On Tuesday, January 16 the 2024 New Mexico legislative session began at noon.  It ends on February 15 at noon.  The 2024 legislative session is a 30-day short session where much of the session is  devoted to exclusively  approving the state’s annual budget.  Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has already released her proposed 2024-2025.  She is proposing a $10.5 billion budget which is a 9.9% increase from the current fiscal year that ends on June 30. The New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) introduced its own competing budget proposal. The LFC’s version is slimmer with just a 5.9% budget increase compared to Governor’s 9.9%. The LFC budget recommendation totaled $10.1 billion, retaining enough reserves to protect against future budget cuts and keep revenues growing for the next several years.

On January 16, in her in her 6^th State of the State address that lasted one hour, Governor Lujan Grisham covered a broad range of topics, including affordable housing construction, education and clean energy. But the governor, who last year instituted a public health order restricting where people can carry guns, highlighted ambitious  gun control legislation she wants pasted during the 2024 legislative session.

Proclaiming “enough is enough” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham called  for the enactment of  gun  control and safety package that would ban assault weapons and make purchases of automatic and semiautomatic weapons legal only for people at least 21 years old with a two-week waiting period.  The Governor said this:

 “This is the most important work we’re going to do. … Because all the other stuff, the jobs, the futures, the homes, the education — really, we can’t keep New Mexicans safe.”

https://www.kob.com/politics-news/new-mexico-politics/watch-live-new-mexico-governor-gives-2024-state-of-the-state-address-lays-out-legislative-priorities/

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/government/state-of-the-state-lujan-grisham-decries-gun-violence-lauds-economy-and-urges-180-day/article_a826abbc-b4ce-11ee-9b19-f7e914da2b79.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

GUN CONTROL MEASURES

On January 12, 2024, notwithstanding that the 2024 legislative session is a 30 short budgetary session, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced her support of  bills she wants lawmakers to consider during the session to address public safety. The bills include raising the age to purchase a gun, regulating assault weapons, and increasing penalties for a range of crimes.  The governor is also asking lawmakers to discuss a handful of crime-related bills backed by both Democratic lawmakers as well as Republicans.

Three of the gun control initiatives Lujan Grisham is supporting for the 2024 session are in fact failed legislation from the 2023 Legislative session.  The bills from the 2023 legislative session that failed include:

• House Bill 101, which would have prohibited people from possessing assault weapons;
• House Bill 100, which would have established a 14-day waiting period for guns; and
• Senate Bill 116, which would have made it illegal for anyone younger than 21 to purchase an automatic or semi-automatic firearm, all died in committee.

The current versions of the bills are set to be carried by all the same lawmakers who sponsored them last year.

Asked why the current versions of the measures would be successful in the 2024 session, Governor Spokeswoman Maddy Hayden had this to say:

“[There is] more momentum around public safety than ever, and you can expect a full-court press on every one of these bills to get them across the finish line. … This year is seeing a convergence of not only a public that continues to demand action from the [State Legislature] on public safety, but also a sense of energy felt after the meaningful results of the concerted efforts of the last few months in Albuquerque and Bernalillo County.”

With respect to the legislation about regulating the possession and sale of assault weapons, Hayden said a language shift in the new proposal to define such firearms in terms of how they deliver bullets made this year’s version stronger than previous versions.

In the governor’s public safety agenda, she refers to how assault weapons “fire bullets at extremely high velocity, assault weapons can inflict massive trauma including the piercing of law enforcement body armor.”

THE BILLS AND THEIR SPONSORS

One bill, sponsored by Rep. Andrea Romero (D-Santa Fe), would regulate the manufacture, sale, and possession of assault weapons.  The bill would make it a misdemeanor to have an assault weapon during the commission or attempted commission of a felony.  A defendant   would also face separate charges for the felon.

A bill sponsored by Rep. Romero would put a 14-day waiting period in place between the initiation of a federal background check and the handover of a gun in a legal sale. According to the governor’s office, the bill will likely include  exceptions for sales between family members, those carrying valid New Mexico concealed carry permits, or a federal firearm license.

Another bill sponsored by Rep. Reena Szczepanski (D-Santa Fe), would raise the minimum age to buy automatic and semiautomatic guns. Currently, the legal age is 18 years and the  bill would raise that to 21. The bill would also prohibit owning guns that can accept high-capacity magazines.

A  bill sponsored by Rep. Christine Chandler (D-Los Alamos, Sandoval, and Santa Fe Counties), would allow gun manufacturers to be held liable if they use deceptive business tactics.

A bill, sponsored by Rep. Joy Garratt (D-Abq.) and Rep. Chandler, would amend the existing Extreme Risk Firearms Protection Order by creating an expedited system for issuing protection orders and expanding the list of those that can ask for an order. It also lets police ask for a search warrant in order to enforce an order.

A bill, sponsored by Sen. Peter Wirth (D-Santa Fe), would prohibit guns within 100 feet of a polling place during an election. The bill would not apply to on-duty police officers.

The governor is also asking to make it a crime to carry a firearm in a park or playground owned by a county or municipality. The governor’s controversial public health order put a similar rule in place, temporarily, in Bernalillo County.

The gun bills announced came months after Lujan Grisham enacted a public health order to tackle gun violence and declared gun violence   a public health emergency. She did so following the shooting death of an 11-year-old leaving an Albuquerque Isotopes baseball game in September.

The governor initially included a ban on publicly carrying firearms in Bernalillo County, but that was trimmed back — to only include parks and playgrounds — after a federal judge issued an order blocking the ban.

PRE TRIAL-DETENTION MEASURES

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham for a third time is advocating major changes to the state’s criminal justice pretrial detention system  in the form of enacting “rebuttable presumption” to make it easier to hold defendants accused of violent crimes until trial. For the 2024 session, the  bill is sponsored by Sen. Craig Brandt (R-Sandoval) and  would shift the way courts decide if someone should be held in jail before their trial. The governor’s office says the bill would create a presumption that violent offenders are a threat and should be held before trial, unless the defense offers clear and convincing evidence that they won’t be a danger to the community.

The legislation would create a “rebuttable presumption” of dangerousness for defendants charged with violent crimes and that they be held without bond pending trial.

The aim of “rebuttable presumption” is to make it easier for more defendants to be held in custody before they’ve been convicted and to keep them from committing new crimes. Proponents of rebuttable presumption say it will reduce violent crime.  Opponents of rebuttable presumption say courts can already keep a defendant behind bars and that reputable presumption shifts the burden of proof to defendants and violates the basic constitutional right of presumption of innocence until proven guilty.

OTHER CRIME LEGISLATION

Another bill sponsored by Sen. Brandt would expand existing anti-racketeering laws to include human trafficking, rape, exploitation of children, escape from a penitentiary, and tampering with public records as a crime. The idea is to offer more ways to prosecute gang activity.

One bill, sponsored by Sen. Antonio Maestas (D-Abq.), would increase the penalty for second-degree murder from 15 years to 18 years. It would also increase the penalty for attempted second-degree murder.

One bill, sponsored by Rep. Marian Matthews (D-Abq.), would amend the state’s existing human trafficking statutes. The bill would lengthen the statute of limitations, increase penalties, and boost victim protection, the governor’s office says.

The governor also wants to boost civil commitments for those who are considered a danger to themselves or society.

Othe legislation The governor is asking for includes  a ban on panhandling, increased hazing penalties, stronger data-sharing requirements for law enforcement agencies, an easier process for retired public safety officers to return to work, boosted funds for law enforcement recruitment and compensation, stronger penalties for commercial burglary, and the ability for law enforcement to test for both drugs and alcohol during a misdemeanor DWI search warrant.

TWENTY-ONE BILLS PROPOSED

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham had this to say when she unveiled her public safety agenda for the 2024 legislative session:

“We have a gun problem … and we have a public safety problem.  … We have a responsibility to our children, to families, communities to solve it, and I believe this package goes a long way to do just that. … This is, without a doubt, the largest and most comprehensive public safety package in our state’s history. It’s the most together we’ve been on addressing public safety, crime and gun violence since I’ve been involved in government and certainly since I’ve been the governor. … Gun violence is a significant contributor to the cycles of crime in our communities and will continue to use every tool at our disposal to end this epidemic. Likewise, we will strengthen our support for law enforcement, increase penalties for violent crimes, and once again pursue legislation to keep violent offenders behind bars pending trial. All of this will build upon the progress and investments we’ve made in previous years.”

