City Hall has deemed that a 24-hour, 7 day a week temporarily shelter for the homeless as critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. The city owned shelter is projected to assist an estimated 300 homeless residents and connect them to other services intended to help secure permanent housing. The new facility would serve all populations, men, women, and families.

On February 27, the City of Albuquerque released a report and analysis announcing the top 3 preferred locations for the new 24/7 homeless shelter known as the “Gateway Center”. The 3 locations are:

1. University of New Mexico land next to the state laboratory, near Interstate 25 and Camino de Salud
2. Coronado Park at 3rd Street and Interstate 40
3. The former Lovelace hospital on Gibson

Now that the city is slowly “winnowing down” the site selection for the new 24-7 homeless shelter, a discussion of the extent and nature of the homelessness in the city and the state is order. Critics often assert that to try and end homelessness is futile and it has been problematic for decades going as far back as the Republican President Ronald Reagan. However, there are those who believe otherwise. The blog article is a discussion of the argument that the state of New Mexico, even as poor as it is, can end homelessness.

REAGAN’S SHAMEFUL LEGACY OF HOMELESSNESS IN AMERICA

In the early 1970s in California, then Governor Ronald Reagan in the interest of reducing mental-health costs, Reagan closed numerous hospitals and facilities for treating the mentally ill and, because families either couldn’t care for them or families just didn’t exist anymore, the mentally ill were relegated to the streets of cities and towns to fend for themselves. In Reagan’s view, it saved money and reduced the size of state government. The result was that mental health facilities closed and the mentally ill wound up on the streets.

“In November 1980, Republican Ronald Reagan overwhelmingly defeated Jimmy Carter, who received less than 42% of the popular vote, for president. Republicans took control of the Senate (53 to 46), the first time they had dominated either chamber since 1954. Although the House remained under Democratic control (243 to 192), their margin was actually much slimmer, because many southern “boll weevil” Democrats voted with the Republicans.

One month prior to the election, President Carter had signed the Mental Health Systems Act, which had proposed to continue the federal community mental health centers program, although with some additional state involvement. Consistent with the report of the Carter Commission, the act also included a provision for federal grants “for projects for the prevention of mental illness and the promotion of positive mental health,” an indication of how little learning had taken place among the Carter Commission members and professionals at NIMH. With President Reagan and the Republicans taking over, the Mental Health Systems Act was discarded before the ink had dried and the CMHC funds were simply block granted to the states. The CMHC program had not only died but been buried as well. An autopsy could have listed the cause of death as naiveté complicated by grandiosity.”

https://www.salon.com/2013/09/29/ronald_reagans_shameful_legacy_violence_the_homeless_mental_illness/

Ronald Reagan when elected President believed he had mandate to reduce federal spending. In reality, he increased it through the escalating military budget, all the while slashing funds for domestic programs that assisted working class Americans, particularly the poor.

“The most dramatic cut in domestic spending during the Reagan years was for low-income housing subsidies. Reagan appointed a housing task force dominated by politically connected developers, landlords and bankers. In 1982 the task force released a report that called for “free and deregulated” markets as an alternative to government assistance – advice Reagan followed. In his first year in office Reagan halved the budget for public housing and Section 8 to about $17.5 billion. And for the next few years he sought to eliminate federal housing assistance to the poor altogether.

In the 1980s the proportion of the eligible poor who received federal housing subsidies declined. In 1970 there were 300,000 more low-cost rental units (6.5 million) than low-income renter households (6.2 million). By 1985 the number of low-cost units had fallen to 5.6 million, and the number of low-income renter households had grown to 8.9 million, a disparity of 3.3 million units.

Another of Reagan’s enduring legacies is the steep increase in the number of homeless people, which by the late 1980s had swollen to 600,000 on any given night – and 1.2 million over the course of a year. Many were Vietnam veterans, children and laid-off workers.

In early 1984 on Good Morning America, Reagan defended himself against charges of callousness toward the poor in a classic blaming-the-victim statement saying that “people who are sleeping on the grates…the homeless…are homeless, you might say, by choice.”

Tenant groups, community development corporations and community organizations fought to limit the damage done by Reagan’s cutbacks. Some important victories were won when Clinton entered office—the expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit and stronger enforcement of the CRA. Funding for low-income housing, legal services, job training and other programs has never been restored to pre-Reagan levels, and the widening disparities between the rich and the rest persist.”

Source of quoted: https://shelterforce.org/2004/05/01/reagans-legacy-homelessness-in-america/

See also: “The great eliminator: How Ronald Reagan made homelessness permanent”:

https://www.sfweekly.com/news/the-great-eliminator-how-ronald-reagan-made-homelessness-permanent/

POINT IN TIME SURVEY

Each year, the “Point in Time” (PIT) survey is conducted to determine how many people experience homelessness on a given night, and to learn more about their specific needs. The PIT survey is conducted on only one night to determine how many people experience homelessness and to learn more about their specific needs. The PIT count is done in communities across the country in both urban and rural areas, and counting both sheltered and unsheltered homeless people.

The PIT count is the official number of homeless reported by communities to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for funding and to help understand the extent of homelessness at the city, state, regional and national levels.

On January 8, 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) report released the annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress containing the statistics for Albuquerque and New Mexico.

The link to the report is here:

https://www.hudexchange.info/resource/5948/2019-ahar-part-1-pit-estimates-of-homelessness-in-the-us/

NATIONAL “POINT IN TIME” HOMELESS COUNT

The PIT survey found that an estimated 567,715 people nationwide, both sheltered and unsheltered, were identified as homeless which is a 2.7% increase over 2018. Overall homelessness declined in 29 states and the District of Columbia, but increased in 21 states.

Nationwide, 396,045 people experienced homelessness as individuals, meaning they did not have children with them. Individuals made up 70% of the total homeless population. Half of those who experienced homelessness as individuals were staying in sheltered locations.

NEW MEXICO “POINT IN TIME” HOMELESS COUNT

According to the PIT, New Mexico had the nation’s largest percentage increase in homelessness from 2018 to 2019 in the nation with an increase of 27%. New Mexico also had a 57.6% increase in chronic homelessness last year, also the highest in the nation. The percentage increase in Albuquerque’s homeless population alone rose by 15%. In New Mexico there were 2,464 homeless people in 2019 and of that total, 1,283 persons, or about 52%, were chronically homeless.

ALBUQUERQUE “POINT IN TIME” HOMELESS COUNT

The New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness was contracted by the City of Albuquerque to conduct the annual PIT count. The Coalition puts the number of homeless people in Albuquerque at 1,524 sheltered and unsheltered individuals. This 1,524 is 206 more than were counted in 2017 when 1,318 homeless people were counted in the city limits.

CATEGORIES OF HOMELESS

The New Mexico Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) is a federally mandated system operated by the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness in cooperation with the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority and the City of Albuquerque. The follow statistics reflect those people who sought help for their homelessness from a government funded agency participating in HMIS during calendar year 2018.

According to the New Mexico Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), homeless people have varying needs based on their age and abilities. HMIS sub-divides age into three categories based on level of support required and length of time the individuals or families remain homeless. The 3 age categories are as follow:

1. Those who exit homelessness quickly, usually within 30 days, mostly because of their own efforts

2. Those who exit homelessness needing longer term assistance, and

3. Those who remain homeless despite seeking assistance.

THE UNDER 18 AGE GROUP

According to HMIS, in calendar year 2018 “there were 2,585 people under the age of 18 who were homeless. Of this group 584 were separated from their parents or guardians. The other 2,001 people were accompanied by a parent or guardian who was also homeless. During the year 340, of these children were able to resolve their homelessness within 30 days and 607 were able to exit to permanent housing after a longer period of stay. 1,016 of these children remained in the housing or shelter at the end of the year. 622 children left a shelter or housing program but remained homeless. Of the 622 who remained homeless, we estimate that 124 of them were separated from their parents or guardians.”

(Quoting Analysis of Resources Needed to House Everyone in New Mexico Hank Hughes, New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness)

YOUTH AGES 18-24

According to HMIS, in calendar year 2018 “a total of 981 people aged 18 to 24 were homeless in 2018. 221 of them were part of a family and 100 of them were the head of their household. 760 were unaccompanied. 54 left for permanent housing in 30 days or less and 124 were able to secure permanent housing after a longer stay. 425 remained in the shelter or housing program at the end of the year. 378 left a shelter or housing program and remained homeless.”

(Quoting Analysis of Resources Needed to House Everyone in New Mexico Hank Hughes, New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness)

ADULTS AGES 25 & OVER

According to HMIS, in calendar year 2018, “9,021 people aged 25 and up were homeless in 2018. Of these, 1,126 were in families and 7,647 were unaccompanied, while for 248 no household type was reported. 503 left for permanent housing within 30 days of entry into a program and 1,163 secured permanent housing after a longer stay. 4,578 remained in a shelter or housing program at the end of 2018. 2,777 left a shelter or housing program and remained homeless and about 2305 of them were unaccompanied and 472 were part of families.

Overall a total of 897 people exited quickly with little help from the services system. A total of 1,894 were able to exit homelessness with longer term help and 3,777 people remained homeless after seeking assistance. Thus, while the current system is helping many people exit homelessness, most people experiencing homelessness are not receiving enough help or the right help.”

(Quoting Analysis of Resources Needed to House Everyone in New Mexico Hank Hughes, New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness)

INTERVENTIONS TO HELP PEOPLE EXIT FROM HOMELESSNESS

HMIS reports that there are two interventions that are considered best practices for helping people exit from homelessness: rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing.

RAPID REHOUSING

“Rapid housing is the best practice for families and individuals who can reasonably be expected to obtain employment and support themselves and their families within two years. Rapid rehousing involves providing rental assistance to help the homeless household move into an apartment, and then provide rental assistance that decreases over time as the household income increases until the assistance is no longer needed. Supportive services are provided to help the family set goals and obtain other resources they may need such as child care and medical care.”

(Quoting Analysis of Resources Needed to House Everyone in New Mexico Hank Hughes, New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness, page 3, 4) )

PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING

“Permanent supportive housing is the best practice for families and individuals where the head of the household is disabled and may never be able to support the household. Permanent supportive housing involves providing rental assistance and support services for as long as they are needed. Clients of permanent supportive housing are expected to pay 30% of their income for rent, with the program paying the difference.

Intensive supportive services are offered to assist clients in obtaining health care, mental health care, substance abuse treatment, job training, and other assistance as needed. Permanent supportive housing may be provided in scattered site privately owned apartments or in site based apartments owned by the permanent supportive housing program. Clients of permanent supportive housing often move on to less costly forms of assistance such as regular public housing after they have achieved a good level of stability.”

(Quoting “Analysis of Resources Needed to House Everyone in New Mexico Hank Hughes, New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness” page 3, 4.)

SANTA FE NEW MEXICAN: STATE COULD AFFORD TO END HOMELESSNESS

In addition to operating a Rapid Housing and Permanent supportive housing program, there is a need to build new permanent supportive housing. On January 16, the Santa Fe New Mexican published a report written by reporter Olivia Harlow on an in-depth analysis on how much it would cost the State of New Mexico to house the homeless. The analysis report was compiled by the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness. Below is the article in full with a link to the Santa Fe New Mexican Report:

HEADLINE: State could afford to end homelessness
BY Olivia Harlow
Jan 16, 2020

“A new, in-depth analysis on how much it would cost the state government to house those without a home suggests eradicating homelessness across New Mexico could be feasible in the next five years.
The report, compiled by the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness, examines data from several statewide organizations and estimates it would cost the state about $212 million over five years to expand existing programs and $48 million in capital outlay for additional housing units to get more than 6,500 people off the streets and ensure others don’t end up there in the future.

THE LINK TO NEW MEXICO COALITION TO END HOMELESSNESS IS HERE:

http://www.nmceh.org/pages/resources.html

The ultimate goal is to end homelessness in New Mexico — or, more accurately, “to create a system in which homelessness is rare and nonrecurring,” said the coalition’s executive director, Hank Hughes.

