he would rather resign.”

6.”EFFORTS TO PREVENT PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF EVIDENCE”

“The sixth instance stems from the June 2016 meeting between top campaign aides and “a Russian lawyer who was said to be offering damaging information about Hillary Clinton as ‘part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.'” Mr. Trump told his aides “not to publicly disclose the emails setting up the June 9 meeting, suggesting that the email would not leak and that the number of lawyers with access to them should be limited.” Donald Trump Jr., who had been present at the Trump Tower meeting, wrote a press release saying “the meeting was with ‘an individual who [Trump Jr.] was told might have information helpful to the campaign'” — a line that was edited out about the president. Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer then denied to reporters the president had “played any role” in Trump Jr.’s statement.

7.”FURTHER EFFORTS TO HAVE THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TAKE CONTROL OF THE INVESTIGATION”

“The seventh instance has to do with Mr. Trump’s repeated attempts to have Sessions “reverse his recusal.” Mr. Trump asked Sessions to do this in the summer of 2017. The following December, Mr. Trump told Sessions he would be a “hero” if he took control of the investigation. Additionally, in October 2017, the president asked Sessions to “take [a] look” at investigating Hillary Clinton.”

8.”EFFORTS TO HAVE MCGAHN DENY THAT THE PRESIDENT HAD ORDERED HIM TO HAVE THE SPECIAL COUNSEL REMOVED”

“The eighth instance concerns Mr. Trump’s efforts to get Mc Gahn to dispute press accounts that the president had instructed him to try and get rid of Mueller. In early 2018, Mr. Trump told White House officials to tell Mc Gahn to rebut the stories, but Mc Gahn told the officials the stories were true. Mr. Trump then personally appealed to Mc Gahn, telling him in an Oval Office meeting to deny the reports. In the same meeting, the president also asked McGahn why he had told the special counsel about the president’s efforts to remove the Special Counsel and why McGahn took notes of his conversations with the president,” the report states. “McGahn refused to back away from what he remembered happening and perceived the president to be testing his mettle.”

9.”CONDUCT TOWARDS FLYNN, MANAFORT, [REDACTED]”

“The ninth instance stems from Mr. Trump’s response to the prosecutions of Flynn and Paul Manafort, his former campaign chairman, as well as an individual whose identity was redacted.
“After Flynn withdrew from a joint defense agreement with the president and began cooperating with the government, the president’s personal counsel left a message for Flynn ‘s attorneys reminding them of the president’s warm feelings towards Flynn, which he said ‘still remains,’ and asking for a ‘heads up’ if Flynn knew ‘information that implicates the president,'” the report states. When Flynn’s counsel reiterated that Flynn could no longer share information pursuant to a joint defense agreement, the president’s personal counsel said he would make sure that the president knew that Flynn’s actions reflected ‘hostility’ towards the president. Meanwhile, Mr. Trump praised Manafort during his “prosecution and when the jury in his criminal trial was deliberating. At one point, he praised Manafort as “a brave man” who refused to “break.”

10.”CONDUCT INVOLVING MICHAEL COHEN”

“The tenth and final instance of potential obstruction concerns Mr. Trump’s behavior toward Michael Cohen, his onetime personal lawyer. Mr. Trump profusely praised Cohen when he remained loyal to the administration, at one point personally calling to encourage him to “stay strong,” only to criticize him viciously when he began cooperating with the government. After the FBI searched Cohen’s home and office in April 2018, the president publicly asserted that Cohen would not ‘flip,’ contacted him directly to tell him to ‘stay strong,’ and privately passed messages of support to him,” the report states. Cohen also discussed pardons with the president’s personal counsel and believed that if he stayed on message he would be taken care of. But after Cohen began cooperating with the government in the summer of 2018, the president publicly criticized him, called him a ‘rat,’ and suggested that his family members had committed crimes.”

You can review the full CBS News report here:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/obstruction-of-justice-10-times-trump-may-have-obstructed-justice-mueller-report/

OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE DEFINED

Article II, Section 4 of the United States Constitution provides that “The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”

The power and authority to bring Articles of Impeachment rests solely with the United States House of Representatives and a trial is then conducted by the United State Senate for removal from office.

A “high crimes and misdemeanor” can be whatever the House of Representatives say it is in Articles of Impeachment and “obstruction of justice” is clearly a high crime and misdemeanor.

