On July 26, the online news agency the New Mexico Sun published the guest column “Mayor Tim Keller should suspend the permitting process for ‘safe outdoor spaces’ until the City Council has time to act”. Below is the guest column followed by the link:

By Pete Dinelli

“On July 19, the New Mexico Sun broke the story that applications for “safe outdoor spaces” have been filed with the city Planning Department and that private funding is being sought for at least 6 encampments. An application for safe outdoor space zoning will lock into the existing zoning laws when the zoning application is completed. In the interim between when the Integrated Development Ordinance amendment goes into effect and when the provision is repealed, the application can be processed and approved by the city.

“Safe outdoor spaces” will be a disaster for the city as a whole. They will destroy neighborhoods, make the city a magnet for the homeless and destroy the city’s efforts to manage the homeless through housing. If the City allows the 6 applications for “safe outdoor spaces” to proceed and approves them all, it will be a major setback for the city and its current policy of seeking permanent shelter and housing as the solution to the homeless crisis.”

The link to the New Mexico Sun article is here:

https://newmexicosun.com/stories/629412118-mayor-tim-keller-should-suspend-the-permitting-process-for-safe-outdoor-spaces-until-the-city-council-has-time-to-act

CONTACT THE MAYOR AND CITTY COUNCIL

The public is strongly encouraged to contact Mayor Keller and City Council and ask for a moratorium on the city processing applications for “Safe Outdoor Spaces” until the city Council has time to vote on August 15 to repeal.

The email addresses and phone numbers to contact Mayor Keller and Interim Chief Administrative Officer Lawrence Rael and each City Councilor and the Director of Counsel services are as follows:

MAYOR’S OFFICE PHONE: (505) 768-3000
CITY COUNCIL PHONE: (505) 768-3100

EMAIL ADDRESSES

tkeller@cabq.gov
lrael@cabq.gov
lesanchez@cabq.gov
louiesanchez@allstate.com
ibenton@cabq.gov
kpena@cabq.gov
bbassan@cabq.gov
danlewis@cabq.gov
LEWISABQ@GMAIL.COM
patdavis@cabq.gov
tfiebelkorn@cabq.gov
trudyjones@cabq.gov
rgrout@cabq.gov
cmelendrez@cabq.gov

POSTSCRIPT

ABOUT THE NEW MEXICO SUN

The New Mexico Sun is part of the Sun Publishing group which is a nonprofit. The New Mexico Sun “mission statement” states in part:

“The New Mexico Sun was established to bring fresh light to issues that matter most to New Mexicans. It will cover the people, events, and wonders of our state. … The New Mexico Sun is non-partisan and fact-based, and we don’t maintain paywalls that lead to uneven information sharing. We don’t publish quotes from anonymous sources that lead to skepticism about our intentions, and we don’t bother our readers with annoying ads about products and services from non-locals that they will never buy. … Many New Mexico media outlets minimize or justify problematic issues based on the individuals involved or the power of their positions. Often reporters fail to ask hard questions, avoid making public officials uncomfortable, and then include only one side of a story. This approach doesn’t provide everything readers need to fully understand what is happening, why it matters, and how it will impact them or their families.”

The home page link to the New Mexico Sun is here:

https://newmexicosun.com/

On June 27, calling it “the most dangerous place in the state of New Mexico” Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller held a press conference standing in front of Coronado Park to discuss his reasons for ordering the parks closure and saying it was imperative even without a fully formed plan for how to do it and what happens next.

Keller said this:

“We’re not going to wait any longer. We have all the evidence we need that says that we have to do something different. … It is not going to be something where every question is answered, and every plan is thought out. … We do not have the luxury of a perfect plan. … At this point, if we don’t close the park now, it will never be a park again. … There was unanimous consensus that at a minimum, temporarily, this park has to close. … This is the first step. We welcome everyone to help us problem-solve, but someone has to step up and make a decision … And that’s what people elected me to do.”

City officials have said that upwards 120 people camp nightly at the park. Homeless occupants will be told of other housing options offered by the city. The city will continue to offer services and housing options to those using Coronado Park, including making limited property storage available to those who are interested or in need of it.

The links to quoted news sources are here:

https://www.koat.com/article/coronado-park-closed-homeless/40724118

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/mayor-keller-reaffirms-plans-to-close-coronado-park/

https://www.abqjournal.com/2519423/were-not-going-to-wait-any-longer-mayor-says-of-coronado-park.html

https://www.abqjournal.com/2519038/keller-city-will-close-coronado-park.html

Keller admitted that the immediate closure of the park will be “messy” and that dispersing park residents could create other problems. Keller also said that no decision has been made about the park’s specific closure date. He also said no long-term plans have been made for the property but said options include reopening it as a park, using it for the neighboring fire station’s expansion or turning it into a “safe outdoor space” which is a managed site with rules, toilets and showers where people who are homeless can legally camp.

BOMBSHELL ANNOUNCEMENT

It was on Monday, July 25, in a speech before the very Republican leaning New Mexico chapter of the National Association of Industrial Office Parks (NAIOP), that Mayor Tim Keller announced closure of Coronado Park. The announcement took everyone by surprise. The announcement was labeled by more than one local news media outlet as a “bombshell” announcement.

Keller told the group of commercial and real estate developers and said this in a statement:

“[The]situation is absolutely unacceptable, so we’re going to stop it. In August we’re closing Coronado Park. … It doesn’t matter if we know exactly what we’re doing next. It doesn’t matter exactly what the timing is or how we’re going to do it, but we have to do better than what’s happening at Coronado Park. There is a bed for every person [who stays at Coronado] to go. … The status quo will not stand … This remains a complex issue and while we work to determine what’s next for Coronado, we’ll keep stepping up to get folks connected to the right services and resources. …

We’re very concerned about what’s going to happen in the neighborhoods, but at this point now, it’s a question of what is worse — looking the other way at violence, at homicide, at rampant drug use, or trying to deal with the problem a different way. … It has reached the breaking point where even if it’s creating other problems and other brush fires, we’ve got a better chance dealing with that than we do letting this go.”

FAILURE TO CONFER

Mayor Keller was severely criticized for making the decision to close the park without conferring first and getting input from the surrounding neighborhoods, especially the Wells Park neighborhood, local businesses and stakeholders.

Wells Park Neighborhood Association President Doreen McKnight said this:

“It’s hard for us to take a position on this — whether or not we think it’s a good or bad idea — if nobody communicates with us and there’s no plan.”

The Mental Health Response Advisory Committee is in charge of advising the city on issues related to chronic homelessness. Max Kauffman, who co-chairs the committee, said Keller’s announcement came as a surprise. Kaufman said this:

“Now we’re in the position of having to react to it rather than getting ahead of it, helping to make sure that they’re considering all the factors that are relevant to people experiencing homelessness and they’re taking good care in how they’re executing this policy, and whether to execute this policy at all.”

Keller took issue with the criticism that he made the park closure decision without first notifying or consulting with key constituencies justifying his decision by saying the situation at the park had become a major crisis that needs to be dealt with immediately. Keller did say the city would now begin sorting out the closure details and future plans with service providers, park residents, neighbors and other elected officials.

The link to quoted news source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2519038/keller-city-will-close-coronado-park.html

CESSPOOL OF CRMINAL ACTIVITY

Over the last 10 years, Coronado Park became the “de facto” city sanctioned homeless encampment with the city repeatedly cleaning it up only for the homeless to return the next day. City officials have said it is costing the city $27,154 every two weeks or $54,308 a month to clean up the park only to allow the homeless encampment to return.

