It’s official. Former Vice President Joe Biden has selected first term California Senator Kamela Harris as his running mate for Vice President. She is an excellent choice and her campaign skills and talents are sorely needed. What a striking contrast she will make to Vice President Mike Pence when they debate. “A Programmed Machine” vs a “Metal Shredder”.

Kamala Harris won her first election in 2003 when she became San Francisco’s district attorney. In 2010, she was elected California’s attorney general, the first woman and Black person to hold the job, and focused on issues including the foreclosure crisis. She declined to defend the state’s Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage and was later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

In choosing Harris, age 55, Biden has made history by selecting a qualified woman and person of color and embracing a former rival from the Democratic primary who is familiar with the scrutiny and rigors of a national campaign. Born to a Jamaican father and Indian mother, she is without a doubt broken more than a few barriers.

Her law enforcement background has prompted skepticism from some progressives, which always seems to be the case whenever progressives are confronted with having to vote for a prosecutor for any elective office. Senator Harris’ record as California Attorney General and before that as District Attorney in San Francisco was heavily scrutinized by progressives during the Democratic primary. Her record as a strong and effective prosecutor turned many progressives and younger Black voters off who saw her as out of step on issues of racism in the legal system and police brutality. The truth is, all too often law enforcement and aggressive prosecutors are labeled as “conservative” and therefore unacceptable to any progressive litmus test.

During her run for President, Kamala Harris tried to strike a balance with progressives, declaring herself a “progressive prosecutor” who backs law enforcement reforms. Truth is crime must be prosecuted and not ignored because of a person’s background nor color. It also includes prosecuting law enforcement who do not follow the constitution and who violate people’s civil rights. The prosecution of crime must be color blind, whether its skin color or blue uniform. The criminal justice system and law enforcement need reform, as does sentencing reform, but that does not mean total dismantlement of the criminal justice system being advocated by the “defund the police” movement.

Grab yourself some refreshments and get ready to rumble!

The “Citizen Satisfaction Survey” is a research study commissioned by the City of Albuquerque to assess residents’ perceptions of the overall quality of life in Albuquerque, satisfaction with City services, and issues relating to crime, safety, and the economy. On January 21, the City of Albuquerque released the results of the 2019 study. The survey was of 607 adults living in Albuquerque and conducted November 8 to 24, 2019 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4% points. The poll was conducted by Research & Polling Inc. https://www.rpinc.com/

The survey questionnaire consisted of 48 questions. The final survey report is 105 pages long and contains multiple bars and graphs to illustrate the results. Research & Polling Inc. is New Mexico’s largest full-service market research and public opinion research company. Founded in 1986, the company today serves a wide variety of prominent national and New Mexico clients. The Albuquerque based polling firm is considered the very best polling service as to accuracy in Albuquerque. The company’s President is Brian Sanderoff, a frequent election coverage commentator for local TV stations.

You can review the entire survey at this link.

https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/6668008/FINAL-COA-Citizen-Survey.pdf

On August 5, 2020, the online news publication ABQ Reports published the following edited article written by its Editor Dennis Domrzalki and reporter Dan Klein regarding citizens concerns for crime:

HEADLINE: Poll: 67 percent of ABQ residents think crime is getting worse; 83 percent want more cops. Is Mayor Timmy listening?

August 5, 2020
By: Dennis Domrzalski and Dan Klein

[The link to the article is here:

https://www.abqreport.com/single-post/2020/08/04/Same-200-protesters-What-about-the-560213-ABQ-residents-who-dont-protest

Well, it turns out that there was a survey done and it isn’t good for…[Mayor Keller] and his leftist cronies at City Hall.

If … [Mayor Keller] continues to let 200 to 300 serial protesters—and not the 560,213 people who don’t protest—steer and control the city’s agenda, he and his leftist and progressive cronies will be toast in next year’s mayoral election.

…

Why is Albuquerque allowing the same 200 very far left people to drive our city policy? Albuquerque has 560,513 people and … [it is] … greatly doubted [by ABQ Reports] that the majority want the craziness that these 200 are spouting. The Albuquerque Journal or another news organization should do a poll and ask the citizens of Albuquerque if they:

It’s time for the media to stop giving the same 200 people air time. Let’s hear from the other 560,213 citizens.
… .”

The link to the article with graphics is here

https://www.abqreport.com/single-post/2020/08/05/Poll-67-percent-of-ABQ-residents-think-crime-is-getting-worse-83-percent-want-more-cops-In-Mayor-Timmy-listening

ABQ STATE OF POLICING 2020 ANNUAL SURVEY

The results of the Public Perception Survey conducted by Research and Polling released in January, 2020 are as follows:

83% of those surveyed said more police officers are needed to make the city safer.

73% of residents surveyed said they felt that crime has had “a negative or very negative impact” on business in Albuquerque.

67% of those surveyed believe that crime rates in Albuquerque are getting worse.

66%, or two thirds, of residents surveyed say crime has had a negative impact on their quality of life.

28% of those surveyed said police officers needed additional oversight, rules and reforms.

27% of those surveyed believe that crime rated in Albuquerque is about the same.

Those who were surveyed said the following factors are contributing to crime in the city:

40% illicit drugs and drug abuse
16% the homeless
13% the courts
11% felt not enough police officers

ABQ’S CRIME STATISTICS IN A NUTSHELL UNDER MAYOR KELLER

On Thursday, July 2, 2020 APD officials held a press conference to release the Albuquerque crime statistics for 2019. Given Mayor Keller’s words as to whose job it is to address crime, a synopsis of the statics during Mayor Tim Keller’s tenure is in order before the disclosure of the 2019 statistics by APD. The synopsis is required to focus on the statistics because statistics were falsely reported by the Keller administration for his first 18 months in office and the categories were then changed to comply with FBI crime reporting.

HOMICIDES

In 2018, during Mayor Keller’s first full year in office, there were 69 homicides.
In 2019, during Mayor Keller’s second full year in office, there were 82 homicides. Albuquerque had more homicides in 2019 than in any other year in the city’s history. The previous high was 72, in 2017 under Mayor RJ Berry. Another high mark was in 1996, when the city had 70 homicides.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1405615/apd-reports-record-82-homicides-for-2019.html#:~:text=Gilbert%20Gallegos%2C%20a%20police%20spokesman,high%20was%2072%2C%20in%202017.

As of August 7, there have been 41 homicides reported in Albuquerque for 2020.

https://www.koat.com/article/abq-homicide-cases-going-up-during-summer-months/33550332

HOMICIDE CLEARANCE RATES

For the past two years during Mayor Keller’s tenure, the homicide clearance percentage rate has been in the 50%-60% range. According to the proposed 2018-2019 APD City Budget, in 2016 the APD homicide clearance rate was 80%. In 2017, under Mayor Berry the clearance rate was 70%. In 2018, the first year of Keller’s term, the homicide clearance rate was 56%. In 2019, the second year of Keller’s term, the homicide clearance rate was 52.5%, the lowest clearance rate in the last decade.

VIOLENT CRIMES

In 2017, during Mayor RJ Berry’s last full year in office, there were 7,686 VIOLENT CRIMES. There were 4,213 Aggravated Assaults and 470 Non-Fatal Shootings:

In 2018 during Mayor Keller’ first full year in office, there were 6,789 violent crimes There were 3,885 Aggravated Assaults and 491 Non-Fatal Shootings.

https://www.petedinelli.com/2019/11/21/city-matches-homicide-record-high-of-72-murders-mayor-keller-forced-to-defend-policies-makes-more-promises-asks-for-more-money/

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.

DRUG OFFENSES

“Crimes Against Society” include drug offenses, prostitution and animal cruelty.

In 2018 During Keller’s first full year in office, total Crimes Against Society were 3,365.

