Ever since Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham issued her Executive Orders to close the state there have been major outcry’s and complaints of “executive abuse of power” and arguments that the orders are violating people’s civil rights protected by the United States and New Mexico State Constitutions. The New Mexico Republican Party and the New Mexico Sheriff’s Association have now joined the 3 ring Republican Circus of Criticism against Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham.

This blog article is a deep dive analysis of the recent developments and a discussion of the law when it comes to the constitutional arguments made against the Governor’s public heath orders.

RECENT NEWS DEVELOPMENTS

On Sunday, May 10, it was reported that New Mexico Republican Party Chairman and the President of the County Sherriff’ Association are asking United States Attorney General William Barr to look into Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s health orders aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19. State Republican Party Chairman Steve Pierce and Cibola County Sherriff President Tony Mace each sent letters to Barr last week seeking a review into the health orders that have shuttered some businesses since late March. They say the orders, which have closed several small businesses, violate resident’s civil rights.

Pearce wrote Barr:

“We want to express our fears and frustrations regarding New Mexico Governor Lujan Grisham’s public health order, a policy many in our state believe to be a blatant violation of peoples’ civil rights, liberties and their right to conduct free commerce … The situation in New Mexico is one that is unjust and inequitable.”

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/may/10/new-mexico-gop-sheriffs-appeal-william-barr-over-m/?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=socialnetwork&fbclid=IwAR0K3Qd0rdBPwvrNBVaSEeJvN5A2vVEQMLHiBhnBVGq0Bo2VFVji_ECov9Y

Sheriff Tony Mace wrote Barr:

“The governor has been discriminatory in her policies, keeping big box corporate giants open, draining New Mexico dollars out of state, while shutting down mom and pop locally owned establishments. … This is not only preferential treatment for the big box stores but a violation of the civil rights of our small business owners whose livelihoods are now in free fall.”

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/sheriffs-ask-ag-barr-to-review-new-mexico-health-orders/5724610/?cat=500

BOTH “BITCHING IS NOT FIXIN” NOR MAKES IT TRUE

Republican State Party Chairman Steve Pearce and the New Mexico Sheriff’s Association President Tony Mace can bitch all they want to whoever they want about the Executive Health Orders of Governor Mitchell Lujan during the corona virus pandemic, but what they say does not make it true. Both are dead wrong when they think the Governor has no authority to issue the health orders. The only thing that both Chairman Pierce and Sheriff Mace are revealing to the United States Attorney General and the public is just how ignorant they are of the law unless it’s just pathetic grandstanding on their part.

Apparently, Cibola County Sherriff Mace never travels to Albuquerque to go retail shopping nor goes to restaurants because if he did he would see thousands of empty parking spaces at Coronado Shopping Center, Winrock Shopping Center and ABQ Uptown where all the “big box” stores are closed. He would also see the empty parking spaces at big chain restaurants like Chile’s, Season’s 54, Olive Garden, Red Lobster, the Cheese Factory just to mention a few who now offer only curbside service. The New Mexico State Police has also closed down the big box stores of Total Wine and a Hobby Lobby, both part of a national chain.

If the arguments being made by Sheriff Mace sound familiar, they are. They are very similar to the constitutional arguments Mace and the New Mexico Sheriffs association made to oppose the “red flag” law enacted by the 2020 New Mexico legislature allowing the seizure of guns by court order from individuals deemed an imminent danger and threat to themselves or others. Then, as now, Mace argues there is an unreasonable taking of property and a denial of due process of law.

It’s downright embarrassing and hypocritical that the likes of former US Congressman Steve Pierce would send a letter to Attorney General Barr. Pierce is a former member of the ultra-right-wing Congressional Freedom Caucus and he is a strong supporter of President Donald Trump. Pierce has yet to criticize any of the executive orders President Trump has issued during the pandemic.

Least anyone forget, Steve Pearce also ran for Governor as the Republican nominee against Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham and he lost in a landslide. Based on what Steve Pierce wrote and his actions now, there is little doubt he would have done absolutely NOTHING during this deadly pandemic to “flatten the curve”. A Governor Pierce would have ignored the spread of the disease allowing it to run its course resulting in even more deaths of many New Mexicans.

Both Steve Pearce and Tony Mace apparently believe that commerce and the economy Trump’s the rights of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” just as much guaranteed under the constitution as the right to commerce. Their actions now call into question what they will do if a vaccine is found and if mandatory inoculation is authorized by congress or state governments which has in fact happened in the past.

BACKGROUND

On March 11, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham became the first New Mexico Governor to invoke the 2003 Public Health Emergency Response Act (PHERA), issuing an Executive Order declaring a “public health emergency” giving her administration broad powers to deal with the coronavirus . The governor urged people to avoid public gatherings, sanitize common surfaces and minimize contact with other individuals, even if it means staying home from church or going out less often in order to slow transmission of the virus.

On March 12, New Mexico Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel announced a ban on public mass gatherings of 100 people or more, as the state’s efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus rapidly intensified. The ban announced applies to facilities such as auditoriums, stadiums, arena, large conference rooms, meeting halls, theaters, or any other confined indoor or outdoor space. The ban was later modified to prevent gatherings of more than 5 and require social distancing of 6 feet.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1430774/nm-health-secretary-issues-ban-on-large-public-gatherings.html

On April 30, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that she was extending the quarantine orders another two weeks to May 15. The order was set to expire May 1. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham extended and the announced closures of all “non-essential” businesses statewide until May 15. The mandated closures included all retail stores, including malls, offices, work-spaces, retailers, except curbside-delivery will be allowed, dine-in restaurants and bars, except curbside-delivery, liquor establishments, malls, gyms, barber shops and salons, theaters and the 14 day quarantine order for out-of-state airport travelers Social distancing was mandated as was the limitation of people gathering to 5 or less.

You can read more the Executive Orders here:

https://www.governor.state.nm.us/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/COVID-19-DOH-Order-fv.pdf

http://www.rld.state.nm.us/uploads/PressRelease/b88957513a09474898000e52177885b3/UPDATED_DOH_PHO.pdf

ACCELERATED EFFORTS TO FIND A VACCINE

News agencies are reporting that the medical research to find a vaccine for the corona virus is being expedited by medical researchers, and a vaccine just may be a few months away.

According to the Milken Institute, an independent economic think tank in California, there are currently more than 40 clinical trials around the word attempting to find a vaccine for the corona virus. A joint $1 billion collaboration agreement has been announced by the U.S. government and Johnson & Johnson on March 30 to develop a vaccine. The approaches are varied, but all involve training the body’s immune system to recognize and remember the virus and produce antibodies to fight the disease.

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/04/harvards-coronavirus-vaccine-efforts/

A vaccine would normally take years, if not decades, to develop. Researchers hope to achieve the same amount of work in only a few months. Most experts think a vaccine is likely to become available by mid-2021, about 12-18 months after the new virus, known officially as Sars-CoV-2, first emerged. That would be a huge scientific feat and there are no guarantees it will work.

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-51665497

MOST NOTABLE ACT OF DEFIANCE RESULTS IN NM SUPREME COURT COMPLIANCE ORDER

The most notable act of defiance thus far has come from Democrat Grants Mayor Martin Hicks, who has reopened city hall and ordered city workers back to work. On Monday, April 27, Hicks vowed in defiance to allow all small businesses in Grants to reopen and he encouraged businesses in his city to defy the governor’s orders and reopen to the public. Governor Lujan Grisham for her part said the mayor’s plan makes “absolutely no sense whatsoever” and warned that State Police would continue enforcing the health orders.

When asked about possible legal action against him, Hicks said:

“Bring it on baby, she is violating the Constitution of the United States of America and if she writes me a ticket I am going to sue her. I’m not going to sue her in state court, I’m going to sue her in federal court, where the U.S. Attorney General can look at it.”

https://www.cibolacitizen.com/breaking-news-news/mayor-determined-stand-his-ground

Mayor Hicks was given a cease and desist order by the New Mexico Attorney General and the Attorney General took the matter to New Mexico Supreme Court. On April 30, the New Mexico Supreme Court ordered Grants Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks to comply with the state’s emergency public health orders and to obey the state’s pandemic-related restrictions on business operations. If Mayor Hicks fails to honor the Supreme Court orders, he could wind up jailed for contempt of court and the Attorney General could seek his removal from office.

NEW MEXICO REPUBLICANS MAKE CONSTITUTIONAL ARGUMENTS

On Tuesday, April 28, New Mexico House Republican legislators sent a letter to the Governor urging her to accelerate the lifting of restrictions and also made arguments that the Governor exceeded her authority. They argued that many businesses won’t survive if restrictions last through mid-May. They also said New Mexicans are growing restless and may take matters into their own hands. The lawmakers wrote there is a need “to keep the situation from devolving into social chaos.”