Residents and businesses located near the park complain to the city repeatedly about the city’s unwritten policy to allow the park to be used as an encampment and its use as a drop off by law enforcement for those who are transported from the westside jail. At any given time, Coronado Park has 70 to 80 tents crammed into the park with homeless wondering the area.

Criminal activity has spiked at Coranado Park over the past three years with an extensive history of lawlessness including drug use, violence, murder, rape and mental health issues. In 2020, there were 3 homicides at Coronado Park. In 2019, a disabled woman was raped, and in 2018 there was a murder. APD reports that it was dispatched to the park 651 times in 2021 and 312 times thus far in 2022. There have been 16 stabbings at the park in the past 2 years and in the past 30 days APD has seized from the park 4,500 fentanyl pills, more than 5 pounds of methamphetamine, 24 grams of heroin and 29 grams of cocaine. APD also found $10,000 in cash.

KELLER’S COMPLETE REVERASAL

Mayor Keller’s decision to close Coronado Park was a dramatic 100% reversal from just a few weeks ago when he gave excuses why he could not close Coronado Park. It was an astonishing admission of failure when Mayor Tim Keller said this about Coronado Park:

“[The federal courts] will not allow us to just walk in and arrest someone because they’re homeless and the current situation beats the alternative. … It is not lost on me that we created Coronado Park because Wells Park said, ‘We don’t want these folks in our neighborhood,’ and we agree with them. And that’s why they were all grouped to one area. … So you also got to remember the alternative. You can’t have it both ways — you want to close Coronado Park, you are going to open all of Wells Park neighborhood to something none of us want to see.”

Link to quoted news source:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2508302/man-fatally-shot-at-abq-park.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Mayor Tim Keller will never admit it, but it is he who had the biggest hand in creating “the most dangerous place in the state of New Mexico” and creating the cesspool of crime known as Coronado Park. It was nauseating for Keller to deflect blame over what he created when he said:

“This is the first step. We welcome everyone to help us problem-solve, but someone has to step up and make a decision. And that’s what people elected me to do.”

Absolutely no one elected Tim Keller to decide to allow a once beautiful and pristine park dedicated to public use to become a festering blight for over 4 years on the community and creating a cesspool of crime.

Simply put, Coronado Park is an embarrassment with the city violating its own ordinances and nuisance laws by allowing overnight camping and criminal conduct in the park thus creating a public nuisance both under state law and city ordinance. Coronado Park became the symbol of Keller’s failure as Mayor to deal with the homeless crisis and now he has to deal with a nuisance property he created.

Now that Mayor Tim Keller is ordering the closure and cleanup of Coronado Park, he should issue a formal apology to the Wells Park Neighborhood and the businesses in the area and forcing them for the last 4 years to an endure a blight, a nuisance and a magnet for crime he created.

It was disingenuous for Keller to say just a few weeks ago “[The federal courts] will not allow us to just walk in and arrest someone because they’re homeless and the current situation beats the alternative. … .“The current situation at Coronado Park does not beat the alternative of having a zero tolerance of allowing illegal encampments and allowing the homeless to squat all over the city and not enforce the law.

Grouping the homeless, as Keller said, in a city park should never have been considered as an option to deal with the homeless crisis given all the resources the city is spending to help the homeless. This so called “grouping” coming from a mayor who for his entire first term made dealing with the homeless crisis a corner stone of his administration. A Mayor whose administration spent $40 million in 2022 and will spend $60 million in 2023 to provide assistance to the homeless. A Mayor who saw to it that the city purchased the 529,000 square-foot Lovelace Hospital facility on Gibson for $15 million to have it converted into a Gateway Shelter and who made the westside shelter a 24-7 facility.

On July 6 Mayor Tim Keller announced that his administration was “revisiting” its policies on how it addresses homeless encampments that are increasing in number throughout the city. Keller wants to initiate major changes by the end of July on how to deal legally with homeless encampments. Closure of Coronado Park is a good first step.

Mayor’s Keller’s announcement took everyone by surprise and was even labeled a “bombshell” announcement by more than on media outlet. It was as if he was in a rush to make the announcement before a Republican business group in order to make headlines. He told no one else about it, including the neighborhood area of Wells Park, other homeless care providers in the city, nor the city’s Mental Health Response Advisory Committee which advises the city on issues related to chronic homelessness.

Keller himself admitted there is no real plan in place on how to deal with the closure of the park which is sloppy at best and incompetence at its worst. Keller has essentially “pivoted” from a crisis he has created known as Coronado Park to another crisis he will have to deal with when it comes to dealing those that are being displaced.

Mayor Tim Keller is to be commended for at least coming to his senses after a full 4 years of failing to exercise his authority to issue executive orders to clean up and remove unlawful encampments and permanently close Coronado Park. Closure of Coronado Park is a good first step in announcing a new approach to the city’s homeless crisis. Now comes the real hard part to come up with a viable plan that will not make things worse for the area and the city and that will deal with the homeless in a compassionate manner.

On July 25, in a speech before the very Republican leaning New Mexico chapter of the National Association of Industrial Office Parks (NAIOP), Mayor Tim Keller announced closure of the unsanctioned homeless encampment at Coronado Park. The closure will occur at the end of the month. City officials said that upwards 120 people camp nightly at the park. Homeless occupants will be told of other housing options offered by the city. The city will continue to offer services and housing options to those using Coronado Park, including making limited property storage available to those who are interested or in need of it.

Keller had told the group of commercial and real estate developers and said this in a statement:

“[The]situation is absolutely unacceptable, so we’re going to stop it. In August we’re closing Coronado Park. … It doesn’t matter if we know exactly what we’re doing next. It doesn’t matter exactly what the timing is or how we’re going to do it, but we have to do better than what’s happening at Coronado Park. There is a bed for every person [who stays at Coronado] to go. … The status quo will not stand … This remains a complex issue and while we work to determine what’s next for Coronado, we’ll keep stepping up to get folks connected to the right services and resources. …

We’re very concerned about what’s going to happen in the neighborhoods, but at this point now, it’s a question of what is worse — looking the other way at violence, at homicide, at rampant drug use, or trying to deal with the problem a different way. … It has reached the breaking point where even if it’s creating other problems and other brush fires, we’ve got a better chance dealing with that than we do letting this go.”

Chief administrative officer Lawrence Rael said the city could start posting flyers of the pending closure as early as this week and that the city will alert the homeless squatters of available services and other housing options.

Rael had this to say:

“Homelessness at Coronado has been a challenge for nearly a decade, but we have to draw a line and simply stop a situation that is obviously unacceptable, regardless of what we do next.”

Carol Pierce, Director or Family and Community Services, had this to say:

“The city is committed to finding solutions that work for people who are unhoused but also keep our neighborhoods safe. … The administration has made sure that critical resources like housing vouchers and shelter beds are more available than they were in the past. Now it’s time to move forward so that we can reach safe, humane outcomes for our city.”

During a City Council meeting in June, City Councilors were told that an analysis done by the Department of Family and Community services which administers the city’s homeless programs, identified 369 open beds across nine local shelters on a single night in June. 215 beds were at the city’s West Side facility. A major problem is that many homeless people simply do not want to go the Westside Shelter because it is remote, far from other services, and used to be an old jail facility.