In 2019 during Keller’s second full year in office, total Crimes Against Society increased to 3,711 for a total increase of 346 more crimes or a 9% increase.
FROM #1 TO #2 IN AUTO THEFTS

On June 26, 2019 the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released its annual list of cities with the most stolen vehicles reported. Despite a 28% reduction in auto thefts over a two-year period, Albuquerque ranked No. 1 in the nation for vehicle thefts per capita for the third year in a row.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimgorzelany/2019/06/27/these-are-the-cities-with-the-highest-car-theft-rates/#7c42e7d35146

On July 29, 2020 it was reported that Albuquerque ranks #2 in auto thefts by the National Insurance Crime Bureau which found that auto thefts in the four-county metro area are down in actual numbers and in the rate of thefts per 100,000 residents. According to the new NCIB report auto thefts in the metro area totaled 6,399 in 2019, a 10 percent drop from 2018, and a 36 percent decline from 2016 when auto thefts peaked at 10,001.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1480766/albuquerque-falls-from-top-auto-theft-spot.html

911 EMERGENCY RESPONSE TIMES

In 2009, under Mayor Martin Chavez, the average 911 emergency response time to calls, whether it was a life or death emergency or a minor traffic crash, was 8 minutes 50 seconds.
In 2011, under Mayor RJ Berry the average response times to 911 emergency calls was 25 minutes.
In 2018 and 2019, under Mayor Tim Keller, the average response times to 911 emergency calls spiked to 48 minutes.

RESPONSE TIMES OUT OF CONTROL

The time it takes for APD to respond to priority 1 calls has a major impact on increasing physical injury to victims or callers. On February 20th KOAT TV Target 7 reported on an investigation into the Albuquerque Police Department’s (APD’s) response times. In 2011, the average response time to all calls, whether it was a life or death emergency or a minor traffic crash was 25 minutes. In 2019, that time period spiked to 48 minutes in the average response time. Since 2011, there has been a 93% increase in 911 response times with 48 minutes now being the average time of arrival.

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-response-times-continue-to-climb/31028667

APD PERSONNEL SHORTFALL

Tim Keller campaigned to be elected mayor on the platform of increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), returning to community-based policing and promising to bring down skyrocketing crime rates. To that end, the Keller Administration began implementing an $88 million-dollar APD police expansion program increasing the number of sworn police officers from 898 positions filled to 1,200, or by 302 sworn police officers, over a four-year period. The massive investment was ordered by Mayor Tim Keller to full fill his 2017 campaign promise to increase the size of APD and return to community-based policing to reduce the city’s high crime rates.

POLICE SPENDING UNDER MAYOR TIM KELLER

The results of the city’s “State of Policing” 2020 annual survey confirms that resident opinions are indeed very accurate on many levels.

On December 1, 2017 Tim Keller was sworn into office and since taking office, APD has added 116 sworn police officers to the force. Keller is spending $88 million dollars over a four-year period, with $32 million dollars of recurring expenditures, to hire 322 sworn officers and expand APD from 878 sworn police officers to 1,200 officers. The massive investment is being done to full fill Mayor Keller’s 2017 campaign promise to increase the size of APD and return to community-based policing as a means to reduce the city’s high crime rates.

Last year’s 2018-2019 fiscal year budget provided for increasing APD funding from 1,000 sworn police to 1,040. This year’s 2019-2020 fiscal year budget has funding for 1,040 sworn police, a far cry from the 1,200 sworn officers Keller promised.

BREAKING A PROMISE NOT TO RAISE TAXES

In 2017 when running for Mayor, State Auditor Tim Keller promised he would never raise taxes unless there was a public vote even if it was for public safety. Candidate Keller said he would draw from various agencies, departments and programs where large, misappropriated budgets existed to deal with any city deficit. Within 4 months after assuming Office, Mayor Keller agreed to and signed a city council-initiated $55 million dollar a year tax increase without voter approval, thereby breaking his campaign promise not to raise gross receipts taxes without a public vote. 80% of the new tax revenues were supposedly dedicated to public safety, yet $40 million went towards a projected deficit that never fully materialized.

Candidate for Mayor Keller promised to increase the size of APD sworn police ranks to 1,200. As of July, APD has less than 1,000 sworn police and not the 1,200 promised, despite the $88 million dollar expansion plan. According to January pay stubs, APD has 950 sworn police and graduated another 50 cadets in mid-March. After adding the new graduating class, and subtracting retirements, APD will still short by at least 200 of what was promised by candidate Tim Keller. With anticipated retirements the total number of sworn officers will be less than 1,000 by January 1, 2021 in that the corona virus has resulted in the cancellation of the Spring APD cadet class.

SOARING HEIGHTS FOR PUBLIC RELATIONS

Ever since Mayor Tim Keller assumed office on December 1, 2017, he has taken political showmanship to all new levels. Keller is known for his photo ops and press conferences, 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, press conferences and videos on his FACEBOOK page.

Since being elected in November 2017, Mayor Tim Keller has implemented a public relations and marketing campaign to re brand the city image with his “One ABQ” slogan an using the slang nickname “BURQUE” for the city. Keller came up with a strained logo that rearranges the letters in the city’s name to reflect the slang name “BURQUE” in red letters with t-shirts and created a web page with slick videos promoting the city.

Since taking office, Keller has spent more than $312,000 dollars on his “One Albuquerque” positive image campaign and re branding the city as BURQUE. The City spent over $53,000 on the “One Albuquerque” letter sculpture that rearranges the letters in the city’s name to reflect the slang name “BURQUE”. $54,000 was spent on a “One Burque” sculpture.

With the corona virus pandemic taking a strangle hold on the city and state in February, Keller took instantly to conducting daily press briefings on the city’s efforts to deal with the corona virus and attempting to keep up with Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s daily briefings on the state level. Keller even went so far as to get the city council to add emergency health provisions to an archaic city ordinance that dealt with riots in the 1970’s so he could issue his own public health emergency orders. The corona virus pandemic has allowed Mayor Keller to take his public relations efforts to even higher levels to deal with the pandemic and to announce city initiatives and inform the public and to conduct “virtual townhall conference call town hall meetings” with the use of the 311 citizens contact center to call upwards of 13,000 people at once to answer questions.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

In 2017, candidate for Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller campaigned to get elected Mayor on the platform of implementing the Department of Justice (DOJ) mandated reforms, increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), returning to community-based policing and a promise to bring down skyrocketing crime rates.

In August, 2017 Tim Keller when running for Mayor, had this to say about the city’s high crime rates:

“It’s unfortunate, but crime is absolutely out of control. It’s the mayor’s job to actually address crime in Albuquerque, and that’s what I want to do as the next mayor.”

For the first 18 months of his term Mayor Tim Keller tried repeatedly to take credit for crime rates being on the decline in all categories other than violent crime offenses, but the statistics he released were seriously flawed and mislead the public. In 2019, in response to the continuing increase in violent crime rates, Mayor Keller scrambled to implement 4 major crime fighting programs to reduce violent crime: the Shield Unit, Declaring Violent Crime “Public Health” issue, the “Violence Intervention Plan” (VIP program) and the Metro 15 Operation program. Based upon the statistics released, the Keller programs have had very little effect on reducing violent crime.

Although progress has been made with implementation of the DOJ reforms, APD still falls short in completing the reforms within 4 years as agreed to and reforms are still being implemented after a full 6 years. Increasing and growing APD to 1,200 has been somewhat anemic, with the number of sworn police by the end of the year projected to be 1,000.

Mayor Tim Keller can take some limited comfort that the statistics show Crimes Against Property have dropped by a little more than 10%. Property crime may be down, but it is still higher than when Keller was sworn into office.

The far more serious Crimes Against Persons increased by 1% to 14,971, with both aggravated assault and statutory rape showing significant increases. There were 80 murders in the City last year which was the highest number of murders in the city’s history, up from 69 the year before. There were also 2,796 drug offenses and 709 weapons violations.

Tim Keller no doubt sincerely thought he could do a better job than his predecessor and he could make a difference. The truth is, he has not. Crime in the city has only become worse since Tim Keller has taken office, especially in terms of violent crime.

Voters are very fickle and unforgiving when politicians make promises they do not or cannot keep. When 73% of residents surveyed said they felt that crime has had “a negative or very negative impact” on business in Albuquerque, 67% of ABQ residents think crime is getting worse, 66%, or two thirds, of residents surveyed say crime has had a negative impact on their quality of life, it is an assured bet that no amount of data collection, public relations or nuance programs are going to turn public perception around any time soon.

As has been the case in the last 3 elections for Mayor, in 2021 crime rates will likely be the biggest determining issue in the race. Voters will no doubt decide if Mayor Tim Keller has in fact failed to deliver on his campaign promises to reduce high crime rates. Voters will be deciding if Keller deserves a passing grade for his failed efforts with Mayor Keller no doubt using the Covid 19 epidemic as an excuse for his need for another 4 years to finish what he started. “BURQUE, Please Give Me More Time To Make One Albuquerque Safe” is not much of a slogan.