The governor’s public safety priorities include the following 21 bills dealing with firearms and cracking down on crime with the sponsors identified:

• The Firearm Industry Accountability Act amends the state statue to allow gun manufacturers to be held liable for deceptive trade practices. (Sponsored by Rep. Christine Chandler)
• Assault weapons ban lawfully regulates the manufacture, possession and sale of weapons of war, most often the gun used in mass casualty events. (Sponsored by Rep. Andrea Romero)
• Raising the age to purchase automatic firearms to 21 from the current minimum of 18 years of age. (Sponsored by Rep. Reena Szczepanski)
• Firearms purchase waiting period creates a protracted waiting period of 14 days between the initiation of a federal background check and a buyer taking possession of a firearm, thereby reducing the opportunity for gun violence and suicide. (Sponsored by Rep. Andrea Romero)
• Prohibiting guns in polling places makes it illegal to carry firearms within 100 feet of polling places during an election. (Sponsored by Sen. Peter Wirth)
• Prohibiting guns in parks and playgrounds will make it illegal to carry a firearm in county or municipal parks, playgrounds, and their accompanying parking lots.
• Increased criminal penalty of the crime of second-degree murder raises the maximum penalty from 15 to 18 years. (Sponsored by Sen. Antonio Maestas)
• Felons in possession of firearms increases the criminal penalty for felons found to be in possession of guns making it a second-degree felony. (Sponsored by Rep. Dayan Hochman-Vigil)
• Amending the human trafficking statute increases the statute of limitations, criminal penalties, and victim protections under New Mexico’s current human trafficking statute. (Sponsored by Rep. Marian Matthews)
• Changes to commercial burglary statute will strengthen law enforcement’s ability to respond to businesses who have revoked a person’s right to enter or remain on their property due to a prior theft. It will allow police to charge offenders with the crime of commercial burglary, a 4^th-degree felony.
• Pretrial detention is legislation designed to create a rebuttable presumption for persons charged with serious, largely violent offenses. Unless rebutted by clear and convincing evidence, a defendant that poses a threat to the safety of community members can be held in custody pending trial. (Sponsored by Sen. Craig Brandt)
• Mandated treatment will give judges a more robust avenue to civilly commit individuals who are a danger to themselves or society.
• RICO amendments will update the existing Racketeering Act by adding additional crimes to include human trafficking, rape, exploitation of children, escape from penitentiary, and tampering with public records.
• ERPO amendments are designed to amend the Extreme Risk Firearms Protection Order Act. Specifically, it will provide an expedited process where orders are issued 24-7 via an on-call judge, a requirement of immediate relinquishment of firearms upon service of an order. This legislation also changes reporting parties to include law enforcement and health care professionals. (Sponsored by Reps. Christine Chandler, Joy Garratt)
• Return to work for public safety personnel is designed to provide a mechanism to allow for public safety personnel who previously retired from PERA to be able to return to work and continue to serve their communities. The goal of the bill is to be able to shore up significant public safety personnel vacancy rates in state, county and municipal public safety agencies.
• Panhandling ban will prohibit the unlawful use of public spaces, streets, sidewalks, curbs, with the primary goal of increasing public safety and vehicular efficiency.
• Misdemeanor DWI search warrant requirement amendment will update the requirements for testing the blood of a suspected intoxicated driver to include both drugs and alcohol for misdemeanor crimes when the arrested person refuses testing.
• Hazing penalties will criminalize hazing and aggravated hazing, protecting students or prospective students in New Mexico. Hazing is a misdemeanor and aggravated hazing a fourth-degree felony. This bill provides for criminal penalties for teachers, coaches or other reporting parties who knew, or should have known about hazing and failed to report it.
• Data sharing requirements for law enforcement agencies will require the regular reporting of crime data from law enforcement agencies to the state as a condition of state funding.
• Firefighter, law enforcement, corrections officer recruitment fund is designed to provide financial support to recruit candidates to these critical public safety fields.
• Compensation increases for State Police, corrections/parole officers provides for a 14% funding increase ($11.5 million) for State Police and an 8% increase ($7.2 million) for corrections, probation & parole officers.

DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP  REACTION

Democratic leadership have said  their  priorities match up with most of Lujan Grisham’s firearm legislation. However  House Speaker Rep. Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, did not  directly respond to an inquiry on whether Democrats would support an assault weapons ban. Martínez said this:

“As is the case with any bill that is germane, meaning it falls into the scope of the governor’s executive message or within the scope of the budget process, all of those bills will be considered.  They’ll be heard. They’ll have a fair hearing. They’ll have votes. … It is my hope that we can get folks to the table to talk about this and have a productive conversation.”

Martínez said some bill sponsors have talked with Republicans about the gun legislation. He pointed to a bill that Rep. Raymundo Lara, D-Chamberino, and Minority House Leader Ryan Lane, R-Aztec, worked on last session.

REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP REACTION

Republicans were quick to respond to Governor Luja Grisham and  the bills she is supporting.  Republican leadership said Lujan Grisham’s proposed legislation would take away New Mexicans’ constitutional rights.

Senate Minority Leader Gregory Baca, R-Belen, said if New Mexicans had to legally follow the governor’s proposed gun measures, they would put themselves at risk by doing so.

“What we have is we have criminals running the streets, breaking the law, obtaining firearms illegally, which I can tell you will not change.  … We’re not going to convince criminals to not commit crimes with firearms by going in and registering and doing background checks. … [The governor] took a hyper-partisan turn with the announcement of several anti-Second Amendment measures targeting New Mexico gun owners who only want to protect themselves and their families. … Let’s be clear — if the Governor and other Democrats were half as hard on criminals as they are on law-abiding citizens, our communities would already be much safer. … Enough with the false solutions. Let’s enforce the laws we have, keep dangerous criminals behind bars and give law enforcement the tools they need to do their job.”

Minority House Leader Ryan Lane, R-Aztec said New Mexico has a mental health and criminal problem that needs to be addressed instead of gun control. Lane said this:

“Our state doesn’t have a gun problem. … New Mexico is very unique [in]  that both right and left we celebrate the Second Amendment.”

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/new-mexico-governor-announces-anti-crime-bills-for-2024/

https://www.koat.com/article/governor-michelle-lujan-grisham-agenda-safety-2024/46367570

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/governor-unveils-public-safety-legislative-agenda-for-2024-session/

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/nm-governor-unveils-bills-that-ban-assault-weapons-raise-age-to-possess-a-gun/article_a18720a6-b178-11ee-a6b9-e3a814b97b9b.html

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/government/state-of-the-state-lujan-grisham-decries-gun-violence-lauds-economy-and-urges-180-day/article_a826abbc-b4ce-11ee-9b19-f7e914da2b79.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Simply put, when it comes to gun all the gun control legislation Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham is supporting in the 30 day legislative session not much if any will actually be enacted. Much of it is either dead on arrival or will not make it through committee mainly because it’s a 30 day session and there is simply not enough time to give all 21 measures a fair hearing.  That is why the Governor should again consider calling a special session to deal with gun control measures immediately after the 2024 session to address all the proposed gun control legislation.

Until the New Mexico legislature get serious about New Mexico’s gun violence crisis and enacts reasonable gun control measures in conjunction with crime and punishment measures, we can expect our violent crime rates to continue to increase, and God forbid, yet another killing of a child which is what prompted the Governor to issue her executive orders in the first place.

If Governor Lujan Grisham is really serious about the State’s crime crisis and wants  to do something about it, she should be calling for the New Mexico Legislature to  enact an “Omnibus Gun Control And Violent Crime Sentencing Act” and do so during a special session of the legislature.  The message that must be sent out loud and clear to violent criminals by our elected officials is that New Mexico has a zero tolerance of violent crimes committed with firearms.  The only way to do that is with responsible gun control measures to reduce the availability of guns and to enhance criminal sentencings.

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT MEASURES

The following crime and sentencing provisions should be included in the “Omnibus Gun Control And Violent Crime Sentencing Act”:

• Allow firearm offenses used in a drug crime to be charged separately with enhance sentences.
• Making possession of a handgun by someone who commits a crime of drug trafficking an aggravated third-degree felony mandating a 10-year minimum sentence.
• Increase the firearm enhancement penalties provided for the brandishing a firearm in the commission of a felony from 3 years to 10 years for a first offense and for a second or subsequent felony in which a firearm is brandished 12 years.
• Create a new category of enhanced sentencing for use of a lethal weapon or deadly weapon other than a firearm where there is blandishment of a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony with enhanced sentences of 5 years for a first offense and for second or subsequent felony in which a lethal weapon other than a firearm is brandished 8 years
• Increase the penalty of shooting randomly into a crowded area a second-degree felony mandating a 9-year sentence.
• Increase the penalty and mandatory sentencing for the conviction of the use of a fire arm during a road rage incident to a first degree felony mandating a life sentence.
• Change bail bond to statutorily empower judges with far more discretionary authority to hold and jail those pending trial who have prior violent crime reported incidents without shifting the burden of proof from the prosecution to the defense.

