On Monday, April 25, Mayor Tim Keller announced in a press release that he had nominated La Tesha Watson, Ph.D., as the new Superintendent of Police Reform to be confirmed by the Albuquerque City Council. The position had remained open since Interim Superintendent of Police Reform Sylvester Stanley announced his departure on December 1, 2021 after a mere 8 months on the job.

In the news release, Mayor Keller, Chief Harold Medina and Watson praised each other and the opportunities for change.

Mayor Keller had this to say about the appointment:

“We’ve put a lot of work into considering what reform means for our community, and how we reach important goals that allow our department to do the best job of protecting and serving the people of Albuquerque. … This means putting leaders in place who understand that there’s a balance, and who will work to break down roadblocks.”

Chief Harold Medina for his part had this to say:

“We are turning the corner on reform at APD, and I look forward to working with Dr. LaTesha Watson to ensure the changes we are making will be both lasting and flexible enough to adapt to the needs of the community.”

Upon being appointed, Watson had this to say:

“It is an honor to be afforded this opportunity to serve in the City of Albuquerque. … The APD team, Albuquerque residents, Chief Harold Medina, and I will remain steadfast in effecting positive change while ensuring transparency, integrity, accountability, and commitment.”

Links to quoted news sources are here

https://www.abqjournal.com/2492895/mayor-selects-new-superintendent-of-police-reform.html

https://abq.news/2022/04/keller-nominates-superintendent-of-police-reform/

NEVER MIND

On May 3, one week after the Dr. LaTesha Watson appointment was announced, the City issued a press release announcing it was not moving forward with her nomination of for the position of Superintendent of Police Reform and that the hiring process will continue. The press release announcing the withdrawal is as follows:

“City Not Moving Forward With Nominee for Superintendent of Police Reform

The Superintendent of Reform was created last year by the City to bring individual accountability and leadership to reform, create differential use of force and discipline processes from APD chain of command, and add overall governance to the reform process. The position is also designed to enable the Chief of Police to better focus on crime fighting. The position was held by Sylvester Stanley until his retirement in January.”

DR. LATESHA WATSON’S UNION TROUBLES REPORTED

Dr. LaTesha Watson has 25 years of policing experience who most recently served as the director of the Office of Public Safety Accountability for Sacramento having served in that position since April, 2020. Prior to that she was the chief of the Henderson Police Department in Nevada for 16 months before she was fired following an investigation into complaints against her.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported in May 2019 that city officials fired Dr. Watson in part for “creating distrust and division between management and unions, and being uncooperative with an independent investigator.” The Nevada newspaper stated that Dr. Watson was terminated for “showing a lack of respect for many employees represented by unions” in reference to a April 2019 letter obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Though it is not confirmed why she was terminated by the Henderson Police Department, her termination did come after the police union accused her of giving out unfair discipline, breaking rules when it came to promotions, and being a ‘union-buster.’ Dr. Watson later sued the City of Henderson alleging she was pushed out due to racism and gender discrimination.

The link to quoted news source material is here:

HTTPS://SACOBSERVER.COM/2020/05/CITY-OF-SACRAMENTO-NAMES-NEW-OPSA-DIRECTOR/

Watson was one of 34 candidates for the superintendent. Other applicants included APD Deputy Chief Mike Smathers and Internal Affairs Force Division Lieutenant Matthew Caplan as well as chiefs of police and other law enforcement professionals from around the state and country. Watson did not respond to media inquiries for comment about her name being withdrawn.

Links to quoted news source material are here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2495316/city-rescinds-nomination-for-superintendent-of-police-reform.html

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/city-rescinds-job-offer-for-superintendent-of-police-reform-candidate/

JOB DESCRIPTION WORTH NOTING

According to the published city job description for the position of Superintendent of Police Reform it is also a Deputy Chief Administrative Officer position paying $155,001.60 to $185,016.00 annually. It is an unclassified at-will position appointed by the Mayor subject to confirmation by the Albuquerque City Council.