“It’s doable, it’s feasible and it’s important,” said Nicole Martinez, executive director of Mesilla Valley Community of Hope, a Las Cruces-based nonprofit that offers housing programs, case management and educational services.

“This isn’t a pipe dream,” she added. “Homelessness isn’t something that’s going to go away on its own. It’s going to require these types of solutions.”

A spokeswoman for Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said the governor was unavailable Thursday to comment on the coalition’s proposal but included in her proposed spending plan funding for programs that assist the homeless community.

The governor’s budget includes $4 million for a permanent, supportive housing program that would provide vouchers for “rental assistance and support services for homeless adults diagnosed with serious mental illness, functionally impaired and very low income,” Judy Gibbs Robinson said in an email.

The governor’s spending plan also includes $2.4 million for programs that address youth homelessness, Robinson said.

The coalition’s comprehensive report, Analysis of Resources Needed to House Everyone in New Mexico, suggests two approaches to address homelessness: rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing.

Rapid rehousing is a method that works best for people who eventually can obtain employment and support themselves and their families, Hughes said. Permanent supportive housing is a strategy better suited for people with disabilities who might never be able to maintain a household on their own and require lifelong financial assistance.

According to the new report, the total number of New Mexicans experiencing homelessness ranges between 15,000 and 20,000 people each year.

In 2018, more than 12,500 people in precarious living situations sought services from agencies that supply data to the New Mexico Homeless Management Information System, a project of the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness. But this number doesn’t include the thousands of people each year who receive help from privately funded agencies that don’t share data and those who do not seek help at all, Hughes said.

The coalition’s report says more than 6,500 individuals per year do not get the help they need to get off the streets. The money to provide them with housing should come from the state, Hughes said.

“The state does not really do much in terms of housing and homelessness right now,” he said, noting its current funding for programs that aid the homeless is about $2 million.

Hughes said he hopes the state will provide an additional $6 million this year to address homelessness and will arrive “at a peak period” in the report’s five-year plan in which it will provide $60 million a year.

The report proposes the state provide $30.65 million in the first full year of the plan, $61.3 million per year in the following two years, $40.9 million in the fourth year and $20.45 million in the fifth year.

Additionally, it recommends the state make a one-time investment of $48 million for construction of permanent supportive housing for 300 people “with such severe substance abuse and mental health issues that they would pretty much need constant care,” Hughes said.

The total cost for the housing project would be around $72 million, Hughes said, but he expects $25 million of the cost to come from the National Housing Trust Fund, the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program and other sources.

Hughes envisions around-the-clock case management at the apartments and medical assistance.

The $260 million total over five years is “a significant increase” in the state’s investments in addressing homelessness, he said.

But he and other advocates said the cost would be partially offset by decreased spending on emergency services for people in the homeless community.

A recent study by the University of New Mexico, cited in the coalition’s analysis, followed 95 chronically homeless people in Albuquerque and concluded that after 12 months in housing, the costs for emergency rooms, medical outpatient procedures, emergency shelters and jail time for the group decreased by 31 percent — or $12,832 per person. The savings in one year was more than $1 million, the study said.

“What happens is that as people are homeless, those who fell on hard times, they start to use more and more emergency services to get their needs met,” Hughes said. “… If you house those people, there’s a net savings to the overall system.”

Martinez agreed, noting that a model known as Housing First, which focuses on immediately finding homes for those living on the streets, is critical to solving problems that stem from homelessness.

“A lot of times, people refer to housing as being health care,” she said. “… It helps improve people’s quality of life, giving them something that’s stable and secure. It’s a good starting point to helping improve their well-being and health care.”

But the report says agencies would have to double their current efforts for permanent supportive housing and triple their efforts for rapid rehousing to fully address homelessness across the state.

“It will be a challenge,” Martinez said, “but we are used to challenges. And we need to start working on them now.”

https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/report-state-could-afford-to-end-homelessness/article_a6a98c26-388d-11ea-927c-f3bd9ca6d84a.html?fbclid=IwAR2P3_gMhoRQbtMc5aDbzIwoJZgEfZdPRUj67v6RYSumfgdlmh9YSSg17qU

ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

President Ronald Reagan is long gone, but his dark shameful treatment of the mentally that resulted in homelessness in American is something we all continue to deal with on national and local levels. What is so damn pathetic, the Party of Reagan is now the Party of Trump, and its not likely even Reagan would fit into the Republican Party. Government, which Reagan loathed, still remains the single most viable approach to solving America’s homelessness.

The City of Albuquerque, Bernalillo County and the State of New Mexico have a moral obligation to assist the homeless, especially those who suffer from chronic mental illness. More needs to be done by the city, county and state to reduce the ever-increasing numbers of homeless.

The only way to reduce the number of homeless is to reach a viable consensus and implement an aggressive plan on how to reduce the number of homeless. It will mandate the city, county and the state to work with virtually all the charitable providers, “pooling of resources” and work to get arrive at an action plan.

The report and analysis compiled by the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness provides a viable road map to achieve the ultimate goal to end homelessness in New Mexico within 5 years. What is needed is the political will and commitment by our elected officials.

______________________________________________________

POSTSCRIPT

On March 6, the Albuquerque Journal publish the following editorial:

Editorial: Shelter needs city, county, providers, UNM on same page
BY ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL EDITORIAL BOARD
Friday, March 6th, 2020 at 12:02am

“With thousands of people sleeping on our streets and a minimum of 14 million taxpayer dollars on the line, it is essential the leadership of Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, the University of New Mexico and various service providers work together to make a 24/7 low-barrier homeless shelter a reality.

Because given the myriad causes of homelessness – including behavioral health issues and substance abuse – one entity does not have the expertise or funding to do it alone.
Mayor Tim Keller’s administration has consistently favored a single 300-bed site, and city leaders say there have been regular meetings and frequent communication with county leaders and officials about the planned Gateway Center. The county manager and two commissioners are advocating for multiple smaller sites for specific homeless populations, and maintain the city has ignored their input.

Last week, the mayor held a news conference on a vacant strip of land owned by UNM near Interstate 25 and Lomas, the city’s preferred site for the shelter. Keller says the site has many advantages – it’s vacant, making it easier and less expensive to build on, especially if UNM donates it; it’s near medical and behavioral health services and local interstates, making services and transportation more accessible; and it’s not as close to neighborhoods as other options, limiting residential concerns.

UNM and county leaders were not in attendance. UNM, which has yet to announce whether it will donate the land, has faced pushback from many concerned about student safety on campus. The university is awaiting results from a just-completed survey of university faculty, students and others about the site, which is about half a mile from main campus.

But a decision – either that UNM has rejected the idea or that it is willing to explore the site as long as security concerns can be addressed – is needed soon.

That’s because everything is on hold until then. The old Lovelace Hospital on Gibson and Coronado Park, at Third and I-40, are the other finalists, but nothing is moving forward pending UNM’s decision.
(Regardless of the shelter’s eventual site, a plan to reclaim Coronado is essential. Its current condition as a campsite for the addicted and the destitute is unacceptable.)

Also needed is a decision on the location of the planned crisis triage center/psychiatric hospital UNM is partnering with the county on. The triage center is meant to help stabilize those in crisis who might otherwise end up in jail or an emergency room. It makes sense to have the facilities in close proximity if not co-located, as many clients will need the services of both.
But most importantly, cooperation among the various entities is crucial if the shelter – one that will take all comers regardless of gender, age, sobriety, pets, belongings and religious faith or lack thereof – is to meet its projected timeline of a 2021 groundbreaking and 2022 opening.

The city currently runs the 450-bed emergency shelter west of town, obtained $14 million from city taxpayers for a new 24/7 shelter and offers a housing voucher program. The county has multiple transitional housing projects, works closely with service providers and gets around $20 million annually from its behavioral health tax. University of New Mexico Hospital treats many in the homeless population in its emergency room and has psychiatric expertise.

County Manager Julie Morgas Baca and Commissioners Debbie O’Malley and Jim Collie told the Journal last week that a phased-in approach that starts in the 75-bed range and potentially grows to other locations makes more sense, that there aren’t the service providers to staff a 300-bed facility and that there is no next-step strategy to get folks out of the shelter.
But the city points out it is already running the 450-bed shelter and insists there’s enough expertise in these stakeholders to come up with solutions.

Perhaps a summit where all of stakeholders are in the same room at the same time could move the needle.

The voters have spoken; the homeless shelter needs to be built ASAP. Taxpayers have little interest in bureaucratic squabbles and big interest in helping their fellow men, women and children and cleaning up our streets.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1428145/shelter-needs-city-county-providers-unm-on-same-page.html

For a related blog article see:

We Have Moral Obligation To Help Our Homeless

The term “jumping the gun” can be loosely defined as “to start something before it is permissible, appropriate, or advisable.” The phrase alludes to starting to run in a foot race before the starting gun goes off. “Jump the gun” is said to derive from track and field races and was preceded in the USA by the phrase “beat the gun”, or pistol. It is said to be caused by an athlete being too anxious and impatient to start a competition. When it come to the site selection process for the new 24-7 homeless shelter, it sure does look like Mayor Tim Keller has jump the gun on the process and has announced his preferred location.

BACKGROUND

Since being elected Mayor, Tim Keller has made it known that building a homless shelter is one of his top priorities.

On November 5, voters approved general obligation bonds of $14 million for a city operated 24-7 homeless shelter that will house upwards of 300. The actual cost will be $30 million and the City asked the 2020 New Mexico Legislature for the additional $14 million to complete phase two of the project, but the funding request failed.

City Hall has deemed that a 24-hour, 7 day a week temporarily shelter for the homeless as critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. The city owned shelter is projected to assist an estimated 300 homeless residents and connect them to other services intended to help secure permanent housing. The new facility would serve all populations, men, women, and families.

The city facility would have on-site case managers that will guide residents toward addiction treatment, housing vouchers and other available resources. According city officials, the new homeless shelter will replace the existing West Side Emergency Housing Center, the former jail on the far West Side.

The goal is for the new homeless shelter to provide first responders an alternative destination for the people they encounter on so-called “down-and-out” calls. Many “down and outs” today wind up in the emergency room even when they are not seriously injured or ill. According to city officials, in a recent one-year period, only 110 of 6,952 “down and out” people were taken by first responders to the Emergency Room with life-threatening conditions.

CITY ANNOUNCES FINALISTS

On February 27, the City of Albuquerque released a report and analysis announcing the top 3 preferred locations for the new 24/7 homeless shelter known as the “Gateway Center”. The 3 locations are:

1. University of New Mexico land next to the state laboratory, near Interstate 25 and Camino de Salud
2. Coronado Park at 3rd Street and Interstate 40
3. The former Lovelace hospital on Gibson

According to a city news release, 149 potential sites were originally identified through a community feedback process. That process included an “on line” survey” for people to take. Thirty 30 sites were identified. The Keller Administration scored the 30 sites “based on ownership of the location, lot size, zoning, acquisition cost, access to transportation, and proximity to services. ”

During a presentation of the report and analysis to a joint government board meeting of officials from the City, Bernalillo County and Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) government officials and community activists, officials from the Family and Community Services Department emphasized that even though 3 sites have now been identified, all the details have yet to be worked out for any one and the final site selection is far from over. Lisa Huval,the city’s deputy director for Housing and Homelessness emphasized that there is a chance the city creates multiple smaller shelters at different locations and keeps the West Side location open for overflow purposes.

City officials have said ground breaking is targeted for the summer of 2021 with starting operations in the spring of 2022.

MAYOR KELLER PROMOTES UNM SITE

On Friday, February 28, Mayor Tim Keller held a press conference with local church leaders at the vacant strip of University of New Mexico land that the city has now listed as a possible site for its forthcoming homeless shelter. Mayor Keller announced his support for the vacant strip of University of New Mexico for building the 300 person “Gateway Project” for the homeless. Mayor Keller proclaimed the project had a 50-50% chance of being built on the site and ending up there. On March 2, the Albuquerque Journal did a front page, top of the fold story complete with a bold headline “Keller promotes proposed UNM site for shelter.”