Under federal law, “obstruction of justice” is defined as an act that “corruptly or by threats or force, or by any threatening letter or communication, influences, obstructs, or impedes, or endeavors to influence, obstruct, or impede, the due administration of justice.” (18 U.S.C. § 1503)

Someone obstructs justice when that person has a specific intent to obstruct or interfere with a judicial proceeding, such as the firing of an FBI Director during an ongoing FBI investigation which is what the Russian probe investigation is all about.

For a person to be convicted of obstructing justice, that person must not only have the specific intent to obstruct the proceeding, but that person must know:

(1) that a proceeding was actually pending at the time; and
(2) there must be a connection between the endeavor to obstruct justice and the proceeding, and the person must have knowledge of this connection.

TRUMP’S OVERT SOLICITATION FOR RUSSIAN HELP

On July 27, 2016, while running for office, Donald Trump encouraged Russian hackers to find emails that had been deleted from Hillary Clinton’s private server that she used while serving as secretary of state when he said:

“I will tell you this, Russia: If you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing … “I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press.” Trump said at a press conference in Florida.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-russia-clinton-hack_us_5b48d9d0e4b0e7c958faf811

On July 27, 2016, Vladimir Putin and Russia were listening and heeded Trump’s call for help.

According to the federal indictment of the 12 Russian intelligence officers for their involvement in hacking the Democratic National Committee during the 2016 election, the Russian hacking occurred on July 27, 2016 hours after Trump gave his press conference and encouraged Russian hackers to find Clinton’s emails.

The indictment states that on July 27, 2016, the same day as Trump’s press conference, Russian hackers, “for the first time,” attempted to break into email accounts, including those used by Clinton’s personal office.

Notably, the indictment is very specific that the hack happened in the evening, meaning the Russian officials could have done it after Trump’s press conference.

https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2017/03/politics/trump-putin-russia-timeline/

RUSSIAN MONEY MAKES TRUMP’S “WORLD GO AROUND”

Donald Trump has maintained that neither he nor his businesses have any ties to Russia whatsoever and he has not done business in Russia.

On January 11, 2017, Donald Trump tweeted:

“Russia has never tried to use leverage over me. I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH RUSSIA – NO DEALS, NO LOANS, NO NOTHING!”

During a February 2O17, news conference, President Trump said:

“I can tell you, speaking for myself, I own nothing in Russia … I have no loans in Russia. I don’t have any deals in Russia” a statement that has proven to be a complete lie.

On May 8, 2017, Vanity Fair reported that the Trump Organization received substantial financing from Russia when the business was struggling in the mid-1990s and again during the Great Recession, since major U.S. banks had refuse to make any loans.

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/05/eric-trump-russia-investment-golf-course

On March 17, 2017, Reuters reported that a group of 63 Russia billionaires have invested nearly $100 million in several Trump properties in Florida.

https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-trump-property

On September 12, 2018, BuzzFeed News Reported that federal investigators looked into a pair of suspicious money transfers from some of the planners and participants in a 2016 Trump Tower meeting between Trump campaign officials and a Kremlin-connected lawyer who promised “dirt” on Hillary Clinton.

https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/406252-investigators-looking-at-suspicious-money-transfers-after-trump

They involve money from Russia and Switzerland being moved to places such as the British Virgin Islands, Bangkok and New Jersey, according to the BuzzFeed report.

The documents evaluated show a complex web of financial transactions between Trump organizations and the Russians.

The documents show Aras Agalarov, a billionaire real estate developer close to both Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, at the center of this vast network and how he used accounts overseas to filter money to himself, his son, and at least two people who attended the Trump Tower meeting.

LETTER OF INTENT TO DO BUSINESS IN RUSSIA

On December 19, 2018 CNN reported that in 2016, as the Trump Organization was in negotiations to build Trump Tower Moscow, Donald Trump signed a “letter of intent” to move forward with the project.

The letter of intent to build the Moscow Trump Tower was also signed by the head of the Russian firm that Trump’s company was working with, corroborates the argument Trump was lying when he said he did not do business with Russian interests.

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/trump-signed-a-letter-of-intent-to-build-trump-tower-moscow.html

The letter of intent with Trump’s signature to build a Trump Tower in Moscow shows he lied when he said “I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH RUSSIA – NO DEALS, NO LOANS, NO NOTHING!” and “I can tell you, speaking for myself, I own nothing in Russia. … . I don’t have any deals in Russia.”

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Articles of Impeachment in the US House of Representatives are passed by a simple majority vote, but conviction and removal is a long shot at best.

It is clear that the Democratic controlled House of Representatives has more than enough grounds from the Mueller Report and more than a majority of votes to impeachment Trump for obstruction of justice.