Mayor Tim Keller created the Superintendent of Police Reform position last year to help with the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) with the Department of Justice. The Superintendent oversees all APD academy operations including cadet training and education as well as Department of Justice (DOJ) reform efforts, internal affairs and has the final say on police disciplinary matters.

One paragraph of the job description for the position of Superintendent of Police Reform is worth noting:

“Recognizing what the Department of Justice has described as the inherent need for internal affairs to exercise independence and have some separation from institutional politics and pressures, the Superintendent will also directly oversee all internal affairs matters related to the Police Department. Exercising the delegated authority of the CAO, the Superintendent will have the final say on police disciplinary matters. The Superintendent will ensure consistency and fairness in the application of disciplinary policies and compliance with CASA requirements related to discipline. The Superintendent will also develop policies and practices to ensure that the Police Department has a wide range of tools to foster culture change, in addition to discipline.”

The link to the full Job Description here:

https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/cabq/jobs/3325568/superintendent-of-police-reform-and-deputy-chief-administrative-officer-un

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The words “sloppy and incompetent” come to mind to describe the nomination of and then withdrawal of LaTesha Watson, Ph.D. by Mayor Tim Keller for the position of Superintendent of Police Reform. It is “Human Resourses 101” in the appointment of high profile positions that under no circumstances should an appointment be announced until the vetting process and interview process of a selected candidate is completed and all questions are resolved to the satisfaction of both sides. That is especially true when it comes to high profile law enforcement appointments such as Chief of Police and Superintendent of Police Reform, given the fact that public safety is at issue.

NO UNION COMMENTS REPORTED

The media never reported on the police union’s reaction the Mayor Keller’s appointment of La Tesha Watson. Channel 7 and Channel 4 especially always seeks out police union comment, but not this time. Confidential sources have said many voiced strong objections to Mayor Keller over the appointment and encouraged him to withdraw the appointment.

Ever since the creation of the position of Superintendent of Police Reform was created, including the release of the job description, the APD Union has voiced objections that the Superintendent of Police Reform will have the final say on police disciplinary matters. The union has said that it violates the union contract and that only the APD Chief can impose discipline. It is highly likely that police union and others voiced strong objections to the Watson appointment once the circumstances of her termination by the Henderson Police Department were reported.

NO PUBLIC INPUT

Although Mayor Tim Keller announced that a national search would be conducted to fill the position Superintendent of Police Reform, such as when he appointed Harold Medina as APD Chief, the process was never made public. There were 3 finalists for APD Chief and all 3 were interviewed on line for the public to witness, including Medina’s interview. That has not happened with the Superintendent of Police Reform.

The Keller Administration never released to the public the names of all the applicants nor the application process itself, including who was on the interviewing committee. It was never disclosed to the public if the city conferred with the Department of Justice or Federal Court Appointed Monitor Dr. James Ginger to get his take or input over the applicants.

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED AFTER APPOINTMENT ANNOUNCED

It is surprising that in the press release announcing the withdrawal of Watson it was disclosed Watson “recently concluded a site visit and a series of meetings with City and Department Executive Staff”. One would think that should have been done before her appointment was made. What is shocking is the press release said in part:

“Watson put forward a proposal for restructuring the role in a manner that ultimately did not align with the position that the city is hiring for, as outlined in the job description created last year to meet the specific needs of APD. The administration determined that her alternative approach could in fact hold back recent progress made in the Department of Justice consent decree.”

There is absolutely no specifics given as to what she was proposing with the city only saying “it did not align with the position.” There is no mention if she wanted to restructure APD high command, such as pairing down the number of 6 Deputy Chiefs to the original 3 Deputies nor what she wanted to do when it came to the police reforms of if she wanted to surround herself with her own team of managers. Simply put, it did not matter what Watson wanted to do or what she was saying in that the the Court Approved Settlement Agreement would have governed any way and she could not change it terms nor mandates.