During the Friday press conference Mayor Keller boldly proclaimed:

“Out on those hills out there, right on the other side of them, is one of our top three choices. I want to note that this is nowhere near campus. It is on UNM land, but it is very far from campus and so we want to kind of debunk that myth. … It is very different from students and the duck pond. This is not the city’s (land) and if the UNM community is not interested in sharing it then this will be off the table. … We’re working with them. We’re in discussions with them … and we’re essentially in a negotiation phase to see if we can come up with something that works for both of us. It might happen or it might not. Those are both 50% likely.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1426375/keller-promotes-proposed-unm-site-for-shelter.html

STARTING A RACE WITH A RELUCTANT FINALIST

Missing from the February 5 press conference was UNM President Garnett Stokes, the UNM Regent President Douglas M. Brown, nor any regent and no one with any authority from UNM.

The UNM land would be free and development cost would be $12.4 million. The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center laboratory area tied for second place in the city’s on line survey receiving 15% of the vote.

UNM Health Services confirmed a few months ago in a statement released that they were talking with city officials so they can be part of the solution. Following is the statement released:

“The University of New Mexico has been in discussions with the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County on the best ways to address the needs of the homeless population in our community. In those discussions, the possibility of utilizing currently vacant land near the office of the medical investigator/state lab has been mentioned. Nothing has been decided and you will see from the survey that other locations are being considered. Our mission at UNM Health Sciences is to treat every New Mexican with the highest level of care possible. Being part of the solution to address the mental health, substance use disorder and housing needs of residents goes to the heart of that mission. It is not enough to just treat those who enter our emergency department, we must invest in comprehensive, compassionate care. Partnering with local governments ensures we continue to deliver more to those in need.”

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-survey-results-reveal-top-picks-for-new-homeless-shelter-location/5635350/?cat=500

University of New Mexico leaders have sent mixed messaged on whether UNM land should be considered for the shelter. Dr.Paul Roth, chancellor of the UNM Health Sciences Center and chief executive officer of the UNM Health System, did say previously there are several advantages to using the UNM land for the homeless shelter including proximity to health and behavioral health facilities that are a critical part of the proposed shelter.

UNM’s Campus Safety Council, which consists of the dean of students, student body president, chief of university police and others, voted overwhelmingly in January to recommend to UNM officials and regents not to allow the shelter anywhere at UNM. According to UNM’s Campus Safety Council the facility will create a dangerous situation for students, burden campus police and hurt the university’s enrollment which has been on the decline the past 3 years.

UNM President Garnett Stokes has made it clear that no decision has been made. Stokes has said that she will keeping an open mind about the proposal, and will gather input from the campus community and others before making a recommendation to the Board of Regents.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

It appears that it is likely Mayor Tim Keller got exactly what he wanted from his February 28 press conference with church leaders: a front page, bold banner headline from the Albuquerque Journal as well as TV news coverage of his choice of sites. The problem is that it is highly likely he created a problem by “jumping the gun” and interfering with city negotiations with UNM offficials.

Before Keller’s February 29 press conference, the Keller Administration said that although 3 locations have been identified, the city’s site selection is ongoing and new locations continue to emerge. Included in the process will be a fiscal analysis of each site and determining the financial limitations to complete the project. Each site under serious consideration will require a financial analysis, including land acquisition cost, before the Keller Administration makes any final recommendations to the City Council, yet Keller does a press conference.

No doubt Mayor Tim Keller is anxious to get a start on the new shelter, but holding a press conference with “church leaders” who are not parties to a transaction was a mistake. When you use words such as “if the UNM community is not interested in sharing it [with the community] then this will be off the table” smacks of trying to force a party’s hand to agree to something they may not want to agree to and who has sever reservations about the project. Hold a press conference is something you do not do when you’re in the middle of negotiations to with an entity and when 2 other sites are also under consideration.

Mayor Tim Keller, whether he likes it or not, has a reputation of “jumping the gun” with his ambitions to get started on campaigns for higher office and not finishing work he has started. He resigned in the middle of a 4 year State Senate term to run for New Mexico State Auditor, which he won. Within one year after becoming State Auditor for a 4 year term, he decided to run for Mayor, and once elected Mayor, he resigned as state Auditor. The Republican Governor “She Who Shall Not Be Named” had to appoint a replacement who was Republican Wayne Johnson who had run for Mayor against Keller.On November 5, 2019, during an election night radio coverage interview with political blogger Joe Monahan, Mayor Tim Keller announced he is running for a second term as Mayor in 2021.

Jumping the gun in political races when no one yet is running has been very good for Keller’s political career to give him and advantage, but it sure the hell is no way to conduct negotiations for city projects. Despite Mayor Keller jumping the gun on site selection for the homeless shelter, the City needs to complete the fiscal analysis of each of the 3 sites and determine the financial limitations to complete the project before a final site is selected by the City Council.

On March 2 and 3, respected New Mexico Politcal Blogger Joe Monahan published two articles, along with others, on his political blog “New Mexico Politics With Joe Monahan.” Both articles are very insightful as to two major issues: Albuquerque’s Mayor Tim Keller’s and APD Chief Michael Geier’s failure to be forthcoming on recent murders in Albuquerque and “Second Amendment Sanctuary Resolutions” enacted by County Commissions to prevent enforcement of gun control legislation including the “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” also known as a “red-flag” gun bill that will allow firearms to be temporarily taken away from those deemed dangerous to themselves or others.

The “Red Flag “ law was enacted by the 2020 New Mexico Legislature and signed into law by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on February 25. Both of Mr. Monahan’s articles are very insightful and contain information from sources throughout the state and city that have made him the number one read New Mexico political commentator. The link to “New Mexico Politics With Joe Monahan” is here:

http://joemonahansnewmexico.blogspot.com/. Mr. Monahan’s email address is here: newsguy@yahoo.com

Following are the excerpts from the March 2 and 3 Monahan articles followed by additional information and commentary regarding both issues:

TUESDAY, MARCH 3, MONAHAN BLOG ARTICLE: “ARE MAYOR KELLER AND CHIEF GEIER “FADING” THE TOUGH CRIME QUESTIONS?

“What’s with all the unanswered questions surrounding the many murders in ABQ? That’s the question [raised by a senior political analysts]

Something is very wrong at APD and City Hall. Possible murders are faded by Mayor Keller and Chief Geier. Clearly they are afraid the murder numbers for 2019 are much higher than they originally reported. They waited until February 2020 to admit that 4 year old James Dunklee was murdered in December. Now we discover that 2 deaths (Adam Perry and Lawson Reeves) who were found dead in November are possibly murders too! And how many times will we see media reports of the murder victims families complaining that APD will not tell them anything, have not solved their case or that APD has arrested an innocent person?

Albuquerque is falling apart because of crime and not one of our elected officials or chief of police are willing to answer hard questions about APD not doing it’s job to protect the citizens. APD’s Homicide Unit has a horrible clearance rate. There are hundreds of APD cold cases that will never be worked. Keller and Geier need to be honest with the citizens. There is a problem at APD Homicide. Geier is going to walk away next year with a pension of over $150,000 per year! He should at least answer some tough questions before he leaves.

Where is the city council? They seem to be ghosts who “know nothing, do nothing and say nothing.” The media needs to start hounding them to do their damn jobs and start overseeing APD.

The council should demand that Geier appear for questions at the next council meeting and demand to know why Geier ignored the Civilian Oversight Commission recommendation to terminate PIO Simon Drobik.

–Demand to know why Geier has not opened an investigation into the false arrest of Gisele Estrada (the 17 year old falsely accused of murder)?

–Demand to know why the Dunklee murder wasn’t reported as a murder until 3 months later?

–Demand to know what the status is of the Perry and Reeves deaths and why APD won’t release information?

–Demand to know why the death at 219 Utah NE (November 2019) was not investigated as a murder and why Chief Geier and his staff were consulted before the decision not to make it a murder investigation was done?

–Demand to know why APD won’t allow BCSO and NMSP to assist in murder investigations? “

MONDAY, MARCH 02, 2020 MONAHAN BLOG ARTICLE: STATE’S RURAL-CITY DIVIDE PUT IN STARK RELIEF BY RED FLAG GUN LAW

EDITOR’S NOTE: Mr. Monahan published a map of the state of New Mexico with the 27 counties colored in red that have enacted “Second Amendment” Sanctuary Resolutions and the 5 counties that have not colored in blue which made a striking contrast of the great divide.

“Here in sharp relief is the immense rural-city divide that represents the New Mexico politics of our time.

The counties colored red have approved “Second Amendment Sanctuary Resolutions which “prohibit the enforcement of certain gun control measures perceived as violative of the Second Amendment such as universal gun background checks, assault weapon bans and red flag laws.”

A novice looking at that map might easily infer that New Mexico is a deep Red state. Of course, the reality is the opposite–NM has gone deep Blue with all executive offices, the legislature and the state’s congressional delegation controlled by Democrats.

While 27 of the 33 counties have approved the sanctuary resolution, five counties have not, and therein lies the rub (Los Alamos County not pictured did not pass a resolution).

Those five counties, Bernalillo, Dona Ana, Santa Fe, Taos, Los Alamos and San Miguel. have a population of of 1,126,000 (according to July 1, 2019 Census estimates). That is 53 percent of the state’s estimated population of 2.1 million.

This is a deeply frustrating map for anti-gun control advocates as well as the Republican Party which supports their cause. It clearly shows why the Red Flag gun law was approved by the legislature this session. No doubt the matter will head to court to determine the legality of the resolutions and also if a county sheriff refuses to enforce the new law.

Rural New Mexico has been slammed this century by anemic economic conditions and an inexorable population move to the cities here and out of state. That trend shows no signs of abating. The state’s Blue standing seems likely to stay as national Republicans have announced no plans to target the open US Senate seat or seriously contest the presidential race (although Trump, as he did for a short while in 2016, continues to tease the prospect of vying for NM).

One thing this map probably doesn’t mean, however, is that MLG and the legislature will aggressively pursue more restrictive gun laws. They have passed backed background checks for gun buyers and the Red Flag law that have enraged tens of thousands. While the new laws command strong majorities in the cities, rural New Mexico has been good at provoking intense opposition that could impact voter turnout and make life uncomfortable for Democrats in legislative districts they control only narrowly.

That’s some comfort for the Second Amendment crowd but when it comes to gun control the horse has left the barn. While that horse roams the meadows of only a narrow patch of New Mexico that’s where the political power resides.”

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

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. On Sunday, March 1, the Albuquerque Journal editorialized on the homicide clearance rate. You can read the full editorial here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1426124/getting-away-with-murder.html

93% INCREASE IN APD 911 RESPONSE TIMES SINCE 2011: 48 MINUTES IS AVERAGE TIME OF ARRIVAL

On February 20th KOAT TV Target 7 reported on an investigation into the Albuquerque Police Department’s (APD’s) response times. The report revealed an alarming level of time it takes APD to respond to 911 emergency calls. The time it takes for APD to respond to priority 1 calls in all likely has a major impact on increasing physical injury to victims or callers. It was reported that it takes APD 23 minutes longer to get to an emergency call than it did 8 years ago. There has been an astonishing 93% increase since 2011 with response times getting worse every year since. 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.

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

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

“FADING” THE NEWS ON MURDERS

A major promise and commitment Mayor Tim Keller made to the voters of Albuquerque from day one of being sworn in as Mayor was to be transparent and make full disclosure of all things city hall. When it came to the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), Mayor Keller proclaimed an new day had arrived and that his APD Administration and management would admit and recognize mistakes, learn from those mistakes and adjust and be fully committed to implementing the Department of Justice mandated reforms. Today, Mayor Keller and APD Chief Michael Geier have reverted back to APD’s old tricks of not being forthcoming with information on the city’s murders and are in fact attempting to “fade” the news of the murders as much as they can, no doubt because Keller is seeking reelection.

The Keller administration 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 in order to return to community-based policing. According to recent pay stubs, APD has 950 sworn police or 250 short of what was promised. The Keller Admiration also negotiated with the police union significant APD pay raises and bonuses and an aggressive hiring and recruitment program offering incentives to join or return to APD.