______________

POSTSCRIPT

Below are the total homicides, aggravated assault and violent crimes reported for the last 12 full years:

The number of HOMICIDES reported each year from 2008 to 2019 are:

2008: 38
2009: 56
2010: 42
2011: 35
2012: 41
2013: 34
2014: 30
2015: 42
2016: 61
2017: 72
2018: 69
2019: 82
2020: 42 as of August 3.

The number of AGGRAVATED ASSAULTS (assaults with deadly weapon) reported each year from 2008 to 2018 are:

2008: 2,960
2009: 2,597
2010: 2,971
2011: 2,910
2012: 2,740
2013: 2,803
2014: 3,121
2015: 3,273
2016: 3,846
2017: 4,213
2018: 3,885

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.

The total number of VIOLENT CRIMES (murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault combined) reported each year from 2008 to 2018 are:

2008: 4,718
2009: 4,082
2010: 4,291
2011: 4,207
2012: 4,151
2013: 4,322
2014: 4,934
2015: 5,405
2016: 6,245
2017: 7,686 (Aggravated Assaults: 4,213, Non-Fatal Shootings: 470)
2018: 6,789 (Aggravated Assaults: 3,885, Non-Fatal Shootings: 491)

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.

https://www.cabq.gov/police/annual-reports/uniform-crime-reports

Hot town, summer in the city
Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty
Been down, isn’t it a pity
Doesn’t seem to be a shadow in the city

[At night it’s not a different world, as murders continue to swirl.]

“Summer In The City”, Lovin Spoonful, 1966. (Editors note: Apologies to the “Lovin Spoonful” for adding last line to a great summer song.)

On August 7, KOAT, TV investigative reporter Nancy Laflin reported as follows:

“Last year was one of the highest murder rates in Albuquerque’s history.
KOAT asked Albuquerque police if the city is on track for another record no one wants to have.
APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos says there have been at least 41 homicides in the city, so far this year.
Police are investigating two other deaths to see if those cases are homicides as well.
Gallegos said there was a spike in homicides in July, with at least seven deaths. In August, there have been three murders.
At this time last year he says there were 46.
Gallegos said many of these cases have one thing in common.
“Probably the biggest problem for us has been and continues to be gun crimes. Shootings with injuries, homicides involving guns,” he said. Gallegos said the department is targeting crimes involving guns.
Gallegos said there are arrests in about 56% of the homicides in Albuquerque. He says there are between eight to 10 detectives to investigate these cases. Federal officers are also working with local police to address Albuquerque’s crime crisis.”

https://www.koat.com/article/abq-homicide-cases-going-up-during-summer-months/33550332

HOMICIDES

In 2018, during Mayor Keller’s first full year in office, there were 69 homicides.
In 2019, during Mayor Keller’s second full year in office, there were 82 homicides. Albuquerque had more homicides in 2019 than in any other year in the city’s history. The previous high was 72, in 2017 under Mayor RJ Berry. Another high mark was in 1996, when the city had 70 homicides.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1405615/apd-reports-record-82-homicides-for-2019.html#:~:text=Gilbert%20Gallegos%2C%20a%20police%20spokesman,high%20was%2072%2C%20in%202017.
As of August 7, there have been 41 homicides reported in Albuquerque for 2020.

https://www.koat.com/article/abq-homicide-cases-going-up-during-summer-months/33550332

APD HOMICIDE CLEARANCE RATE AT HISTORICAL LOW, DROPS FROM 80% TO 52%

On Sunday, February 23rd, 2020, it was reported that there has been a dramatic surge in the number of homicides and the percentage of those solved by arrest has dropped dramatically.” In 2019, the city had a historical high of 82 homicides in one year with a 52% solve rate. From January 1, to February 01, the city had 8 homicides, the same number of homicides as in January 2019. On February 22 and 22, three more homicides were reported in the city with arrests yet to be made.
Below are links to the news coverage:

https://www.koat.com/article/deadly-weekend-in-duke-city/31069697

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/eight-homicides-in-albuquerque-last-month/5631030/

APD STAFFING AND CASE LOADS

According to APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos the homicide unit has 11 detectives and one sergeant. In 2017, APD had 5 detective and one sergeant. APD officials claim that the homicides are being vigorously investigated and detectives are following numerous leads. However, APD does not maintain collective data to show how many murders over the years have gone unsolved and still considered open cases. Some APD homicide detectives have fewer than 10 cases each.

According to APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos:

“Others with the most years in homicide may have more than 20, which includes cases that may be three, four or five years old and awaiting new leads.”

The city’s APD yearly budget contains performance evaluation statistics mandated by the city’s “performance evaluation” based budget. According to city budget documents, APD’s homicide clearance rate reported in the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report was 80% from fiscal year 2009 to fiscal year 2016. In each of the last two calendar years, the percentage of homicides solved in the city dropped to 52%. That number reflects homicides that weren’t deemed justifiable. The overall clearance rate for 2018 and 2019 was is slightly higher because detectives solved 9 homicides from prior years.

APD maintains a website showing “Active Homicide Investigations.” But the website lists just 25 cases, which occurred from January 2018 to August 2018.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1423578/more-murders-fewer-cases-cleared.html

HOMICIDE CLEARANCE RATES UNDER MAYOR KELLER

For the past two years during Mayor Keller’s tenure, the homicide clearance percentage rate has been in the 50%-60% range. According to the proposed 2018-2019 APD City Budget, in 2016 the APD homicide clearance rate was 80%. In 2017, under Mayor Berry the clearance rate was 70%. In 2018, the first year of Keller’s term, the homicide clearance rate was 56%. In 2019, the second year of Keller’s term, the homicide clearance rate was 52.5%, the lowest clearance rate in the last decade.

During an October, 2019 City Council meeting, APD management said it was working on new strategies to ease the workload on APD sworn officers and homicide detectives.

During an October, 2019 City Council meeting, APD Commander of Criminal Investigations Joe Burke had this to say:

“I would say in the long term if I was looking at a long-term solution—I believe we need two homicide units. I think the best practices around the nation normally have two homicide units. Detectives should be balancing between three to five investigations and we’re nearly double that. … We absolutely need detectives in criminal investigations. … I was happy when I went over at the end of July and was briefed on the status of the unit that there’s a plan in place within the executive staff that when cadets are graduating from the academy that we’re going to get a certain percentage specifically for the criminal investigations bureau.”

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-officials-look-for-solutions-to-ease-workload-on-apd-officers-homicide-detectives/5594211/?cat=500

The APD homicide unit has 10 detectives assigned to it. Given the testimony of Commander Joe Burke, total number of detective assigned to the homicide unit should be upwards of 20 with two sperate units.

VIOLENT CRIMES

In 2017, during Mayor RJ Berry’s last full year in office, there were 7,686 VIOLENT CRIMES. There were 4,213 Aggravated Assaults and 470 Non-Fatal Shootings:

In 2018 during Mayor Keller’ first full year in office, there were 6,789 violent crimes There were 3,885 Aggravated Assaults and 491 Non-Fatal Shootings.

https://www.petedinelli.com/2019/11/21/city-matches-homicide-record-high-of-72-murders-mayor-keller-forced-to-defend-policies-makes-more-promises-asks-for-more-money/
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.

VIOLENT CRIME STATISTICS FOR LAST 12 YEARS

Below are the total homicides, aggravated assault and violent crimes reported for the last 12 full years:

The number of HOMICIDES reported each year from 2008 to 2019 are:

2008: 38
2009: 56
2010: 42
2011: 35
2012: 41
2013: 34
2014: 30
2015: 42
2016: 61
2017: 72
2018: 69
2019: 82
2020: 42 as of August 3.

The number of AGGRAVATED ASSAULTS (assaults with deadly weapon) reported each year from 2008 to 2018 are:

2008: 2,960
2009: 2,597
2010: 2,971
2011: 2,910
2012: 2,740
2013: 2,803
2014: 3,121
2015: 3,273
2016: 3,846
2017: 4,213
2018: 3,885

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.
The total number of VIOLENT CRIMES (murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault combined) reported each year from 2008 to 2018 are:

2008: 4,718
2009: 4,082
2010: 4,291
2011: 4,207
2012: 4,151
2013: 4,322
2014: 4,934
2015: 5,405
2016: 6,245
2017: 7,686 (Aggravated Assaults: 4,213, Non-Fatal Shootings: 470)
2018: 6,789 (Aggravated Assaults: 3,885, Non-Fatal Shootings: 491)

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.

https://www.cabq.gov/police/annual-reports/uniform-crime-reports

INCREASE IN MURDERS IS A NATIONAL TREND

Diane Dimond, age 68, is a national “Crime and Justice Columnist.” Ms. Dimond is an American investigative journalist, author, syndicated columnist, and TV commentator. She is best known for breaking the story of child molestation allegations against singer Michael Jackson and her coverage of the subsequent criminal trial. On August 8, one of her columns appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. The article as a whole is about crime rates during the pandemic. According to the column the U.S. murder rate had been significantly slowing since the early ’90s but that is no longer the case and she reports:

“Homicides and gun violence are on the rise. Murders have spiked in 36 of the 50 biggest American cities that were studied during a newly released Wall Street Journal analysis of crime stats.