GUN CONTROL MEASURES

Gun control measures that should be included the “Omnibus Gun Control And  Violent Crime Sentencing  Act” would include legislation that failed in the 2023 legislative session and other measures and would include the following:

• Call for the repeal the New Mexico Constitutional provision that allows the “open carry” of firearms. This would require a public vote and no doubt generate heated discussion given New Mexico’s high percentage of gun ownership for hunting, sport or hobby, but what is the real rational for allowing side arms and rifles to be carried down the street other than to intimidate others.
• Restrict the sale, manufacture and possession of AR-15-style rifles along with semiautomatic firearms and make it a fourth-degree felony to purchase, possess, manufacture, import, sell or transfer assault weapons in the state.
• Prohibited magazines with more than 10 rounds.
• Prohibited the possession of semiautomatic firearm converter that allows the weapon to fire more rapidly.
• Established a 14-day waiting period for the purchase of any firearm and requires a prospective seller who doesn’t already hold a valid federal firearms license to arrange for someone who does to conduct a federal background check prior to selling a firearm. 
• Institute a Federal and State background check system  with a  mental health component  that would disqualify a person with a history of mental health violent outbursts or a history of threats to others from making a gun purchase.  
• Established a minimum age of 21 for anyone seeking to purchase or possess an automatic firearm, semiautomatic firearm or firearm capable of accepting a large-capacity magazine.
• Ban the manufacture, sale, trade, gift, transfer or acquisition of semiautomatic pistols that have two or more defined characteristics.
• Revised the state’s Unfair Practices Act to target the sale of illegal firearms and parts, allowing the filing of lawsuits to enforce the act.
• Prohibit in New Mexico the sale of “ghost guns” parts. Ghost guns are guns that are manufactured and sold in parts without any serial numbers to be assembled by the purchaser and that can be sold to anyone.
• Require in New Mexico the mandatory purchase of “liability insurance” with each gun sold as is required for all operable vehicles bought and driven in New Mexico.
• Mandate the school systems and higher education institutions “harden” their facilities with more security doors, security windows, and security measures and alarm systems and security cameras tied directly to law enforcement 911 emergency operations centers.
• Require a permit to purchase all rifles and handguns.  There are 15 other states require a permit to purchase or licensing.  The best predictor of future performance is past performance. Firearm licensing has past performance.  A John Hopkins University study in a comparative analysis, describes licensing as the most effective firearm policy. Connecticut notes a 28% decrease in homicides, 33% decrease in suicides 10 years post licensing. When you compare states with and without licensing, there is a 56% decrease in mass shootings. Studies reveal a decrease of gun trafficking of more than 60% after licensing.  Missouri found similar increases in homicides and suicides when removing their purchase restrictions.  Licensing is constitutional it has broad public support.  Licensing brings in revenue to the state vs simply cost the state money.

The Omnibus Gun Control And Violent Crime Sentencing Act Omnibus Gun Violence And Sentencing Act must include funding for the criminal justice system. This would include funding District Attorney’s Offices, the Public Defender’s Office, the Courts and the Corrections Department and law enforcement departments across New Mexico.

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POSTSCRIPT

On Sunday, January 15, the Albuquerque Journal published the follow guest opinion column by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham:

HEADLINE:  ITS TIME TO BAN ASSAULT WEAPONS IN NEW MEXICO

Every day, Americans wake up to the news of another community torn apart by gun violence. America’s gun violence crisis has become so rampant that we are virtually numb to the deadly reality that more than 120 Americans are shot and killed every day in our country. Far too often, these tragedies reach our doorsteps right here in New Mexico. Families from Farmington to Las Cruces feel the anxiety and fear of being gunned down at shopping malls and movie theaters, of dropping their children off at school.

We saw it in Farmington — a teenager legally purchased an AR-15 in late 2022 and bought an additional three magazines just days before he went on a shooting spree. He fired over 150 rounds, killed three and injured six, including two police officers. Three women were brutally slaughtered by an automatic weapon designed for warfare and whose only purpose is to kill multiple people in a short amount of time.

Between 2015 and 2022 in the United States, 8 of the 10 deadliest mass shooting incidents involved the use of a firearm equipped with a high-capacity magazine, an assault weapon, or both. Shootings where assault weapons were used resulted in more than twice as many people killed and more than 22 times as many people wounded per incident on average. There’s no training or survival class against an assault weapon. In addition to brutalizing our communities, these military-grade weapons can overwhelm and endanger law enforcement.

As governor, I took an oath to protect New Mexicans. I take this responsibility seriously and I refuse to stand by while weak laws allow our streets and neighborhoods to be terrorized by weapons of war again and again. It’s time for New Mexico to break the cycle and ban assault weapons once and for all.

Banning assault weapons isn’t a novel concept. President Clinton took decisive action in 1994 and the data are clear: banning assault weapons saves lives. A 2019 study revealed a staggering 70% reduction in mass shooting fatalities between 1994 and 2004, when the federal ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines was enforced. When the federal ban expired, state governments had to take up the charge of protecting their own people, and nearly one-third of the population now lives in states that prohibit assault weapons. Many of these states, such as California, have the lowest gun violence rates in the country.

Between 1993 and 2017, California saw a remarkable 55% decrease in its firearm mortality rate, a reduction nearly four times greater than the rest of the nation in the same period of time. The numbers don’t lie; common-sense gun safety solutions save lives and it’s time for New Mexico to follow suit.

My proposed assault weapons ban takes an innovative approach. We can tackle this crisis by prohibiting the sale, transfer, and receipt of gas-operated semi-automatic firearms, such as AR-15 rifles, and large-capacity magazines that hold 10 or more rounds of ammunition. Our proposed assault weapons ban will keep these weapons of war off our streets while continuing to allow most handguns and common hunting firearms to be sold. My legislation would ban extraordinarily dangerous firearms based on their internal construction, so gunmakers will not be able to circumnavigate the ban in the future – as they have done in other states – by changing their firearms’ external features. This means that New Mexicans will be protected for generations to come, at the same time responsible gun ownership for self-defense, hunting and other activities meaningful to New Mexicans is preserved.

This upcoming legislative session, I am laser-focused on putting an end to our gun violence crisis. New Mexicans are ready for meaningful action – that’s how we honor victims and save lives. There are political forces who will oppose taking these weapons of mass destruction off the streets. In recent years, my administration has shown them that we are putting courage over politics by expanding background checks for gun purchases and preventing children from gaining access to their parents’ weapons. Now it’s time to get these weapons of war off our streets once and for all.

As a daughter, mother and grandmother, my family’s experiences motivate me to be in this fight. In 2019, my daughter was in a mall that was on active shooter lockdown, while we debated gun violence legislation here in New Mexico; my granddaughter’s school was locked down because a student brought a fake gun to school in their backpack that was mistaken for a real firearm. Later, two adults had an altercation outside of that school during afternoon pick-up, resulting in one of them brandishing a firearm while students were being released for the day and all access points to the campus were open. Parents don’t know if the school dropoff is the last time they will ever see their kids. For them, and for children across New Mexico, we cannot shy away from this crisis. Not anymore.

We need leaders at every level, regardless of our politics, to come together and present common-sense solutions to this ceaseless pattern of mass shootings. It’s time to put the safety of our families over partisan politics and meet this moment by doing what we know saves lives. Together, we can put an end to the public health crisis of mass shootings, protect our citizens and get weapons of war off our streets.

The link to the Albuquerque Journal guest opinion column is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/opinion/span-class-print-trim-governor-span-it-s-time-to-ban-assault-weapons-in-new/article_1c5e3c94-b19a-11ee-a0b8-bfceaa002b91.html

The link to a related blog article is here:

Gov. MLG Proposes 10.5 Billion State Budget For 2024-2025 Fiscal Year With 9.9% Budget Increase; Legislative Finance Committee Expected To Release It’s Own Budget

The 2024 New Mexico legislative session begins on Tuesday,  January 16 at noon and ends on February 15 at noon.  The 2024 legislative session will be a 30 short session where budgetary matters will be the primary focus.

NEW MEXICO LEGISLATIVE FINANCE COMMITTEE RELEASES BUDGET

On January 5, the New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) held a press conference to announce introduction of  its budget proposal for the fiscal year 2024-2025  and just  one day after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham released her own proposed budget. The fiscal year begins July 1, 2024 and ends June 31, 2025. The LFC’s version is slimmer with just a 5.9% budget increase compared to Governor’s 9.9%. The  LFC budget recommendation totaled $10.1 billion,  retaining enough reserves to protect against future budget cuts and keep revenues growing for the next several year.

The allocation for public education, like the Governor’s,  is the largest in the LFC proposed budget.  The $4.4 billion recommendation is essentially the same as the governor’s.  The LFC budget calls  for across-the-board raises for state employees totaling 4%. The governor’s pitch includes  a 3% raise for all state employees, plus bigger raises for state police and corrections, probation and parole officers.

Both budgets endorse the New Mexico Legacy Fund, a dedicated state fund for conservation signed by Lujan Grisham in 2023.  The major difference between the two budgets is that Governor Lujan Grisham recommends $250 million while the LFC recommended a $300 million appropriation.  The new budgeting tool would float funding evenly over four years while monitoring the performance of the program. The LFC is recommending it as a way to set aside this year’s revenue as a long-term funding plan. According to the recommendation packet, the program would “offer a chance to invest in new ideas,” such as pilot programs.