What is very troubling is that all the increases in APD budget, personnel and new programs are not having any effect on bringing down the violent crime and murder rates. It is no longer an issue of not having the money, personnel or resources, but of a failed personnel resource management issue. It is also obvious that the APD command staff Keller handpicked are not getting the job done.

NEW MEXICO’S RED FLAG LAW

On February 25 Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham sign into law the “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” also known as a “red-flag” gun bill that will allow firearms to be temporarily taken away from those deemed dangerous to themselves or others. The Governor had placed the “red flag gun bill” on the 30-day legislative agenda thereby making it one of her top initiatives during the session. The new law will take effect May 20, which is 90 days after the 2020 New Mexico legislative session ended. New Mexico is now the 18th state to adopt such a “red flag” law.

The “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” signed by the Governor is a natural progression of the 2019 New Mexico Legislature passage of legislation which prohibits gun possession by someone who’s subject to an order of protection under the Family Violence Protection Act. Under the enacted legislation domestic abusers must surrender their firearms to law enforcement. The gun possession prohibition also applies to people convicted of other crimes.

SAFEGUARDING CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

The “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” or red flag law does contain significant safe guard provisions that protect a citizen’s 2nd, 4th and 14th Amendment Rights. The court proceeding and the process under the new red flag law and how it works is summarized as follows:

“A law enforcement officer, or a prosecutor in cases involving a law enforcement officer, are allowed to file a petition in State District Court for an order to prohibit someone from possessing firearms.

The petitions can be filed upon request from a spouse, ex-spouse, parent, child, grandparent, school administrator or employer.

If a law enforcement officer declines to file a petition upon request, the officer will have to file a notice of the decision with the county sheriff.

A District Judge can enter an emergency 10-day risk protection order if “probable cause” is found that an individual poses a danger of causing “imminent” injury to themselves or others.

The individual is then required to surrender all their firearms within 48 hours of a judge’s order or sooner.

A one-year order can be imposed after a court hearing, although such an order requires a higher evidence threshold.

One-year risk protection orders are subject to appeal.

All firearms are required to be returned to their owner within 10 days after an order’s expiration.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1424533/gov-lujan-grisham-signs-red-flag-gun-bill-into-law.html

Exclusive authority is given to law enforcement to make the decision to file a petition and the petition must be based on whether there’s “probable cause” to believe the individual “poses a significant danger of causing imminent personal injury to self or others.” Law enforcement officials will have to explain their decision with the filing of a court notice if they decide not to seek a judge’s order after receiving a report and evidence in support of the petition.

COUNTY COMMISSIONS THAT ENACT “SECOND AMENDMENT SANCTUARY RESOLUTIONS” EXCEED AUTHORITY

The fact that 27 out of 33 Counties have enacted “Second Amendment Sanctuary Resolutions” should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone given New Mexico’s gun culture. The blunt truth is that the County Commissions, and for that matter municipalities, who have enacted “Second Amendment Sanctuary Resolutions” to circumvent the New Mexico gun restriction laws enacted by the legislature have exceeded their authority. Such resolutions are “null and void” upon enactment making them meaningless. It is highly likely that any county that attempts to enforce such resolutions will wind up in court and the court’s will set aside the resolutions.

Many elected sheriffs opposed the red flag law and some are saying they will refuse to enforce it. County Commissions that enact “Second Amendment Sanctuary Resolutions” thinking that gives their County Sheriffs authority to not enforce the “red flag law” show a serious ignorance of how the Bill of Rights and United States Constitution work. They also show a serious ignorance of the law. They have a warped interpretation of constitutional rights that have rotted out all of their common sense and prevent any reasoning with them which is the mentality of gun rights fanatics and the National Rifle Association.

The 2nd, 4th and 14th Amendments are not absolute rights and are often cited by gun fanatics and the National Rifle Association (NRA) to oppose any and all kind of reasonable gun control legislation. Each separately and together have limitations and exceptions, are subject to court interpretations and are not black and white restrictions with no exceptions.

The reality is that there are many limitations under the law and to our constitutional rights guaranteed by the 2nd, 4th and 14th amendments. Convicted and violent federal felons, who are still citizens of the United States, lose the “right to keep and bear arms” provided by the 2nd Amendment and in fact are given enhanced sentences for gun possession and use of a gun in the commission of a crime. Search warrants based on “probable cause” used by law enforcement for the seizure of personal property, including guns, are not “unreasonable searches and seizure” prohibited by the 4th Amendment. Despite what some sheriff’s say that property will be taken from people who have committed no crime, it is likely that those very departments and deputy sheriff officers over the years have secured search warrants and taken property based on “probable cause” from people who have not committed a crime. Court orders and injunction relief secured with supporting sworn affidavits, evidence and testimony in civil petitions to the court provide for due process of law and do not violate the 14th Amendment.

The elected sheriffs who oppose the meaningful gun control legislation that the red flag law represents ignore their duty and responsibilities “to serve and protect the general public” that elected them. They choose to promote their own fanatical “pro-gun” political philosophy and their own personal interpretation of the law and constitutional rights. Elected County Sheriffs have an ethical and legal obligation to honor their oaths of office. They cannot pick and choose what laws the agree with and want to enforce. Elected County Sheriffs who refuse to enforce the law are also asking taxpayers to assume the financial risk of their decision to impose their personal views over the law.

Any elected County Sheriff who refuses to enforce the new red flag law should resign immediately and allow elected county commissions to appoint law enforcement who will respect their oath of office and set aside political philosophy and political agendas. A refusal by sheriffs to enforce the law should justify the Attorney General to send letters suspending a sheriff’s law enforcement certification.

Related blog articles can be read here:

APD Homicide Clearance Rate Drops From 80% To 52%; 911 Response Time Increases By 93% To 48 Minutes Average Response Time; ABQ Journal Weighs In On Homicide Clearance Rate

Major Kudos To Governor Lujan Grisham Signing Red Flag Law And Telling Sheriffs Who Refuse To Enforce The Law Need To Resign

This blog article is a deep dive analysis report on APD’s Homicide Clearance Rate and APD’s unacceptable response times that are placing people at risk and endangering public safety. The blog article covers many topics, including staffing levels, initiatives to bring down violent crime, performance measures. Recommendations are also made on what should be done.

On Sunday, March 1, the Albuquerque Journal editorialized on the homicide clearance rate. The full editorial can be found in the postscript to this blog article with a link to it.

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/

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/investigation-continues-into-southwest-albuquerque-homicide/

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-investigates-homicide-in-se-albuquerque/31062694

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

ALBUQUERQUE RANKS #40 FOR MURDERS IN TOP 65 MAJOR CITIES

In the United States, an estimated 16,214 people were murdered in 2018. This was a decrease from the 2017 murder estimates.

On January 20, 2020 NBC News did a story on the murder rates of the 65 major cities having greater than 100,000 residents and listing them as the top deadliest cities in the United States. Albuquerque Ranked number 40 out of the 65 cities listed. According to the report, Albuquerque has 12.3 murders per 100,000 residents.

The top 10 deadliest cities for murder in 2018 are listed as follows:

1.St. Louis, Missouri: 60.9 murders per 100,000 residents
2.Baltimore Maryland: 51 murders per 100,000 residents
3.Detroit, Michigan: 38.9 murders per 100,000 residents
4.New Orleans, Louisiana: 37.1 murders per 100,000 residents
5.Baton Rouge, Louisiana: 35.1 murders per 100,000 residents
6.Memphis, Tennessee: 28.5 murders per 100,000 residents
7.Dayton, Ohio: 26.4 murders per 100,000 residents
8.Shreveport, Louisiana: 25 murders per 100,000 residents
9.West Palm Beach, Florida: 24.2 murders per 100,000 residents
10.Washington, DC: 22.8 murders per 100,000 residents

Other notable cities in the top 40 of the 65 cities include the following:

14. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: 22.1 murders per 100,000 residents
15. Buffalo, New York: 22.1 murders per 100,000 residents
16. Chicago, Illinois: 20.7 murders per 100,000 residents
20. Cincinnati, Ohio: 18.9 murders per 100,000 residents
34. Rochester, NY: 14 murders per 100,000 residents
35. Orlando, Florida: 13.6 murders per 100,000 residents
37. Fort Wayne, Indiana: 14.9 murders per 100,000 residents
40. Albuquerque, New Mexico: 12.3 murders per 100,000 residents

You can review the entire list of 65 cities here:

https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/murder-map-deadliest-u-s-cities/2/

Albuquerque’s FBI Uniform Crime statistics for the years 2008 to 2018 reveal just how bad violent crime has increased in Albuquerque over the last 10 years. Violent crimes include murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assaults and have all increased. The hard numbers for the last 10 years reflect that crime has not declined much. Like a waive on a beach, it has “ebbed and flowed” over the years but have risen none the less to all-time highs.

APD CLEARANCE RATE LOWEST IN 10 YEARS

The number of murders 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: 65
2019: 82

On December 31, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) officially recorded the 82nd homicide for the city, an all-time record. It was on December 9, 2019, the city recorded its 74th homicide breaking the previous record of 72 murders set in 2017. Before 2017, the last time the City had the highest number of homicides in one year was in 1996 with 70 murders. In addition to the 82 homicides that were committed in 2019, APD Homicide detectives are also working on a back log of active cases from previous years.

The 2019 murder victims include a high school student at a high school party, a Navy veteran who was shot and killed outside a Central Grill by someone trying to steal his bike, a UNM college baseball player killed outside a popular restaurant and bar, and the mother of two New Mexico State Police officers who was shot and killed in her car parked in her driveway as she was getting ready to go to the gym.

On January 1, 2020, APD reported the first homicide of the year. As of February 23, the city has had at least 11 homicides that APD is investigating. According to a January 20 Channel 7 news report, APD’s homicide unit has solved 43 out of the 82 of the murder cases that occurred in 2019 or 52.4%. Thirty-nine (39) of those cases remain unsolved or 47.6% with 37 arrests made in the murders committed in 2019.

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-investigating-dozens-of-unsolved-2019-homicides/30602071

For the past two years, 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 the clearance rate was 70% and the clearance rate for 2018 was 56%. The clearance rate for 2019 is now at 52.5%, the lowest clearance rate in the last decade.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1405615/apd-reports-record-82-homicides-for-2019.html

SIX VIOLENT CRIME INITIATIVES ANNOUNCED IN 10 MONTHS

On December 18, 2019 US Attorney General William Barr announced that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is initiating a major crackdown aimed at driving down violent crime in 7 of the nation’s most violent cities in the country. He named the initiative “Operation Relentless Pursuit”. Not at all surprising, is Albuquerque is one of those cities. The other 6 cities are Detroit, Baltimore, Cleveland, Kansas City, Memphis and Milwaukee. All 7 cities have violent crime rates significantly higher and above the national average.

According to Attorney General William Bar, Albuquerque has a violent crime rate that is 3.7 times the national average per capita , and the cities aggravated assaults are 4 times the national average per capita.

The federal agencies that will be involved are the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the U.S. Marshals Service. The DOJ will intensify federal law enforcement resources in the 7 cities by increasing the number of federal law enforcement officers in each of the cities and add additional officers to federal task forces. According to Barr, the DOJ is committing up to $71 million in federal grant funds that can help fund the task forces, be used to hire new police officers, pay overtime and purchase new equipment and technology.

SANCTUARY CITY VERSUS IMMIGRANT FRIENDLY CITY

Complicating the City of Albuquerque from receiving any federal law enforcement funding is that the United States Department of Justice is now threatening to withhold millions in federal funding from APD because it has classified Albuquerque as a “Sanctuary City.” Some City Councilors and APD management accused the Justice Department of political gamesmanship and “politcal extortion” by withholding millions of dollars in federal funds over the city’s “sanctuary city status” that prevents the sharing of information with immigration authorities.