Coronado Park has served as a centralized drop-off and pickup site for the West Side Emergency Shelter for nearly a decade. During the COVID-19 pandemic, park regulations were relaxed as a mitigation measure. Conditions at the park deteriorated, including narcotics trafficking, drug use and prolonged damage to the park’s irrigation and vegetation created safety concerns and were the leading factors in the decision to close the park.

Links to quoted news source material are here:

https://www.neighborhoodjournal.com/coronado-park-to-close-in-august/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=coronado-park-to-close-in-august

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Albuquerque-park-that-s-been-a-homeless-17328221.php

https://www.koat.com/article/albuquerque-close-coronado-park/40711216

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/albuquerque-mayor-announces-closure-of-coronado-park-in-august/

https://www.abqjournal.com/2519038/keller-city-will-close-coronado-park.html

ENVRONMENTAL HEALTH STUDY OF CORONADO PARK

City officials saying prolonged damage to the park’s irrigation and vegetation created safety concerns and were the leading factors in the decision to close the park ostensibly confirms that an environmental health study or ground testing has been performed.

Confidential sources within APD have said that an environmental health study or ground testing was performed either by the APD crime lab or the city’s Environmental Health Department on the Coronado Park grounds. According to the APD source, the study revealed a highly toxic level of contaminates, including drugs, human waste and fluids and dangerous levels of molds to the extent that the park grounds are dangerous and where exposure can affect a person’s health.

According to the APD source, a final report was provided to the Mayor’s Office and APD Chief Harold Medina and once reviewed, orders were issued that the study was not to be released to the general public for fear that the City would have to permanently close the park. Upon information and belief, a request for Inspection of Public records has been made by media outlets for the Coronado Park environmental study, but no response by the city has been reported by those news outlets.

CORONDO PARK SYMBOL OF FAILURE TO DEAL WITH HOMELESS

Mayor Keller’s decision to close Coronado Park was a dramatic reversal from just a few months ago when he gave excuses why he could not close Coronado Park. It was an astonishing admission of failure when Mayor Tim Keller said this about Coronado Park:

“[The federal courts] will not allow us to just walk in and arrest someone because they’re homeless and the current situation beats the alternative. … It is not lost on me that we created Coronado Park because Wells Park said, ‘We don’t want these folks in our neighborhood,’ and we agree with them. And that’s why they were all grouped to one area. … So you also got to remember the alternative. You can’t have it both ways — you want to close Coronado Park, you are going to open all of Wells Park neighborhood to something none of us want to see.”

Link to quoted news source:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2508302/man-fatally-shot-at-abq-park.html

Over the last 10 years, Coronado Park became the “de facto” city sanctioned homeless encampment with the city repeatedly cleaning it up only for the homeless to return the next day. City officials have said it is costing the city $27,154 every two weeks or $54,308 a month to clean up the park only to allow the homeless encampment to return.

Residents and businesses located near the park complain to the city repeatedly about the city’s unwritten policy to allow the park to be used as an encampment and its use as a drop off by law enforcement for those who are transported from the westside jail. At any given time, Coronado Park has 70 to 80 tents crammed into the park with homeless wondering the area.

One major factor in closing the park is crime. Criminal activity has spiked at the park over the past three years. The city park has an extensive history lawlessness including drug use, violence, murder, rape and mental health issues. In 2020, there were 3 homicides at Coronado Park. In 2019, a disabled woman was raped, and in 2018 there was a murder. APD reports that it was dispatched to the park 651 times in 2021 and 312 times thus far in 2022. There have been 16 stabbings at the park in the past 2 and in the past 30 days APD has seized from the park 4,500 fentanyl pills, more than 5 pounds of methamphetamine, 24 grams of heroin and 29 grams of cocaine. APD also found $10,000 in cash. All the seized drugs were tied to a single bust in late June that occurred at a nearby motel, not the park, though an APD spokeswoman said the suspect was “mainly doing all their distributions [at the park].”

The links to quoted news sources are here:

https://www.koat.com/article/coronado-park-closed-homeless/40724118

https://www.abqjournal.com/2519423/were-not-going-to-wait-any-longer-mayor-says-of-coronado-park.html

The city announced it will continue to consider the next steps for Coronado Park, ranging from permanent closure, eventual re-opening as a park, or repurposing it for piloting a safe outdoor space program. Until that time, the park will remain closed, and transportation will shift to centralized, multi-site routing for those needing transport to shelter and services.

WALKER PROPERTY ANNOUNCED AS RECREATIONAL AREA FOR WELLS PARK NEIGBORHOOD AREA

The city also announced the opening of a green space and recreational area on an entire block known as the Walker Property, adjacent and north of the Wells Park Community Center. The project is fully funded and in the final design stages with work getting under way next year. The Wells Park area will also see stepped up patrols from the Clean City Program in response to the closure of Coronado Park.

It was on September 2, 2007, that it was reported that the entire block of 21 residential homes and businesses between 5th and 6th and Summer and Rosemont streets were demolished by the city. All the structures were boarded up and abandoned and often used by squatters and the homeless and criminals.

The entire block of vacant homes were all owned by 86-year-old Anne Davis Walker. The demolition, which took just a day, cost the city $189,000, which Davis Walker paid back within a year.

The demolition of all 27 structures was negotiated by then Deputy City Attorney and Safe Strike Force Director Pete Dinelli. Simply put, Walker understood it she would have spent a lot more money rehabbing each structure to bring them up to code and fighting condemnation lawsuits. The property is directly north of the Wells Park Community Center and was later purchased by the city at a cost of approximately $1.8 million.

https://www.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/stories/2007/09/03/story6.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Grouping the homeless, as Keller said, in a city park should never have been considered as an option to deal with the homeless crisis given all the resources the city is spending to help the homeless. This so called “grouping” coming from a mayor who for his entire first term made dealing with the homeless crisis a corner stone of his administration. A Mayor whose administration spent $40 million in 2022 and will spend $60 million in 2023 to provide assistance to the homeless. A Mayor who saw to it that the city purchased the 529,000 square-foot Lovelace Hospital facility on Gibson for $15 million to have it converted into a Gateway Shelter and who made the westside shelter a 24-7 facility.

It was disingenuous for Keller to say just a few weeks ago “[The federal courts] will not allow us to just walk in and arrest someone because they’re homeless and the current situation beats the alternative. … .“The current situation at Coronado Park does not beat the alternative of having a zero tolerance of allowing illegal encampments and allowing the homeless to squat all over the city and not enforce the law.

It was Mayor Keller who allowed a once beautiful and pristine park dedicated to public use to become a festering blight on the community. Simply put, Coronado became an embarrassment with the city violating its own ordinances and nuisance laws by allowing overnight camping and criminal conduct in the park thus creating a public nuisance both under state law and city ordinance. Coronado Park became the symbol of Keller’s failure as Mayor to deal with the homeless crisis and now he has to deal with a nuisance property he created.

On July 6 Mayor Tim Keller announced that his administration was “revisiting” its policies on how it addresses homeless encampments that are increasing in number throughout the city. Keller wants to initiate major changes by the end of July on how to deal legally with homeless encampments. Closure of Coronado Park is a good first step.

What is so very disappointing is that Mayor’s Keller’s announcement took everyone by suprise and was even labeled a “bombshell” announcement by more than on media outlet. It was as if he was in a rush to make the announcement before a Republican business group in order to make headlines. He told no one else about it, including the neighborhood area of Wells Park, other homeless care providers in the city, nor the city’s Mental Health Response Advisory Committee which advises the city on issues related to chronic homelessness. Keller himself admitted there is no real plan in place on how to deal with the closure of the park, which if true, is sloppy at best.