LFC Chair Senator George Muñoz, D-Gallup, said this  at the news conference:

“I think this is a very sound budget. … It keeps the Legislature … and the state of New Mexico able to grow over the next couple of years without having massive cuts.”

LFC Vice Chair Rep. Nathan Small, D-Las Cruces, said the budget includes insurance against market volatility, and both representatives highlighted investments in workforce programs intended to boost education levels and employment in new industries

Lujan Grisham spokesperson Maddy Hayden said this in a statement:

“The Executive looks forward to working with the Legislature on a budget that lifts up all New Mexicans through continued investments in priority areas. … We are just beginning our review of the LFC recommendation and at this time do not have information on how the brand-new budgeting concept developed by the LFC of an ‘Expendable Trust’ would work.”

https://www.kob.com/news/business-money/new-mexico-legislators-back-slower-sustained-growth-in-government-programs-with-budget-plan/

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/lfc-proposes-5-9-increase-in-state-budget/article_03abd268-ac2e-11ee-be71-f7d07ca52fef.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

GOVERNOR MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM’S PROPOSED 2024-2025 STATE BUDGET

On January 4, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham released her proposed 2024-2025 state budget that begins on July 1.  She is proposing a $10.5 billion budget which is a 9.9% increase from the current fiscal year that ends on June 30.

The Governor  has submitted a record breaking $10.5 billion budget where she  is recommending the state capitalize on “record revenues” with $10.5 billion in recurring funds and $2.1 billion in one-time, nonrecurring cash infusions for the upcoming fiscal year budget.

Major increases in pay raises is being proposed for all state employees with even higher pay increases for law enforcement.  The Governor is proposing a 3% pay raise  for all state employees and teachers. State Police officers would be given a larger pay raise of 14% while corrections, probation and parole officers would get 7% pay raises. More than half a billion would be earmarked for law enforcement recruitment, pay, and equipment and support for other first responders.

The governor wants to put more than $3 billion toward healthcare initiatives to help subsidize patient care and draw more providers to the state. Hundreds of millions would also be allocated for economic development investments, roads and infrastructure, and shoring up the state’s water supply.

Lujan Grisham’s proposed budget includes provisions to keep more than a third of state revenues in reserve, in case of revenue shortfalls in the future. The New Mexico Constitution requires a balanced budget.  However  during the 2008 recession and an oil bust in the early 2010s, reserves proved insufficient to cover the losses.

PUBLIC EDUCATION

As usual, public education is  the  biggest area for funding. More than $4 billion would go toward K-12 education to expand early childhood programs, train educators and  boost teacher pay.  A 7% budget increase from last year is being proposed for the Department of Public Education.   $4.5 billion would go to summer and after-school programs, literacy programs and a new Structured Literacy Institute, among other programs.

Spending on public education would increase by $283 million, or 6.8%, to nearly $4.5 billion. One goal is to bolster specialized literacy programs, while founding a state literacy institute. Additional funds would help extend annual instructional time at public schools across the state. Republicans in the legislative minority oppose the push to expand public school calendars.

The Lujan Grisham administration hopes to add 2,000 slots for infant and toddler childcare and expand early preschool by 1,380 slots through increased state spending, while also bolstering aid to children being raised by grandparents.  Legislators have expressed frustration in recent months with the results of sustained spending increases on public education. Statewide, the share of students who can read at their grade level is 38%. Math proficiency is at 24%. The state’s high school graduation rate hovers at 76%, well below the national average of 87%.

OIL AND GAS REMAINS LARGEST REVENUE SOURCE

As usual, oil and gas revenues still dominates state revenues and is makes  up to almost 40% of the expected $13.05 billion in general fund revenues for the next fiscal year.

Although state revenues are still high,  Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Wayne Propst acknowledged that growth is expected to slow. Propst said this in a statement:

“We’re fully aware that growth is projected to slow in future fiscal years, but the state is in a unique position to continue to make smart investments now, while maintaining historically high reserves. … It’s also important to note that as we improve health outcomes, lift families out of poverty and bolster the state’s economy, costs for programs and services go down.”

The Governor’s proposed budget also addresses clean energy initiatives.  $20 million would be made available as low-interest loans to communities for projects that reduce carbon emissions, and $30 million would head to improving electric vehicle infrastructure in the state. The Governor’s Office is also pursuing incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles or plug-in hybrids to bolster new clean cars requirements adopted by the state.

But Larry Behrens, the communications director for Power the Future, a group that advocates for energy worker interests, wanted more from the “massive” budget recommendation.

MAJOR BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS

A breakdown of what the governor is asking by category for is as follows:

Water & Natural Resources 

• $500 million capital appropriation from severance tax bonds for the Strategic Water Supply. Lujan Grisham announced the Strategic Water Supply program during a December trip to Dubai. It treats water for use in renewable energy production
• $250 million general fund transfer to the Land of Enchantment Conservation Fund, which feeds into the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund
• $20 million to support low-interest loans to communities to implement projects that reduce carbon emissions

Housing & Homelessness 

• $250 million for the New Mexico Housing Trust Fund
• $250 million to the New Mexico Finance Authority Opportunity Enterprise Revolving Fund to increase funding for affordable housing, including developments of low-income multi-family housing, down payment assistance for low and middle-income households, homeowner rehabilitation and weatherization programs, etc.
• $40 million for homelessness initiatives to coordinate and expand homelessness services statewide

Education 

• $33 million to expand early pre-kindergarten by 1,380 slots
• $101.2 million increase to the State Equalization Guarantee Distribution for the necessary adjustment to 180 classroom days
• $58.1 million for structured literacy, including $30 million for a new Structured Literacy Institute
• $43.5 million for healthy, universal school meals
• 3% pay increase ($96 million) for all educators

Health Care, Behavioral Health & Child Well-Being 

• $2.15 billion in recurring general fund for the Health Care Authority, formerly the Human Services Department
• $100 million for the Rural Healthcare Delivery Fund
• $87.9 million for Medicaid provider rate increases to 150% for maternal/child health, primary care, and behavioral health
• $24.7 million to create a new Family Services division at the Children, Youth and Families Department

Public Safety 

• $35 million for corrections and law enforcement recruitment statewide
• $5 million for the Governor’s Commission on Organized Crime
• $35 million for the Firefighter and EMT Recruitment Fund

Economic Development & Infrastructure 

• $100 million to launch the New Mexico Match Fund, which will leverage federal funding for infrastructure investments, including roads, bridges, water, energy and broadband
• $25 million for the Local Economic Development Act Program (LEDA)
• $9.7 million for the Job Training Incentive Program (JTIP)
• $5 million in total funding for the New Mexico Media Academy
• $1.5 million special to the Economic Development Department to broaden New Mexico’s international market reach

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

In the weeks during the session, state agencies will  make presentations to the various legislative standing committees during the session  including  the House Appropriations and Finance Committee to discuss their budget requests. The hearings will allow for public comment and amendments and changes to the budget.

One thing is for certain, the governor’s proposed budget is ambitious because of the 9.9% increase she is proposing but the job of promoting her programs during the 2024 legislative session will be made much easier because of the oil boom that has propelled New Mexico’s government revenue to record highs.

The record surplus should allow the Governor to virtually fund all the education programs she wants, invest in capital projects and infrastructure but only if the legislature allows her.

On January 10, former Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales, a longtime Democrat, announced that he is switching to the Republican Party and running for U.S. Senate against incumbent Democrat Martin Heinrich.  The announcement comes a full 2 years after the former sheriff lost to Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller for Mayor.

In 2021, Gonzales lost in a landslide to Democrat Mayor Tim Keller who won with 56% of the vote with Gonzales securing 26% of the vote and Republican Radio Shock Jock Eddy Aragon securing 18% of the vote. Although the percentage victory was high for Keller, the voter turnout was a low 119,745 votes cast in a city that has 383,000 voters. Gonzales served two 4 year terms as Bernalillo County Sheriff from 2014 to 2022, which is now occupied by Democrat Sheriff John Allen.

In a news release formally announcing his campaign, Gonzales pointed to economic growth, border security, law enforcement support and public safety as priorities.  On his campaign web page,  Gonzales said open borders, high crime and “radical politicians” were ruining the state, and that Senator Martin Heinrich “sits idly by without a shred of respect for our great state to say enough is enough. … If anything, Sen. Heinrich has aided in this lawlessness, and allowed our great state to be riddled with crime and low education outcomes.”

Gonzales vowed to bring New Mexican values to Washington, touting his unwavering commitment to public safety and the betterment of the community. In a press release making the announcement, Gonzales said this:

“I’m honored to embark on this journey to serve New Mexico in a different capacity, one that allows me to continue fighting for the safety and prosperity of our communities. My decision to run for the U.S. Senate under the Republican banner stems from a deep conviction that our state needs practical, common-sense solutions, not partisan rhetoric.”