Ostensibly, Watson did not have a complete understanding of what she was about to get herself into when it comes to the APD police reforms and the consent decree. According to her credentials, she has never worked for a police department struggling with consent decree reforms and constitutional policing practices. APD has never been in “operational compliance” with CASA reforms or mandated Use of Force Force Reporting Policy. In the November 12, 2021 Independent Monitors Report (IMR-14), the Federal Monitor reported Operational Compliance at 62% after 7 years of the CASA. APD had to agree with the hiring of a External Use of Force Investigation Team (EFIT) to avoid a contempt proceeding and to deal with a backlog of 660 police use of force cases that APD unliterally decided not to investigate.

Dr. Watson’s original statement concerning the APD team and Medina’s pledge to “transparency, accountability, and integrity” is now very laughable given the fact that she now will not even comment on what happened with her departure before even arriving here to work. One thing is for certain is she had no idea who she was dealing with when it comes to Mayor Keller, Chief Medina and APD in general.

So much for transparency and full disclosure.

The link to a related blog article is here:

Keller Names New Superintendent of Police Reform

On Thursday, April 28, the City Council “Committee of the Whole” held its budget hearing on the 2022-2023 proposed Albuquerque Police Department Budget. APD Chief Harold Medina presented the budget for his department to the Council.

The link to the proposed 244-page 2022-2023 budget it here:

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy23-proposed-final-web-version.pdf

During the budget hearing, the city council was told that as of the week of April 15, APD has a mere 878 sworn officers. During each of the last 4 years, APD’s budget has provided enough funding for 1,100. The 878 sworn police officers APD has of April 15, 2020 is 20 sworn police officers less than when Mayor Tim Keller first became Mayor on December 1, 2017. When Keller was sworn into office on December 1, 2017, APD had 898 sworn police according budget records.

In an interview with the Albuquerque Journal, Medina had this this to say:

“It’s going to be very difficult for us to get to 1,100 [sworn officers] … But we want to start laying the groundwork with extra PSAs and helping find proper support for our officers.”

Least anyone forget, in 2017 then New Mexico State Auditor Tim Keller campaigned to be elected mayor on the platform of increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), returning to community-based policing and promising to bring down skyrocketing crime rates. To that end, in 2018, the Keller Administration began implementing an $88 million-dollar APD police expansion program increasing the number of sworn police officers from 898 positions filled to 1,200, or by 302 sworn police officers, over a four-year period.

The massive investment was ordered by Mayor Tim Keller to full fill his 2017 campaign promise to increase the size of APD and return to community-based policing as a means to reduce the city’s high crime rates. Keller promised to increase the number of sworn police in the department to 1,200 by the end of his first term.

Over the last 4 years of city budgets under Keller, the City’s Finance Department that prepares the yearly budget has budgeted enough money to pay for 1,100 officers in APD. During the April 28 budget hearing APD Chief Harold Medina acknowledged for the very first time that 1,100 sworn police is likely unrealistic.

This is significant in that Harold Medina has been with Keller Administration since the day Keller was sworn. Harold Medina held the position of Deputy of Field Services for the years prior to being appointed Chief after Medina orchestrated the removal of former APD Chief Michael Geier.

The fiscal year 2022-2023 proposed city budget covers not only the cost of 1,100 officers out of the city’s general fund but an additional 40 more sworn with federal grant money. The 2021-2022 fiscal year ends on June 30, 2022. Medina told the city council that APD estimates that it will finish the fiscal year 2023 that begins on July 1, 2022 and ends on June 30, 2023 with just 982 officers.

According to City officials, budgeted sworn officer positions carry a price tag of upwards $105,000 apiece when you include base salaries and add benefits such as the city’s portion of retirement pay. That means if by next year’s end there are only 982 officers as Medina says, and APD is budgeted for 1,100 sworn positions, 118 salaries will go unspent. That translates into $12,390,000 in unspent salaries calculated as follows: 118 vacant positions at $105,000 a piece equals $12,390,000 salaries will accrue as unspent.