In a conference call with the media to release the letter, the New Mexico Republican law makers went so far as to suggest that civil unrest and “social chaos” will soon occur if the state is not reopened for business soon. Republican House Minority Whip Rod Montoya of Farmington told reporters that the state needs to avoid a “Kent State situation”. Kent State was where the Ohio National Guard shot Viet Nam war protesters in 1970.

TRUMP INCITES INSURRECTION AND CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

President Donald Trump has gotten into the act of promoting civil disobedience like that of Mayor Hicks against Governor Lujan Grisham. On April 17, in a dangerous series of tweets, President Trump incited citizen insurrection against the duly elected Democratic governors of the states of Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia where the Governors are doing their best to “flatten the curve” of the pandemic with little or no help from Trump. One day after Trump issued guidance for re-opening America that clearly deferred decision-making to the Governors of the states, Trump undercut his own guidance by calling for criminal acts against the Democratic governors for not opening fast enough.

Trump tweeted, “LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” followed immediately by “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” and then “LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege!” The day before there were demonstrations in Michigan where armed protesters surrounded the state capitol building in Lansing chanting “Lock her up!” in reference to Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and “We will not comply,” in reference to her extension of the state’s coronavirus-related stay-at-home order. Smaller armed groups protested on the state capitol grounds in Richmond, Virginia, and outside the governor’s mansion in St. Paul, Minnesota.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/04/17/liberate-michigan-trump-constitution/

On Monday, May 11, President Trump accused without evidence Democratic Governors of moving to reopen their states too slowly amid the coronavirus pandemic to hurt his chances of reelection. In a tweet, Trump singled out the battleground state of Pennsylvania, where officials in four counties are threatening to defy Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home order, which was extended for most of the state through June 4. Trump tweeted:

“The great people of Pennsylvania want their freedom now, and they are fully aware of what that entails. … The Democrats are moving slowly, all over the USA, for political purposes. They would wait until November 3rd if it were up to them. Don’t play politics. Be safe, move quickly!”

A recent Yahoo News/YouGov poll found 59% of Americans believe states such as Georgia, Florida, Minnesota and Texas are “moving too fast” to reopen. while only 33% say the pace is “about right.” Just 8% say it’s “too slow.” Public health experts, including members of the White House coronavirus task force, have warned that reopening too soon could lead to more death and economic damage. Trump has acknowledged that “there will be more death” as states move to relax their stay-at-home mandates in the coming months.

https://sports.yahoo.com/trump-pennsylvania-coronavirus-reopening-death-know-what-that-entails-161047736.html

GOVERNOR GETS HIGH MARKS FOR HANDLING PANDEMIC

On Apr 24, 2020, “The Majority Institute – Public Policy Polling” released its newest New Mexico survey. It found that Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has a 62% approval rating for her handling of the coronavirus, to only 26% who disapprove for a net +36 rating.

Lujan Grisham secured overwhelming support from both Democrats (83% to 9%) and independents (60% to 28%) for her handling of the virus and received good marks from 32% of Republicans as well. 63% of voters in the state think the state’s response to the coronavirus has been ‘about right.’ Only 27% think it’s overreacting.

By contrast just 35% of voters think the federal response to the virus has been about right, with 49% saying that the Trump administration’s response has been an under reaction. Lujan Grisham’s overall approval rating shows a high degree of popularity, with 59% approving and just 32% disapproving of the job she’s doing. By contrast Trump has only a 40% approval rating, with 56% of voters disapproving of him.

https://majorityinstitute.com/latest/lujan-grisham-bests-trump-51-points-coronavirus-response?fbclid=IwAR096gVrXyx0nfAiOKOE7Jb7DF_IVKT9OVxEoB4p6bN1x60TyQcwHXo0xCA

CONSTITUTIONAL ARGUMENTS MADE AGAINST PUBLIC HEALTH ORDERS

Five major arguments have been made that the Governor’s Executive Orders violate rights protected by the United States and State Constitutions:

1. Executive Orders are not law and only a legislative body can enact laws and prescribe remedies under those laws enacted. According to this argument, Executive Orders are not law over the “private citizen” and an Executive Order only has force and effect of law within the executive branch and all agencies in that branch.

2. Executive Orders mandating the closure of gun stores violate the Second Amendment right to bear arms under the United State Constitution.

3. Executive Order mandating the closure of businesses violates a person’s Fourth Amendment right under the United State Constitution against unreasonable search and seizure and that property can only be seized with a court approved warrant. According to one argument offered, a seizure in not just the physical property but includes prohibiting the labor people who own the business and the loss of income from the closure of the business. A “seizure” of property occurs when “there is some meaningful interference with an individual’s possessory interests in that property.” United States v. Jacobsen, 466 U.S. 109, 113 .

4. Executive Order mandating the closure of businesses violates the 14th Amendment of the United States constitution by depriving “any person of life, liberty and property, without due process of law.

5. Executive Orders deprive citizens of “equal protection” under the law and no special privilege, under law can be given to one entity, person or business, that does not give equally to all others. Where one business is order closed by law enforcement, while a similar business selling merchandise is allowed to stay open, the closed business is deprived of equal protection under the law.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The blunt truth is that virtually all the listed 5 constitutional arguments made against the Governor’s Public Health Executive orders are outright wrong or seriously misplaced with application. The United States Supreme court has said in rulings that it is constitutional in a public health crisis for the government to require people to do certain things or to prohibit certain things that they normally would not do or could do.

US SUPREME COURT HAS RULED IN PAST GOVERNMENT CAN ORDER MANDATORY VACCINATION

Given Trump’s and the GOP’s denial of scientific and medical research, such as in their denial of global warming, it is highly likely that it will not matter to them if a vaccine is developed for the corona virus. Trump himself did not take the warnings of the pandemic seriously when told of it repeatedly for 3 months and he even refuses to wear a protective mask. Trump did nothing to prepare the country for the pandemic which resulted in the country being totally unprepared for it. Trump also wanted the virus to run its course believing it would pass within a few months.

If Trump and the Republicans are still in power after the 2020 November general election, it is doubtful they will compel mandatory vaccination if in fact a vaccine is developed for the corona virus, even though there is historical precedent where the United State Supreme has ruled that the government has the authority to order vaccination of the public to curb disease. Trump will no doubt promote civil disorder once again for his base to resist vaccinations and perhaps Steve Pierce, Sheriff Mace and Mayor Hicks will do the same in New Mexico.

The first legal precedent where it was held government can mandate vaccinations dates backs to 1905 during the small pox epidemic. In the United State Supreme Court case of Jacobson v. Massachusetts, 197 U.S. 11 (1905), the Supreme Court upheld the authority of states to enforce compulsory vaccination laws. The United States Supreme Court upheld the authority of Cambridge, Massachusetts, to require smallpox vaccinations when a Massachusetts minister refused to get a vaccination for the disease.

The US Supreme Court’s decision was that the freedom of the individual must sometimes be subordinated to the common welfare and is subject to the police power of the state. The court ruled that the state did have a right to legally require the vaccinations with the United State Supreme Court coming down in favor of state governments being allowed to mandate vaccinations so long as it is reasonable to protect the public health, safety and welfare of citizens.

EXECUTIVE ORDERS CAN BE ISSUED TO THE EXTENT ALLOWED BY LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

In 1952, the United States Supreme Court ruled in the case of Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 343 U.S. 579 (1952) that the authority to issue executive orders is whatever authority the legislative branch gives to the executive.

On April 8, 1952, to avert a nationwide strike of steel workers, which he believed would jeopardize national defense, President Harry Truman issued an Executive Order directing the Secretary of Commerce to seize and operate most of the steel mills in the United States. The Executive Order was not based upon any specific statutory authority. It was based generally upon all powers vested in the President by the Constitution and laws of the United States and as President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.

The Secretary of Commerce issued an order seizing the steel mills and directing their presidents to operate them as managers for the United States. The steel companies sued the Secretary of Commerce in Federal District Court asking for a “declaratory judgment” and an injunction to prevent the Secretary of Commerce from enforcing Truman’s Executive Order.

The United States Supreme Court ruled that the President’s power, if any, to issue such an emergency orders must stem either from an act of Congress or from the Constitution itself . The United States Supreme Court ruled that Truman’s Executive Order was not authorized by the Constitution nor laws of the United States. There was no congressional statute which expressly or implicitly authorized the President to take possession of the steel mills.

The power Truman sought was found by the Supreme Court to be and exercise of lawmaking power, which the Constitution vests in the Congress alone. Absent congressional authority granted by statute, or a provision in the Constitution, the President of the United States has no inherent power to assume the role of lawmaker in times of emergency. In other words, the power of the President and by extension state governors to issue executive orders is whatever power the congress or the state legislators gives to them.