Gonzales said he was compelled to run by what he called “the failure” of New Mexico’s Democratic leadership by “being silent — having no policies, no active role” in national discussions on things like border safety and high taxes. Gonzales said this in an interview on Fox News:

“I offer that alternative: having solutions and working with both sides of the aisle to get something done.  … Not settling for the same old excuses by career politicians. … [I am] a person of very strong convictions [and] I believe I have the best chance to unseat Heinrich. When people like myself no longer subscribe to these radical policies that are failing us here in New Mexico with families, education, overspending — they are going to understand that they have an opportunity to replace these career politicians that are just looking for their next seat.”

SENATOR MARTIN HEINRICH’S REACTION

In response to the Gonzales announcement, Heinrich Spokeswoman Caty Payette said the Democrat incumbent senator “is running for re-election to continue delivering real results for New Mexicans. … He remains committed to investing in the brighter future the people of our state deserve. … That stands in direct contrast to Manny Gonzales, who, like his hero and role model Donald Trump, is running for office to avoid his legal troubles. Hopefully, Manny won’t have to fake signatures to get on the ballot this time around.”

During the 2021 Mayor’s race, Gonzales was denied public financing when the city clerk found the Gonzales campaign had fraudulently collected $5 qualifying donations.

DEMOCRARTIC PARTY REACTION

RUNNING UNDER A CLOUD SUSPICION

Former Sherriff Manny Gonzales made headlines late last year when he and his former undersheriff Rudy Mora were named by federal authorities in an alleged scheme to import machine guns for resale to collectors and gun enthusiasts.  Neither Gonzales nor Mora have been charged in the case.  According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), both men submitted fraudulent requests to import automatic weapons for a demonstration and possible purchase.

The local firearms dealer they gave the letters to, James Christopher Tafoya, faces federal charges in the scheme.  The scheme has led to charges against police chiefs, gun dealers and others across the country.  The ATF has said to news outlets that the Federal investigation is ongoing.

The links news sources are here:

https://www.koat.com/article/former-bcso-sheriff-announces-us-senate-bid-amid-gun-scheme-controversy/46344948

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/former-bernalillo-county-sheriff-manny-gonzales-announces-u-s-senate-bid/

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/former-bcso-sheriff-launches-bid-for-us-senate-seat/

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/manny-gonzales-senate/article_8eb7959e-aff9-11ee-b459-93525ad09fdd.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/ex-sheriff-will-run-for-u-s-senate-as-a-republican/article_1982eaa4-afb7-11ee-8f04-0fb94c73275d

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/former-bcso-sheriff-undersheriff-named-in-cross-country-machine-gun-scheme/article_9a1f7498-7448-11ee-b34f-9babda510ae3.html

NO LOVE LOST BETWEEN HEINRICH AND GONZALES

It was on  July 21, 2021  that then President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr announced during a White House news conference that 35 federal agents were  being sent to Albuquerque as part of the expansion of “Operation Legend” with other cities also being sent in a handful of cities across the United States.  Then Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales and U.S. Attorney John Anderson for the State of New Mexico were present for the announcement, but they did not speak. The week before, Gonzales announced that he had been invited to the White House to met with President Trump declining to report why.

During the press announcement, President Trump said there has been a “shocking explosion” of “heinous crimes” in cities. as a result of efforts to “defund, dismantle, and dissolve” police departments. Trump boldly proclaimed assistance is being sent to cities where their leadership wants to “defund, defame or abolish” police departments. Trump severely criticized city leaders headed by Democrats throughout the country for not doing enough to combat crime and for putting the “interests of criminals” above law-abiding citizens.

In advance of the Trump’s announcement of “Operation Legend” targeting Albuquerque, city and state leaders denounced the plan. Sheriff Manny Gonzales came under severe criticism from city and state elected officials for attending the press conference where he did not say a single word.  Before the Trump press conference, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich called for the resignation of Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales claiming Gonzales was inviting federal law enforcement agents to the city. Heinrich called the law enforcement being sent to Albuquerque the president’s “stormtroopers” and he said this:

“I believe that it is time for Sheriff Gonzales to step aside and make room for someone who will make maintaining the peace and promoting the safety and protection of Bernalillo County residents our law enforcement’s top priority. … Instead of collaborating with the Albuquerque Police Department, the Sheriff is inviting the President’s stormtroopers into Albuquerque. … If we can learn anything from Portland [Oregon], it’s that we don’t need this kind of ‘help’ from the White House. The President is currently using federal law enforcement agents like a domestic paramilitary force. That’s precisely how fascism begins and none of us should ever encourage it or accept it.”

https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/heinrich-calls-for-resignation-of-bernalillo-county-sheriff/article_874dfe04-cbb6-11ea-b40e-e7bf802ad5cf.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

During the 2021 Mayor’s race, Gonzales ran on a “law and order” platform proclaiming crime was out of control and crime rates were unacceptable levels and he could fix things. What he ignored was that he had been Bernalillo County Sheriff for two terms and that during his tenure crime was as much out of control in the county as in the city.

As a Democrat, Gonzales always had been moderate to conservative opposed by Progressive Democrats. Some would say he is a MAGA Trump conservative because of his cooperation with the Trump Administration during his tenure as Sherriff.  The Gonzales strategy to become Mayor was to build a coalition of conservative Democrats, Republicans and appeal to conservatives in general especially Trump supporters. Its the same strategy he is using now to run for US Senate.

When Gonzales travelled to the White House for a press conference with Trump who was running for a second term, he was labelled as a “Democrat In Name Only”. Gonzales likely did not expect a Republican would run for Mayor but when Republican radio talk show host Eddy Aragon entered the race at the last minute, it was a major blow to Gonzales creating a viable coalition of conservatives. Aragon was able to collect the required number of qualifying signatures to get on the ballot within 10 days and siphoned off votes from Gonzales.

On September 14, 2021 a District Court Judge upheld the City Clerk’s decision to deny Gonzales $634,000 in public finance for violating campaign finance rules during the qualifying process finding impropriety in the collection of his qualifying $5 donations. Gonzales was forced to become a privately finance candidate. In his first 3 weeks as a privately funded mayoral candidate, Sheriff Manny Gonzales raised over $330,000 which is evidence of strong fund-raising capabilities. The Gonzales campaign reported in its 7^th finance report that the Gonzales had more money on hand than incumbent Mayor Tim Keller for the last full month of the campaign.

The initial reaction to Manny Gonzales running for United States Senate as a Republican against Democrat Martin Heinrich will no doubt will be that he does not have much of chance. That would be a mistake. Gonzales has a wealth of name recognition from being a former Bernalillo County Sheriff and he is Hispanic born and raised in New Mexico. National polling has Trump gaining on Biden among Hispanics and young voters.  https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4383903-trump-leads-biden-among-hispanic-young-voters-poll-2024-election/ Then there is the matter of Senator Martin Heinrich having a low approval rating under 50% at 45% approval to 36% disapproval rating back in August .  https://247wallst.com/special-report/2023/08/31/us-senators-who-lost-the-most-popularity/

Now that Gonzales is running as a Republican, its likely he will be the only Republican running that  will be able to raise a significant amount of money given conservative  Republican dislike for Heinrich and the fact that Trump is also on the ballot. As a native Hispanic from New Mexico, Gonzales has a better chance of building a coalition of Democratic conservatives and Republicans and Independents statewide than he did in progressive Bernalillo County when he ran against a progressive Democratic Mayor.

The biggest threat that has the potential of totally derailing the Gonzales candidacy for Senate is if anything actually comes of the ATF investigation and if Gonzales is charged. Gonzales has not been indicted of any crimes, but he has been listed in a document that the federal authorities have indicted other people. Its unknown yet if Manny Gonzales will become a witness for the federal government or perhaps is even charged with crimes himself. Then again, being indicted 4 times has not stopped Der Führer Trump from running for President so why should that stop ethically challenged Manny Gonzales.

On January 8, the newly elected Albuquerque City Council held its first meeting. Its very first vote was to elect new City Council Officers of President and Vice President. Historically, the party with the majority elects officers that are in the majority. Notwithstanding Democrats holding a 5-4 majority on the City Council, Conservative Republican Dan Lewis was elected City Council President and Conservative Republican Renee Grout was elected Vice President.  Moderate Democrat District 3 Councilor Klarissa Peña was elected as the chairwoman for the Committee of the Whole.  The Committee of the Whole is considered the most important of all standing committees with all 9 councilors assigned to discuss and hold hearings on the annual budgets and capital improvements proposed by the mayor.