MEDINA WANTS TO USE $12.4 MILLION FOR OTHER PERSONNEL

APD Chief Harold Medina told the City Councilors he intends to use some of the money to hire more Police Service Aides (PSAs). Medina told the counselors:

“We know that’s the best pipeline for us to add officers to this department. The vast majority of our police service aides become officers.”

According to Medina, he wants APD department aims to have 96 Public Service Aids (PSA’s) by the end of the next fiscal year which is June 30. Medina told city counselors APD currently has 39 PSA’s.

Chief Medina told the counselors the officer salary savings will provide APD some flexibility to hire civilians for certain tasks that do not require a sworn officer, such as scouring social media accounts for evidence something the department is doing with more regularity.

USE OF UNSPENT SWORN OFFICER SALARIES QUESTIONED

According to City finance officials, the unspent officer salary money will not go exclusively to other forms of manpower. City finance officials said Keller’s 2023 plan assumes using about $7.2 million in budgeted officer salaries for non-personnel operating costs. Should the city somehow exceed hiring expectations, it would have to find another way to pay those operating expenses.

During the April 28 budget hearing, Republican City Councilor Dan Lewis questioned APD for more information on its budgeting strategy on using unspent sworn police officers salaries for other priorities. Lewis said this:

“I think it’s good for us to understand this is not a budget that [actually] funds 1,100 police officers. … We’re going to give you [funding for] 1,100 officers this year. We’re going to fund [the amount] just like we did last year. We’re continuing to do that, but I think at the very least what this council is going to need and want is a very specific breakdown of where those salary savings went because we didn’t hire those officers.”

Chief Medina said that financial cushion from last year helped cover a union-negotiated 8% officer pay increase that took effect in January and was not otherwise funded. The proposed budget covers the continuation of the 8% pay increase that went into effect in January and then covers the additional 5%, for a total of 13% in APD sworn police raises that starts on July 1. 2022.

Councilor Lewis said he wanted more detail about how APD , which has hundreds fewer officers than the present year’s budget assumed, has used all of those 2022 savings before the council approves a similar budget for FY 2023.

PRIOR REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION GO UNANSWERED

Lewis’ request for more detail on how APD has used the millons in unpent salaries for fully funded but vacant police positions is nothing new. In 2021, City Councilors Pat Davis and Isaac Benton demanded additional information about how APD and the Keller Administration applied the salary savings that accrue each year. The Keller Administration has said Some have said such expenditures do not always require City Council or public vetting.

In 2021, Davis and Benton introduced legislation that would have meant more council oversight. They ultimately withdrew it with the understanding the Keller administration would give the legislative body regular money-movement reports. Davis said in during the April 28 budget hearing that the council has never received any such reports.

Notwithstanding the Keller Administrations failure to account for the funding, he said he was pleased at APD’s forthrightness during this year’s budget process and said:

“We’re being more transparent with the public about what we’re trying to do [by saying ‘We want to get (1,100 officers). We’re not there yet. Here’s how we intend upfront to use the savings … I appreciate that because in the old days we knew there were $20-$30 million dollars in there of money we weren’t going to get to [spending on planned staffing], and it really was a black hole.”

Thursday was the first of three public hearings the council is holding on the FY 2023 budget. Keller’s proposal totals $1.4 billion – including $841.8 million in general fund spending – but the council can make changes before approving the final version.

The link to quoted news source is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2494351/apd-staffing-expectations-remain-below-budget.html

APD LARGEST DEPARTMENT BUDGET

The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) continues to be the largest city budget out of 27 departments. The fiscal year 2023 proposed General Fund budget is $255.4 million, which represents an increase of 14.7% or $32.8 million above the fiscal year 2022 level.

The fiscal year 2022-2023 proposed General Fund budget for APD is $255.4 million, which represents an increase of 14.7% or $32.8 million above the FY/22 level. The proposed General Fund civilian count is 665 and sworn count is 1,100 for a total of 1,765 full-time positions.