United States Attorney for New Mexico John Anderson wrote a guest editorial column in the Albuquerque Journal saying the additional federal funding would come with conditions, including complying with a federal law that makes it illegal to prevent government employees from sharing information about peoples’ immigration status with federal law enforcement. U.S. Attorney for New Mexico John Anderson said he believes the conditions the DOJ is asking Albuquerque to comply with are reasonable. To be eligible to receive roughly $10 million in grant funding, the city must agree to the conditions that it will allow a federal audit of the forms city employees fill out saying they’re legally allowed to work in the United States and it won’t prohibit departments or employees from providing information to immigration authorities.

According to Anderson:

“The issue of the sanctuary city status comes in because before a state or local police department – for example, APD – can receive those federal funds they have to certify certain compliance with federal immigration laws … Their refusal to sign the certification has precluded the city from receiving grant funding.”

APD Deputy Chief Harold Medina denounced the DOJ’s position as “political extortion” saying:

“The federal government had decided to send in resources – which we gladly want to work with – to assist us to lower these crime rates. … It’s kind of feels like political extortion that now they’re trying to give us limitations of how we can access this federal funding that we need to help keep the citizens of Albuquerque safe.”

Democratic Councilor Pat Davis, one of the main sponsors of the resolution clarifying the City as an “immigrant friendly” city had this to say:

“We just won’t do that. They’re using this as a political stunt. … To deliberately withhold money that they say will help Albuquerque because we don’t want to sign off on an unconnected, unrelated political agenda in the president’s election year is just blatantly political bullying, … And we’re not going to play ball with that. There is nothing at all in the way we fail to ask for immigrant status for letting kids into after-school programs that has anything to do with immigration or lowering crime.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1420099/city-officials-blocked-doj-funding-political-extortion.html

The truth is, Albuquerque has never been a “sanctuary city” as the Department of Justice in now proclaiming. The confusion stems from the Albuquerque City Council enacting a resolution approximately 10 years ago declaring Albuquerque an “Immigrant Friendly” City that offers city services to all immigrants regardless of their United State citizenship status. The resolution was originally sponsored by former Republican City Councillor Hess Yntema whose wife is an immigrant. In April 2018, the City Council passed a resolution strengthening Albuquerque’s status as an immigrant-friendly city. The resolution says no municipal resources will be used to identify an individual’s immigration status, the city will not collect any information on a person’s immigration status, except when necessary, and if it collects that information it’s prohibited from disclosing it unless the city is served with a warrant.

Mayor Tim Keller has yet to announce or take a position on the DOJ’s threat to withhold the millions in funding.

APD PROCLAIMS WORKING ON LONG TERM SOLUTIONS

Mayor Keller and Chief Michael Geier have announced 5 separate programs within 10 months to combat our city’s violent crime and murder rates. Four programs announced last year are:

1. The Shield Unit, Declaring Violent Crime “public health” issue,
2. “Violence Intervention Plan” (VIP) and the Metro 15.
3. On January 20, 2020, Mayor Keller announced yet another anti-crime initiative called RAPID accountability program.

Despite the 3 new initiatives, Albuquerque Police Department (APD) is saying it is 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

STRUGGLING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE WITH LITTLE PROGRESS

Since Mayor Tim Keller took office on December 1, 2017, APD has added 116 sworn police officers to the force. Keller wants to spend $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 Tim 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.

Mayor Tim Keller and APD Chief Michael Geier have increased the homicide unit from 5 to 11. This is the most detectives they’ve had in the unit in more than 20 years. There are now 10 detectives, but that is simply not enough given the clearance rates.

Burke acknowledged that the clearance rate is unacceptable and nowhere near where they want to be in solving all the murders by saying:

“It is a high number [of unsolved cases] and we recognize that. … We always want to be at 100% and anything less is unacceptable. … We need help from the community. We need witnesses. We need people who potentially have information for us so we can follow up and help solve some of these homicides and hold people accountable. … Just know that we have leads [on the two recent murders] and we’re following up on those leads. They’re good leads. We’re confident we’re going to be able to hold people accountable in those investigations.”

https://www.krqe.com/news/crime/albuquerque-police-51-of-2019-homicides-still-unsolved/?fbclid=IwAR1pL4J0EGCOLGGvOaLt9G7fTkgX4UDQKwEb07Dk2voyLQRUusjkoKt5ilU

APD command staff have said it would be ideal to have more homicide detectives to solve cases. APD is also trying to expand other units for gang operations and a gun violence reduction unit. A new cadet class is expected to graduate in spring 2020 with upwards of 50 new sworn police. Mayor Keller has said that APD is on track to have 100 new sworn in 2020.

HISTORY OF BOTCHED HOMICIDE INVESTIGATIONS

The APD Homicide Unit has a dubious history of botching any number of high-profile murder investigations. The APD Homicide Unit has compiled a history of not doing complete investigations, misleading the public, feeding confessions to people with low IQs, getting investigations completely wrong and even arresting innocent people.

The most egregious negligent murder investigation was the murder investigation of 10-year-old Victoria Martens. On August 24, 2016, she was murdered, dismembered and her body was burned in a bathtub. After a full year of 3 defendants being in custody, further investigation revealed that Jessica Kelley did not murder the child. Michelle Martens falsely admitted to committing the crimes. Forensic evidence revealed she and her boyfriend Fabian Gonzales were not even in the apartment at the time of the murder, they did not participate in the murder and that there was an unidentified 4th suspect in the case who committed the murder with supposedly DNA evidence found on the child’s dead body. The unidentified 4th suspect in the case is still at large.

The most recent botched homicide investigation was when on December 5, 17-year-old Albuquerque High School Student Gisell Estrada was arrested and charged with a murder she played no part in. She was never arrested before and had absolutely no criminal record of arrest and conviction of any crime, misdemeanor nor felony. She spent 6 full days in jail on a case of “mistaken identity.”

93% INCREASE IN APD 911 RESPONSE TIMES SINCE 2011: 48 MINUTES IS AVERAGE TIME OF ARRIVAL

On February 20th KOAT TV Target 7 reported on an investigation into the Albuquerque Police Department’s (APD’s) response times. The report revealed an alarming level of time it takes APD to respond to 911 emergency calls. The time it takes for APD to respond to priority 1 calls in all likely has a major impact on increasing physical injury to victims or callers. It was reported that it takes APD 23 minutes longer to get to an emergency call than it did 8 years ago. There has been an astonishing 93% increase since 2011 with response times getting worse every year since.

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.

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

ALARM CALLS TO BE DROPPED FROM APD CALLS FOR SERVICE

Confidential sources within APD have confirmed that APD command staff will be initiating a new policy where “calls for service” to burglar alarm calls will no longer be responded to with no reports to be written. The primary reason for the policy change is the high rate of “false alarms” which is said to approach 95%. After a first false alarm call, under the “false alarm ordinance, fines are leveled for repeated false alarms.

UNDERLYING CAUSE OF DELAYS

The main reason for the dramatic increase in response times is a reduction in the number of sworn police with a corresponding increase in calls for service and 911 emergency calls. When you examine APD’s manpower levels over the past nine years, response times were quicker when there were more sworn police assigned to the field services.

On December 1, 2009, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) was staffed at 1,100 sworn police officers. At the time, APD was the best trained, best funded, best equipped and best staffed in the history of the police department. The city’s overall crime rates were significantly lower than they are today.

For the full 8 years from December 1, 2009 to December 1, 2017, APD spiraled down wards as a result of poor management, budget cuts, police salary cuts and an investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) resulting in a finding of a “culture of aggression” within the department. The DOJ investigation resulted in a federal lawsuit and a consent decree mandating major reforms to APD and included the appointment of a federal monitor. When Mayor Keller took office on December 1, 2017, APD had plunged to approximately 870 full time police officers and the numbers went down even further to 830 at one time.

Early 2011, APD was staffed with nearly 1,100 sworn police officers. In 2011, it took an average of 25 minutes for an officer to respond to a 911 emergency call. It was in 2016 that APD’s manpower dropped. Currently, APD has about 950 to 970 officers.

As of January 1, 2020, according to pay stubs on file with the city, APD has 950 sworn police officers. The loss of 22 sworn police can be attributed to retirements and the Police Academy not keeping up with replacing officers. There is an APD Academy Class in session that should result in 35 to 40 more new officers added to the force in the Spring.

Although last year APD hired 117 sworn police, including laterals, not all of those officers are patrolling the streets with upwards of 60 sworn police assigned to the compliance bureau of APD for the Department of Justice Court Approved Settlement Agreement CASA) Order Consent decree.

Midway through 2015, APD response time to “Priority 1” calls, which included shootings, robberies, finding dead bodies and car wrecks with injuries, was 11 minutes and 12 seconds. In fiscal year 2016, APD actual response time to “Priority 1” calls was 11 minutes and 35 seconds. In fiscal year 2017, APD actual response time to “Priority 1” calls was 12 minutes and 16 seconds. In 2019, that time period spiked to 48 minutes as the average response time.

APD ADDS NEW PRIORITY CALL CATEGORIES AS ATTEMPT TO REDUCE RESPONSE TIME

The Albuquerque Emergency Communications Center has been trying to reduce response times for several years. In March, 2019 it was reported that 911 changed what is called the “priority system.”

Before when a call would come in, it was given one of three priorities based on it’s level of importance. With so few priorities, however, calls like someone locking a dog in a car was given the top priority. That was the same importance as if someone with a gun was robbing someone.

On March 6, 2019, APD announced that the way it was dispatching police officers to 911 calls was changed. 911 calls expanded the priority list to include 2 more for a total of five categories a opposed to just 3.

Before, call priorities were generally on a scale of 1 to 3 with 1 being the highest or most important type of call.

The original three priority 911 dispatch system defined the calls as follows:

A PRIORITY 1 call is a felony that is in progress or there is an immediate threat to life or property.

A PRIORITY 2 call is where there is no immediate threat to life of property. Misdemeanor crimes in progress are priority 2 calls.

A PRIORITY 3 call is any call in which a crime has already occurred with no suspects at or near the scene.

Routine events and calls where there are no threat to life or property are priority 3 calls.

http://isr.unm.edu/reports/2009/analyzing-calls-for-service-to-the-albuquerque-police-department..pdf

In 2018, Albuquerque Police Department (APD) police officers were dispatched to 476,726 calls for service. The 2018-2019 City general fund performance measures contained in the 2018-2019 fund budget, reflects significantly more calls for service with the projected number of calls for service reported as 576,480, and the actual number being 580,238.

Under the new system, a Priority 1 call is “any immediate life-threatening situation with great possibility of death or life-threatening injury or any confrontation between people which could threaten the life or safety of any person where weapons are involved.” A major goal of the new system is to determine what calls do and do not require a police officer.

A Priority 5 call is a where a crime has already occurred and there “is no suspect at or near the scene and no threat of personal injury, loss of life or property.”

In announcing the change in policy, APD Public Information Officer Gilbert Gallegos had this to say:

“What we want to do is get officers to the scene of a call as quickly as possible for the most urgent calls, and by that I mean calls where there is a life-threatening situation. … Basically we’re adapting to the situation where we’re trying to make the system much more efficient and much more effective “.

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/city-changes-the-way-officers-are-dispatched-to-calls/1829973373

APD administration stresses every call is different and depending on the circumstances of that call the level of priority can always change. The single most compelling reason for the change is that it was taking way too long to dispatch police officers after a call is received. Police were being dispatched to calls where an officer was not always needed.

Under the new 5 call policy, police officers only run code lights and sirens to life-threatening situations like a shooting, stabbing, armed robbery, or a crime where a weapon is involved. Under the new system, the public are asked to go to the telephone reporting unit to make a report and APD will not dispatch officers unless it meets some other criteria elevating the call. For the lower priority calls where an officer isn’t needed, callers have three ways to file a report: online, over the phone, or at any police substation.

ALARMING SPIKE

Midway through 2015, APD response time to “Priority 1” calls, which included shootings, robberies, finding dead bodies and car wrecks with injuries, was 11 minutes and 12 seconds. In fiscal year 2016, APD actual response time to “Priority 1” calls was 11 minutes and 35 seconds. In fiscal year 2017, APD actual response time to “Priority 1” calls was 12 minutes and 16 seconds. In 2019, that time period spiked to 48 minutes as the average response time.