Mayor Tim Keller is to be commended for coming to his senses after a full 4 years and exercising his authority to issue executive orders to clean up and remove unlawful encampments and permanently close Coronado Park. Closure of Coronado Park is a good first step in announcing a new approach to the city’s homeless crisis. Now comes the real hard part to come up with a viable plan that will not make things worse for the area and the city.

The links to quoted news sources are here:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/city-of-albuquerque-revisits-policy-in-hopes-to-combat-homelessness/

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/city-looking-to-clear-homeless-camp-at-coronado-park/

https://www.abqjournal.com/2513915/keller-to-revisit-citys-encampment-strategy.html

On June 6, the City Council enacted legislation that amended the Integrated Development (IDO) to allow for city sanctioned “Safe Outdoor Spaces” encampments for the homeless. The council passed the legislation on a 5 to 4 vote.

SAFE OUTDOOR SPACES EXPLAINED

The “Safe Outdoor Spaces” amendment passed will permit 2 homeless encampments in all 9 city council districts with 40 designated spaces for tents. They will allow upwards of 50 people, require hand washing stations, toilets and showers, require a management plan, 6 foot fencing and social services offered. Although the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO) amendment sets a limit of two in each of the city’s 9 council districts, the cap would not apply to those hosted by religious institutions.

A map prepared by the city detailing where “Safe Outdoor Space” zoning would be allowed for encampments revealed numerous areas in each of the 9 City Council districts that abut to or are in walking distance to many residential areas. Upwards of 15% of the city would allow for “Safe Outdoor Spaces” as a “permissive use” or “conditional use”.

Under the law, once such permissive uses are approved and granted by the city, they become vested property rights and cannot be rescinded by the city council. There is no requirement of land ownership, meaning someone could seek a special use for a safe outdoor space and then turn around and lease their undeveloped open space property to whoever can afford to pay.

The map reveals a large concentration of eligible open space area that lies between San Pedro and the railroad tracks, north of Menaul to the city’s northern boundary. The map reveals that the encampments could be put at next to the Big-I, the northeast heights, and on the west side not far from homes. The map does not account for religious institutions that may want to use their properties for living lots or safe outdoor spaces.

The link to the map prepared by the City entitled “Map 1 Council Districts Selected IDO Zoning” is here:

https://documents.cabq.gov/planning/IDO/2021_IDO_AnnualUpdate/Council/Map1_SafeOutdoorSpaces-A12-Option3.pdf

REPEAL BEING SOUGHT

On June 22, after tremendous public outcry and objections, two bills were introduced at City Council by Brook Bassan that would eventually repeal safe outdoor spaces. One bill introduced would stop the city from accepting or approving safe outdoor space applications and the other will eliminate Safe Outdoor Spaces from the zoning code altogether.

The Keller Administration was quick to react and condemned the introduction of both bills and Bassan’s reversal. Mayor Tim Keller spokeswoman Ava Montoya criticized Bassan’s reversal in a statement by saying this:

“Vacillating by passing legislation and then immediately repealing it doesn’t help anyone. … Council is the land use authority for our city and we need them to put forward solutions.”

The link to quoted news article is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2510096/bassan-pulls-back-support-for-safe-outdoor-spaces.html

During the June 22 meeting, as a result of the introduction of the repeal legislation, the council failed to enact the legislation that was to provide for rules and regulations promulged by the Keller Administration as requested by the City Council for Safe Outdoor Spaces. That failure prompted City Councilor President to warn that applications and approvals of Safe Outdoor Space as a permissive use or conditional use could take effect and there would be no rules nor regulations as was envisioned for Safe Outdoor Spaces. June 22 was the last meeting of the City Council before it went on “summer break” until August 1 with the next city council meeting scheduled for August 15.

The city council’s failure to take action on either the bills stopping the application process or repealing the land use resolution until August 15, results in Safe Outdoor Spaces becoming a permissible land use on July 28 and people can apply for the land use. On July 28, landowners and operators who want to establish Safe Outdoor Spaces can legally submit applications to the city. The applications need not earn full city approval from July 28 until the day the City Council returns from summer break on August 15 and votes in the repeal, but the applications must be considered complete, according to the Planning Department. Approval of Safe Outdoor Spaces “conditional use” or “permissive use” must be made after a hearing where surrounding landowners must be notified and be given an opportunity to be heard and then there is a right to appeal.

Planning Department spokesman Tim Walsh had this to say:

“An application for [the safe outdoor space zoning] locks into the existing zoning laws when it is deemed complete. … Therefore, if an application was completed in the interim between when the [Integrated Development Ordinance] (IDO) goes into effect and when a provision was rescinded, the application can still be processed and approved.”

The link to the quoted news source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2514439/safe-outdoor-spaces-may-be-possible-even-with-repeal.html

What Walsh said was somewhat misleading in that he failed to disclose that the application is only the first step in a long process. A Zoning Hearing Examiner must review and decides special exceptions to the Integrated Development Ordinance, which includes “conditional uses” and “permissive uses” such as Safe Outdoor Spaces, variances, and expansions of nonconforming uses and structures. Public notice must be given to surrounding property owners and the general public and they must be given the opportunity to be heard. There is also the Environmental Planning Commission that is responsible for reviewing requests to amend the City’s Official Zoning Map, the Integrated Development Ordinance, and the ABC Comprehensive Plan.

https://www.cabq.gov/planning/boards-commissions

Appeals of land use decisions are to the City Council. This includes Appeals in the Integrated Development Ordinance. Safe Outdoor Spaces are part of the Integrated Development Ordinance and if granted, an appeal could be made to the City Council.

Complicating the matter is the fact that the council failed to enact rules and regulations for the encampments delineating a screening process for use by the homeless and providing rules and regulations for use by the homeless including prohibiting illicit drugs.

NEW MEXICO SUN REPORTS APPLICATIONS FILED, FUNDING BEING SOUGHT FOR 6 ENAMPEMENTS

On July 19, the online news agency the New Mexico Sun broke the story that applications for “safe outdoor spaces” have been filed with the city Planning Department and that private funding is being sought for at least 6 encampments. The article was written by New Mexico Sun reporter W.J. Kennedy and the article is entitled “Funding for proposed homeless camps up in the air”. Below is the unedited article followed by the link:

“The backers of a controversial plan to establish tent sites for the city’s widespread and growing homeless problem have yet to secure a funding source to underwrite the “safe outdoor spaces” plan.

Retired for 20 years from the insurance business, Day now refers to himself as a “private citizen and volunteer.”

The link to the New Mexico Sun news article is here:

https://newmexicosun.com/stories/628944623-funding-for-proposed-homeless-camps-up-in-the-air

MAYOR KELLER ANNOUNCES ADMINISTRATION IS “REVISITING” HOMELESS POLICIES

It was Mayor Tim Keller who initially proposed the idea of “Safe Outdoor Spaces” in his 2022-2023 city budget. The 2022-2023 proposed budget released on April 1 provides major funding to deal with the homeless. The budget approved includes the following line item funding:

“$750,000 for proposed “safe outdoor spaces. … If approved by Council, will enable ultra-low barrier encampments to set up in vacant dirt lots across the City. There is an additional $200,000 for developing other sanctioned encampment programs.”