What is as equally clear is that the Republican controlled United State Senate would never vote to convict and remove Trump from office.

After Articles of Impeachment are passed by the House, the charges are forwarded to the United States Senate for a trial presided over by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court which today is John Roberts.

Two-thirds of the Republican controlled Senate, or 67 votes, are needed to convict and remove Trump.

If all 48 Senate Democrats would vote yes to convict, 19 Republican Senators would have to vote with all the Democrats to convict and remove.

Nineteen Republican Senators voting to convict is not at all likely given Trumps strangle hold over the Republican Senators and the Republican Party.

When you review the entire 466 page Mueller Report, the one conclusion that any reasonable person can come to is that the Russian probe uncovered evidence of a President “giving aid and comfort” to Russia to influence his election to become President and to hide or stop the Russia investigation to disrupt the 2016 election by firing FBI James Comey or both.

Trump has spent a lifetime being loyal to only two things: himself and his money.

Given the millions and millions of dollars involved with Russian financing of Trump enterprises, Trump’s love of money and his love for Russia probably outweighs his love for his own country if he really ever had love for the country in the first place.

When Richard Nixon resigned from the Presidency, it was a different day and age when it came to many elected officials.

Nixon resigned from office after a delegation of United States Republican Senators headed up by then Republican United States Senator Barry Goldwater met with Nixon in the White House and told him there were two thirds of the Senate willing to vote to convict him and remove him from office.

The Republican Senators told Nixon his resignation was necessary and he needed to resign for the good of the country.

Goldwater and his Republican colleagues put our countries interest over their own and their parties’ best interest for the sake of the country and its people.

Today, the Republican Majority in the Senate is led by the 3 Republican Stooges Mitch McConnel, Lindsay Graham and John Cornyn who publicly help or gives credibility to the “Fool In Chief” because they are desperate to hold onto power and running for reelection with Trump in 2020.

Any one of the 20 Democrats and even the one Republican running to replace Trump would be a better President than Trump could ever hope to be.

No doubt impeaching Trump will take upwards of a year and into the 2020 election cycle with no sure outcome while beating Trump at the polls is the only guaranteed way to end the moral and political disaster he has been.

The only sure way to remove Trump as President once and for all and to end the nightmare and insanity that is Trump is to beat him both at the polls and in the electoral college.

Postscript:

For related articles see:

Extent Of Trump’s Treason And Obstruction Of Justice Coming Into Focus

Mayor Tim Keller has taken photo ops to an all new level by attending protest rallies to speak at, attending marches, attending heavy metal concerts to introduce the band, running in track meets and participating in exhibition football games as the quarterback and enjoying reliving his high school glory days, and posting pictures and videos on his FACEBOOK page.

Mayor Keller has found one height and one event he should cancel and not attend.

Mayor Tim Keller and the City have announced that on Sunday, April 28, 2019 the city of Albuquerque is hosting a release party in honor of their new Albuquerque Police Department One Albuquerque t-shirts.

The T-Shirt release party is being at the Canteen Brewhouse on Aztec.

Carlos Contreras, CABQ Director of Innovation and Marketing, said:

“We’re just trying to bring the community together with some of the departments that work here at the city and go home every day as city residents.”

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/one-albuquerque-t-shirt-release-to-support-apd/1958281968

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

This event location sends the wrong message to the public that its OK to pick up a T-Shirt, have a few brews and then drive home.

New Mexico and Albuquerque have some of the highest DWI rates in the country.

Things got so bad a number of years ago that the state outlawed “drive up” package liquor sales.

The T-Shirt event release is being held on a Sunday no less when liquor sales are not allowed until 11:00 am.

Mayor Tim Keller should change the logo from “One Albuquerque” to “Only in Albuquerque”.

Distributing the APD T-Shirts by Mayor Keller at DWI check points when a driver is released from custody so they will have something to wear would be a lot more appropriate.

Hell, you could even have both Mayor Keller and Chief Michael Geier autograph the T-Shirts in black Magic Marker Sharpie before they are given out.

The Keller Administration also wants to “bill” for services rendered when the Albuquerque Fire & Rescue Department (AFRD) responds to a car crash or vehicle fire.

The proposal is for the AFRD to send a bill to the insurance companies.

So, if there is a DWI crash after the event, and someone is wearing the T-Shirt. no doubt the City can send the bill to the driver presuming they are still alive.

Did I go too far?

“So Very Sorry For Your loss. Please Give This Bill To Your Relative’s Insurance Carrier.”