I’m no social scientist, but I’m thinking that it’s not just the cabin fever caused by COVID-19 isolation that has caused this increase in gun violence and murders. It seems obvious that the current spate of anything-goes-lawlessness and destructive anti-police fervor has added to the idea that illegal, anarchistic behavior won’t be punished. As proof we see disproportionately few arrests given the growing number of destructive acts of property damage – and, yes, even murders – that have occurred in several states.
… .”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1484278/the-good-and-very-bad-of-pandemicera-crime-rates.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

In 2017, candidate for Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller campaigned to get elected Mayor on the platform of implementing the Department of Justice (DOJ) mandated reforms, increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), returning to community-based policing and a promise to bring down skyrocketing crime rates. Tim Keller has already made it known he is running for a second term in 2021.

Mayor Tim Keller can take very little comfort with the fact that the city’s increase in homicides is part of a national trend. The truth is, Albuquerque has been in the forefront of the trend for the last 5 years and homicides have more than doubled. In 2014, the city had 30 homicides and each year thereafter homicides increased and in 2019 the city had 82 homicides, the most in the city’s history. As of August 8, the city has had 43 homicides, yet Mayor Keller says violent crime is a top priority of his administration yet he has done nothing to beef up the homicide unit to a level that is needed to deal with the crisis and the unacceptable clearance rates.

In 2019, in response to the continuing increase in violent crime rates, Mayor Keller scrambled to implement 4 major crime fighting programs to reduce violent crime: the Shield Unit, Declaring Violent Crime “Public Health” issue, the “Violence Intervention Plan” (VIP program) and the Metro 15 Operation program. Based upon the statistics, the Keller programs have had very little effect on reducing violent crime.

Voters are very fickle and unforgiving when politicians make promises they do not or cannot keep. Sooner rather than later people demand and want results. People no longer feel safe in their own homes. No amount of data collection, public relations or nuance programs are going to satisfy those demands or make people feel any safer. Then there is next summer which promises to be as bad as the summers of the last 5 years.

Forward Together Action (FTA) is progressive organization, with offices in California, Oregon and New Mexico. It is a charitable corporation, exempt from income tax, and as such is required to file Form 990 annually with the federal government.

According to its web page, its mission is that it “organizes communities to build power so all families can thrive. FTA evaluates how existing power structures help or harm our families and pushes for the changes needed to create systems that serve all of us. FTA builds political power that uplifts the leadership of women of color, non-binary people and Indigenous communities. FTA holds elected officials accountable to ensure all our families get the support they need to thrive and support leaders and legislators who share our commitment to strong families.”

Forward Together Action in New Mexico leads year-round community-based civic engagement and advocacy with a base of over 10,000 people in four counties (including three rural counties) to change policies and shift culture in New Mexico. FTA New Mexico organizes opportunities in communities where decision makers, organizations and families can come together to share their stories, offer ideas for change, and create solutions in collaboration with one another. Strong Families New Mexico (SFNM) is a state-based advocacy and action program of Forward Together.

Major issues that FTA lists that it works to promote include:

Securing healthcare access, including abortion
Ensuring that our communities are safe from state-based and gender-based bias
Advocating for paid sick leave and paid family leave

The link to the FTA web page is here:

https://forwardtogether.org/programs/state-national-action/

DEMAND FOR PAT DAVIS TO RESIGN FROM CITY COUNCIL

On August 3, 2020, Forward Action Together released the following statement:

HEADLINE: Forward Together Action Statement on Pat Davis
August 3, 2020

It has become clear that Pat Davis, Albuquerque City Councilor, can no longer be a decision-maker in New Mexico. The recent reports about the shooting of a young Black man, Moses Bell, while Davis was a member of the DC Police Department, followed by multiple allegations of civil rights violations while a member of the UNM Police Department in Albuquerque have made it clear that Pat Davis has his own historic pattern of racism and violence against our communities, a past for which he has refused to apologize or even address.

We are calling on Davis to resign his position on the Albuquerque City Council and finally make room for the voices he has worked so long to silence – those of communities of color who have suffered the consequences of his policing and policy decisions. We also call on Governor Lujan Grisham and others to refuse to appoint Davis to any new commissions, boards, or committees. Instead those in power should make room for the voices who have been silenced and hurt by Davis and others, putting them at the center of policy change.

The link to the statement is here:

http://www.forwardtogetheraction.org/2020/08/03/forward-together-action-statement-on-pat-davis/

Forward Together Action is the third progressive organization to demand that Pat Davis resign from the Albuquerque City Council. The other two with links to their resignation demands are:
Progress Now New Mexico. The link to the ProgressNow statement is here:

https://progressnownm.org/?p=225026

Ole, New Mexico. The link to the OLÉ New Mexico statement is here:

https://medium.com/@olenewmexico/on-power-lessons-learned-speaking-up-db837e2cef9c

LINK TO PAT DAVIS STATEMENT

On June 25, Progress Now New Mexico issued a statement calling for the resignation of City Council President Pat Davis from the Albuquerque City Council. On June 26, Pat Davis went into overdrive and issued a Statement to the media in response to ProgressNow demanding that he resign from the 4 positions of trust and he stated in part:

“It is unfortunate that a blogger’s misrepresentation of the facts is gaining attention and being shared, when court records and subsequent legitimate news stories that can be easily factchecked outline a different pattern of facts and conclusion”.

The link to the full Davis statement is here:

https://www.kob.com/kobtvimages/repository/cs/files/DAVIS%20policing.pdf

LINK TO DOCUMENTS AND COURT FILINGS

The actual pleadings filed are the best evidence to “fact check” the pattern of facts and conclusions peddled by Pat Davis as true to the media which are either false or misleading. In order to “fact check” all of the misrepresentations made by Pat Davis, a link to all the documents and federal court pleadings filed is here:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ZYWiEndlYG3ffELYQO2JMAfzeZzeikUR

DOCUMENT LISTING AND SUMMARIES

A listing of the documents and pleadings in order of importance with summations are as follows:

1. Court Docket page reflecting “Armed Kidnapping ” charge filed against Moses Bell for “kidnapping” of Pat Davis by Moses Bell. (1 page.)

Moses Bell is the African American who was shot twice by Pat Davis when he was a Washington, DC Cop. Moses Bell was originally charged with “kidnapping” of Pat Davis when Moses Bell “drove off” with Davis still hanging half way out of the car after he shot Bell twice and as he struggled with Bell after Davis reached into Bell’s vehicle and tried to seize a gun Bell was trying to hide. (Kidnapping? Kidnapping?? You can’t make this stuff up.)

2. Initial Criminal Complaint against Moses Bell with “Statement of Facts” prepared and signed by charging police officer. (3 pages)

This is a handwritten document written and signed by a police officer (name illegible) charging Moses Bell with “Assaulting, Resisting or Interfering With A Police Officer with a Dangerous Weapon” with a typed “statement of facts” that was also sign by the charging officer and attached to the criminal complaint. A detention hearing was held with Moses Bell held in jail without bond.

3. “Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law And Order Of Detention Pending Trial” of Moses Bell. (6 pages)

These are the “finding of fact” adopted and filed by the Federal Court Judge to jail Moses Bell without bond pending trial. The court’s findings of fact are verbatim from the DC Police charging document that states “two black males” and “a black male subject exit the passenger side of the vehicle.” The charging language makes two references to “black” and not to suspects. Ethnicity has nothing to do with the misdemeanor charges of failing to use a turn signal and a passenger not wearing a seat belt. This distinction was ostensibly important for Officer Davis and his partner to place in the charging document. Otherwise, they he would not have done it.