Links to news sources are here:

https://www.cabq.gov/council/news/city-councilor-dan-lewis-elected-city-council-president

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/new-albuquerque-city-council-meets-for-first-time/

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/dan-lewis-elected-albuquerque-city-council-president/article_862b69e0-ae9c-11ee-a8e5-c7e9aabab973.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

CONSERVATIVE CITY COUNCIL

The City Council is split with 5 Democrats and 4 Republicans as follows:

Democrats

District 1 Conservative Democrat Louie Sanchez
District 2 Progressive Democrat Joaquin Baca
District 3 Moderate Democrat Klarissa Peña
District 6 Progressive Democrat Nichole Rogers
District 7 Progressive Democrat Tammy Fiebelkorn

Republicans

District 5 Conservative Republican Dan Lewis
District 4 Conservative Republican Brook Bassan
District 8 Conservative Republican Dan Champine
District 9 Conservative Republican Renee Grout

Although the new City Council is split with 5 Democrats and 4 Republicans, Conservative Democrat Louie Sanchez has often allied himself with conservative Republicans Dan Lewis, Renee Grout, and Brook Bassan who are still on the council and newly elected Conservative Republican Dan Champine is expected  to join them in allowing them to approve or kill measures on a 5-4 vote but being unable to override Mayor Tim Keller’s veto’s with the required 6 votes.

MAYOR KELLER’S INVOLVEMENT IN CITY COUNCIL RACES

Mayor Tim Keller became actively involved and behind the scenes in the campaigns of 3 Progressive Democrat  city council candidates in the 2023 municipal elections. The candidates who had the full support of Mayor Tim Keller were Progressive Democrats Abby Foster, Joaquin Baca and Nichole Rogers. Keller’s own campaign manager, politcal advisor and confidant Neri Holguin  was the paid politcal consultant for Progressive Democrat Abby Foster, who lost to Incumbent Brook Bassan  and Joaquin Baca, who prevailed over his two opponents to win without a runoff.

Mayor Keller  was also involved with the campaign of Nichole Rogers. She had worked for the Mayor Tim Keller as a policy advocate and community organizer. Confidential sources confirmed that Rogers received significant help in collecting nominating petitions signatures and qualifying donations from at least 2 city hall employees who work directly for Mayor Tim Keller.  Rogers  also went so far as to tell Progressive Democrats privately in the District that she was Mayor Keller’s candidate to replace Progressive Democrat Pat Davis who is a Keller ally.

Keller political consultant Neri Holguin initially was involved with the Rogers campaign. It was Holguin who called Jeff Hoehn and told him in no uncertain terms not to run for city council, that he could not win and that Mayor Keller would not support him and that Keller wanted a person of color for the district. Holguin also  headed up the measured finance committee and solicited donations for it  that published a number of negative and misleading politcal hit pieces against Jeff Hoehn in the runoff.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Least anyone forget, it was in 2017 that the dynamic duo of Tim Keller and Dan Lewis ran against each other in a runoff for Mayor. Then State Auditor Tim Keller, a mere one year into his 4-year term as State Auditor announced he was running for Mayor. Then Republican District 5 City Councilor Dan Lewis gave up his seat after serving 2 terms on the city council to run for Mayor. Keller won the 2017 runoff by a decisive landslide by securing 60,219 votes or 62.20% against Dan Lewis who secured 36,594 or 37.8% of the vote.

When Keller was first elected as Mayor in 2017, he enjoyed having a super majority of 6 Democrats to 3 Republicans which allowed him to enact a very progressive agenda with the help of Progressive Democrats Pat Davis and Isaac Benton. In 2021, Conservative Republican Dan Lewis was again elected to the City Council by beating moderate  Democrat Cynthia Borrego, who has since been elected a state representative,  which reduced the council majority to 5 to 4. Once returning to the city council, Lewis attempted to repeal many Keller initiatives, including a tax increase, repeal of the plastic bag ban and increasing the Mayors authority to issue emergency public health orders.  Lewis quickly made it known privately to his supporters his intent to run for Mayor again in 2025.  From the very get go of his return to the city council, Lewis has been as disruptive as possible on the city council in order to generate the news coverage he so covets to run for Mayor again in 2025. For the past two years Lewis has been the biggest critic of Mayor Tim Keller.

Mayor Tim Keller has already made it known privately he intends to run for a third term in 2025.  Now that Conservative Republican Dan Lewis is President, expect him to use his position as much as possible to oppose and disrupt Keller’s progressive agenda with the help of District 1 Conservative Democrat Louie Sanchez and perhaps even District 3 Moderate Democrat Klarissa Peña. As President, Lewis appoints the chairs of the council committees and expect him to appoint conservatives. Also complicating things for Keller is that Conservative Republican Brook Bassan no doubt harbors strong resentment towards Mayor Keller for his involvement in her re election and his support of Progressive Democrat Abby Foster who ran a very negative campaign and who almost beat Bassan.

It is more likely than not that District 2 Progressive Democrat Joaquin Baca, District 6 Progressive Democrat Nichole Rogers and District 7 Progressive Democrat Tammy Fiebelkorn will be  marginalized to a great extent  by the conservative majority.  All 3 will be viewed as Mayor Tim Keller’s “rubber stamp trio” and  essentially be  relegated to being observers on the council  and getting very little accomplished on their own without a working majority.

A link to a related blog article is here:

“Dynamic Duo Of Failure” Exchange Competing Guest Columns In ABQ Journal; Prelude To Another Mayor’s Race Between Mayor Tim Keller and City Councilor Dan Lewis In 2025; Examining The Failed Records Of Tim Keller and Dan Lewis

On January 3, the Albuquerque Police Department held a press conference to release statistics that APD police officers are using less force when they make arrests  even though there has been a major surge in arrests. In 2020, arrests decreased along with use-of-force investigations. Even though APD arrests are going up, use-of-force investigations have dropped by more than 40% since 2020.

The data released by APD shows that as annual arrests jumped 29%, from 9,494 in 2021 to 12,222 in 2023, officers’ use-of-force incidents decreased 30%, from 739 to 515.  Since 2022, APD Police shootings have increased to record highs.  APD officers have shot, or shot at, 32 people, with at least 16 being fatal.  The majority of the shootings have been found to have complied with APD use of force policy.

APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said of the 515 cases in which police used force on someone in 2023, 419 have been investigated fully. Of those, he said, 13 cases were found to be out of policy. Gallegos said across all out-of-policy cases in 2023, 17 officers were disciplined and 7 were given written reprimands with 156 hours of suspension imposed in discipline action.

CHIEF MEDINA PROCLAIMS APD CULTURE HAS CHANGED

APD Chief Harold Medina for his part pointed out that police shootings made up less than 3% of all uses of force in 2023. Medina also said at least 12 of the people shot by officers were armed, and several fired a gun, injuring two officers in separate incidents. Medina said this:

 “We are seeing more armed encounters with individuals, and these individuals are not afraid to use their firearm.”

Medina said the data released, in addition to an evolution in officers’ actions during police shootings, was proof of the culture within APD has changed. On a case-by-case basis, lapel video has shown officers switching to less-lethal weapons and giving people time to drop weapons before using deadly force. Medina said this:

“I am proud of the direction our officers have gone. … We’re out doing our job, taking individuals into custody and use of force still decreases. … Look at the data. … Under the intense scrutiny that we have, use of force is down 43% (since 2020). How is that not a change of culture? … How is that not the number one measure for the change of culture? Arrests are the same but overall use of force is down. … I hope that the advocacy groups look at the data and the information and truly, fairly process what they’re seeing, and not go based off emotions. … Just because one advocacy group isn’t getting what they want out of this doesn’t mean that you should drop out [of the process].”

TERMINATION OF 3 OFFICERS IN ONE CASE

APD Spokesman Gallegos said in one case APD officers Brenda Johnson, Eric Wilensky and Violeta Baca were terminated after opening fire on a man with a knife. The officers killed the suspect but also shot  two bystanders in the process.  A fourth officer in the shooting incident, Christian Cordova, resigned soon after the shooting.  Attorney John D’Amato, who is representing the fired officers, said the officers have filed appeals in all 3 terminations.

D’Amato said there was no question there was a threat to the officers and the officers did what they were trained to do while also complying with APD’s use-of-force policies. He called the case a matter of “damned if you do and damned if you don’t.”

The terminations marked the first-time multiple officers were fired in a police shooting since the city entered into its Court-Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) with the U.S. Department of Justice in 2014 outlining police reforms.

As the department nears full compliance with the CASA following a few turbulent years, police shootings , the majority found to have complied with policy,  have increased to record highs. Since 2022, APD officers have shot, or shot at, 32 people, with at least 16 being fatal.

REVISITING THE JESUS CROSBY DEADLY USE OF FORCE CASE 

Several advocacy groups, which have given APD credit for reducing the use of force and meeting CASA requirements, continue to question whether there has been a change in APD’s culture.  Much of that debate has centered around controversial police shooting in 2022, when officers shot Jesus Crosby, a man in crisis wielding nail clippers. Crosby was one of a record-breaking 18 police shootings in 2022. APD Forward is a collection of nearly 20 advocacy groups who say his death was horrifying, unnecessary, and showed an “indifference to the spirit of the reform process among some of the leadership of APD.”