On Saturday, June 25, Mayor Tim Keller gave his “State of The City” address. Keller bought up the city’s homeless crisis. Keller noted that homelessness is “on display in so many areas in our city”. Keller had this to say:

“We have to open new ways, new pathways, to longstanding problems and try new approaches. We’ve got to be agile, we’ve got to learn and we’ve got to keep creating pathways to stability. That is why we are revisiting our approach to homelessness and encampments.”

On July 6, after intense public outcry and objections over “safe outdoor spaces” Mayor Tim Keller again announced that his administration is “revisiting” its policies on how it addresses homeless encampments that are increasing in number throughout the city. Keller wants to initiate major changes by the end of July on how to deal legally with homeless encampments and in particular Coronado Park.

The links to quoted news sources are here:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/city-of-albuquerque-revisits-policy-in-hopes-to-combat-homelessness/

https://www.abqjournal.com/2513915/keller-to-revisit-citys-encampment-strategy.html

HOUSING FIRST POLICY

The city has adopted what is called a “housing first” policy to deal with the homeless crisis. The 2022-2023 adopted city contains $4 million in recurring funding and $2 million in one-time funding for supportive housing programs in the City’s Housing First model and $24 million in Emergency Rental Assistance from the federal government

The link to the enacted 2022-2023 proposed budget is here:

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

The National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty research clearly shows that housing is the most effective approach to end homelessness with a much larger return on investment than offering government sanctioned encampments and “tent cities”. There is nothing temporary about “city sanctioned” encampments which is what Safe Outdoor Spaces represents.

The city is making a huge financial commitment to help the homeless. Last year, it spent upwards of $40 million to benefit the homeless in housing and services. The 2023 proposed budget significantly increases funding for the homeless by going from $35,145,851 to $59,498,915. The city contracts with 10 separate homeless service providers throughout the city and it funds the Westside 24-7 homeless shelter. The housing first policy provides for city voucher programs, low-income housing, building shelter space and making beds available for its homeless population.

CORONADO PARK

Coronado Park, located at third and Interstate 40, is considered by many as the epicenter of Albuquerque’s homeless crisis. Over the last 10 years, Coronado Park has become the “de facto” city sanctioned homeless encampment with the city repeatedly cleaning it up only for the homeless to return the next day. Residents and businesses located near the park have complained to the city repeatedly about the city’s unwritten policy to allow the park to be used as an encampment and its use as a drop off by law enforcement for those who are transported from the westside jail.

At any given time, Coronado Park will have 70 to 80 tents crammed into the park with homeless wondering the area. It comes with and extensive history lawlessness including drug use, violence, murder, rape and mental health issues. In 2020, there were 3 homicides at Coronado Park. In 2019, a disabled woman was raped, and in 2018 there was a murder.

City officials have said Coronado Park is the subject of daily responses from the encampment team because of the number of tent’s set up there. They say the encampment team, along with Parks and Recreation Department and Solid Waste go out every morning, during the week, to give campers notice and clean up the park. They also work on getting them connected to resources and services they may need.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Brad Day’s actions and the applications and not disclosing operators is what you call being a sneak and taking advantage of a loophole and refusing to take no for an answer. Day said he’s been talking to nonprofits and churches about operating the sites, but he declined to give names for fear of backlash before the applications are submitted making the insulting remark “If the names got out, who knows what Bassan and others might do to stop them.” Sooner, rather than later there must be full disclosure, especially seeing that he says funding could come from city or county taxpayers. It’s also more likely than not some of those same nonprofits and churches are already benefiting from the millions spent each year by the city to deal with the homeless.

Brad Day seems to think that getting the approval the planning department for the permissive use and conditional use is a slam dunk with the filing of the applications. It is not. The truth is the application is only the first major step. The public has a right to be heard and there must be public hearing with notices given to adjoining property owners and the public afforded to the opportunity to be heard to either support of oppose Safe Outdoor Spaces. Day also still thinks funding could still come from the City or County.

Day insisting that safe outdoor spaces will not result in more Coronado Parks is playing fast and loose with the facts given that no rules nor regulations were adopted. Simply put, no one knows for sure. What the city should have learned from Coronado Park, and all the violent crime that has occurred there, is that government sanctioned homeless encampments that “Safe Outdoor Spaces” embody simply do not work. They are magnets for crime and will likely become a public nuisance that is injurious to public health, safety and welfare and will interfere with the exercise and enjoyment of public rights, including the right to use public property. The practical effect of the Safe Outdoor Spaces will be to create “mini” Coronado Parks in all 9 city council districts, especially give the fact that the City Council has failed to enact proposed rules and regulations.

The homeless crisis will not be solved by the city, but it can and must be managed. Providing a very temporary place to pitch a tent, relieve themselves, bathe and sleep at night with rules they do not want nor will likely follow is not the answer to the homeless crisis and is what safe outdoor spaces represent. The answer is to provide the support services, including food and lodging, and mental health care needed to allow the homeless to turn their lives around, become productive self-sufficient citizens, no longer dependent on relatives or others.

KELLER CAN ISSUE EXECUTIVE ORDER TO PLANNING DEPARTMENT SUSPENDING SAFE OUTDOOR SPACES APPLICATION PROCESS

Mayor Tim Keller has said his Administration is revisiting its homeless policy. It’s more likely that Keller’s announcement to revisit policies was nothing more than a ruse to buy time to let things cool off and let the public forget and to fend off the city council from repealing “safe outdoor spaces”. After all, Mayor Tim Keller asked for and was given $750,000 for safe outdoor spaces and its likely he still supports them a part of his “all the above” approach to the homeless crisis.

If Mayor Tim Keller is truly committed to “revisiting” his policies on the homeless, then he can and should issue and executive order suspending or placing a “moratorium” on the application process for Safe Outdoor Spaces. He has the authority to give such an order to his Director of the Planning and Zoning Department.

The moratorium should be in place until the City Council has that opportunity to vote one way or the other on August 15 to repeal the legislation authorizing Safe Outdoor Spaces and also enact the rules and regulations on managing safe outdoor spaces if there is a failure to repeal. Mayor Keller has only 3 days left to issue such and order or until July 28 when the amendments to Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO) become law.

“Safe Outdoor Spaces” will be a disaster for the city as a whole. They will destroy neighborhoods, make the city a magnet for the homeless and destroy the city efforts to manage the homeless through housing. If the City allows the 6 applications for “safe outdoor spaces” to proceed and approves them, it will be a major setback for the city and its current policy of seeking permanent shelter and housing as the solution to the homeless crisis.

The public needs to make their opinions known and tell Mayor Tim Keller to issue an executive order suspending or placing a moratorium on the application process and tell city councillors to demand that he issue such an order so that they can vote on the repeal.

The email addresses and phone numbers to contact Mayor Keller and Interim Chief Administrative Officer Lawrence Rael and each City Councilor and the Director of Counsel services are as follows:

MAYOR’S OFFICE PHONE: (505) 768-3000
CITY COUNCIL PHONE: (505) 768-3100

EMAIL ADDRESSES

tkeller@cabq.gov
lrael@cabq.gov

lesanchez@cabq.gov
louiesanchez@allstate.com
ibenton@cabq.gov
kpena@cabq.gov
bbassan@cabq.gov
danlewis@cabq.gov
LEWISABQ@GMAIL.COM
patdavis@cabq.gov
tfiebelkorn@cabq.gov
trudyjones@cabq.gov
rgrout@cabq.gov
cmelendrez@cabq.gov

On July 21 the United States House Select Committee held its 8th hearing during television prime time on the January 6, 2021 insurrection attack on the US Capitol. The hearing concentrated almost exclusive on the events that occurred on January 6 and 7 and what former President Trump did and did not do, his failures to act as well as communications Trump had with others.