APD PERFORMANCE MEASURES REPORTED IN 2019-2020 GENERAL FUND BUDGET

Whenever response time for 911 of calls is discussed, it must be viewed in the context of how those calls are broken down with respect to types of crime, arrests, number of police officers. The City budget is a “performance based” budget where yearly, the various departments must submit statistics reflecting job performance to justify the individual department budgets.
According to the 2019-2020 approved budget, in the last fiscal year APD responded to the following:

Number of calls for service: 580,238
Average response time for Priority 1 calls (immediate threat to life or great bodily harm): 12:26 minutes, (NOTE: The National standard 9 minutes.)
Number of felony arrests: 9,592
Number of misdemeanor arrests: 18,442
Number of DWI arrests: 1,403
Number of domestic violence arrests: 2,356
You can review the performance measures of APD on page 211 of the budget here:

http://documents.cabq.gov/budget/fy-19-approved-budget.pdf

REAL NUMBERS OF SWORN OFFICERS RESPONDING TO CALLS

APD has an approved general fund budget for fiscal year 2019-2020 of $188.9 million dollars, which represents an increase of 10.7% or $18.3 million above last year’s budget. According to the approved budget, APD has 1,560 approved full-time positions with 1,040 sworn police budgeted positions and 520 budgeted civilian positions. The links to city hall budgets are here:

http://documents.cabq.gov/budget/fy-19-approved-budget.pdf (Page 209)

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/budget/annual-budget

The Albuquerque Police Department (APD ) has five major bureaus:

1. The Field Services Bureau
2. Investigative Bureau
3. The Compliance Bureau
4. The Administrative support Bureau
5. The Support Services Bureau

Each bureau has a Deputy Chief appointed by the APD Chief of Police.

APD divides the city into six geographical areas called “area commands.” Each area command is managed by an APD Commander (formerly called Captains) and staffed with between 82 and 119 officers, depending on size of the area command and level of calls for service. All officers are dispatched through the police communications operators by calling (505) 242-cops for non-emergency calls or 911 in an emergency.

APD also has 3 divisions that are separate from the other divisions and they are:

1. The Bike Patrol
2. Operations Review
3. Others

https://www.cabq.gov/police/contact-the-police/area-commands

STAFFING SNAPSHOP

On August 1, 2019, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) issued what it entitled “Staffing Snapshot” providing a report on the number of sworn police officers APD has and where they have been assigned. According to the report, APD as of August 1, 2019 had a total of 972 sworn officers with 600 officers in the field patrolling 6 area commands and neighborhoods. The snapshot does not account for time delays from Human Resources and Payroll that have effective dates and retirements.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-staffing-numbers-how-many-officers-are-in-your-neighborhood-/5449523/?cat=500

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-staffing-numbers-how-many-officers-are-in-your-neighborhood-/5449523/?cat=500

It is the field services bureau that forms the front line of sworn officers that repond to emergency calls for service. Following is the breakdown of sworn police assignments.:

FIELD SERVICES BUREAU — TOTAL STAFFING: 600 (Out of 970)

The field service bureau’s primary function is to provide uniformed police officers throughout the city and at the six police substations and area commands. Officers assigned to field services handle calls for service and patrol the area commands in 3 separate shifts. These are the sworn police in uniform that are on the front line of law enforcement dealing with hundreds of thousands of calls for service a year. This is where the “rubber hits the road” when it comes to keeping neighborhoods safe and community-based policing.

The number of sworn officers assigned to each area command is somewhat fluid and based on the number of calls for service in the area command. Area commands with higher crime rates have always had far more officers assigned than those that have lower crime rates.

One Deputy Police Chief is appointed to oversee and manage the Field Services Bureau.

A major topic of discussion at neighborhood Associations and the Community Policing Councils is always how many police officers are patrolling the area commands. Following is a breakdown of sworn police assigned to each one of the area commands:

SOUTHWEST AREA COMMAND

The Southwest Area Command is bordered by Interstate 40 the north, the Rio Grande to the east, the South Valley to the south, and Albuquerque city limits to the west. Following is the staffing reported:

58 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 7 Sergeants

VALLEY AREA COMMAND

The Valley Area Command is bordered by the Albuquerque city limits to the north and south, Interstate 25 to the east, and the Rio Grande, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, and the North Valley to the west. This Area Command has an extensive history of having the second highest crime rates in the City. Following is the staffing reported:

67 Patrol Officers , 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 6 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers.

SOUTHEAST AREA COMMAND

The Southeast Area Command is bordered by Interstate 40 to the north, Eubank Boulevard to the east, Kirtland Air Force Base and Albuquerque city limits to the south, and Interstate 25 to the west. This Area Command has an extensive history of having the highest crime rates in the city. Following is the staffing reported:

89 Patrol Officers, 4 Lieutenants, 9 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

NORTHEAST AREA COMMAND

The Northeast Area Command is bordered by Albuquerque city limits to the north, Eubank Boulevard to the east, Interstate 40 to the south, and Interstate 25 to the west. This Area Command has a more recent history of increasing crime rates in the city, especially residential break-ins and robberies. Following is the staffing reported:

78 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

FOOTHILLS AREA COMMAND

The Foothills Area Command is bordered by San Antonio NE to the north, the Sandia Foothills to the east, Kirtland Air Force Base to the south, and Eubank Boulevard to the west. This Command Area has some of the lowest crime rates in the City. Following is the staffing reported:

57 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeants, 3 School Resource Officers

Northwest Area Command

The Northwest Area Command is bordered by Albuquerque city limits to the west and north, the west bank of the Rio Grande to the east, and Interstate 40 to the south. This Command Area has some of the lowest crime rates in the City. Following is the staffing reported:

59 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 7 Sergeants, 1 School Resource Officers

OTHER BUREAUS WITHIN APD

Policing and law enforcement is not just how many sworn police are patrolling the streets and making misdemeanor arrests and responding to 911 calls. Law enforcement includes staffing to acceptable levels those bureaus that do all the difficult or complicated investigations, such as homicides and rapes, as well as staffing for compliance with the Department of Justice mandated reforms. Following is a breakdown of the staffing levels according to the August 1, 2019, APD “Staffing Snapshot”:

INVESTIGATIVE BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 173

The Investigative Bureau consists of Criminal Investigations Division, the Special Investigations Division, Scientific Evidence Division and the Real Time Crime Center. This bureau deals primarily with the completion of felony investigations and prepares the cases, including evidence gathering and processing scientific evidence such as DNA, blood and fingerprints, for submission to prosecuting agencies, primarily the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office. Units in the bureau include homicide and auto theft. Following is the staffing reported:

142 Detectives, 1 Deputy Chief, 3 Commanders, 6 Lieutenants, 10 Sergeants

COMPLIANCE BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 61

The Compliance Bureaus consists of the Internal Affairs Professional Standards Division, Policy and Procedure Division, Accountability and Oversight Division, Internal Affairs Force Division and the Behavioral Health and Crisis Intervention Section. One of the major concentrations of this bureau is the ongoing cooperation with the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree (CASA) and its implementation of its terms and conditions. Internal Affairs deals with investigation police misconduct cases. Crisis Intervention deals with the crisis intervention teams who deal with the mentally ill. Policy and Procedures deals with the review and writing of standard operating procedures.

Following is the staffing reported:

40 Detectives, 1 Deputy Chief, 3 Commanders, 1 Deputy Commander, 6 Lieutenants, 10 Sergeants

SUPPORT SERVICES BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 116

The Support Services Bureau is comprised by the Homeland Security and Special Events Division, the Metro Traffic Division, the Records Division, the APD Police Academy, and the Public Safety Districts such as the Downtown Public Safety Division. Following is the staffing reported:

68 Officers, 1 Deputy Chief, 2 Commanders, 8 Lieutenants, 20 Sergeants, 6 Cadets/Pre-hires

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 43

This bureau provides clerical, secretarial, administrative, budgetary preparation and grant application support to the entire APD Department. Following is the staffing reported:
34 Officers, 1 Deputy Chief, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 4 Sergeants
SPECIAL OPERATIONS AND TACTICAL UNIT – TOTAL STAFFING: 30

This unit consists of the Special Weapons and Tactics Unit (SWAT). SWAT is trained to deal with situations of unusual danger, especially when requiring aggressive tactics or enhanced firepower, as in rescuing hostages, thwarting terrorist attacks or assassinations, and subduing heavily armed suspects. Following is the staffing reported:
24 Officers, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 3 Sergeants

BIKE PATROL– TOTAL STAFFING: 16

The bike patrol is what the name implies: Uniformed police ride on bikes an patrol the areas assigned to show a police presence such as in the Downtown Central Area, the City Plaza and Nob Hill. A total of 16 officers are assigned to the Bike Patrol.

OPERATIONS REVIEW

Police operations is generally defined as standard operating procedures, review of job duties, responsibilities, and activities that law enforcement agents complete in the field. 7 Officers, 4 Lieutenants and 5 Sergeants are reported as staffing Operations Review.

OTHER SWORN POLICE: TOTAL STAFFING 51

There are 41 APD recruits, laterals and sergeants assigned to on-the-job training.
10 sworn APD are assigned to Metro Court to provide security to the Metropolitan Court and the Mayor’s security detail that provides protection to the Mayor, his family when needed and security to the Mayor’s Office.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The homicide clearance rate is an embarrassment and blaming lack of resources is not acceptable. The response times to 911 calls is equally embarrassing. It is no longer an issue of not having the money, personnel or resources, but of a failed personnel resource management issue by Mayor Tim Keller, APD Chief Michael Geier and the APD Deputy Chiefs.

INCREASE HOMICIDE UNIT

With a 52.4% clearance rate and a backlog of cases, the Keller Administration needs to increase the Homicide Unit significantly more, especially when the commander in charge of the unit is saying two separate units are needed. The longer a homicide case takes to complete an investigation or is neglected because of lack of personnel, the less likely the cases will be solved and prosecuted. Adding to the crisis is the emotional toll an unsolved murder takes on the families of the victims.

Given the sure number of homicides, the backlog of cases and the pathetic homicide clearance rate, the Homicide Investigation Unit needs to be increased by at least another 5 detectives for a total of 16 detectives. Two separate units of 8, one for the most current homicides and the second for older back logged cases. Further, given the units low clearance rate and past performance, more needs to be done with respect to recruiting and doubling down on training.

APD is Homicide Unit is in a crisis mode and it needs to concentrate on recruiting seasoned homicide detectives from other departments if necessary. The New Mexico State Police and the Bernalillo County Sherriff’s office needs to be solicited for help to assign some it personnel to APD for homicide investigation.

Mayor Tim Keller and APD Chief Michael Geier need to recognize the fiasco the APD homicide unit has become. APD saying it is “still working on a long-term solution” is no longer acceptable.

RESPONSE TIME AT DANGEROUS LEVELS IMPACTING PUBLIC SAFETY

It’s no wonder that with only 600 out of 980 sworn police in field services handling call for service that response times are dangerously high. The high response times by APD to Priority 1 calls for service are unacceptable on so many levels and pose a clear threat to the city’s public safety. Every year from January 8, 2010 to mid-2015, response times for Priority 1 by APD have risen.

There is no doubt rising response times over the years by APD was a side effect of the dwindling police force that went from 1,100 police officers in 2010 to 853 sworn police in 2017, the lowest number of sworn police officers since 2001. Aggravating the increase in response time to 911 Priority 1 calls was the increase in the overall number of calls for service. The dramatic increase in the city’s overall crime rates, violent crime rates and the city’s population also increased response times beyond the national average of 10 minutes.

When it comes to violent crimes such as aggravated domestic violence cases, rapes, murders and armed robberies, seconds and minutes can make a difference between life and death of a person. City officials project that by the summer of 2020, APD will employ a total of 980 sworn police. With the establishment of new categories priority call and the addition of more police the APDs response time should have had a dramatic decline, but it has not.

With more police officers and the change in Priority 1 categories, APD should be able to better dispatch and save resources, yet overall response times continue to climb to dangerous levels.