Since the 1952 Supreme Court ruling, Congress has enacted many laws giving the President executive order authority to take action. A good example is the Defense Production Act. Trump has invoked the Defense Production Act (DPA). Invoking this act gave Trump broad authorities to order domestic manufacturing industries to make products the nation needs in a time of crisis, such as masks and ventilators. The DPA was is modeled after the laws from 1941 and 1942 that gave the White House the ability to tell private companies what to make for war time Ford Motor Company made nearly 300,000 vehicles, including tanks, for World War II.

NEW MEXICO LEGISLATURE HAS EMPOWERED GOVERNOR

In New Mexico, the legislature has empowered the Governor issue the executive orders to respond to a health emergency that threatens the public health, safety and welfare, such as the corona virus pandemic with the enactment of the Public Health Emergency Response Act. On March 11, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham became the first New Mexico Governor to invoke the 2003 Public Health Emergency Response Act (PHERA), issuing an Executive Order declaring a “public health emergency” giving her administration broad powers to deal with the coronavirus.

The link to the New Mexico statute is here:

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

You can read the Executive Orders here:

https://www.governor.state.nm.us/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/COVID-19-DOH-Order-fv.pdf

http://www.rld.state.nm.us/uploads/PressRelease/b88957513a09474898000e52177885b3/UPDATED_DOH_PHO.pdf

PATHETIC GRANDSTANDING

The actions of Democrat Grants Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks vowing in defiance to allow all small businesses in Grants to reopen is about as pathetic as it gets seeing as he does not have that authority and the Governor does. The interviews Mayor “Modey” Hicks gave to the news media looked like that of an unhinged fool of New Mexico proportions. His confrontation with a constituent taking issue with him said it all and can be viewed here:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/emotions-run-high-as-mayor-of-grants-defies-governors-order-allows-businesses-to-reopen/5711810/

It appears that Republican lawmakers and Republican Chairman Steve Pearce cannot handle the fact that Governor Lujan Grisham is getting high marks for her handling of the pandemic by the public. The Governor has said that it’s time for New Mexico to consider slowly relaxing its restrictions even though she has extended the current public health orders through May 15, yet Pearce and Sheriff Mace want the United States Attorney General to interfere with state’s rights. Governor Lujan Grisham has made it clear that her administration is working on detailed plans for reopening the state in phases.

But none of that matters to the Republican law makers nor to Pearce and they could not care less. Both Steve Pearce and New Mexico Republican House leadership choose to promote a right-wing agenda more concerned about commerce and profits and not people’s lives nor the public health, safety and welfare. Steve Pearce made it clear that making money “Trumps” life when he wrote in part to Barr that the Governor’s orders interfere with the “right to conduct free commerce.” They apparently want to reopen the state sooner rather later for business too soon and risk another spike or another wave of reported corona virus cases.

CONCLUSION

Cool heads must prevail during these very difficult times, but the antics of some elected officials, such as Democrat Grants Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks Mayor and the Republican House leadership shows the opposite. It was totally irresponsible for the Republican law makers to say civil unrest and “social chaos” will soon occur if the state is not reopened for business soon.

The Republican elected officials and Republican Party Chairman Steve Pearce ignore that New Mexico citizens and businesses are in fact doing their very best to honor the restrictions placed upon them and are making the sacrifice to ensure the state does not re open too soon.

Republican State Chairman Steve Pearce and Sheriff Mace need to “shut the front door” and get the hell out of the way and let the Governor lead and exercise the authority she has been given by the legislature. New Mexico lives are at stake.

For a related blog article see:

Political Grand Standing At Its Worst By Elected Republicans; Gov. MLG Gets High Marks; Mistake For Economic Recovery Council Not To Be Open To Public

City finances have been totally upended as a result of the corona virus pandemic and its impact on the city economy and in turn city gross receipts tax returns have dramatically declined. On March 16, 2020, the New Mexico Department of Finance, Local Government Division, issued Memorandum authorizing the New Mexico municipalities to submit their last year’s fiscal budget for 2019-2020 budget as their fiscal budget for year 2020-2021 until reliable tax revenue projections can be determined. That is exactly what the City Council did when it enacted the budget.

For this year’s fiscal year 2019-2020 which ends on June 30, 2020, APD has an approved general fund budget 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

2020-2021 OPERATING BUDGET ENACTED

On April 13, 2020, on a unanimous vote of 9-0, the Albuquerque City Council enacted R-20-31 which is the city’s operating budget for fiscal year 2020-2021. The City Council’s operating budget, R-20-31, enacted is a “bare bones budget” resolution consisting of only 7 pages of line item appropriations for each of the city departments. There is no explanation or elaboration on the actual use of the millions appropriated in the budget. No public hearings were conducted that would have allowed comment and input from the public. The 2020-2021 APD operating budget goes into effect on July 1, 2020 and ends June 31, 2021. The City Council can still decide to follow the normal process and have the Keller Administration submit a “performance based” budget and conduct public hearings.

APD STRUCTURE AND PERSONNEL

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

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. This is the most recent “snapshop” available, the actual numbers may have changed. According to the report, APD has a total of 972 sworn officers with 600 officers in the field patrolling 6 area commands and neighborhoods in 3 seperate shifts. The snapshot does not account for time delays from Human Resources and Payroll that have effective dates into the futur and it does not account that APD had spring graduating class and it has been reported that it now has upwards of 1,000 sworn police.

TOTAL SWORN APD STAFFING

The staffing of APD by sworn polic officers is as follows:

FIELD SERVICES BUREAU — TOTAL STAFFING: 600

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.

AREA COMMAND STAFFING LEVELS

There are 6 area commands. Following is a breakdown of sworn police assigned to each one of the area commands:

SOUTHWEST AREA COMMAND: 58 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 7 Sergeants

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.

VALLEY AREA COMMAND: 67 Patrol Officers , 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 6 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

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.

SOUTHEAST AREA COMMAND: 89 Patrol Officers, 4 Lieutenants, 9 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

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:

NORTHEAST AREA COMMAND: 78 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

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:

FOOTHILLS AREA COMMAND: 57 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeants, 3 School Resource Officers

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:

NORTH WEST AREA COMMAND:59 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 7 Sergeants, 1 School Resource Officers
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.

OTHER BUREAU STAFFING AREAS

Following is the breakdown of staffing in the remaining bureaus and units of APD:

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

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.

SUPPORT SERVICES BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 116 (68 Officers, 1 Deputy Chief, 2 Commanders, 8 Lieutenants, 20 Sergeants, 6 Cadets/Pre-hires)

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.

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 43 (34 Officers, 1 Deputy Chief, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 4 Sergeants)

This bureau provides clerical, secretarial, administrative, budgetary preparation and grant application support to the entire APD Department.

SPECIAL OPERATIONS AND TACTICAL UNIT – TOTAL STAFFING: 30 (24 Officers, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 3 Sergeants)

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.

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: TOTAL STAFFING 16 (7 Officers, 4 Lieutenants and 5 Sergeants)

Police operations is generally defined as standard operating procedures, review of job duties, responsibilities, and activities that law enforcement agents complete in the field.

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 officers to provide security to the Metropolitan Court and Mayor’s security detail that provides protection to the Mayor and security to the Mayor’s Office.

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

GROWING APD

Since Mayor Tim Keller has taken office on December 1, 2017, APD has added 116 sworn police officers to the force. APD’s goal is to spend $88 million dollars starting in the 2018-2019 fiscal year, 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 in order to full fill Mayor Tim Keller’s 2017 campaign promise to increase the size of APD return to community-based policing as a means to reduce the city’s high crime rates and to implement the Department of Justice mandated reforms under the CASA. 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.

APD 2020-2021 OPERATING BUDGET

Following is the 2020-2021 Albuquerque Police Department (APD) line item budget enacted by the City Council on March 16, 2020 without any budget hearings:

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT: $18,835,000. This funding is presumably for the Administrative Support Bureau which includes case management reports, clerical staff, the forensic lab and police dispatch (911).

INVESTIGATIVE SERVICES: $45,622,000. This funding is presumably for the Investigative Bureau and various specialized detective units.

NEIGHBORHOOD POLICING: $104,730,000. The funding is presumably for the Field Services Bureau and 640 sworn police, assigned to 3 shifts and the 6 area commands for community-based policing

OFF-DUTY POLICE OVERTIME: $2,225,000. This funding is to pay for police overtime and for years the actual funding has always exceeded budget and has approached $10 to $14 Million a year.

PRISONER TRANSPORT: $2,423,000. This funding is used to transport all arrestees to the Westside Jail and presumably part of the Support Services Bureau.

PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY: $34,042,000. This funding is essentially funding for the Compliance Bureau and the 5 divisions it consists of and includes APD Academy training associated with the Department of Justice Consent Decree reforms and enforcement.

TOTAL APD OPERATING BUDGET: $207,877,000

APD REQUIRED STAFFING FOR DOJ CONSENT DECREE

According to the August 1, 2019 “Staffing Snapshot”, the Compliance Bureau has total staffing of 61 sworn police consisting of 40 Detectives, 1 Deputy Chief, 3 Commanders, 1 Deputy Commander, 6 Lieutenants, 10 Sergeants. The Professional Accountability budget line item is essentially for and the Compliance Bureaus consisting 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 and includes funding for training provided by the APD Academy for constitutional policing practices.

One of the major concentrations of the Compliance 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.

The city currently employees one Assistant City Attorney who is the former United State Attorney for New Mexico paying $150,000 and one retired Federal Magistrate billed and paid for on contract to review and write APD Policy.

ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

The most critical functions of the Albuquerque City Council is the oversight authority over city finances, all appropriations, the job performance of the various departments and enacting a balanced budget. The oversight authority includes having public hearings on the city’s budget to allow public the opportunity to give input on how the city spends taxpayer money. Further, the budget process is critical to force all city departments to justify their budgets and to adjust department’s budgets as the need mandates it.

The City Budget is a “performance based” budget where each department prepares an analysis of accomplishments from the previous years. The statistics and accomplishment analysis are submitted to the City Council in the Mayor’s proposed budget. Normally, a massive detailed budget analysis document, called the Mayor’s Proposed Budget, is submitted along with the enabling legislation making the city budgetary appropriations. The council, acting as a committee as a whole, normally schedules and conducts hearings on each of the City Departments, but that did happen this year.

The approach to enact the 2020-2021 city budget was a dramatic departure from all previous years. The 2020-2021 city budget was sponsored by Council Isaac Benton at the request of the Keller Administration. What this means is that the 7-page line item budget resolution was actually prepared by the Keller Administration and not by City Council Services. The 2020-2021 budget year does not begin until July 1, 2020, yet the city council felt it was necessary to enact an operating budget on April 13, without any public hearings.

The City Council was essentially too damn lazy to hold any hearings on the budget enacted and refused to exercise their budgetary oversight authority and chose to ignore the general public. Not a single hearing on the APD 2020-2021 budget nor any other Department budget, was convened by the City Council. The City Council President tried to justify the council’s failure to have hearings by saying that the budget enacted was a “month to month” budget which was an outright falsehood. When you read the resolution itself, millions are appropriated to each department reflecting funding for the entire year and there is no mention of “month to month” allocations. Further, city government cannot operate on “month to month” appropriation and is mandated to operate based on a fiscal year budget and it must be a balanced budget by law with no deficit spending allowed.

The Albuquerque City Council also plays a crucial oversight role of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) including controlling its budget. Another critical responsibility of the City Council is to demand that APD be in compliance with the Department of Justice (DOJ) Court Approved Settlement Agreement mandated reforms. Each time the Federal Court appointed Monitor presented his critical reports of APD to the City Council, the City Council has essentially remained silent. Over the last 5 years, the City Council has declined to demand accountability from both Mayors and hold the APD command staff responsible for dragging their feet on the reforms.

The City Council has now enacted a $207,877,000 million dollar APD operating budget without any questions or budget hearings that includes a whopping $34,042,000 for CASA mandated functions, 61 sworn police to enforce the CASA mandates. The $207 million dollar plus APD budget ostensibly does not include the additional millions being paid to the Federal Monitor whose only function is to compile data and who has no management nor control over APD and who can not order or make changes within APD to get the department into compliance with the reforms.

The Court Approved Settlement Agreement was negotiated to be fully implemented within 4 years and after a full two years of compliance, the case is supposed to be dismissed. It has now been over 5 years and pushing 6 years since the settlement with the DOJ was negotiated. The $34 million plus line item contained in the 2020-2021 budget for Professional Accountability and the 61 sworn police assigned to enforce the CASA reforms demands a full explanation as to why complete compliance with the CASA has not been achieved by the APD command staff after a full 5 years. Without the holding of public hearings on the APD budget enacted, there is no way for the council nor the public to get a detailed explanation why the Keller Administration is still having problems with the Department of Justice Consent Decree.

The biggest complaint of all the DOJ consent decrees in the country is implementation and enforcement “go on and on” for years, costing millions in taxpayer dollars. It appears that is what happening in Albuquerque courtesy of the Albuquerque City Council. Apparently, the Albuquerque City Council is not even remotely curious as to why another $34 million dollars is needed for another one year for APD’s compliance bureau believing it’s easier to rush a budget and not do their job of oversight.

The 2020-2021 enacted operating budget goes into effect on July 1, 2020. The only decent thing to do at this point is for the City Council to go ahead and convene a few “committee of the whole meetings” and demand the Keller Administration to at least give an overview of how and where taxpayer money will be used and discuss their plans as to where the budget will be modified if at all.

For related blog articles see:

Federal Monitor Files 11th Compliance Audit Report Of APD Reforms; “Counter Casa Effect” Still Problematic; Order 100% Operational Compliance Within 6 Months Or Replace Chief Or Deputy Chiefs To Get Job Done

ABQ City Council Enacts 2020-2021 Operating Budget Without Public Hearings; City Faces Major Deficit, Budget Cuts And Furloughs; Hopes Pinned On Federal Bail Out And Economy Rebound

On May 4, 2020, the Federal Court Appointed Monitor James Ginger filed with the Federal Court his 11th Compliance Audit Report of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) reforms mandated under the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA). The report covers the eleventh monitoring period from August 1, 2019 to January 31, 2020.

The Federal Monitor’s report is 307 pages long and follows the format as all the previous 10 reports. Its a detailed audit of every paragraph of the consent decree and for that reason it is difficult to follow. This blog article highlights major finding of the report but in no way should it be considered as all inclusive. The blog article also covers the city’s pending motion to suspend portions of the CASA and the accomplishments under the CASA. The article concludes with “Analysis and Commentary”.

The entire 11th Federal Monitors report can be found at this link:

https://www.justice.gov/usao-nm/file/1274006/download

OPERATIONAL COMPLIANCE LEVELS

The CASA was negotiated to be fully implemented over a four-year period. It has now been over 5 full years. Under the terms and conditions of the CASA, once APD achieves a 95% compliance rate in 3 compliance areas, and maintains compliance for 2 years, the case can be dismissed.

For the purposes of the APD monitoring process, “compliance” consists of three levels: primary, secondary, and operational compliance levels.

The 3 compliance levels are:

1. PRIMARY COMPLIANCE: Primary compliance is the “policy” part of compliance. To attain primary compliance, APD must have in place operational policies and procedures designed to guide officers, supervisors and managers in the performance of the tasks outlined in the CASA. As a matter of course, the policies must be reflective of the requirements of the CASA; must comply with national standards for effective policing policy; and must demonstrate trainable and evaluable policy components.

2. SECONDARY COMPLIANCE: Secondary compliance is attained by implementing supervisory, managerial and executive practices designed to and be effective in implementing the policy as written, e.g., sergeants routinely enforce the policies among field personnel and are held accountable by managerial and executive levels of the department for doing so. By definition, there should be operational artifacts such as reports, disciplinary records, remands to retraining, follow-up, and even revisions to policies if necessary, indicating that the policies developed in the first stage of compliance are known to, followed by, and important to supervisory and managerial levels of the department.

3. OPERATIONAL COMPLIANCE: Operational compliance is attained at the point that the adherence to policies is apparent in the day-to-day operation of the agency e.g., line personnel are routinely held accountable for compliance, not by the monitoring staff, but by their sergeants, and sergeants are routinely held accountable for compliance by their lieutenants and command staff. In other words, the APD “owns” and enforces its policies.

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11th FEDERAL AUDITORS REPORT COMPLIANCE STATUS ASSESSMENT

In the 10th Federal Monitor’s Report, APD was reported to have met 100% of CASA-established primary compliance requirements during the reporting period. To quote the audit “This means, in effect, that policy requiring compliance actions and processes are complete, and are reasonably designed to achieve the articulated goals of the CASA.” Secondary compliance rates (training) were reported at 81%, up from 79% and overall compliance rates are at 63%, the same as the 9th audit report.

In the 11th audit report that covered the time period of August 1, 2019 and ended in January 31, 2020, the federal monitor found APD was 100% in primary compliance, no change from 10th report, a 93% in secondary compliance, a change of 14.8% from the 10th report, and 66% in operational compliance, a change of 3%.

Primary Compliance relates mostly to development and implementation of acceptable policies and conforming to national practices.