APD’s general fund budget of $255.4 provides funding for 1,100 full time sworn police officers, with the department fully funded for 1,100 sworn police for the past 3 years. However, there are currently 888 sworn officers in APD. The APD budget provides funding for 1,100 in order to accommodate growth.

The APD budget is increased to accommodate for an immediate 8% in police pay and another 5% in police pay to begin in July because of the new police union contract.

The APD budget provides for a net total increase of $1.2 million in overtime pay to accommodate the police union contract hourly rate increase that went into effect on January 1, 2022. In fiscal year 2022, a memorandum of understating agreement was approved increasing the hourly rate of pay for 911 operators in an effort to retain emergency service operators and offer a competitive wage for a total personnel cost of $737 thousand.

Technical adjustments include funding of $6.4 million for a 5% increase in hourly wages and longevity for sworn officers in accordance to year two of the approved police union contract and 2% Cost of Living Adjustments for civilian positions, subject to negotiations for positions associated with a union. An adjustment of $2.6 million for health benefits, insurance administration, life insurance and 0.5% State mandated Public Employees Retirement increase for the employer’s share.

A net total increase of $1.2 million in overtime is included for the APOA hourly rate increase that went into effect January 1, 2022. In fiscal year 2022, 63 full-time civilian positions were added at a total cost of $4.9 million including benefits and reduction of $134 thousand in contractual services for a net cost of $4.7 million to support the daily operations and/or compliance with the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA).

There are 28 city departments. The Police Department and the Fire and Rescue Department are the two largest departments for City operating appropriations, primarily due to their large workforces. The two departments together comprise 26.8% of the total fund appropriations of $1.4 billion and 43.1% of the General Fund appropriations of $841.8 million in fiscal year 2022-2023.

APD’s general fund budget of $255.4 provides funding for 1,100 full time sworn police officers, with the department fully funded for 1,100 sworn police for the past 3 years. However, there are currently 888 sworn officers in APD. The APD budget provides funding for 1,100 in order to accommodate growth.

The APD budget is increased to accommodate for an immediate 8% in police pay and another 5% in police pay to begin in July because of the new police union contract. The APD budget provides for a net total increase of $1.2 million in overtime pay to accommodate the police union contract hourly rate increase that went into effect on January 1, 2022.

Technical adjustments include funding of $6.4 million for a 5% increase in hourly wages and longevity for sworn officers in accordance to year two of the approved police union contract and 2% Cost of Living Adjustments for civilian positions, subject to negotiations for positions associated with a union. An adjustment of $2.6 million for health benefits, insurance administration, life insurance and 0.5% State mandated Public Employees Retirement increase for the employer’s share.

A net total increase of $1.2 million in overtime is included for the APOA hourly rate increase that went into effect January 1, 2022. In fiscal year 2022, 63 full-time civilian positions were added at a total cost of $4.9 million including benefits and reduction of $134 thousand in contractual services for a net cost of $4.7 million to support the daily operations and/or compliance with the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA).

https://www.petedinelli.com/2021/01/11/mayor-tim-kellers-record-of-broken-promises-failures-and-high-murder-rates-as-he-seeks-a-second-term/

13% PAY RAISES FOR VERSUS 2% COLA FOR CITY HALL WORKFORCE

On February 4, it was reported that the Keller’s administration had negotiated a new police union contract making APD the best paid law enforcement agency in the region by increasing hourly wages and longevity pay and creating a whole new category of “incentive pay”. All of APD sworn police officers are members of the police union, including patrol officers, sergeants and lieutenants. All of APD sworn police were given combined pay increases of 13% under a two-year contract.

Under the signed union contract, APD’s starting wage is well above cities and law enforcement agencies of comparable size including Tucson, Arizona, $54,517, and El Paso, Texas, $47,011. Under the contract terms, longevity pay increases by 5% starting on July 1, the beginning of the new fiscal year starting at $2,730 per year with those who have 5 years of service and with incremental service years up to 17 years or more who will be paid $16,380.