Erika Wilson, the 911 Director had this to say:

“I think APD is doing the best it can with the resources it has.”

The truth is, that is a very weak excuse by any one’s standard as is 48-minute average response time being inexcusable.

Currently, there are 61 sworn police assigned to the compliance bureaus, which includes APD Internal Affairs. There are 40 detectives involved with the Department of Justice reform enforcement. Those 40 officers would be better utilized in the field services patrolling the streets and bringing response times down to more respectable levels.

People in Albuquerque will never genuinely feel safe or have confidence in APD as long as they know when they make a 911 call for help, it may take upwards of 48 minutes before you see a uniform, if not longer, or perhaps not at all.

WITHHELD FUNDING OVER SANCTUARY CITY

Deputy Chief Harold Medina was a little over the top when he accused the United States Department of Justice of “politcal extortion” for threatening to withhold the $10 Million in federal grant funding. Albuquerque City Council President Pat Davis once again showed the poor judgment he is known for with his grand standing saying the threat was “just blatantly political bullying.”

Simply put, Mayor Tim Keller and Chief Geier were derelict in not speaking for the department and the City on the importance the city’s “immigrant friendly policy” and their failure to dispute that the city is a “sanctuary city”. It was a failure of leadership of Chief Michael Geier and especially Mayor Tim Keller not taking any public position on the threat when it is they who should have made an effort to seek to work out a compromise.

Like it or not, the APD is still under a federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA). Since day one of assuming office on December 1, 2017. Keller pledged to work with the Department of Justice and the city has indeed made significant progress in implementing th reforms. Both May Keller and Chief Geier are still struggling to implement all 270 mandated reforms. Further, the city has filed a Motion to assume self-oversight on a number of the reforms.

Comments such as that made by City Councilor Pat Davis and APD Deputy Chief Medina and a failure of Chief Geier and Mayor Keller send the wrong message of confrontation rather than cooperation and communication with the federal government. One thing is for sure, the city council needs to revisit the original “immigrant friendly” resolution and determine if it really has accomplished anything other than jeopardizing funding with the Department of Justice for law enforcement. The City Council needs to determine if there is an actual need to declare Albuquerque a “sanctuary city”.

CONCLUSION

Candidate Tim Keller campaigned to be elected mayor on the platform of implementing the U.S. Department of Justice-mandated reforms, increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department, returning to community-based policing and promising to bring down skyrocketing crime rates.

The Keller administration 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 in order to return to community-based policing. According to recent pay stubs, APD has 950 sworn police or 250 short of what was promised. The Keller Admiration also negotiated with the police union significant APD pay raises and bonuses and an aggressive hiring and recruitment program offering incentives to join or return to APD.

What is very troubling is that all the increases in APD budget, personnel and new programs are not having any effect on bringing down the violent crime and murder rates. It is no longer an issue of not having the money, personnel or resources, but of a failed personnel resource management issue. It is also obvious that the APD command staff Keller handpicked are not getting the job done.

A major reorganization of APD is in order, including personnel changes and asking for more than a few resignations and starting with the APD command staff Keller picked. The reorganization would include increasing the number of officers sworn to patrol the streets and increasing the various units, such as the homicide and investigations units.

Currently, there are 61 sworn police assigned to the compliance bureaus, which includes APD Internal Affairs. There are 40 detectives involved with the Department of Justice reform enforcement. Those 40 officers would be better utilized in the field services patrolling the streets.

Sooner rather than later, citizens demand and want results. No amount of feel good public relations or nuance programs Keller is known for are going to satisfy those demands or make people feel safe. Mayor Tim Keller is also known for his eternal optimism that things will get better with APD, that more time is needed to turn the department around and that APD is doing the best it can with what it has.

Voters want a strong executive to run APD and the job is not getting done. Candidate Keller made a lot of promises when it comes to APD to get elected with very few results and he is now running out of time to “do good” as he runs for a second term in 2021.

________________________________________

POSCRIPT

On Sunday, March 1, the Albuquerque Journal editorialized on the homicide clearance rate. Following is the editorial in full with the link to the editorial:

EDITORIAL TITLE: Getting away with murder
BY ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL EDITORIAL BOARD
Sunday, March 1st, 2020 at 12:02am

“It’s all about priorities.

Or, in this case, perhaps misplaced ones.

As the number of homicides in Albuquerque has soared, with a record 82 in 2019, the percentage of those solved by arrest has plunged. According to city budget documents, APD’s homicide clearance rate as reported in the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report hovered around 80% from fiscal 2009 to 2016. But in each of the last two calendar years, the percentage of solved homicides dropped to about 50%.

And while APD maintains a website of “Active Homicide Investigations,” it lists just 25 cases – all of which occurred in 2018 between January and August. No more recent cases are posted. Why? In fact, APD says it does not even have “collective data” to show how many murders over the years have gone unsolved.

There is not enough space to list all of the many unsolved cases here. And there is no way to adequately address the open wounds of families and loved ones left behind, or the scars left on the community.
But among the most alarming are:

⋄ Jacqueline Vigil, 55, who was shot and killed in her driveway in an upscale neighborhood on Albuquerque’s West Side last November as she was leaving home before dawn to go to her gym. “Jacque” was the mother of two State Police officers and worked in a child day care center. She was the kind of person who sent Bible verses to friends and loved ones twice a day.

• Roy Caton Jr., a beloved, retired University of New Mexico professor and Korea veteran who was found brutally murdered in his university-area home in August, a block from the place where he taught for much of his life. He taught chemistry to many students who went on to become doctors, dentists and nurses. In the words of a former colleague, “he really impacted the community.”

• Victoria Martens, the 10-year-old girl brutally murdered, dismembered and set on fire in 2016. It was one of the most shocking killings in the city’s history, and like the deaths of Vigil and Caton is in the unsolved category. Because of the botched homicide investigation, chances are no one will ever face murder charges for her death. (Three people have been arrested in the case, and two convicted of lesser charges. The police investigation into a fourth suspect stalled in 2018.

Given the rising death toll and shocking circumstances of some of the cases, it’s fair to ask whether Albuquerque is dedicating enough resources to solving these crimes – and hopefully deterring others in the process.

APD says it now has 11 homicide detectives – up from five in 2017. Compare that to the 53 sworn officers and 31 civilians in the new APD Accountability and Oversight Division organized under Mayor Tim Keller’s administration in response to the court-approved monitoring of city police.

Internal Affairs is one component of that division and includes one commander, three lieutenants, five sergeants, 18 detectives and eight civilians. There are four openings for additional detectives. So at full force, APD’s unit that investigates cops would have twice the number – that’s 100% more – of detectives the department now has investigating homicides.

This isn’t to say compliance with the reform agreement and internal investigations isn’t important. It is. But as the city has ramped up hiring in APD, partly by upping salaries and through intense recruiting, it’s time the City Council asked Police Chief Michael Geier to show up at a public meeting, address the homicide clearance issue and answer questions. Allocation of resources is an important part of the oversight job we elected councilors to do, and it’s time for them to do it in a way the community can share in the information.

Because there are real consequences to the lack of resources investigating homicides.

A 2018 Washington Post analysis of 8,000 homicides found that for cases that aren’t solved within one year, only 5% ultimately lead to an arrest. As for caseloads, APD says some of its veteran homicide detectives have more than 20 open cases. The federal Bureau of Justice Assistance guide on best practices says a homicide unit is optimally staffed when each detective is lead investigator on an average of three to four new homicide cases per year.

“It’s nearly impossible to improve clearance rates when you’re dealing with large caseloads, as you are forced to just triage and you can’t dig into the investigation,” says Lt. Detective Darrin Greeley of the Boston Police Department in the 2018 federal report.

But this is about more than statistics. And Jacque Vigil’s husband Sam makes the case for more resources.

“I’m very frustrated, not with the actual detectives working on the case, because I think their plates are so full that it’s ridiculous,” he says.

“They are doing as much as they possibly can with very little resources … There are other victims. It’s not just Jacque.”

The friends and loved ones of Jacque Vigil, Roy Caton, Victoria Martens and all the other homicide victims in Albuquerque deserve some answers. Along with all the other residents of a city battered by violent crime.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1426124/getting-away-with-murder.html

On February 27, the City of Albuquerque released a report and analysis announcing the top 3 preferred locations for the new 24/7 homeless shelter known as the “Gateway Center”. The 3 locations are:

1. University of New Mexico land next to the state laboratory, near Interstate 25 and Camino de Salud
2. Coronado Park at 3rd Street and Interstate 40
3. The former Lovelace hospital on Gibson

The Crowne Plaza Hotel, which City Councilors Diane Gibson and Trudy Jones had said should be considered as an option was eliminated by the City due to acquisition cost.

According to a city news release, 149 potential sites were originally identified through a community feedback process. That process included an “on line” survey” for people to take. Thirty 30 sites were identified. The Keller Administration scored the 30 sites “based on ownership of the location, lot size, zoning, acquisition cost, access to transportation, and proximity to services. ”

During a presentation of the report and analysis to a joint government board meeting of officials from the City, Bernalillo County and Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) government officials and community activists, officials from the Family and Community Services Department emphasized that even though 3 sites have now been identified, all the details have yet to be worked out for any one and the final site selection is far from over. Lisa Huval, the city’s deputy director for Housing and Homelessness emphasized that there is a chance the city creates multiple smaller shelters at different locations and keeps the West Side location open for overflow purposes.

City officials have said ground breaking is targeted for the summer of 2021 with starting operations in the spring of 2022.

Complete news coverage can be found at the below links:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/city-releases-top-three-sites-for-new-gateway-center/

https://www.koat.com/article/three-locations-chosen-as-finalists-for-new-homeless-shelter/31144656

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-of-albuquerque-releases-list-of-top-3-locations-for-new-homeless-shelter/5659063/?cat=500

BACKGROUND

On November 5, voters approved general obligation bonds of $14 million for a city operated 24-7 homeless shelter that will house upwards of 300. The actual cost will be $30 million and the City asked the 2020 New Mexico Legislature for the additional $14 million to complete phase two of the project, but the funding request failed.

City Hall has deemed that a 24-hour, 7 day a week temporarily shelter for the homeless as critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. The city owned shelter is projected to assist an estimated 300 homeless residents and connect them to other services intended to help secure permanent housing. The new facility would serve all populations, men, women, and families.

The city facility would have on-site case managers that will guide residents toward addiction treatment, housing vouchers and other available resources. According city officials, the new homeless shelter will replace the existing West Side Emergency Housing Center, the former jail on the far West Side.

The goal is for the new homeless shelter to provide first responders an alternative destination for the people they encounter on so-called “down-and-out” calls. Many “down and outs” today wind up in the emergency room even when they are not seriously injured or ill. According to city officials, in a recent one-year period, only 110 of 6,952 “down and out” people were taken by first responders to the Emergency Room with life-threatening conditions.

CITY SURVEY LOCATIONS

Initially, the City revealed 5 potential locations for the centralized emergency shelter for the homeless:

1.The old Lovelace Hospital on Gibson
2.University of New Mexico property near Lomas and Interstate 25
3.Montessa Park, south of the Sunport
4.An area near Second and Interstate 40
5.Continue to use the old West Side Jail 20 miles outside the city limits and build new facilities at that location.

Early in December, 2019 The Keller Administration set up an online survey that people were able to give input on where the 24-7 city homeless shelter should be built. There were only two specific places on the survey where the $30 million homeless shelter was being suggested to go. Those two areas were the area of 2nd Street at I-40 near downtown and a large empty lot that borders the UNM Health Sciences Center.

The survey results showed the community overwhelmingly wants the shelter to prioritize and have on-site mental health and substance abuse counseling. Further, survey respondents felt that the city needs to consider how to minimize the shelter’s impact on neighborhoods with 81% of respondents checking “appropriate public safety presence” and 67% saying on-site security needs to be included at the shelter.