APD is now in 93% Secondary Compliance as of the 11th reporting period, which means that effective follow-up mechanisms are beginning to be taken to ensure that APD personnel understand the requirements of promulgated policies in the areas of training, supervising, coaching, and disciplinary processes to ensure APD personnel understand the policies as promulgated and are capable of implementing them in the field.

APD is in 66% Operational Compliance with the requirements of the CASA, which means that 66% of the time, field personnel either perform tasks as required by the CASA, or that, when they fail, supervisory personnel note and correct in-field behavior that is not compliant with the requirements of the CASA.

POSITIVE NEWS REPORTED IN 11TH AUDIT REPORT

The Executive Summary reported news on the “administrative and operational fronts” of the settlement in 4 major areas:

1. “Policy development and promulgation has improved markedly … with proffered policies requiring little or no pressure from the monitoring team to move them to an acceptable level of specificity, applicability, and conformance with CASA requirements.”

2. “Training processes … have improved markedly; moving from old style lecture-memorize-test with multiple choice questions, to a more modern, … more effective interactive process that requires the ability to identify problems, analyze those problems, and create solutions to those problems by working in small collaborative groups and demonstrating skills actually needed to manage: listening, assessing, analyzing, decision-making, and implementation management. As a result, learning has evolved to skills-level processes instead of an ability to memorize and parrot back information via multiple-choice tests.”

3. “Some levels of supervision and management have begun to pay meaningful attention to critical tasks involving specific components of the CASA: use of force, preparation of valid reports of in-field incidents, effective supervision and oversight, and well-focused managerial review and assessments … .”

4. “Compliance with the CASA is broadly seen as important at command levels and is beginning to be perceived positively by mid-management and supervisory ranks.”

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According to the report, these 4 “key changes have taken years to have an impact on APD management systems, and more importantly, internal belief systems. These belief systems are, at times, not fully supportive of the change demanded by the CASA. The type of strategic change required by the CASA is difficult to instill and takes longer to implement the desired change than other more “old-style” management and leadership processes. However, we see signs that this perspective is in the nescient stages of taking hold and engendering initial change, albeit in the face of strong resistance in some quarters at APD.”

FAILURES AND “COUNTER CASA EFFECT” STILL NOTED IN 11TH REPORT

Despite all the progress made in training at the APD Academy, it was reported that APD personnel “were still failing to adhere to the requirements of the CASA found in past monitoring reports, including some instances moving beyond the epicenter of supervision to mid- and upper management levels of the organization.” The monitor found that “some in APD’s command levels continue to exhibit behaviors that “build bulwarks” [or walls] preventing fair and objective discipline, including a process of attempting to delay and in some cases successfully delaying the oversight processes until the timelines for administering discipline had been exceeded. [The] delays prevented an effective remedial response to behavior that is clearly in violation of established policy.”

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The Federal monitor reported that “since the beginning of the CASA compliance process that there were a few at APD who were overtly resistant to the CASA. [The Monitor] in the past [has] found evidence of a “counter-CASA effect” among some at the supervisory, mid-management, and command levels at APD. Those who knowingly or subconsciously count themselves in this group are beginning to face pressure to change their assessment of the value of the CASA. In some cases [they] have faced reasonably prompt and appropriate corrective efforts from the current executive levels of the APD for behavior that is not congruent with the CASA.” According to the report, “this as an essential “way forward” if APD is to move into full compliance. The remaining issue is that this pressure is neither uniform nor persistent.”

COUNTER CASA EFFECT EXPLAINED

It was on September 10, 2018, at a status telephone conference call held with US District Court Judge Robert Brack who at the time was presiding over the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) reforms that Federal Monitor Dr. James Ginger first told the federal judge that a group of “high-ranking APD officers” within the department were trying to thwart reform efforts.

The Federal Monitor revealed that the group of “high-ranking APD officers” were APD sergeants and lieutenants. Because sergeants and lieutenants are part of the police bargaining unit they remained in their positions and could not be removed by the Chief. APD Chief Michael Geier also reported last year to Judge Brack that he had noticed some “old-school resistance” to reforms mandated by the CASA. At the time, Chief Geier reported he replaced a number of commanders with others who agree with police reforms. However, Chief Geier reported he could not replace the sergeants nor lieutenants who were resisting the reforms because of the union contract.

Federal Monitor Ginger referred to the group as the “Counter-CASA effect”.

According to the Federal Monitors 10th report:

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

Under “Counter CASA Effects” in his 10th report the Federal Monitor reported:

“Some members of APD continue to resist actively APD’s reform efforts, including using deliberate counter-CASA processes. For example:

• Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) disciplinary timelines, appear at times to be manipulated by supervisory, management and command levels at the area commands, letting known violations lie dormant until timelines for discipline cannot be met;”

MONITOR NOTES STRONG, REASONED, AND EFFECTIVE COMPLIANCE EFFORTS IN 11TH REPORT

“Over the years, APD has improved its policy development process, training process, and has markedly improved the administrative oversight process. What remains is attaining mastery of the supervisory and operational management processes at the street level. While policy, training, and administration are certainly on the critical path for the APD reform project, the proof of process is observing, in practice, routine success at the operational and street level. Until those two processes are moved into operational compliance, there remains much to be done.”

During the reporting period, the monitor reported observing examples of strong, reasoned, and effective compliance efforts at APD as follows:

“• The Accountability and Oversight Division’s (AOD) and Performance Metrics Unit (PMU) has expanded both scope and capacity, and is providing meaningful, reasoned, and fact-based oversight of an expanding portion of the CASA’s requirements.

• While policy, training and administration are certainly on the critical path for the APD reform project, the proof of process is observing, in practice, routine success at the operational and street level. Until supervisory and mismanagement processes are moved into compliance, there remains much to be done.”

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POSITIVE STRIDES MADE WITH HANDLING USE OF FORCE

The monitor reported “positive strides by APD with respect to handling uses of force, including instances where the chain of command reviewing use of force incidents has documented performance issues, policy violations, and mis-categorized uses of force. However, there still exists cultural and systemic issues that could impact Operational Compliance moving forward. Timeliness of use of force investigations are of particular concern, and proper staffing of units responsible for CASA related paragraphs needs to be monitored closely.”

The report found that “based on the recent positive strides that APD’s Training Academy has made providing training on its new use of force policies, it was determined that APD achieved Secondary Compliance in [a number of areas and paragraphs of the CASA.] This is an important milestone for the APD organization, as it now becomes possible to make Operational Compliance assessments for APD’s ability to report, investigate, and oversee uses of force. The true measure of its success is whether the training is being implemented by officers and supervisors in the field.”

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MONITOR RECOMMENDS STRATEGIC APPROACH TO COMPLIANCE EFFORTS

In the 11th Report, the federal monitor recommends that APD utilize a strategic approach to its compliance efforts as follows:

“We continue to recommend that APD take a more strategic approach to its CASA compliance efforts, by reviewing the strategic factors leading to compliance, the internal and external weaknesses in APD’s compliance efforts, opportunities for advancement of compliance efforts, and threats to the organization’s compliance statuses. To fail to adapt this modality will lead to the “fireman’s approach” to compliance—rushing from pressure point to pressure point; applying less-than-well-thought-out “solutions” via ad hoc responses instead of thoughtful, planned responses, such as leveraging strengths against identified weaknesses; and clearly, thoughtfully assessing threats to compliance goals and objectives, and taking reasoned approaches to minimize or eliminate those threats.

APD has done an effective job, for the most part, in addressing prefatory requirements of effective organizational response to threats: policy development and training. The next step is more difficult: building processes into systems and fine-tuning those systems to address effectively identified threats. These higher-level processes are commonly known as “SWOT” analyses, and using these analyses the organization can, in effect, predict the future and build systems to address critical issues before these issues actually occur.”

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SUMMARY OF APD ACCOMPLISHMENTS OVER 5 YEARS UNDER THE CASA

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

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

As of November, 2019, a full 5 years has expired since the city entered into the CASA with the DOJ. From all appearances and practical purposes, and from review of the Federal Monitor’s reports, the City and APD have completed the following mandated reforms under the Court Approved Settlement Agreement:

1.After a full year of negotiations, new “use of force” and “use of deadly force” policies have been written, implemented and all APD sworn have received training on the policies.

2. All sworn police officers have received crisis management intervention training.

3. APD has created a “Use of Force Review Board” that oversees all internal affairs investigations of use of force and deadly force.

4. The Internal Affairs Unit has been divided into two sections, one dealing with general complaints and the other dealing with use of force incidents.

5. Sweeping changes ranging from APD’s SWAT team protocols, to banning choke-holds, to auditing the use of every Taser carried by officers and re-writing and implementation of new use of force and deadly force policies have been completed.