CNN REPORT

On July 22, the national news agency CNN posted on it web page an article entitled “Takeaways from the January 6 hearing day 7” written by CNN staff reporters Marshall Cohen, Jeremy Herb, Zachary Cohen, and Annie Graye. Following is edited article deleting played videos footage with the link to the full article at the end:

1. TRUMP CHOSE NOT TO ACT

The committee used Thursday’s hearing to show how Trump not only failed to act, but chose not to as he watched the violent assault on the US Capitol unfold.

“You know, you’re the Commander in Chief. You’ve got an assault going on on the Capitol of the United States of America and there’s nothing? No call? Nothing? Zero?” he said in the clip.

2. “STARTING TO FEAR FOR THEIR OWN LIVES”’; AUDIO AND VIDEO SHOWS DANGER FELT BY PENCE SECURITY DETAIL

Thursday’s hearing featured new and disturbing video and audio showing how endangered Pence’s security detail felt he was as they tried to evacuate the vice president from the Capitol.

The video played Thursday spliced together the surveillance tapes with the security footage and sound of Pence’s detail, bringing into focus how near a miss Pence and his detail experienced.

3. COMMITTEE CONTRASTS PENCE’S PRESIDENTIAL ACTIONS WITH TRUMP’S INACTION

One focus of the select committee’s hearing was the presidential actions that were taken on January 6, not by Trump but by Pence.

The committee also included in its hearing Thursday a clip of Joe Biden on January 6 condemning the violence — in what was a subtle nod to Biden acting presidential before in comparison to Trump before he was inaugurated as president.

4. COMMITTEE GOES AFTER CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS (AGAIN)

The committee threw several sharp elbows at congressional Republicans during Thursday’s hearing, taking on House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and other allies of Trump.

The committee has previously gone after congressional Republicans for their role aiding Trump’s efforts to overturn the election, including seeking pardons after January 6. And the committee’s clashes with McCarthy run far beyond the hearings: The committee has subpoenaed five Republicans, including McCarthy, in an unprecedented move.

5. COMMITTEE ADDS CORROBORATION OF HUTCHINSON TESTIMONY

The January 6 committee on Thursday provided new evidence to back up the explosive testimony of former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, who publicly described Trump’s angry interactions with his Secret Service detail after Trump was told he could not go to the Capitol.

California Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a member of the committee, told CNN that Ornato and Engel have both retained private counsel to engage with the panel.

6. NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN VIDEOS, PHOTOS, AUDIO BRING 187 MINUTES TO LIFE

The hearing was peppered with never-before-seen videos, photos and audio that reanimated the horrors of January 6 and — amazingly, 18 months later — broke new ground about what happened that day. In this respect, the panel delivered on its promise to bring new material.

Taken together, these clips created a compelling multimedia experience, which the committee hopes will capture the public’s attention and drive home their message. After all, the panel hired a prominent former TV executive to produce the hearings, and has worked aggressively with subpoenas and court battles to obtain mountains of new material. It’s all now coming together.

7. SECRET SERVICE IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Thursday’s hearing came after a whirlwind week for the US Secret Service. The Department of Homeland Security inspector general who conducts oversight of the agency publicly accused the Secret Service of deleting text messages from January 5 and 6, 2021, which are critical to multiple inquiries about the insurrection. That inspector general probe is now a criminal investigation, CNN has reported.

Any additional cooperation from Secret Service officials could help the committee figure out what happened with the potentially missing text messages, which has emerged over the last few days as a key flashpoint in the investigation, with lawmakers increasingly upset at the agency.

PUBLIC HEARINGS TO RESUME IN SEPTEMBER

“The committee will take a summer break in August and resume public hearings in September.

Committee members have said they intend to issue an interim report around that time as well.”

The link to the full CNN report with videos presented is here:

https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/21/politics/january-6-hearing-day-8-takeaways/index.html

On May 19, 2022 and then again on July 9, 2022, the Albuquerque Journal reported that the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) is doing a better job of solving the city’s homicides in 2022 than in the past several years, even as murders and violent crime around the city are on pace to match last year’s record high. That may be true, but APD has skewed the statistics to embellish its results for public relations purposes.

This blog article is an analysis of APD’s clearance rates along with review of the city’s homicide per capita rate with murders having spiked dramatically with more murders than ever before and breaking all-time records.

MAY 19 JOURNAL REPORT

On May 19, in a Albuquerque Journal report, APD officials proclaimed they had a 97% clearance rate for the time period of January 1 to May 19, 2022, with 47 suspects arrested, charged or identified in 40 recent and past homicide cases. The 97% figure is very misleading with the actual clearance rate being 18.5% which is calculated below.

What the 97% represents are murder investigations done and completed during the 5-month period from January 1, 2022 to May 19, 2022. It involves those murder cases that were actively being investigated by APD during that time period. It does not include all pending murder investigations that must be investigated and are classified as still pending or unsolved.

The 47 arrests actually represent only 20% of the total 186 homicides that occurred between January 1, 2021 and May 19, 2022. The 97% simply does not track with the clearance rates delineated in APD performance budget measures nor with the manner and method used by the FBI.

Each year since 1995, the FBI releases annually its Crime In The United States Report.

“At the national level, the FBI uses blunt math to calculate a clearance rate, dividing the number of crimes that were cleared, no matter which year the crime occurred, by the number of new crimes in the calendar year. By clearing old and new cases, a department’s rate in any given year could exceed 100%. This leaves the numbers prone to statistical “noise,” but they can be useful for examining trends over the long term.”

https://www.themarshallproject.org/2022/01/12/as-murders-spiked-police-solved-about-half-in-2020

The APD annual clearance rate since 2017 has been between 53% and 65%, and actually dropped to 37% in 2021. On April 19, APD Spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the clearance rate of 97% included cases forwarded to the district attorney for possible charges. Of the 47 suspects arrested, charged or identified as of May 19, 23 were suspected in 2022 homicides and 24 in previous year homicides. 17 were from 2021, two from 2020 and five from 2019. Four suspects are dead and 3 are fugitives.

On May 19, Police Chief Harold Medina for his part said in his decades with the department he has never seen so many cases solved in such a short time. Medina gave credit to the leadership of the Homicide Unit and the detectives. Medina said this:

“They have worked hard, they’ve made changes, and they’re working as a team to solve these cases. … Great coaches and great leaders push their teams to do extraordinary things. … These investigations take months … sometimes there’s a misconception, people watch TV and, in one hour, they solved the homicide case and somebody’s in custody. … Our cases take a whole lot longer but they’re a whole lot stronger because of this … because the last thing we want is to build a case that fails in the homestretch.”

Deputy Commander Kyle Hartsock said advances in technology, better investigative training and working with prosecutors have all played a part in the unit’s development. Hartsock had this to say:

“This is one of the rare times we are arresting more people than new cases are coming our way. … This is a significant achievement.”

Mayor Tim Keller for his part had this to say about the improved clearance rates:

“[This sends a] powerful signal to criminals in our city. … You will be held accountable; we will catch you and we are demonstrating that right now. That also means for victims and for the justice system, we’re going to do our part. We’ve got a lot of holes and a lot more work to do. But we’re showing that we actually can do this.”