What is not alleged in the “finding of fact” and can be deduced is that Officer Pat Davis escalated a confrontation by reaching into the vehicle on the driver’s side where Moses Bell was sitting in an idling car. Davis apparently did not say anything as he tried to grab a gun from Moses Bell that Bell was trying to hide resulting in a struggle between Davis and Bell.

Absent are any allegations that Bell was threatening Davis. Davis did not know if Bell had a permit for the gun. Davis lunging into the vehicle was a likely violation of police standard operating procedure. By reaching into the car, Davis placed himself in a completely vulnerable position and endangered his own life and the life of his assisting officer. Davis reaching into the car as he did ostensibly result in Bell reacting. Bell decided to drive off while Davis was partially in the vehicle and Davis either shot him twice in the vehicle or as Bell drove off. Bell was later found with his car abandoned and a gun found on the ground. Bell was arrested and taken to a hospital where he was treated for his two gun shot wounds.

An original allegation Pat Davis has made is that Moses Bell drove off and as he did he drove over the leg of Pat Davis and crashed his vehicle. These allegations are simply false in that the vehicle was found within the hour after the shooting abandoned in a parking lot of an office complex. Bell was found hiding in a stairwell. Pat Davis soon showed up, uninjured, and positively identified Bell as the man he shot. Bell was taken to a hospital where he was treated for his injuries after which he was taken into custody and to jail by Pat Davis.

4. Moses Bell Defense Attorney Sentencing Memorandum (1 page)

All initial criminal charges against Moses Bell including “Assaulting a Police Officer with a Deadly Weapon”, “ Kidnapping” and “Resisting Arrest” were all dismissed or no charges were brought by a grand jury. Bell was ultimately charged by the United States Attorney with one felony of “possession of a firearm” for the reason that the evidence did not support “assault and battery” on a police officer. Bell plead guilty to the one charge and was sentence to the 18 months in jail he agreed to in his plea agreement.

On May 12, 2005, the defense attorney Edward C. Sussman for Moses M. Bell filed the “DEFENDANT’S MEMORANDUM IN AID OF SENTENCING”. The court document provides for the first time Moses M. Bell’s version of his shooting by Pat Davis. It also exposes major discrepancies in what Pat Davis alleged in the criminal complaint as to what happened.

The Defendant’s “Memorandum In Aid of Sentencing” reveals that an Internal Affairs Investigation of Officer Pat Davis and his shooting of Moses Bell was conducted. Pat Davis has never disclosed the results of his Internal Affairs Investigation. Further, Pat Davis has never disclosed if one of his problems was being a “target” of the grand jury and if criminal charges were considered to be brought against him by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia for excessive use of force or deadly force or for civil rights violations.

5. Court Docket information page reflecting that charging codes had been changed and that Moses Bell was not charged with “assault with a deadly weapon” of Pat Davis. (1 page)

6. Plaintiff Bell’s Civil Lawsuit Against Davis (8 pages)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Pat Davis never revealed the existence of this lawsuit when he ran for Bernalillo County Sheriff, City Council nor United States Congress. All Davis has ever acknowledged publicly is that he was involved with a Police Officer involved shooting. Pat Davis has said he has “made arrests and instigated some encounters I wouldn’t be proud of today” and he has engaged in “brutalization … of those who [he was] supposed to protect and serve.”

This is the handwritten complaint, verified under oath as true, file by Moses Bell without the assistance of an attorney describing his shooting by Police Officer Pat Davis. On August 31, 2004, Moses M. Bell, age 37 at the time, was a Washington, DC resident. Moses M. Bell is African American and on August 31, 2004, was driving his car and giving his male African American friend a ride to his girlfriend’s house.

According to his complaint, while sitting in his idling parked vehicle to allow his passenger to exit his vehicle, Bell was shot twice in the left shoulder by Washington D.C. Police Officer Pat Davis when Davis approached the driver’s side of the car and opened fire without provocation. At the time of the shooting, D.C. Police Officer Patrick Davis was allegedly investigating Moses M. Bell, the driver of the vehicle, for failure to make a left turn signal and his passenger’s failure to wear a seat belt. Police officer David Tucker, Davis’ partner, remained in the vehicle when Davis got out of the patrol car to question the driver Moses M Bell. Moses M. Bell was first charged with “Assaulting, Resisting or Interfering With A Police Officer With A Dangerous Weapon” when a gun was found in the car Bell was driving. Bell’s hand gun was found to have never been discharged and Bell did not threaten or point his gun at Pat Davis.

7. Plaintiff Bell Certification of “Non Service of Process” document (1 page)

This is a handwritten Certification by Moses Bell discloses to the Court that Pat Davis could not be found for “Service of Process” of his Civil Complaint. What Moses Bell ostensibly did not know was that Pat Davis had left the Washington, DC Police Department, moved to New Mexico and was employed by the University of New Mexico as a Lieutenant with the UNM Campus Police. The Bell lawsuit was dismissed against all co-defendants.

8. MOTION TO DISMISS CIVIL COMPLAINT

On December 7, 2005, Co Defendants the District of Columbia and David Tucker, filed a Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff Moses Bell’s Civil Complaint. The grounds for the Motion was “Failure State Claims of Relief”. The reasons given supporting the motion was that Moses Bell’s claims lacked merit, his injuries were not directly related to an established municipal policy nor custom as required by law and that Police Officer David Tucker did not shoot Moses Bell.

9. MEMORANDUM OPINION GRANTING DEFENSE MOTION TO DISMISS

On July 10, 2006 United States District Judge James Robertson filed his Memorandum Opinion and an Order of Dismissal of Claims in Civil Action No. 05-13 72 (JR) captioned Moses Bell, Plaintiff v. City of Washington, D.C.., et al. The Court specifically dismissed Bell’s Civil Complaint against the city and police officer David Tucker.

Judge Robertson noted that “Defendant Davis has been dismissed without prejudice because Mr. Bell has failed to provide an address for purpose of service of process.”

The memorandum opinion reflects an astounding act of brutality by Pat Davis against Moses Bell after he was shot with the Federal Judge adopting the following findings of fact as Background:

“In the afternoon of August 31, 2004, Mr. Bell was at the Greenway Shopping Center, 301 37th Street, S.E., Washington, D.C. when he saw a friend. … He agreed to give his friend a ride to his girlfriend’s residence. … As he was dropping his friend off, Officer Davis approached Mr. Bell’s vehicle on the driver’s side and began shooting at Mr. Bell, striking him twice on the left shoulder. … Fearing for his life, Mr. Bell fled, eventually parking his car, and calling his cousin to pick him up. … Before his cousin could arrive, Mr. Bell was apprehended by the police and transported by ambulance to Howard University Hospital. …

After receiving medical treatment, Mr. Bell was transported by the police, including officer Davis, to the Sixth District station. … En route to the station, the driver, Officer Davis, caused the car to move erratically, which resulted in the reopening of Mr. Bell’s wound. … The police transported Mr. Bell to Greater Southeast Hospital for further treatment and medication. … He was eventually placed into custody at the District of Columbia Central Detention Facility. …”

10. Order [of Dismissal]

This is an Order of Dismissal filed by the Federal Judge in the civil lawsuit filed by Moses Bell. The significance of this dismissal is that it only dismisses as party defendants the District of Colombia Police Department and Police Officer David Tucker who was with Pat Davis when Davis shot Bell.

11. Motion [To Reconsider Dismissal]

Moses M. Bell file a handwritten Motion To Reconsider after the judge dismissed his case.

12. Order [Denying Motion to Reconsider Dismissal]

The Court denied the Plaintiff’s pro se Motion to Reconsider

13 . Bender-Hughes Civil “Complaint For False Arrest and Imprisonment, Negligence and Civil Rights Violations”. (8 pages.)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Pat Davis has never revealed the existence of this lawsuit when he ran for Bernalillo County Sheriff, City Council nor United States Congress. Pat Davis has said he has “made arrests and instigated some encounters I wouldn’t be proud of today” and he has engaged in “brutalization … of those who [he was] supposed to protect and serve.”

The civil complaint alleges that on January 8, 2008, the Defendant Pat Davis, along with other UNM Police went to the home of Brook Bender looking for a person named Richard Hughes and telling Bender they needed to search her home. According to the complaint, the officers did not identify themselves until Bender noticed a UNM Police Badge. The complaint alleges that Davis and the defendants told Plaintiff Bender that they knew she worked for UNM because they had found her UNM employee identification in her car next to some contraband and told her she needed to “work with them” or they would inform UNM officials about the alleged contraband found. According to Bender’s allegations, she responded to the threats by allowing Davis and the other defendants into her home and asked to see a “search warrant”. They told Bender they did not have a search warrant, that they could easily obtain one and if she insisted on a search warrant, they would “rat her out” to her UNM employer.