6. “Constitutional policing” practices and methods, and mandatory crisis intervention techniques an de-escalation tactics with the mentally ill have been implemented at the APD police academy with all sworn police having received training.

7. APD has adopted a new system to hold officers and supervisors accountable for all use of force incidents with personnel procedures implemented detailing how use of force cases are investigated.

8. APD has revised and updated its policies on the mandatory use of lapel cameras by all sworn police officers.

9. The Repeat Offenders Project, known as ROP, has been abolished.

10. Civilian Police Oversight Agency has been created, funded, fully staffed and a director hired.

11. The Community Policing Counsels (CPCs) have been created in all area commands and the CPCs meet monthly.

12. The Mental Health Advisory Committee has been implemented.

13. The CASA identified that APD was understaffed. The City and APD are in the process of spending $88 million dollars, over a four-year period, with 32 million dollars of recurring expenditures, to hire 322 sworn officers and grow the department to 1,200 officers. As of January 1, 2020, APD has 949 full time police officers, up from 878 sworn police. The expansion thus far is attributed primarily to hiring from other departments and returning to work APD retirees.

14. In November, 2018 APD achieved 99.6% compliance with primary tasks, 75.4% secondary compliance and 59.5% operational compliance with APD making significant progress in overall compliance.

15. According to the Use of Force Report for the years 2017 and 2018, APD’s “use of force” and “deadly force” is down dramatically , which was one of the primary objectives of the CASA reforms.

CITY MOTION TO SUSPEND PORTIONS OF THE CASA STILL PENDING

On Friday, January 10, 2020, the City of Albuquerque filed a Motion to have certain portions of the federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) suspended and placed into “sustained compliance” and “suspend monitoring” of those requirements by the Federal Court approved monitor. The city’s Motion highlights the progress made by the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) in implementing the court mandated reforms under the CASA. You can read the entire 25-page e-filed Motion on the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico docket Case 1:14-cv-01025-JB-SMV, Document 503 Filed 01/10/20, United States of America, Plaintiff v. The City of Albuquerque, Defendant v. The Albuquerque Police Officer’s Association, Intervenor. A hearing on the Motion has yet to be scheduled.

The city wants the federal court to suspend the monitoring activity with respect to “certain requirements” of the CASA and to put other requirements into the two-year “sustained compliance” phase. There are 3 primary areas the city is seeking that sustained compliance be found suspending further monitoring:

1. Behavioral health training of APD officers

2. APD recruitment and

3. APD specialized units.

According to the motion, APD will take steps to remain “vigilant” in preserving the progress that has already be made under the CASA. The “center piece of these efforts is that APD shall conduct regular self-assessments of compliance and shall file self-assessment reports with the court every 6 months.” (Page 3 of Motion.)

If the federal court grants the motion and allows suspension of the monitoring in the identified areas, the federal monitor will suspend the monitoring in those areas but will review APD’s self-assessment reports for compliance. The federal monitor will also evaluate whether the self-assessment reports reveal any significant concerns threatening continuing compliance with the requirements of the CASA. Further, the monitor will continue reviewing media accounts and other evidence provided to the monitor to determine whether there has been any substantial and significant lapse in compliance with the requirements of the CASA.

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ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

The City was to reach full compliance with the CASA within 4 years and its now been over 5 years pushing on a full 6 years. Once APD achieves a 95% compliance rate in all 3 compliance areas, and maintains compliance for 2 years, the case can be dismissed. According to the 11th progress report, APD is now at 100% in primary compliance, 93% in secondary compliance and at 66% in operational compliance.

It is clear from the 11th Federal Court Monitors report that “Operational Compliance” and the “counter casa effect” have been and continues to be the biggest sticking point for APD and presenting the biggest obstacles for the department under the consent decree. Operational Compliance is attained at the point that the adherence to policies is apparent in the day-to-day operation of the agency. In other words, line personnel are routinely held accountable for compliance, not by the monitoring staff, but by their sergeants, and sergeants are routinely held accountable for compliance by their lieutenants and command staff. In other words, the APD “owns” and enforces its policies.

REMOVE MANAGEMENT FROM APD UNION

There is a definite “chain of command” when it comes to APD. All Commanders, Deputy Chiefs and the Chief are “at will” positions that serve at the pleasure of the Administration, either the Mayor or Chief. APD has a clear line of authority that separates management from rank and file sworn police officers. The problem is that APD sergeants and lieutenants, even though they are part of management with supervisory authority over sworn police officers, they are not “at will” employees and they are allowed to join the police union. Including sergeants and lieutenants the union bargaining unit creates a clear conflict within management and sends mixed messages to rank and file sworn police officers.

APD police sergeants and lieutenants are on the front line to enforce personnel rules and regulations, standard operating procedures, approve and review work performed and assist in implementing DOJ reforms and standard operating procedures policies. In other words they are the point personnel for “operational compliance” under the court settlement and they still are not getting the job done when it comes to “operational compliance.” This point was repeatedly made by the Federal Monitor when he said “until the sergeants are in harness and pulling in the same direction as the chief, things won’t get done as quickly”. In other words, without the 100% support of the sergeants and lieutenants to the CASA and mandated reforms, there will be little or no progress made with “operational compliance” and reaching a 95% compliance rate will take years.

Sergeants and lieutenants need to be made at will employees and removed from the union bargaining unit in order to get a real buy in to management’s goals of police reform and the CASA. APD Police sergeants and lieutenants cannot serve two masters of Administration Management and Union priorities that are in conflict when it comes to the CASA reforms. The city should demand that the management positions of APD sergeant and lieutenant be removed from the APOA Union bargaining unit. Further, the Keller Administration should seek to have the APOA Union removed as a party to the federal lawsuit, the consent decree and CASA negotiations.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

After review of all 11 Independent Monitors Report and the 15 major reforms accomplished by of APD under the CASA a major conclusion that can be reached is the spirit and intent of the CASA has been fully attained. The City’s Motion To Suspend Portions Of The CASA must be amended to include the progress that has be reported in the 11th Federal Monitor’s Report. After over five years of implementing the mandating DOJ reforms, APD has made significant progress in implementing the reforms. The motion should be considered precursory to dismissal of the entire case sooner rather than later.

The biggest complaint of all the DOJ consent decrees in the country is implementation and enforcement “go on and on” for years, costing millions in taxpayer dollars. It appears that is what happening in Albuquerque. With expected, continued implementation of the DOJ reforms a 95% to 100% compliance with all 3 of the CASA primary, secondary and operational compliance goals should be demanded of the APD command and management staff within 6 months.

The role of the federal monitor needs be reduced, as is being requested in the motion, as well as the continued costs of the monitoring team reduced. The city should commence negotiations with the DOJ for a stipulated “Order of Complete Compliance and Dismissal” of the CASA, and all causes of action the DOJ has against the city and APD. Otherwise, the city and taxpayers will be sucked into “year after year” of expenses and costs associated with a consent decree whose primary objective has been achieved and whose federal monitor wants another $4 million to audit progress.

The time has come for the city to be cut lose from the Federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement. Mayor Tim Keller needs to hold the APD Command Staff totally responsible to perform under the CASA. If the APD command staff can not get the job done within 6 months when it comes to “operational compliance” that is still is holding APD back, Mayor Tim Keller should replace them and find a new Chief and Deputy Chiefs who can get the job done.

Then again, Mayor Keller has a bad habit of allowing APD to do what ever they want and he refuses to hold his command staff accountable for any and all mismanagement. Some good examples are:

1. His defense of APD in their refusal to gather and tag evidence of a child’s blood stained underwear in a case
2. The paying of an APD spokesman $150,000 a year because of overtime.
3. Allowing APD to spend millions in overtime exceeding their budget.
4. Using faulty statistics and representing to the public that our violent crime rates were going down when in fact they were spiking.
5. More recently, remaining totally mum on 40+ police officers and Chief Geier participating in a private event without social distancing or wearing protective gear.

Mayor Tim Keller has shown the identical unquestionable loyalty to Chief Michael Geier that former Mayor Richard Berry showed to Chief Gordon Eden. Mayor Tim Keller can no longer blame his predecessor for a troubled APD department or their failure to implement the DOJ reforms seeing as Keller has replaced all of APD’s top command staff with a Chief and Deputy Chief’s of his own choosing that are being viewed just as inept as former Chief Gordon Eden and his appointed Deputies.
_________________________________

POSTSCRIPT

The link to the full 106-page CASA containing 276 mandated reforms can be read here:

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

All documents related to the CASA can be downloaded and reviewed at the city web site link:
https://www.cabq.gov/police/documents-related-to-apds-settlement-agreement

The documents include:

The Settlement Agreement between City and the DOJ
APD Progress Reports
Independent Monitor’s Reports
Compliance Reports
Use of Force Annual Reports
Use of Force Reports
Studies
Audits

For a related blog articles see:

City Moves To Be Released From Portions Of DOJ Consent Decree And Monitoring; Commentary: Intent And Purpose Of CASA Accomplished, Dismiss Case

Glossing Over Or Ignoring APD’s “Counter Casa Effect” Does Not Make Problem Go Away

APD Staffing Levels: 970 Sworn Police; 300 More Needed

The Lincoln Project is an American political action committee. It was formed in late 2019 by several prominent Republicans. The goal of the committee is to prevent the reelection of Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. The committee was announced on December 17, 2019, in a New York Times op-ed by George Conway, Steve Schmidt, John Weaver, and Rick Wilson.