The link to quoted news source material:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2500912/apd-homicide-unit-solving-more-cases-faster.html

JULY 9, 2022 JOURNAL REPORT

According to a July 9, 2022 Albuquerque Journal report, the Albuquerque Police Department is solving nearly twice as many homicide cases despite dramatic increases in homicides. APD credited the success to more detectives and a victim-oriented approach based on teamwork, oversight and training.

APD Deputy Commander Kyle Hartsock, who oversees the homicide unit, said although the cases, victims and suspects change, the trends and the causes if the homicides remain largely the same. According to Hartsock, “individual disrespect”, which he defined as a dispute for one reason or another, is one of the biggest motives for homicides and account for 50 of this year’s homicides.

Hartsock said many of the disputes that result in a homicide start over social media but end “in the street.” According to Hartstock:

“We see people go on Instagram Live and start talking trash and people they’re talking about get on the comments like ‘let’s meet up. … If there wasn’t a gun with one of these two people, it just wouldn’t have been a homicide, it would have been something else. A fistfight. … I think it’s pretty astonishing that we’re on the same pace we were last year right now for murders – and we’ve more than doubled the clearance rate. … We can’t keep at this pace without lots of stress and strain on the unit. … So we’re still hoping that number comes back down to closer to what it was over the past five, six years.”

The link to the quotes full Albuquerque Journal report is here

https://www.abqjournal.com/2515026/violence-in-abq-wont-let-up.html

LOCATION AND AGES

Most homicides in Albuquerque happened in the Southeast, the Valley and Southwest area commands. The Southeast Area command had 24 homicides, the Valley Area Command had 14 and the Southwest had 12 homicides.

APD also reported that 2022 has seen more young victims and suspects. There have been 10 people killed and seven arrested who are 17 and under. Last year there were only 4 killed and three arrested, numbers similar to previous years. The youngest person killed in 2022 was 5-month-old baby, Trinity Garcia, and the oldest was 69-year-old Abelito Rivera Sr., allegedly beaten to death by his son.

APD Chief Harold Medina for his part said that in 2022, there have been homicides involving mental illness something he believes is connected to a national trend of rising violence. Medina also said APD is seeing suspects with “zero criminal history” and explained it this way:

“It’s important to recognize that each year, a new generation grows into this group of individuals that are potentially violent … And it seems that during the pandemic … more and more individuals are entering that realm of becoming violent and possibly killing people.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/2515026/violence-in-abq-wont-let-up.html

APD’S CLEARANCE RATES

The July 19 Albuquerque Journal reported APD’s clearance rate in mid-July last year was 47%. However, in its budget performance measures for 2021, APD reported its clearance rate was 37% in mid-2021.

APD Deputy Commander Kyle Hartsock repeated the claim that in 2022, the clearance rate sits at 97%. Hartsock claimed the clearance rate includes cases solved in 2022 from this and previous years and is calculated by arrests made, charges filed or other means of solving a homicide. APD includes closed justified homicide cases toward the department’s clearance rate. As noted above, this is simply not how the FBI calculates homicide clearance rates.

According to APD records reviewed by the Journal, APD has made an arrest, filed charges or otherwise cleared 34 of the 2022 homicide cases which as of July 19, there were 67. What this means is that APD has thus far cleared 50% of the 2022 homicide cases. (34 cleared cases is 50% of 67 homicides in 2022.) According to APD, the unit has also cleared 19 cases from previous years in 2022. Thus far in 2022, there have been 67 homicides and last year there were 117 homicides for a grand total of 184.

Using the FBI method of calculating murder clearance rates, clearing 34 cases out of 184 total cases for 2021 and 2022 is actually an 18.2 % clearance rate, not the 97% APD is claiming. The 18.5% is calculated as follows: 117 total homicides for 2021 + 69 homicides thus far in 2022 = 186 homicides DIVIDED into 34 cases claimed cleared by APD = 18.2% clearance rate for the time period of January 1, 2021 to July 19, 2022.

Some cases have multiple arrests, multiple victims or are cleared by the suspect’s death. Hartsock said this:

“To me, that’s the biggest measurement we can give, everything else is kind of a feeling on how it’s working. … But at the end of the day, we’re solving more cases, when we apply this formula … it just works.”

APD leaders said they have increased the number of detectives but are basically using the same resources, just in a different way, to get results. The unit currently has 16 detectives, some who are still in training, which is the highest number the department has ever had.

APD made a push to add several new detectives over the past year to match the pace of homicides. According to Criminal Investigations Division Commander George Vega, they are using teamwork and an emphasis on assistance from the Digital Intelligence Unit, District Attorney’s Office and others to solve cases faster.

Hartsock said a new review process has detectives meet with a supervisor at the two-day and 60-day mark following a homicide, to go over where the case stands and what it needs to be solved. Hartsock said this:

“A lot of these meetings have turned out arrest warrants within days, because when you’re the detective, there’s so much information … it’s a lot to process and you kind of lose sight. … When we force the other experienced eyes to get on it. We come up with a clear plan almost every time.”

APD Chief Medina for his part said the detective academy is also making a difference and he had this to say:

“We’re finding that [new detectives are] hitting the ground running faster, and actually producing very good quality work and getting results quicker.”

Medina also said there has been pushback from the unit because of extra oversight of the unit and that has been a “culture change” for the unit.

Criminal Investigations Division Commander George Vega said for those detectives who are resistant to change, they need to see and appreciate the results and said:

“Once we show them the success and the new resources that are in the building – everybody likes to be a part of something that’s successful,” he said. “That’s where we’re at now is we’re showing them – we’re giving them a path to take – and we feel like they’re starting to really grab onto it.”

The link to the full unedited and quoted Journal report is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2515026/violence-in-abq-wont-let-up.html

THE RISING RED TIDE OF MURDERS

In August 2017, then New Mexico State Auditor Tim Keller, candidate for Albuquerque Mayor, had this to say about the city’s high crime rates:

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

Tim Keller ran on the platform promising to reduce the city’s crime rates, increase the number of sworn police and return to community-based policing. It was in 2019 that Mayor Tim Keller reacting to the spiking violent crime rates, announced 4 programs in 9 months to deal with and bring down the city’s high violent crime rates. Those APD programs are: the Shield Unit, Declaring Violent Crime a “public health” issue, the Metro 15 Operation, “Violence Intervention Plan” (VIP Program). Based on the city’s high murder rates, it appears Keller’s programs have been a failure.

During each year of Mayor Tim Keller’s years in office, the city’s murder rates rose, dropped one year, and then rose to a historical high. Following is the breakdown of homicide by year:

2017: 72 homicides
2018: 69 homicides.
2019: 82 homicides
2020: 76 homicides
2021: 117 homicides (Per capita murder rate of 20.8 per 100,000.)
2022: 69 homicides as of July 19 (By July 2020, there were 65.)

The link to quoted source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1534762/homicide-numbers-high-despite-pandemic.html?amp=1

https://www.abqjournal.com/2458296/remembering-some-of-2021s-homicide-victims-in-abq-ex-total-

NATIONAL CLEARANCE RATES

Following are the national clearance rates for 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 as reported by the FBI:

In 2016, the national clearance rate for murder offenses was 59.4%.
In 2017, the national clearance rate for murder was 61.6%
In 2018, the national clearance rate for murder was 62.3%
In 2019, the national clearance rate for murder was 61.4%

The links to retrieve and review the above clearance rates are here:

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2016/crime-in-the-u.s.-2016/topic-pages/clearances

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2017/crime-in-the-u.s.-2017

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2018/crime-in-the-u.s.-2018/topic-pages/clearances

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2019/crime-in-the-u.s.-2019/topic-pages/clearances

From 2019 to 2020, police across the country solved 1,200 more murders, a 14% increase. But murders rose twice as quickly by 30%.