The Bender-Hughes civil complaint alleges that on the morning of January 9, 2008, at approximately 10:30 am, Davis and the UNM police went to the home of Plaintiff Joan Hughes, made contact with her and announced that they were looking for her son Richard Hughes with Pat Davis providing Plaintiff Hughes with his business card. Hughes told the Defendants that her son was in jail in Grants, New Mexico, which the defendants later confirmed, and that her son had not lived with her for several years. Davis none the less told Hughes that they had to “search her house”. Davis and the other defendants had no search warrant for the home and did not ask Hughes for permission to search her home.

According to the complaint, Davis and the 3 other officers entered the home and ordered Hughes to sit on her couch while two of the defendants watched Hughes and while the others conducted and extensive searched of her home which lasted for about one hour. According to the complaint, one defendant UNM Police Officers found pistol cartridges in Hughes bedroom, asked Hughes where the gun was and she notified them it was in her kitchen. Davis or another defendant retrieved the gun and made a call to see if it was stolen, and it was not. The complaint also alleges that Defendants found marijuana belonging to Hughes’s boyfriend. The defendants confiscated the gun found in the home and the marijuana. On January 11, 2008, Hughes secured the return of the gun from the UNM Police.

14. Flores’ “Civil Complaint for Damages and Civil Rights Violations “ (16 pages)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Pat Davis has never revealed the existence of this lawsuit when he ran for Bernalillo County Sheriff, City Council nor United States Congress. Pat Davis has said he has “made arrests and instigated some encounters I wouldn’t be proud of today” and he has engaged in “brutalization … of those who [he was] supposed to protect and serve.”

On December 17, 2007, at approximately 9:10 pm in the evening when no one was at home at a mid-heights home residence, UNM Cop Pat Davis, along with 21 law enforcement officers stormed the residence to execute a “sealed search warrant”. Three “flash bang” grenades were hurled into the home causing damages to the walls and which started a fire that required the Albuquerque Fire Department to be dispatched. According to the complaint, the defendants, which included Davis, broke in two front doors, wrought iron works, broke windows and interior doors, broke a car window, broke a sliding gate to the home and “trashed” the interior of the home including breaking furniture in a search of marijuana or other evidence of a crime, but no evidence of any crime was found against the plaintiffs nor their renter. Upwards of $20,000 in property damage was caused and three Plaintiffs filed the lawsuit, Aaron Flores and his parents Arturo and Celia Flores against Pat Davis and 20 other law enforcement agents.

15. Plaintiffs Aaron Flores, Cecilia Flores and Arturo Flores “Full and Final Release of Claims and Indemnity Agreement” against Defendant Pat Davis. (5 pages)

This is a release of claims by the 3 plaintiffs against Defendant Pat Davis where $25,000 was paid by UNM relating to the search of private residence and damage done to property. No information is available as to what settlement was reached by the 3 plaintiffs against the other 20 law enforcement who assisted Davis with the raid to execute the sealed search warrant.

16. Pat Davis Booking Statement for Aggravated DWI. (2 pages)

This is the Pat Davis’s arrest sheet for aggravated DWI.

On July 28, 2013, Pat Davis, then age 35, was the chair of the Albuquerque Metro Crime Stoppers and the Executive Director of Progressive Now when he was arrested by BCSO Sheriff’s Deputies around 12:30 a.m. on the 1300 block of Broadway under suspicion of drunk driving. Deputies arrived at the minor accident where Davis had ran into another vehicle to find Davis who appeared drunk, had slurred speech, bloodshot watery eyes and the smell of alcohol on his breath.

On the police audio tape, Davis was told by the BCSO Deputy he could smell alcohol on Davis and asked Davis if he had consumed any alcoholic beverages that evening. Davis is heard to say “no” on the tape, said he had not been drinking and what the officer was smelling was SCOPE mouthwash. Davis referred the officer to a mouthwash bottle in his car. When asked about his slurred speech, Davis can be heard on the audio tape telling the deputy “My speech is not usually slurred. I have a southern accent and been a cop for 10 years.” Davis was born in Georgia, and was claiming he still had an accent. The investigating deputy found a travel-sized bottle of SCOPE mouthwash in Davis’ vehicle but at the license revocation hearing the sheriff officers could not say if and when Davis may have used it the night of his arrest. Davis was administered a field sobriety tests which he failed. Davis submitted to 2 separate alcohol breath tests that showed his blood-alcohol concentration was .19 and .18 respectively.

https://www.abqjournal.com/226603/pat-davis-chair-of-abq-crime-stoppers-charged-with-dwi.html

Davis plead guilty in February 2014 to a first-offense driving under the influence of alcohol and fought the Aggravated DWI charges. Davis was given a deferred sentence with no jail time if he completed 6 months’ probation and 6 months of having an ignition interlock system in his car with random breath alcohol tests and random urinalysis and was given no jail time.

17. Pat Davis Driver’s License Revocation Decision And Order (6 pages)

On November 6, 2013 after an administrative law hearing before a hearing officer with the Department of Taxation and Revenue, which issues drivers’ licenses, the driving privileges of Pat Davis were suspended for 6 months and he was ordered to install an ignition interlock in any vehicle he drove.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Given what is known about City Councilor Pat Davis, his actions as a police officer, his litigation history, his credibility is in serious doubt as are his political motives. The real Pat Davis, and his lack of respect for constitutional rights are revealed by his pattern of conduct he engaged if for years and was sued for as a UNM Police Officer and for his conduct as a DC Police Officer.

What is very difficult to reconcile is the past conduct of Pat Davis as a UNM Campus Police Officer and his appointment to chair the Governor’s Task Force on the Legalization of Marijuana. The two civil lawsuits filed against Pat Davis while he was a UNM Campus Police Officer were for violations of people’s civil rights relating to the unlawful searches of private residences for marijuana relating to drug trafficking.

WHITE PRIVILEGE CITY COUNCIL COALITION

Pat Davis is now the leader of what is being referred to as the “White Privilege Coalition” on the City Council consisting of Democrats Pat Davis, Isaac Benton, Diane Gibson and Republicans Don Harris and Trudy Jones. Pat Davis has bragged about in the past of being able to work with Republicans on the city council and has even co-sponsored many ordinances with Republican Don Harris. These are the very same city councilors who voted repeatedly for the ART Bus project and kept all their mouths shut and refused to hold APD accountable when the Federal Monitor issued scathing audit reports on the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA).

Prior to his death, long time City Councilor Ken Sanchez, as a native of Albuquerque, was a strong advocate for all parts of the city and would often work closely with City Councilors Klarisa Pena and Cynthia Borrego to get things done. It was common knowledge Sanchez was always thinking about running for Mayor. Democrat Ken Sanchez was considered a moderate Democrat and would often disagree with Mayor Tim Keller. Sanchez was often criticized by the progressive wing of the party as being a “corporate democrat”.

When long time City Councilor Sanchez passed away, Progressive Democrat Mayor Tim Keller took advantage of it and appointed a progressive activist to the City Council he could rely upon for any and all support, ignoring the two daughters of two former city councilors for the City Council District, Ken Sanchez and Pat Baca, who applied to fill out the term of Ken Sanchez. Now that Pat Davis is City Council President, confidential sources are saying that he repeatedly marginalizes the Hispanic woman on the city council and opposes any of their initiatives. When Pat Davis marginalizes the Hispanic woman on the City Council, he relies on his “White Privilege” coalition on the city council as does Progressive Mayor Tim Keller.

CONNECTING THE POLITICAL DOTS

Confidential sources have said the minority members of the City Council are fearful that City Councilor Pat Davis will retaliate against them should they ever demand his resignation. Mayor Tim Keller’s longtime paid political consultant Alan Packman is now working for the city’s 311 Citizens Contact Call Center and confidential sources have said he responds only to Mayor Tim Keller. Mr. Packman was also a paid political consultant to City Councilor Pat Davis when he ran for city council. Confidential City Hall sources say Packman maintains continuous contacts with Pat Davis assisting and advising him whenever he can along with Mayor Tim Keller’s efforts.

Pat Davis has said “In two elections, voters have sent me to City Hall because I talked authentically and honestly”. The message he is conveying is he has been vetted and forgiven for past mistakes by the voters because he successfully won. Davis is seriously mistaken and is a fool if he thinks that way. Many people of nefarious reputation have been elected to positions of authority, even a President of the United States. Election vetting and even a pardon does not absolve any one from serious misconduct.