In th 18^th Federal Monitors Report, monitoring team described the Jesus Crosby deadly use of force  case as one of the “more obvious mishandlings of organizational oversight that we have seen since the inception of the CASA. … The case is replete with issues, from the shooting itself through the handling of the case.”

Officers simultaneously fired Tasers and bullets at Crosby, who was suffering a mental health crisis and holding fingernail clippers outside APD headquarters. APD officers shot Crosby 11 times.  A force investigator, civilian oversight director and one Force Review Board (FRB) member found the shooting out of policy, but an Internal Affairs Force Division commander and the rest of the FRB reversed that finding.  APD modified its policies following the shooting in the hopes of expanding the use of less-lethal force in such situations.

The 18^th IME Report went so far as to questioned if Internal Affairs Force Division (IAFD) leadership or Force Review Board (FRB)  members “are competent to review cases of this significance.”  The report said no FRB member asked questions about the policy disagreement or about the six shots fired after Crosby was on the ground, and only one member “asked insightful questions regarding the appropriateness of deadly force.” That same member, according to the report, voted the use of force was not necessary but was outvoted by the other members.

The team noted it marked the second time the FRB has ignored “a compelling justification” for an out-of-policy ruling in a fatal shooting. The monitoring team added, “In our opinion, all parties should be concerned if any IAFD personnel believe, or were led to believe, that the use of deadly force by officers, in this case, was appropriate.”

The report noted that the FRB has excelled in recent years due to 3 “specific deputy chiefs,” one of whom has retired while the other two were not at the FRB meeting.  According to the report:

“We have commented in the past that reforms cannot exist as a result of specific people, and instead have to be woven into the fabric of APD’s culture.”

Referencing the November 2022 shooting of Jesus Crosby, the Federal Monitor’s report states:

“Most troubling is that in this case, the IAFD investigator and supervisor did what was required, and the deficiencies began at the Internal Affairs Force Division command level and were endorsed by the Force Review Board  … We are equally concerned with the chilling effect a case like this can have on Internal Affairs Force Division investigators and supervisors who will be called to make difficult, honest, and accurate findings in the future.”

Independent Monitor James Ginger said it was the second such occurrence in a year and warned the Albuquerque Police Department of the “chilling effect” it could have on those tasked with investigating use of force incidents in the future.

Private Attorney Mark Fine, who is represents the Crosby family in a civil rights and wrongful death lawsuit, said the family thanked the monitoring team for its “good-faith assessment of the killing of Jesus and for calling out the backwardness of APD leadership’s absurd determination that the shooting was ‘within policy.’”

Fine said this:

“Since 2014, the City has known and admitted that a lack of supervisory oversight allowed a culture of aggression to develop in its ranks, which resulted in a pattern of unnecessary and deadly uses of force. …The Monitor’s report reveals that this toxic dynamic continues.”

When it comes to the Jesus Crosby case, Chief  Medina for his part said Crosby was released from jail, while in crisis, and onto the streets  ad APD  officers had to deal with with him at 2 o’clock in the morning.  Medina said this of the Crosby case:

“It’s unfortunate that the system, as a whole, failed Mr. Crosby. … One incident doesn’t create a pattern. … I hope that the advocacy groups look at the data and the information and truly, fairly process what they’re seeing, and not go based off emotions. … Too many times, you only look at the endpoint, and that happens to be the Albuquerque Police Department. … I recognized a long time ago that there will be advocacy groups that do not respect the outcomes of this process. They didn’t support APD prior to this process, they were very unfairly critical of APD during several court hearings.”

According to Chief Medina, APD has learned from the Crosby shooting, making policy changes and bringing in an external monitor to oversee police shootings in the future.

APD ASSUMES POLICE USE OF FORCE CASES

It was on December 26, 2023 the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) announced that the federal Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Court Appointed Federal Monitor overseeing APD’s reform efforts agreed  to transition Level 2 and 3 police officer use-of-force investigations from the External Force Investigation Team (EFIT) back to the APD Internal Affairs Force Division (IAFD).

What this means is that APD is once again primarily responsible and in control of  all of  APD’s use-of-force investigations of  the most serious use-of-force cases involving APD police officers.  This is a major step forward for  a department that has been under a Court Approved Settlement Agreement  with the U.S. Department of Justice since 2014 and after federal investigators found a “culture of aggression” within APD and that it had engaged in “a pattern of  excessive use of  force and deadly force.”

There are 3 Use of Force Classifications enumerated in the APD Use Of Force Policies:

Level 1 is force that is likely to cause only transitory pain, disorientation, or discomfort during its application as a means of gaining compliance. This includes techniques which are not reasonably expected to cause injury, do not result in actual injury, and are not likely to result in a complaint of injury (i.e., pain compliance techniques and resisted handcuffing). Pointing a firearm, beanbag shotgun, or 40-millimeter launcher at a subject, or using an Electronic Control Weapon (ECW)  to “paint” a subject with the laser sight, as a show of force are reportable as Level 1 force. Level 1 force does not include interaction meant to guide, assist, or control a subject who is offering minimal resistance.

Level 2 is force that causes injury, could reasonably be expected to cause injury, or results in a complaint of injury. Level 2 force includes: use of an Electronic Control Weapon (ECW), including where an ECW is fired at a subject but misses; use of a beanbag shotgun or 40 millimeter launcher, including where it is fired at a subject but misses; OC Spray application; empty hand techniques (i.e., strikes, kicks, takedowns, distraction techniques, or leg sweeps); and strikes with weapons, except strikes to the head, neck, or throat, which would be considered a Level 3 use of force.

Level 3 is force that results in, or could reasonably result in, serious physical injury, hospitalization, or death. Level 3 force includes: all lethal force; critical firearms discharges; all head, neck, and throat strikes with an object; neck holds; canine bites; three or more uses of an ECW on an individual during a single interaction regardless of mode or duration or an ECW application for longer than 15 seconds, whether continuous or consecutive; four or more strikes with a baton; any Level 2 use of force, strike, blow, kick, ECW application, or similar use of force against a handcuffed subject; and uses of force resulting in a loss of consciousness.

 APD  PRAISED FOR  REFORM EFFORTS

On Thursday January 4, a six hour status conference hearing was held by Federal Judge James Browning on Federal Court Appointed Monitor James Ginger’s 18th Federal Monitor’s report which was filed on November 8, 2023. Throughout the hearing, Department of Justice attorneys  and Independent Monitor Ginger praised the successes of Albuquerque police in its reform efforts and especially for APD reducing officers’ use of force and conducting better investigations into such incidents.

The hearing came after Independent Monitor James Ginger released his 18^th Federal Monitors report  that gave the city of Albuquerque its highest ratings yet over the last 9 years in the 3 compliance levels mandated by the Court Approved Settlement. The 18^th report finds that APD is only ONE percentage point from full compliance in “Operational Compliance” going from 92% to 94%.  APD went down by 1% in “Secondary Compliance” going down from 100% to 99%.  APD  and sustained  Primary Compliance at 100%.

The 18^th Federal Monitors Report covers the time period of February 1, 2023 through July 1, 2023 and reports APD’s compliance levels being as follows:

• Primary Compliance 100%
• Secondary Compliance 99% (Down 1%)
• Operational Compliance 94%(95%is needed to be achieved and sustained for 2 years)

Under the terms and conditions of the CASA, once APD achieves a 95% compliance rate in all 3 identified compliance levels and maintains it for 2 consecutive years, the case can be dismissed. Originally, APD was to have come into compliance within 4 years and the case was to be dismissed in 2018.

The 3 compliance levels are explained as follows:

PRIMARY COMPLIANCE

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

SECONDARY COMPLIANCE

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

OPERATIONAL COMPLIANCE

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

HEARING REVISITS JESUS CROSBY CASE

Between all the praises heaped on APD during the January 4 hearing, the Jesus Crosby killing by APD kept being brought up as evidence that the “culture of aggression” within APD has not been eliminated as a central question that conflicts with the data and that APD’s Use of Force has gone down.  Albuquerque Police Department Chief Harold Medina said this:

“How do you know that culture is changing? … I consistently get that question and there is no scientific method. It’s going to, unfortunately, have to be anecdotal.”

Medina emphasized APD’s commitment to meeting CASA requirements over the past several years.  The department has invested millions of dollars and thousands of man-hours and has  created  entire divisions and rewriting policies.

Medina told the Court the “culture change”  can be measured in a large decrease in uses of force even as police make more arrests, the positive words he regularly hears from the community and from surveys taken by those who call 911. In general, Medina said the 32 police shootings the department has tallied since 2022 mirrored increases seen in other cities. Locally, he pointed to a growing number of people pulling guns on APD officers.

Again, Medina called Crosby’s death “a tragedy” but laid it at the feet of a “broken criminal justice system” for letting him out of jail while he was still in crisis. He said some “good came” from the incident, such as the creation of policies geared toward using less deadly force.