DETAILS ON THE THREE TOP LOCATIONS

Following are details of the 3 locations with analysis that made the city’s initial cut:

CORONADO PARK

According to the report released by the City on February 27, building the new shelter at Coronado would cost a total of $12.7 million. The city would need to buy abutting land, which may include office space across from the park, to have enough space.

The overwhelming number of those who completed the on line city survey chose the Interstate 40 and 2nd street location as the best area for the shelter with upwards of 31% of the respondents saying the area was the best location. The area is in the same general vicinity as Coronado Park, a city park that has attracted for years many homeless people and those that feed the homeless. The city uses the park as a pickup location for those needing rides to the West Side shelter. No other location site received even half of the number of votes.

For decades, Coronado Park has become an “encampment” or one of the most popular places for the homeless to congregate during the day and sleep at night. Many times, over the years, charitable organizations or “good Samaritans” have set up “food lines” for the homeless at Coronado Park. City and zoning health inspectors have been dispatched repeatedly to the park to try and curb the serving of hot food in the area in order to curtail potential health risk to the homeless and feeding them tainted food. At one time the American Civil Liberties Union even threatened to take action against the city over its efforts to curtail serving hot food to the homeless at Coronado Park.

Marit Tully, the president of the Near North Valley Neighborhood Association said at Thursday’s meeting that Coronado Park has seen major problem over the years due to the park’s existing concentration of people who are homeless. The neighborhood area she was referring to is located north of the freeway. Tully said area residents have for years raised concerns with the city, but the city has made s little improvement. According to Telly, her neighborhood association could not support any shelter site unless the city invests just as much in the chosen neighborhood.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

Police over the years have been dispatched over and over to take action against the homeless at Coronado Park. The use of Coronado Park by the general public is scant or significantly curtailed. To succeed at the Coronado Park location and to have the lowest impact to the area would require sufficient safety precautions including security fencing and law enforcement or security surveillance of the area. The advantage is that the City owns the land and the location is far enough from the down town area to reduce impact to downtown and residential areas. The freeway still would act as a buffer to businesses north of it.

UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER

According to the city’s report and analysis, the UNM land would be free and development cost would be $12.4 million. The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center laboratory area tied for second place in the city’s on line survey receiving 15% of the vote. UNM Health Services confirmed a few months ago in a statement released that they were talking with city officials so they can be part of the solution. Following is the statement released:

“The University of New Mexico has been in discussions with the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County on the best ways to address the needs of the homeless population in our community. In those discussions, the possibility of utilizing currently vacant land near the office of the medical investigator/state lab has been mentioned. Nothing has been decided and you will see from the survey that other locations are being considered.

Our mission at UNM Health Sciences is to treat every New Mexican with the highest level of care possible. Being part of the solution to address the mental health, substance use disorder and housing needs of residents goes to the heart of that mission. It is not enough to just treat those who enter our emergency department, we must invest in comprehensive, compassionate care. Partnering with local governments ensures we continue to deliver more to those in need.”

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-survey-results-reveal-top-picks-for-new-homeless-shelter-location/5635350/?cat=500

University of New Mexico leaders have sent mixed messaged on whether UNM land should be considered for the shelter. Dr. Paul Roth, chancellor of the UNM Health Sciences Center and chief executive officer of the UNM Health System, did say previously there are several advantages to using the UNM land for the homeless shelter including proximity to health and behavioral health facilities that are a critical part of the proposed shelter.

UNM’s Campus Safety Council, which consists of the dean of students, student body president, chief of university police and others, voted overwhelmingly in January to recommend to UNM officials and regents not to allow the shelter anywhere at UNM. According to UNM’s Campus Safety Council the facility will create a dangerous situation for students, burden campus police and hurt the university’s enrollment which has been on the decline the past 3 years.

UNM President Garnett Stokes has made it clear that no decision has been made. Stokes has said that she will keeping an open mind about the proposal, and will gather input from the campus community and others before making a recommendation to the Board of Regents.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

LOVELACE HOSPITAL COMPLEX ON GIBSON

According to the report and analysis released by the city, the Lovelace Hospital Complex would be $14 million in acquisition and renovation costs.

Although the former Lovelace hospital on Gibson was not listed in the on line survey, 42 people who took the survey wrote it in as an option. It was not listed on the survey because the city did not have permission from the building’s owners to list it.

It was in 2007 Lovelace Medical Center closed down. It was later purchased by local private investors. The investors who purchased the former Lovelace Hospital on Gibson were Jimmy Daskalos and Nick Kapnison. Nick Kapnison is one of the owners of “Nick and Jimmy’s” Restaurant, Mikinos Creek Restaurant and Papa Fillipes. Mr. Nick Kapnison is a highly respected businessman and community activist.

The Albuquerque Journal recently reported that Nick Kapnison donated $3,500 to Mayor Keller’s Charitable Foundation. The Charitable Foundation has raised $250,000 from private donors for city initiatives. The Mayor’s Charitable Foundation recently gave the City $20,000 to provide additional housing vouchers for the homeless. The link to the Journal report on the donations is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1421506/familiar-businesses-back-abq-foundation.html

The Loveless facility is a 529,000-square-foot building and upwards of 50% of it is said to be vacant. According to one news report, an estimated $10 million in upgrades in the Lovelace Hospital Complex, including remodeling for specific tenants, improving common areas and the parking lot and installing a 540-ton cooling unit out back were made. Parts of the building date back to 1950 and what was then known as the Lovelace Clinic, and as a result the need for any asbestos remediation is subject to speculation and has not been reported on by the news media.

https://www.abqjournal.com/774956/medical-center-at-old-lovelace-hospital-might-expand-to-other-uses.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Since assuming office as mayor on December 1, 2017, Tim Keller has said that a 24-hour, 7 day a week facility to temporarily shelter the homeless within the city is critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. Mayor Keller actively campaigned for voters to approve $14 million in general obligation bonds of for the homeless shelter that has an actual cost of $30 million.

During last year’s 2019 legislative session, the city sought $28 million for the Gateway project. The legislature funded only $985,000 last year for construction costs. This year Mayor Keller sought $14 million from the New Mexico legislature in state funding for the “Gateway Center” homeless to match $14 million that city voters approved in the last bond election. The 2020 legislature refused to fund the project.

With only $14 million in place, the city only has enough to complete the first phase of the project. The city will now have to find funding elsewhere within the city budget or wait another year to ask for funding in the 2021 legislative session.

The City of Albuquerque has an operating budget of $1.1 billion for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2019 and ends on June 30, 2020. It was the first time in city history that the city operating budget exceeded the $1 Billion figure. The 2019-2020 budget represented an overall 11% increase in spending over the previous year. On April 1, 2020, the Keller Administration will be releasing the 2020-2021 proposed city budget for review, public hearings and final approval by the City Council. It will be interesting if Mayor Keller will be including the additional $14 million to complete the “Gateway Center” Homeless Shelter.

The Keller Administration did say that although 3 locations have been identified, the city’s site selection is ongoing and new locations continue to emerge. Included in the process will be a fiscal analysis of each site and determining the financial limitations to complete the project. Each site under serious consideration will require a financial analysis, including land acquisition cost, before the Keller Administration makes any final recommendations to the City Council.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1416684/i402nd-street-choice-for-new-homeless-shelter-ex-more-survey-respondents-favored-centralized-location-for-homeless.html

There is no doubt as the debate rages on where to put the Keller 24-7 City Homeless Shelter, there is a likelihood a large segment of the voting public will get upset, no matter how necessary the shelter is needed. Keller wants to break ground for the new shelter in the summer of 2021 which is when the race for Mayor begins to heat up, which is what happened with the ART Bus construction project.

Many will be watching exactly what is Mayor Tim Keller’s preferred location for the shelter which is the location likely the City Council will adopt. If not handled properly by building a consensus, Mayor Tim Keller will be adding the location of the 24-7 city homeless shelter location he has advocated since being elected to the list of issues that could conceivably divide large segments of the city and deprive him of a second term.

Mr. Michael Dickson has been a resident of Albuquerque for over forty years. He is a former, two-term, City of Albuquerque Environmental Planning Commissioner. Michael Dickson is an artist and retired architect. He was the Director of Design, Principal Designer and Senior Principal at one of New Mexico’s largest and most prestigious architectural firms.

Recently, Mr. Dickson worked with the Greater Albuquerque Business Association, as a volunteer, to develop a conceptual masterplan for “Gabriel’s Village”, a not-for-profit residential homeless campus envisioned to serve homeless; families, veterans, men and women that have fallen on economic hard times and just need some help building their lives, finding the right job and learning new market-driven job skills, so they can reenter main stream society and become self-sufficient productive and contributing citizens.

Below is a guest column submitted by Michael Dickson to this blog for publication:

“The University of New Mexico’s proud motto, Lux Hominum Vita, means, Light the Life of Man. These well-chosen words are intended to encapsulate the beliefs and ideals of this heralded institution.

A recent article in the Journal seemed to suggest that representatives of UNM oppose the construction of a Homeless Shelter on the vacant northern end of the Campus, siting typical “Not In My Back Yard” NIMBY concerns related to campus safety. While reading about their disapproval, it is natural to feel a rush of disappointment while recalling, the motto, Lux Hominum Vita.

I didn’t go to UNM. However, I have; a daughter, son and daughter -in-law that did. My two grandsons will attend in the not-too-distant future. It is a fine institution!

I finished my degree during the early 1970’s. Remember “Flower Power, Counterculture and Making the World a Better Place?” My generation, which probably includes many professors at UNM, was idealistic and wanted a better world for everyone. I hope those principled values did not die in academia! Those ideals seem to still exist…at least in UNM’s motto.

University educators are always chiding students to quit rushing to judgement and to “Think out of the box!” Sadly, it is obvious that UNM representatives didn’t use an enlightened response to the homeless shelter. UNM played the NIMBY card too quickly, without really studying the many benefits of having the Homeless Shelter on campus. Hey, we all understand concerns about having 300 unwelcome new neighbors. At first glance, it seems like there is no upside to this City proposal. However, “think out of the box” for a moment. For most neighborhoods on the Mayor’s shortlist, the Homeless Shelter is a “bitter pill to swallow.”

However, UNM is supposed to be filled with (as the motto advertises), enlighten people, free-thinkers, liberal attitudes and champions for a better world for everyone.

Based on a recent Journal article, the City will pay The School of Architecture to study the homeless problem. It was a sizeable funding allocation for this study. All architects are trained to, “First, research, analyze and define the problem, before rushing to any solution”. I pray they will do a thorough job and ask individuals a multitude of questions such as; How did they get into this predicament? Where did they come from? Why did they come to ABQ? What do they want for their future? What would compel them to come to this new shelter for help?

Our homeless don’t just need a temporary place to eat and sleep. They need real long-term help. Many have psychiatric and/or substance-abuse problems. However, many are people that just fell on hard times and need a “hand up” with market-driven job training so, they can get good paying jobs, become self-sufficient home-owning, tax-paying productive citizens, once again.

The City and UNM need to be strategic partners. UNM wants a safer campus! Accordingly, ABQ needs to pony-up adequate funds to significantly help improve main campus lighting, security and provide added policing to prevent campus crimes before they happen.

Homeless services should not be free. The 300 residents should be required to participate in university research studies. If UNM wants to truly,” Light the Life of Man” it can become a real Center of Research. This can be a place where students can earn credits with real life hands-on education. This Homeless Shelter/CAMPUS can be a great place for students to learn to help their neighbors through volunteerism. The benefits of this facility located conveniently on-campus are obvious for the; Schools of Architecture, Pharmacy, Medicine, Population Health, Nursing and Law.

If done properly, ABQ and UNM could make this new on-campus Homeless Shelter the template and role model for our nation’s war on homelessness. Wouldn’t it be nice for us to be on the top of some “good” lists for a change? Let’s join the vanguard and be “part of the solution”?”

DISCLAIMER:

The opinions expressed in the foregoing guest opinion column written by Michael Dickson and are those of Mr. Dickson and do not necessarily reflect those of the www.petedinelli.com blog. Further, Mr. Dickson paid no consideration for its publication and has given his consent to publication. www.PeteDinelli.com has not been paid any compensation to publish the guest column.