CONCLUSION

It is an embarrassment that not a single member of the City Council nor Mayor Tim Keller has asked Pat Davis to step down as President of the City Council. The voting public at least now know why and that progressive organizations have wise upped to Pat Davis. Pat Davis has no business making decisions regarding police reforms, law enforcement policy let alone being City Council President representing the entire City Council and in turn the entire city and people of Albuquerque. Pat Davis needs to resign and seek employment other than elective office. If he left the state after he resigns, that would be a good second step in the left direction.

It was over two years ago on March 28, 2018, that the Albuquerque Journal reported on its front page that City Councilor Issac Benton used $20,000 of his City Council $1 million in “set-aside” money to purchase at auction what he hopes could be a solution to a burgeoning public bathroom shortage in Albuquerque.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1151379/providing-a-new-place-to-do-business-downtown.html

Benton had the city purchase a slightly used “Portland Loo” which is a one-stall, stainless steel, stand-alone restroom that sells for around $100,000 new. At the time, Benton claimed the steel toilet is “almost indestructible.”

On February 5, 2016, it was reported that an identical “Portland Loo” was yanked out of the ground in San Diego because it was a magnet for crime and it was one of the more notorious financial boondoggles in San Diego history.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sdut-portland-loo-remove-crime-cost-restroom-2016feb05-story.html

In addition to a 130 percent increase in police calls to the area around the restroom, it was reported maintenance and repair costs were more than double initial estimates. The steel toilet stall, which operated for 13 months at 14th and L streets in San Diego, was moved to the San Diego storage yard and city officials said there were no plans to re-install it anywhere.

YOU CAN FINALLY GO IN THE PORTLAND LOO

On August 4, 2020, the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Municipal Development, Parks and Recreation Department, and District 2 City Councilor Isaac Benton announced the “Old Town Loo” has been installed. The placement of the loo allowed the DMD Parking Division to remove an old parking booth that was no longer being used and to widen the entrance into the parking lot. This has improved access for wider vehicles such as RVs and provides them with additional parking options while visiting Old Town.

The City of Albuquerque says the Parks and Recreation Department will maintain the unit which has been installed in the Old Town City parking lot at San Felipe Street and Central Avenue. The one-stall public restroom is made with heavy-gauge steel wall panels and has graffiti-proof coating.

Councilor Benton had this to say:

“I’m very pleased with the Portland Loo, which we were able to acquire for a very affordable cost using District 2 set-a-side funds, will now be in operation in Old Town. Thanks to DMD and to the Historic Old Town Property Owners Association for their advocacy”.

Dave Simon, director of Parks and Recreation, had this to say:

“Old Town is one of Albuquerque’s crown jewels, and we want visitors to have clean and accessible restrooms. … The Old Town Loo is a great addition to the existing facilities.”

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/city-of-albuquerque-announces-installation-of-old-town-loo/

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

This is the very first time that I know of that City Councilor Isaac Benton has shown any real concern about anything in his city council district. It is likely what will happen is that the Portland Loo will be a venue for illicit drug use or for that matter prostitution, which is what has happened in Portland.

When you wait long enough on someone, they finally give a crap.

On June 29, 2020 Santa Fe 1st Judicial District Judge Matthew Wilson denied the State of New Mexico’s “Motion to Dismiss” the public education case of Yazzie v. State of New Mexico. The case is the landmark public education case decided on July 20, 2018 by the late Santa Fe District Court Judge Sarah Singleton with Judge Wilson taking the case over.

Judge Singleton ruled that the state of New Mexico was violating the constitutional rights of at-risk students by failing to provide them with a sufficient education. Singleton found that New Mexico was failing to give at risk students, who make up about 80% of the state’s student population, a sufficient public education that prepared them for the workforce or for college.

The case was decided towards the end of the prior Republican Administration with Democrat Governor Lujan Grisham deciding not to appeal the case at the time. Lujan Grisham said that her administration would “litigate aggressively” in an attempt to avoid ongoing court oversight of New Mexico’s public schools. After almost two years, the Motion to Dismiss was filed.

The state’s attorney Taylor Rahn argued that the Public Education Department has met the court’s expectation to make substantial changes by an initial deadline. Rhan argued that the State increased public education funding to the extent that it makes up 46% of the state budget. State Attorney Rahn noted the legislature has increased at-risk funds substantially, teacher recruitment has been improved and major educational evaluation systems, such as teacher evaluations, have been improved. Rhan argued:

“The point of the injunction was to be a catalyst for change and that change has occurred. Continuing to exercise oversight for traditional executive and legislative functions is not required, because we got the message”.

Plaintiff’s Attorney Ernest Herrera, counsel for the Martinez plaintiffs, argued:

“Any of the state’s supposed fixes are really just promises to act. … Continuing jurisdiction of this court is necessary to ensure implementation. … This is about changing the system and not just about how much money is going into it.”

Judge Wilson agreed that the state’s Public Education Department has made significant progress since the 2018 ruling but said the court has yet to see long-term education reforms by the state. Judge Wilson ultimately agreed with the Plaintiffs contention that the state’s changes have not been enough. In deciding to deny the Motion to Dismiss, Judge Wilson ruled:

“The court agrees with the plaintiff’s counsel that to dismiss this action now while implementation and compliance are merely in their initial stages would undermine the years of work by this court and the parties and leave the children of New Mexico in an educational system that may be below constitutional standards”.

Judge Wilson also ruled that the plaintiffs’ counsel can investigate whether the state is complying with the judgment. Judge Wilson also denied a Plaintiff’s motion to require a detailed plan on implementation of changes to the state’s education system.

After the court’s denial to dismiss the case, Governor Lujan Grisham spokeswoman Nora Meyers Sackett said the governor would work to continue improving New Mexico schools and further said:

“Just as she was prior to today’s ruling, the governor remains committed to a comprehensive restructuring and reform of New Mexico’s public education system that continues to address the systemic shortfalls outlined by the original lawsuit,”

As a result of the court’s denial of the motion, the state’s Public Education Department will have to comply with an examination into what it is doing to ensure an adequate education for low-income families, students with disabilities, English-language learners and Native American students.

Plaintiff Wilhelmina Yazzie released a written statement that the state can’t be trusted to keep making changes without the court’s intervention and said:

“It’s time for our leaders to be courageous and make real changes for our kids. All across the country, people are standing up against the inequities caused by hundreds of years of systemic racism. It’s time for our state to stop fighting the lawsuit and instead address the inequities in our schools.”

New Mexico State Representative Derrick Lente, D-Sandia Pueblo, said the result of Judge Wilson’s ruling is that New Mexico students, including Native Americans, were the real winners of the judge’s decision. Lente stated he has already been in contact with top-ranking lawmakers about considering possible changes to the state’s public education system during the 2021 legislative session and said:

“We recognize that we have a true opportunity now … to prove to our state and our children that we hold them in high regard and that their education isn’t just lip service”.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1471109/judge-denies-states-request-for-dismissal-in-education-lawsuit.html

YAZZIE V. STATE OF NEW MEXICO AND MARTINEZ REVISITED

On Friday, July 20, 2018, Santa Fe District Court Judge Sarah Singleton ruled in the case of Yazzie v. State of New Mexico and Governor Suzanna Martinez that the state of New Mexico was violating the constitutional rights of at-risk students by failing to provide them with a sufficient education. The District Court ruling came after a two-month trial that concluded in August, 2017. Nearly 80 witnesses testified during the bench trial.

The consolidated lawsuit was filed by the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund. The Plaintiffs argued that the New Mexico public schools are inadequately funded.

In a 75-page decision, the court rejected arguments by Governor Susana Martinez’s administration that the education system is improving and for that reason it does not need more funding. The Court found that the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED) did not do the best it could with the funding it has given by the legislature to the education system.

The Court ruling centered on the guaranteed right under the New Mexico Constitution to a sufficient education for all children. The lawsuit alleged a severe lack of state funding, resources and services to help students, particularly children from low-income families, students of color, including Native Americans, English-language learners and students with disabilities.

BLISTERING COURT RULING

State District Judge Sarah Singleton pulled no punches with her decision.

The Judge found that it was clear that many New Mexico students were not receiving the basic education in reading, writing and math they should be receiving in our public-school system. As a matter of law, Judge Singleton wrote the “lack of funds is not a defense to providing constitutional rights.”