In April 2020, the committee announced their endorsement of Joe Biden, shortly after Bernie Sanders announced the suspension of his campaign. George Conway is the husband of Kellyanne Conway, an advisor to Trump; Schmidt and Weaver are political strategists, and Wilson is a media consultant. All four are the traditional conservative Republicans but are outspoken critics of Trump.

The following opinion piece was published om April 15, in the Washington Post:

HEADLINE: We’ve Never Back A Democrat For President, But Trump Must Be Defeated
By
George T. Conway III, Reed Galen, Steve Schmidt, John Weaver and Rick Wilson
April 15, 2020

“This November, Americans will cast their most consequential votes since Abraham Lincoln’s reelection in 1864. We confront a constellation of crises: a public health emergency not seen in a century, an economic collapse set to rival the Great Depression, and a world where American leadership is absent and dangers rise in the vacuum.

It is our hope that when the next president takes the oath of office in January, Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., will be the president for a truly united America. The stakes are too high to do anything less.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/15/weve-never-backed-democrat-president-trump-must-be-defeated/?fbclid=IwAR1JpSTfhmClhOX2OfnuLTGrDJ0D7BMB5AUyapWvkATmCeKwR7q_z4-9hls

NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE

On Wednesday April 29, the New York Times reported that Trump is frustrated by a faltering economy that is out of his control, and facing sharp criticism for his suggestion that disinfectants could potentially combat the coronavirus. According to the report, Trump has sunk to one of his lowest points in recent months. He directed his anger toward the one area that is most important to him: his re-election prospects.

It was reported Trump erupted during a phone call with his campaign manager, Brad Parscale, two days after he was presented with polling data from his campaign and the Republican National Committee that showed him trailing former Vice President Joe Biden. Typically, Trump “lashed out at Mr. Parscale and said it was other people’s fault that there had been fluctuations in a race they had all seen as his to lose just two months ago. At one point, Mr. Trump said he would not lose to Mr. Biden, insisted the data was wrong and blamed the campaign manager for the fact that he is down in the polls.”
…

“The lack of easy options to reset his political trajectory has been deeply unsettling to Mr. Trump, who began the year confident about his re-election prospects because of a thriving economy, but whose performance on the virus has Republicans nervous about losing the White House and the Senate in November.”

Below is the link to the entire New York Times report:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/29/us/politics/trump-campaign-reelection-polls.html?smid=fb-share&fbclid=IwAR2ko9kFBJ3o50YD5XiUUWFVI__cLlH4JkHipHTkbiiLeghy9guGvdI1dBQ

RECENT POLLS

On April 24, it was reported that former Vice President Joe Biden is leading President Donald Trump in multiple presidential polls in battleground states amid the US coronavirus crisis.

“Even though Biden hasn’t gotten as much of the national spotlight as Trump, or even some governors, in the age of Covid-19, these polls suggest it might not matter much. Biden is ahead in most surveys conducted in states where Trump won in 2016, states that will likely be key to a Democratic victory in November. …

There are some important takeaways from all the polls. Even with record unemployment and a recession, Trump isn’t being judged as harshly on the economy as he is for his handling of the coronavirus. The Fox poll in Michigan found that 59% of voters surveyed said the president’s response to the coronavirus was too slow, compared with 38% who said it was appropriate. And Fox’s Florida poll found 55% of respondents agreed Trump’s coronavirus response was too slow, compared with 41% who said it was appropriate.”

A link to the full article is here:

https://www.vox.com/2020/4/24/21234425/trump-biden-battleground-states-polls-2020-election

WASHINGTON POST PUNDIT POWER RANKINGS

In late April, The Washington Post “Power Rankings” also offered the follow analysis of all the polls:

“Trump is behind no matter what set of polls one looks at. He trails Biden by 6.3 points as of Thursday April 30 morning in the RealClearPolitics average. His job approval rating has sunk in recent days to a mere 44.9 percent, down from a recent high of 47.3 percent on March 31. Though his job approval is still higher than his share of the vote in ballot tests against Biden, he would still trail by more than 3 points even if he did as well as those ratings. There’s no plausible path to winning the electoral college if he loses the popular vote by that much on Election Day.

It’s not hard to see why Trump is in this predicament. He has never received more than 48 percent job approval in the RCP polling average, the first president in polling history to do so poorly. While virtually every other world leader has seen their ratings rise in response to the coronavirus pandemic, Trump has not. It’s true that Trump has faced a critical press corps during this crisis, but it’s also true that his performances during the White House daily press briefings have been at best uneven. He might blame his staff, but he ultimately has no one to blame but himself.”

TRUMP INCITES INSURRECTION AND CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

On April 17, in a dangerous series of tweets, President Trump incited citizen insurrection against the duly elected governors of the states of Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia where the Democratic Governors are doing their best to “flatten the curve” of the pandemic. One day after Trump issued guidance for re-opening America that clearly deferred decision-making to the Governors of the states, Trump undercut his own guidance by calling for criminal acts against the governors for not opening fast enough.

Trump tweeted, “LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” followed immediately by “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” and then “LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege!” The day before there were demonstrations in Michigan where armed protestors surrounded the state capitol building in Lansing chanting “Lock her up!” in reference to Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and “We will not comply,” in reference to her extension of the state’s coronavirus-related stay-at-home order. Smaller armed groups protested on the state capitol grounds in Richmond, Virginia , and outside the governor’s mansion in St. Paul, Minn.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/04/17/liberate-michigan-trump-constitution/

TRUMP ADMITS DEATH TOLL WILL DOUBLE OR TRIPLE

It was on April 20 that Trump first estimated that the number of death from the corona virus would be 50,000 to 60,000. As of May 4, the death toll is approaching 70,000. During a May 4 televised fox News Town-hall, Trump revised his estimate dramatically and said:

“I used to say 65,000. Now I’m saying 80 or 90 [thousand], and it goes up and it goes up rapidly. But it’s still going to be, no matter how you look at it, at the very lower end of the plane if we did the shutdown. ”

Trump was alluding to the 100,000 to 200,000 death estimate cited in late March by public health experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

https://www.vox.com/2020/5/4/21246342/trump-fox-news-town-hall-coronavirus-death-toll-upward

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Before the pandemic, Trump was relying upon the booming economy to give him a certain reelection victory. The disastrous way Mr. Trump and his administration have been handling the pandemic crisis is no doubt a major reason his popularity is going down and voters are seeing what he is: a pathological liar and a totally inept fool.

Trump’s staunches supporters will no doubt say all the polls were wrong last time, they are wrong now, and that Trump will win again by a landslide. What Trump supporters always downplay or just ignore is that Trump lost the national popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 3 million votes and won the election in the electoral college. Biden is not Clinton and he does not have the extent of political baggage Clinton had. What Trump supporters also ignore is Trump must now run on his record of broken promises and irrational, unhinged behavior. Bullying opponents and critics and outright lying to the public will not cut it this time around.

Trump can no longer have his political rallies to gin up his base because of the pandemic. He now is saying he wants to start the rallies up again before the November election. There will be no “social distancing” at such rallies and the disease will spike once again. Trump has taken to daily news briefings and updates as a substitute for his rallies, and its backfiring in that he cannot control the questions asked nor correct the lies he reports as news. Trump refuses to accept the fact that he does not know what he is talking about. Trump consistently contradicts his medical advisors and lies to the public with what is going on. He also lashes out against his critics and the news media during his daily briefings.

Trump has an uncanny ability to make things worse with his daily tweeting and self-absorbed, self-center arrogance. His false proclamation that the decision to reopen the country’s ailing economy ultimately rests with him, not the governors, is the best example of how delusional President Trump is. After over 3 years of constant daily news coverage and twitters from Trump creating crisis, after crisis, after crisis of his own making, even bringing the country close to nuclear war with North Korea, the United States is now faced with a major pandemic revealing a man who is totally unfit, incompetent and totally unprepared to be President.