Under the union contract, sworn police are entitled to overtime compensation at the rate of time-and-one-half of their regular straight-time rate when they perform work in excess of forty (40) hours in any one workweek. Time worked over 40 hours per week is compensated at time and a half of the officer’s regular rate of pay, or in the form of “compensatory time.” There is no contract provision placing a cap on the amount of overtime any officer can be paid.

The 2022-2023 proposed budget includes $13 million for a city-wide 2% cost-of-living increase. Buried in the 2022-2023 budget is the fact that the city hall workforce excluding APD sworn police, is approximately 5,916 (6,916 total workforce – 1,100 sworn) who will be given a mere 2% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) but subject to union negotiations.

APD PERFORMANC MEASURE; APD ARRESTS WENT DOWN, AGAIN

APD statistics for the city budget years of 2019 and 2020 confirm that APD was not as “aggressive and proactive” doing its job of investigating and arresting people.

APD felony arrests went down from 2019 to 2020 by 39.51% going down from 10,945 to 6,621. Misdemeanor arrests went down by 15% going down from 19,440 to 16,520. DWI arrests went down from 1,788 in 2019 to 1,230 in 2020, down 26%. The total number of all arrests went down from 32,173 in 2019 to 24,371 in 2020 or by 25%.

The 2023 proposed budget released on April 1, 2022, contains APD arrest statistics and performance measures. Following are the statistics reported in the budget for 2020 and 2021:

The number of actual violent crimes in 2020 reported and investigated by APD was 6,685 and in 2021 the number increased to 7,073.

The number of actual property crimes reported and investigated by APD in 2020 was 32,135 and the number dropped dramatically in 2021 to 8,972.

APD made 1,788 DWI arrests in 2020 and in 2021 DWI arrests dropped to 1,230.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The City Council budget process is one of the very few times that the council can bore deep down into each of the city department budgets. All too often, Mayor’s and their political operatives view the City Council more of an annoyance as opposed to being a legitimate oversight function.

Pay increases should be based on merit and productivity and not failure. Giving 13% pay raises to APD sworn is tantamount to awarding failure to a union membership that is resisting the Department of Justice Police reforms, a police department that has failing performance measures when it comes to felony, misdemeanor and DWI arrests and homicide investigations, a department that is failing to deal with spiking violent crime rates and a department that continues to have overtime pay scandals because of failed leadership. This is what you get from a Mayor and a City Council that refuses to hold anyone truly accountable for mismanagement and negligence.

A 2% COLA to the city hall workforce is laughable given the fact that the annual inflation rate for the United States is now 7.9% and the cost of gas has also hit historical highs. Mayor Keller should be embarrassed spending $127 million, or 17.8%, over last year’s budget, increasing the pay to APD and his executive staff by significant amounts and then providing a mere $13 million for a city-wide 2% cost-of-living increase to city workforce.

It is pretty damn pathetic that the City Council does not challenge not does it appear to be at all concerned that APD Chief Harold Medina has admitted that his department will not have 1,100 sworn police by the end of the 2023 fiscal year. He says he intends to use upwards of $12,390,000 as a “personnel slush fund” to hire Public Safety Aids and for other personnel needs and priorities.

The Council wants is funding 1,100 sworn police, not Public Safety aides. If Medina wants more PSA’s, the APD budget needs to say just that. Medina and the Keller Administration needs to specifically ask for the funding for PSA’S and the numbers and not mislead the council to finance sworn officers only to hire PSA’s or other personnel priorities.

What adds insult to injury is that the of $12,390,000 in unused police salary is on par with the $13 million for a city-wide 2% cost-of-living increase that is being offered to upwards of 5,100 city hall employees. APD sworn will be getting a total 13% pay increase including even more money for overtime pay.

When it comes to APD’s budget, the council the counsel has been told the games Mayor Keller and Harold Medina are playing but it ostensibly the counsel has have no intent on doing anything about it at the expense of all other city hall employees and the taxpayer.