In her blistering written opinion, Judge Singleton wrote:

“[The evidence presented at trial] proves that the vast majority of New Mexico’s at-risk children finish each school year without the basic literacy and math skills needed to pursue post-secondary education or a career. … Indeed, overall New Mexico children rank at the very bottom in the country for educational achievement. … The at-risk students are still not attaining proficiency at the rate of non-at-risk students … and the programs being lauded by [the Public Education Department] are not changing this picture.”

According to the judge’s ruling, in New Mexico, at the time, 71.6% of the state’s public school students come from low-income families, and 14.4% are English-language learners. Further, 14.8 percent of students have disabilities, and 10.6 percent are Native American. Judge Singleton addressing proficiency rates for Native American students said that in the previous 3 years, those students’ reading proficiency was at 17.6% and their math proficiency was at 10.4%.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1200069/questions-surround-ruling-on-nm-education-funding.html

Judge Singleton faulted the lack of access to technology in rural districts. The Court also found that New Mexico does not have enough teachers and that New Mexico teachers are among the lowest paid in the country and stated:

“The evidence shows that school districts do not have the funds to pay for all the teachers they need. … [An example is] Gadsden, one of the better performing school districts in the state, has had to eliminate over 53 classroom positions and 15 essential teachers since 2008.”

Judge Singleton ruling addressed the state teacher evaluation system implemented by the Martinez Administration by saying:

“[The teacher evaluation system] may be contributing to the lower quality of teachers in high-need schools. … In general, punitive teacher evaluation systems that penalize teachers for working in high-need schools contribute to problems in this category of schools.”

The Court wrote that she was not persuaded by the Martinez Administration’s arguments that no new funding is needed because at-risk student performances are improving.

A spokeswoman for the state Public Education Department at the time announced that the State decided to appeal the ruling. However, soon after assuming office on January 1, 2018, Governor Lujan Grisham decided the state would not appeal the case, work to increase funding for public education and changes to the system but committed to an aggressive defense of the case to achieve a dismissal.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, provided the following statement after the court ruling:

“For too long, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez and her administration have abandoned their responsibility to kids and public schools. This ruling confirms what parents and educators know—that New Mexico children are deprived of the essential resources, including qualified teachers and support staff, they need. This deprivation is especially severe for those at risk and in need of additional supports—English language learners, Native American students and those in poverty. The ruling also calls out the governor’s obsession with testing over teaching.”

“In New Mexico, it would take $228 million to get public school funding to what it was before the Great Recession, and average teacher pay in the state is nearly 10 percent lower than what it was in 2009. We call on the state to use this ruling as a long-overdue opportunity to overhaul its broken school funding system to ensure all New Mexico children are afforded the public education they deserve and are entitled to. Voters will be going to the polls in November to elect leaders committed to investing in public education.”

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/judge-rules-lack-of-sufficient-education-for-all-nm-students-violates-constitutional-rights/4997869/?cat=500

https://www.petedinelli.com/2018/07/23/governor-martinez-legacy-illiterate-children-and-a-pizza-party/

2019 ENACTED EDUCATION BUDGET

During the 2019 Legislative session, Governor Lujan Grisham made good on her commitment to improve New Mexico’s public education system. The 2019 legislature enacted dramatic increases in public education funding, creation of the Early Childhood Department (CYFD), mandates to Children, Youth and Families and Public Education departments, not to mention raises for educators and increasing CYFD social workers by 125 were clearly the biggest accomplishments of the 2019 Legislative session.

The total approved education budget was a whopping $3.2 Billion, 16% over the previous year’s budget, out of the total budget of $7 Billion. Included in the budget is a $500 million in additional funding for K-12 education and increases in teacher pay. Early childhood programs were given a major increase in funding. Under the enacted 2019-2020 budget, every public-school district was allocated significantly more funding. Teachers did not have any raises to speak of for 8 years. Teachers and school administrators were given 6% pay raises with more money to hire teachers.

The new “Early Childhood Department” was a major priority of the Governor Lujan Grisham it was funded and began full operation in June, 2020.The new department will focus state resources on children from birth to 5 years of age. A major goal of the new department, coupled with other investments, is more New Mexico children growing up to secure gainful employment as adults who don’t require government services.

https://www.petedinelli.com/2019/04/10/chapter-two-point-counter-point-with-the-albuquerque-journal-on-public-education-funding-and-the-public-school-grading-system/

THE 30 DAY 2020 SESSION BUDGET DETAILS

The New Mexico legislature adjourned their 30-day session after approval of a $7.6 billion spending plan. The enacted budget increased spending by 7.6% over current levels. The new budget included $17 million for the new college scholarship program sought by Lujan Grisham. The $17 million is much less than the Governor had initially requested. The goal was to provide need-based tuition aid for full-time students who already qualify for a separate assistance.

An Early Childhood Trust Fund of $320 million was approved that supporters hope will put $30 million annually toward the cause but there is no guarantee. The fund plan is flawed and modest and anything but “transformational” as supporters argued, but it was a welcome turn.

https://www.petedinelli.com/2020/02/21/monahans-take-on-2020-nm-legislature-short-session-and-more-a-so-so-30-day-session-comes-to-an-end/

JUNE FOUR DAY SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE SESSION

On June 22, the 4-day New Mexico special legislative session ended. The session was called to deal with the state’s deficit and to adjust the state budget amid historical deficits the result of the COVID-19 pandemic business closures and the collapse in oil revenues.

The New Mexico legislature enacted a budget solvency plan that would keep state spending roughly flat over the next year while drawing down reserves, tapping into federal funds and engaging in other financial maneuvers. The enacted budget was $7 billion for fiscal year 2020-2021 which begins on July 1. In February, lawmakers approved the largest budget in New Mexico’s history, at $7.6 billion, but only weeks later an oil price war and the COVID-19 pandemic put that plan in peril.

The revised fiscal year 2021 budget reduces spending by more than $600 million, bringing the budget to $7 billion. That’s a greater reduction than the around $450 million cut Lujan Grisham had advocated for. The revised budget reduces spending by 4 percent for most state agencies. It also includes $165 million in funding to help local governments that have their own coronavirus-related fiscal problems, with $15 million of that sum earmarked for McKinley, Cibola and San Juan counties.

The plan keeps intact most of the funding designated for the state’s new trust fund for early childhood education, reducing that amount from $320 million to $300 million. Sen. John Arthur Smith, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, warned the state’s finances are not likely to bounce back quickly from the double punch caused by the coronavirus pandemic and plummeting oil prices telling . Smith told his fellow legislators:

“It’s certainly not the perfect response, but it darn well may be the only response we can give right now. … New Mexico, we are not alright. … This looks like it’s going to be a prolonged downturn.”

www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/new-mexico-legislature-sends-7b-solvency-bill-to-governor/article_6d57350a-afe2-11ea-9a70-474b3af34deb.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The June 20 ruling denying the State’s “Motion to Dismiss” the landmark public education case of Yazzie v. State of New Mexico is a disappointment to the Lujan Grisham Administration, but the decision really came as no surprise. The original July 20, 2018 ruling was that the state of New Mexico is violating the constitutional rights of at-risk students by failing to provide them with a sufficient education. The Judge found that it was clear that New Mexico students were not receiving the basic education in reading, writing and math they should had been receiving in our public-school system. It will take years for the state to get on track, perhaps a decade or more to make all the changes mandated. The original court opinion was a confirmation of what went on for the full 8 years of the prior Republican Administration. A year and half since the original ruling is simply not enough time to turn things around and pull the education car out of the ditch and make the necessary repairs.

The biggest accomplishments of the 2019 Legislative session were the dramatic increases in public education funding, creation of the Early Childhood Department (CYFD), the mandates to Children, Youth and Families and Public Education departments, not to mention raises for educators and increasing CYFD social workers by 125 were clearly the biggest accomplishments of the 2019 Legislative session.

Much of the millions in education funding remain in place, but the question is for how long. As Senator John Arthur Smith, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, warned the state’s finances are not likely to bounce back quickly from the double punch caused by the coronavirus pandemic and plummeting oil prices. It likely as each year passes, budget cuts will be made in the state education budget and the State will slide back to the same level of funding or even less than what was appropriated under the prior Republican Administration.

The link to a related blog article is here:

Chapter Two: Point-Counter- Point With The Albuquerque Journal On Public Education Funding And The Public School Grading System