Trump supporters look upon him as the messiah that is cult like. As the crisis continues, the odds are high that he will only complicate the crisis, making things MUCH worse and create another crisis within a crisis. More people will likely die because of his mishandling of the pandemic. Trump now has acknowledged that the number of deaths caused by the pandemic will not be 50,000 but more like 200,000. Trump will make things worse because he just cannot help it.

Trump has now taken to promoting civil disobedience in states where Democratic Governors are doing their best to deal with the pandemic. Tweeting “LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” , “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” and “LIBERATE VIRGINIA” and stoking civil disorder among his supporters is essentially throwing gas on a fire. Burning down the country is no way to govern, but Trump sure sees it as a hellfire way to get elected to another 4 year term.

For a related Dinelli blog article see:

Our Corona Virus “War Time President” Has Created His Own “Fog of War”; Trump Is A Cancer On Our Body Politic That Must Be Removed On November 3.

It has been reported that in early 2020, thousands of law enforcement officers and other first responders throughout the country have contracted COVID-19 during the worldwide pandemic due to requirements of their job. As of April 20, 2020, at least 19 police officers throughout the country in various cities have died from the corona virus. In New York City, as of March 29, at least 696 New York Police Department employees have contracted the disease and 3 members of the department have died from coronavirus.

https://www.odmp.org/search/incident/covid-19

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/28/us/nypd-coronavirus-deaths/index.html

FEDERAL COURTHOUSE CLOSED, APD OFFICERS QUARANTINED

On May 4, it was reported that an FBI agent’s positive COVID-19 test on April 15 lead to the closure of the U.S. District Courthouse in Downtown Albuquerque for two days. The closure of the courthouse forced multiple co-workers, other agents and task force officers into quarantine. On April 17, the Albuquerque Police Department said 39 officers and two civilian employees had been quarantined after coming into contact with a federal officer who had the virus during a “multiagency operation.” All APD officers have tested negative and have returned to work.

The disclosures about the FBI agent’s positive test culminating in the quarantines and courthouse closure came to light in two coronavirus-related workplace safety complaints filed against the FBI’s Albuquerque office in the past month, the first alleging that protocols were not up to par with the governor’s public health order and the second, lodged weeks later, claiming a bureau agent returned to work after contracting the virus.

On March 26, the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau sent the FBI a letter saying it had received a complaint from employees “concerned management is ignoring COVID-19 guidance/directives.” The local office of the FBI now says the office is abiding by social distancing guidelines and had distributed numerous N-95 masks, surgical masks and gloves to supervisors and employees by April 10.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1450753/fbi-agents-positive-test-shut-courthouse.html

APD OFFICERS IGNORE GOVERNOR’S PUBLIC HEATH ORDERS

Under Governor Michelle Lujan Emergency Orders, all non-essential businesses, including barbershops are closed in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus. It seems that a number of Albuquerque Police Officers (APD) did not get the memo, and neither did APD Chief Michael Geier. On April 24, KRQE news reported that 3 Albuquerque Police Department officers were disciplined for violating the Governor’s and the Mayor’s health care orders after the APD officers were caught getting haircuts at a local barbershop.

An anonymous source sent KRQE News 13 photos taken earlier last week at around 7 a.m. in the morning. It turns out that three APD officers were getting haircuts at the True Barbershop off Osuna and I-25. Other people in the area said they had seen several APD officers at that barbershop each morning, despite the state’s public health orders that say salons and barbershops will be closed for now.

https://www.krqe.com/health/coronavirus-new-mexico/apd-officers-reprimanded-for-getting-haircuts-at-local-barber-shop/

When Channel 13 interviewed people around the city to get their opinion they said APD police officers should be leading by example. Some of the comments by private citizens included:

“Well I can understand that maybe they needed it but they have to abide by the same rules that we do. ”

“I know the struggle because my hair is long now. … I haven’t had a haircut in four months but at the same time, rules are rules.”

Under APD personnel Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s), all sworn officers have to maintain “grooming” requirements including keeping their hair clean, combed and neatly trimmed. The personnel rules also mandate that male officers cannot have long hair that goes over their ears.

After KRQE News 13 showed photos of police cars parked outside the barber shop APD declined an interview. However, APD did say the 3 police officers were reprimanded. APD also announced that it was relaxing their “grooming” requirements until barbershops can open back up. APD added that the barber will not be getting a citation because the policy is to first to inform a none complying business about the public health order rather than cite them and if they persist and still remain open APD then issues citations.

APD CHIEF GEIER IGNORES PUBLIC HEALTH ORDERS

On April 16th the Albuquerque Journal reported in a front page article that on the morning of April 2 dozens of APD officers showed up at the home of a former police officer who had died earlier in the morning at his home in order to escort the hearse dispatched to carrying his body to the funeral home. A video of the event was posted on YOUTUBE but was taken down. Another posted the video without sound and the link to the video is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksWO80TblRM

The video reveals APD officers greeting one another and even pose for group photos. Police Chief Michael Geier shows up in a shirtsleeve uniform shirt to provide solace. Officers stand shoulder-to-shoulder outside the front side walk of the home and then stand at attention and salute the flag-draped body as it is carried from the home and placed in a hearse for transportation to the funeral home.

No one in the video is wearing a mask and the 6 feet in social distancing is not practiced as police and private citizens converse. An escort of up to 40 police officers on motorcycles, arranged in two rows of twenty, begin the procession as a white hearse from Daniels funeral home joins in the middle with 20 in front and 20 in back of the hearse.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1444645/amid-covid19-pandemic-a-hero-receives-a-touching-tribute.html

On April 22, the Albuquerque Journal published a scathing editorial about the fact that neither Governor Lujan Grisham nor Mayor Keller, who have ordered citizens to stay home and away from groups, expressed concern about the conduct of APD and its Chief and opined in part:

“The failure of the mayor and governor to denounce the send-off is a glaring failure in leadership. By attending the gathering, Geier gave his approval, and rather than speaking out against the gathering, Keller and Lujan Grisham have backed him up. … No doubt it would have been awkward for Keller and Lujan Grisham to publicly criticize law enforcement for honoring one of its own. But they ordered the shelter-in-place rules, regardless of the personal pain and sacrifice they are causing hundreds of thousands of New Mexicans. They should have the backbone to support their own policies – and then brace for any criticism.”

The link to the full editorial can is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1446283/how-can-leaders-remain-mum-on-apd-sendoff.html

Confidential sources within APD have confirmed that APD Chief Michael Geier and many of his executive staff felt that it did not matter and they simply did not care what the public thought or what news media reported regarding the escort they provided to a former colleague who passed from a terminal disease. The opinion they expressed was they were “willing to take the hit” when it came to the bad publicity that ensued. Such an attitude is a far cry from that shown by other police departments in the country who in fact practice social distancing and worn protective gear when they attend funerals of a fallen colleague.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

APD has been ordered by Mayor Tim Keller to enforce and issue citations to businesses and citizens for flagrant violations of the stay at home orders and social distancing orders. Mayor Tim Keller has also become a fixture on the local news giving daily press briefing on what the city is doing to address the pandemic and going so far as to conducting telephone “town hall meetings” where thousands are called and the public are allowed to ask him questions that are screened by his political consultant who now works for 311.

Mayor Keller is demanding so very much from the general public during these difficult times. However, when it comes to APD, Chief Geier and APD officers, Mayor Keller declines to comment or take any action when asked about APD Chief Michael Geier and the 40+ police officers in attending of the hearse escort and who failed to take precautionary measures to protect themselves from the corona virus. Chief Geier and the police officers failed to practice social distancing, failed to wear masks and congregated and socialized with more than 5 people.

Chief Geier nor the 40+ sworn police were not discipline nor even admonished for their own conduct by Mayor Tim Keller. Now Chief Geier allows officers to be discipline for getting haircuts in violation of the very orders he violated. There is no mention if the barber was performing the service free of charge, which is not at all likely given that other police cars had been seen repeatedly for a number of days.

Just like the general public, law enforcement must honor and respect the requirements of the emergency orders as to safety precautions to halt the spread of the virus. Further Keller and Chief Geier with their actions, failures to act, and attitude show a level of hypocrisy that is difficult to ignore. The “willingness to take the hit” of bad publicity in order to do something you want against health orders reflects arrogance and a sense of entitlement.

The emergency orders are meaningless and law enforcement lose credibility with the public when they enforce the orders and shut down businesses and cancel major events and issue citizens citations that result in heavy fines. It becomes an issue of “Do as I order, not as I do.”

For a related blog article see:

“APD Honors Its Own”, “APD Officers Gather To Honor Deceased Lieutenant Despite Pandemic”; Governor, Mayor, APD Chief Decline Direct Comment; APD Adopts After The Fact Policies; “Do as I order, not as I Do.”