As a result, the homicide clearance rate, the percentage of crimes cleared, dropped to a historic low to about 1 of every 2 murders solved or by 50%.

In 2021, the national clearance rate for 2021 stands at 50%

https://www.themarshallproject.org/2022/01/12/as-murders-spiked-police-solved-about-half-in-2020

CITY’S HISTORICAL HOMICIDE CLEARANCE RATE HALF NATIONAL AVERAGE

The city of Albuquerque is a performance-based budget. Each year, city departments must submit statistics to substantiate their accomplishments and justify their budgets. The clearance rates for the Albuquerque Police Department can be found in the annual APD city budgets.

For the years 2019 to 2021, the city’s homicide clearance percentage rate have been in the 50%-60% range but have in fact dropped dramatically to less than 40%.

According to the 2020, 2021 and 2021 APD approved city budget, following are APD’s homicide clearance rates for the years 2016 to 2021:

FISCAL YEAR 2019 APD APPROVED BUDGET PERFORMANCE MEASURES

2016: APD homicide clearance rate 80%

Fiscal year 2019 APD approved budget, Page 212:

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

FISCAL YEAR 2020 APD APPROVED BUDGET PERFORMANCE MEASURES

2017: APD homicide clearance rate 70%.
2018: APD homicide clearance rate 47%.

Fiscal year 2020, approved budget, Page 213:

https://documents.cabq.gov/budget/fy-20-approved-budget.pdf

FISCAL YEAR 2021 APD APPROVED BUDGET PERFORMANCE MEASURES

2018: APD homicide clearance rate 47%.

2019: APD homicide clearance rate 57%

Fiscal year 2021 approved budget, Page 227:

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy21-adjusted-approved-numbered-w-hyperlinks-final.pdf

FISCAL YEAR 2022 APPROVED BUDGET PERFORMANCE MEASURES

2020: APD’s homicide clearance rate 53%.
2021: APD’ clearance rate 37% (reported as estimated actual)

Fiscal year 2022 approved budget, Page 231:

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy22-approved-budget-numbered-w-hyperlinks-final.pdf

The link to review all city budgets from Fiscal years 2007 to 2023 is here:

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

APD Deputy Commander Kyle Hartsock oversees the homicide unit. On January 20, 2022, Hartsock said APD is investigating 115 homicides from last year and of that number, only about 30% had been closed, which was an all-time record low for APD.

Links to news source material are here:

https://www.koat.com/article/abq-crime-homicide-arrests/38820745

https://www.kob.com/news/albuquerque-homicide-map-2022/6350373/

https://www.abqjournal.com/2463551/apd-investigates-death-in-sw-albuquerque.html

https://www.abqjournal.com/2460901/apd-investigating-homicide-in-southwest-albuquerque-2.html

CITY’S HOMICIDE RATES

Homicides in Albuquerque rose dramatically from 2015 to 2017 and as a result so did the city’s yearly homicide rates per capita at 100,000 population:

2015: 7.68 per 100,000 people. This was a 43.02% increase from 2014
2016: 10.86 per 100,000 people. This was a 41.41% increases from 2015.
2017: 12.47 per 100,000 people. This was a 14.83% increase from 2016.
2018: 12.32% per 100,000 people. This was a decline of 1.2% from 2017.

MEDINA’S ACTS OF INSUBORDINATION TO BECOME CHIEF RECALLED

What Chief Harold Medina said in part about the recent homicide clearance rates merits repeating and compels scrutiny:

“They have worked hard, they’ve made changes, and they’re working as a team to solve these cases. … Great coaches and great leaders push their teams to do extraordinary things.”

It is very difficult not to laugh out loud at Medina’s remarks about teamwork given the manner and method he used to become APD Chief.

It was on December 1, 2017 that Mayor Tim Keller was elected Mayor the first time and he appointed Michael Geier as APD Chief. As gun violence continued to increase, many plans were formulated to address it.

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

Chief Geier and a commander created a “violence reduction plan” that included scheduling regular meetings and brainstorming sessions for officers to talk with their supervisors about patterns in fatal shootings and shootings with injury in their area commands and come up with plans to address it. Geier doubled the size of the homicide unit and further instituted APD initiatives to reduce gun violence. It was these measures instituted by Geier that explains in part the reduction in the homicide rate in 2018.

One of those Geier placed in charge of intuiting “the violence reduction plan” was then Deputy Chief Harold Medina. It turns out Medina deliberately did not implement one program but instead orchestrated the termination of Geier in order to replace him. In 2020, Medina was appointed to replace Geier and homicides skyrocketed to 117 in 2021 during Medina’s first year as Chief. In 2020 homicides had in fact gone down from 82 homicides in 2019 to 76 under Chief Geier.

Geier has said Medina never embraced the “violence reduction plan” went so far as to not instruct his officers to follow it through. Geier said Medina delayed launching the program was by six weeks, and those under Medina’s command had to undergo remedial training on the project again because they still didn’t understand it. Medina told Geier it was too confusing.

Geier wrote in a memo to Medina dated August 31, 2020:

“We had a number of discussions over the next several months and it appeared that you made little effort to bring your people on board. … On May 19, 2020, I had to issue Special Order 20-40 in an effort to make up for lost time in our efforts to reduce gun violence. Rather than reductions, APD saw significant increases for over 4 months in this regard.”

In his memo to Medina, Geier wrote the startling comment that he felt like it’s “almost as if you made an effort to make this program fail … [and your] behavior has “bordered on insubordination.”

Geier wrote Medina that he intended to move him from the field services bureau. “I plan on discussing this with [CAO] Sarita [Nair] at our weekly update meeting this coming Friday, September 4th. I expect you to handle your new position as a professional so as to renew my faith and trust in you.”

Geier made the very serious mistake of giving Medina a heads up that he would be talking to Nair because what Medina did was to run to Nair where they orchestrated Geier’s departure. What is pathetic is Medina initiated his own version of “violence reduction plan” where regular meetings and brainstorming sessions for officers to talk with their supervisors about patterns in fatal shootings occurs.

https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/ucr/publications

https://www.abqjournal.com/2500912/apd-homicide-unit-solving-more-cases-faster.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

APD and its homicide unit needs to be recognized and commended for doing their jobs and doubling the number of the cases it is solving. However, Chief Harold Medina and APD loses credibility with the public when the command staff skews the numbers proclaiming a 97% clearance rate by simply including in its calculations only those cases they are actually investigating during a period of time while others remain pending. This is not how the FBI calculates murder clearance rates and its not how APD reports them in their performance measures. It is this type of sneaky and misleading conduct that results in APD losing credibility with the public.

The city is on track to break the all-time record of 117 homicides this year. The city’s per capita homicide rate will likely end up being upwards of 15% another all-time record. APD’s clearance rate last year for 2021 was a miserable 37% and when it’s all said and done for 2022, it’s likely it will not improve that much more because of the staggering increase in homicides. The clearance rate will likely be around 40% for the year 2022.

City residents can only take limited comfort with APD being able to increase solving the number of homicide cases. City residents should not be lulled into a sense of safety simply because APD proclaims it has a 97% clearance rate when in fact it is actually upwards of 40%. The blunt truth is the solving of murder cases does not and will not make the city any safer.