Paul Killebrew, deputy chief of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, also addressed the Jesus Crosby case calling it “a very troubling case.” Killebrew said this:

“In this case, we don’t judge Albuquerque by its words. We don’t judge Albuquerque by its promises. We judge it by its actions.  Those actions do not tell a coherent story, not right now. … And that gives a lot of us some unease. Had Albuquerque made a different determination in the Jesus Crosby shooting, the story would be more coherent, from our perspective. So the fact that it’s not a coherent story, what does that tell us? What do we need to do?”

Killebrew said they had not yet seen a pattern of shootings similar to the Crosby case and, therefore, his question was left open-ended.

Federal Judge James Browning  asked  another DOJ Attorney what specifically made the lethal force in the Crosby shooting within APD policy.  The DOJ attorney responded that at the time the  deadly force was used, it complied with APD policy.  DOJ Attorney Rahn put it simple terms “The shooting itself was fine, but the whole situation could have been handled better.”

Hager, another the DOJ attorney, said they reviewed APD’s police shootings from 2023 and found that in 12 of the 14 cases a person brandished a gun, and in seven cases actually fired it. He said they saw none of the same “issues that arose” in the Crosby case but they would continue to monitor APD’s actions.

APD COULD BE IN COMPLIANCE WITHIN MONTHS BUT MUST SUSTAIN IT FOR FULL TWO YEARS BEFORE CASE CAN BE DISMISSED

During the January 4 hearing, Paul Killebrew, deputy chief of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division,  praised  the APD progress in implementing the reforms  noting a 43% decrease in use of force since 2020 as a “tremendous milestone” of  investigators working without external guidance and the rerouting of thousands of behavioral health calls to the Albuquerque Community Safety department.

50% of the 217 CASA paragraphs are being self-monitored by APD and 30% have already been terminated after being self-monitored for some time by APD. DOJ attorney Jared Hager noted that the External Force Investigation Team (EFIT), the outside team of contracted professionals hired to  investigate force and clear a case backlog of 667 cases, had left APD’s Internal Affairs Force Division investigators to handle cases on their own.  He said EFIT had completed 470, or 72%, of the backlog cases and found only 5% of those out of policy. Hager said the backlog should be done by mid-May.

DOJ attorney Melody Fields  said APD had “far exceeded” the CASA requirements on crisis intervention and related data collection. She said they reviewed a random sample and found that officers “showed both skill and empathy, in how they responded to people in crisis.” Fields said the crisis response has gotten better over time. She said in 2021, APD used force 312 times against those in crisis, a number that dropped to 195 in 2022.

Fields said, going forward, APD should prioritize diverting even more calls to the Albuquerque Community Safety department, which has “more room for growth.” She said ACS diverted 1,500 calls from APD per month during the monitoring period and went to 24/7 coverage in August.

Ginger’s monitoring team highlighted the “exceptional” training that was observed being done by APD instructors on new policies. They also said the Internal Affairs Force Division  investigators would be “stress tested” with EFIT no longer overseeing their investigations.

Killebrew  said 16 paragraphs of the CASA remained out of compliance and three revolved around deficiencies with APD and its Force Review Board, due to “mishandling” the Crosby case. Killebrew said changes have been made to the FRB and, without any further problems, APD could be in full compliance in the coming months.  The other 13 remaining paragraphs are related to shortcomings with the Civilian Police Oversight Advisory Board.

Killebrew said APD will have to remain in compliance for a full two years, setting a possible end date to federal oversight in 2026. Killebrew said if APD comes into full compliance before the CPOA, the DOJ may seek an out-of-court agreement with the city to get the latter into compliance. With APD still out of compliance, the idea was “all quite theoretical at this point,” he said.

Chief Medina expressed frustration at the timeline and said this in reponse:

“My officers worked hard every single day to meet the requirements in the settlement agreement. … And today I’m being told that 2026 might be the day that this goes into compliance. This is a slap in my face for everything that I’ve helped accomplish here. … Because there’s a strong likelihood. … I will no longer be the chief who gets to sit here when the settlement agreement is completed.”

CIVILIAN POLICE OVERSIGHT ADVISORY BOARD

The majority of CASA paragraphs remaining out of compliance revolve around the Civilian Police Oversight Advisory Board, which was formed in January after the City Council abolished the previous board makeup.  Since then, board positions and leadership roles had remained vacant for months, leading to dysfunction and issues with investigations.

During the January status conference hearing, Diane McDermott, CPOA interim executive director, said recent momentum should have the board fully staffed within weeks and led to the hiring of a contract compliance officer. She called the latter “the first important step” in selecting a permanent director and gaining full compliance. McDermott said they received 723 cases in 2023, 300 of which needed full investigation, a workload that required more investigators, supervisors and a case intake worker. She said those hires, and more office space, would be part of her annual budget request.

McDermott said this:

“Our hope is that the [City Council] and the administration support the agency, and not for the purpose of just compliance, but so that we can perform in a way that our target expects and deserves. … My staff and I are optimistic about where we are headed if proper staffing and budgetary decisions are made.”

LINKS TO QUOTED NEWS SOURCES ARE HERE

https://www.krqe.com/news/crime/apd-reports-fewer-use-of-force-cases-since-2020/

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/apd-chief-claims-improvement-in-use-of-force-investigations/

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-transparency-over-use-of-force-cases/46280346

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/albuquerque-police-data-officers-arresting-more-people-using-force-less/article_78749b22-aa7e-11ee-bbf9-6bab3643e1ec.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/doj-praised-albuquerque-police-reform-gains-as-bad-shooting-hangs-over-hearing/article_f02d3814-ac3f-11ee-bb47-0f8761e3a85c.html#tncms-source=home-featured-7-block

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

On November 16, 2023, it was a full 9 years that has expired since the city entered into the CASA with the DOJ. It was originally agreed that implementation of all the settlement terms would be completed within 4 years, but because of previous delay and obstruction tactics by APD management and the police officers’ union found by the Federal Monitor as well as APD backsliding in implementing the reforms, it has taken another 5 years to get the job done.

Over the last 9 years, APD has devoted thousands of manhours and the city has spent millions of dollars on the reform process, creating and staffing entire divisions and roles and rewriting policies and procedures. More recently, APD has implemented oversight outside of the CASA requirements, implementing six-month reviews of police shootings to identify shortcomings and possible solutions.

Despite the concerns raised in the 18^th  Federal Monitors Report about the citizens  police oversight board,  APD’s compliance with reforms has never been higher. The monitor’s 18th report shows APD has reached 100% in Primary Compliance, 99% in Secondary Compliance and 94% in Operational Compliance the highest levels ever reached in 9 years. Once 95% compliance or better is reached in all 3 of the compliance levels, APD must sustain that compliance for two years. After a full two years of compliance in the 3 compliance levels, the case can be dismissed bringing and to end the consent decree.

Given the extent of the compliance levels, the fact APD has assumed self-monitoring in at least 50% of the CASA reforms, has taken over investigation of use of force cases and the use of force has declined substantially as evidenced by the latest statistics, it can be said the purpose and intent of the Court Approved Settlement Agreement has been achieved.  The city should seek to negotiate a stipulated dismissal of the case with the Department of Justice (DOJ) sooner rather than later.  Should the DOJ refuse, the City Attorney should move to immediately to dismiss the case under the termination and suspension provisions of the CASA by filing a Motion to Dismiss the case and force the issue with an evidentiary hearing and let the assigned federal judge decide the issue of dismissal.

A link to a related blog article is here:

Federal Monitor Issues 18th Federal Monitors Report On APD; Primary Compliance At 100%, Secondary Compliance At 99%, Operational Compliance At 94%;Civilian Police Oversight Advisory Board Found In Crisis; Police Union President Calls Monitoring Process “A Scam”; City Should Seek Dismissal Of Case

Late Friday, January 5, the United Sates Supreme Court  said it will decide whether former President Donald Trump can be kept off state ballot because of his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss inserting the court once again in a  presidential campaign.

National news agencies reported in part as follows:

“The justices acknowledged the need to reach a decision quickly, as voters will soon begin casting presidential primary ballots across the country. The court agreed to take up Trump’s appeal of a case from Colorado stemming from his role in the events that culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Underscoring the urgency, arguments will be held on Feb. 8, during what is normally a nearly monthlong winter break for the justices. The compressed timeframe could allow the court to produce a decision before Super Tuesday on March 5, when the largest number of delegates are up for grabs in a single day, including in Colorado.

The court will be considering for the first time the meaning and reach of a provision of the 14th Amendment barring some people who “engaged in insurrection” from holding public office. The amendment was adopted in 1868, following the Civil War. It has been so rarely used that the nation’s highest court had no previous occasion to interpret it.

Colorado’s Supreme Court, by a 4-3 vote, ruled last month that Trump should not be on the Republican primary ballot. The decision was the first time the 14th Amendment was used to bar a presidential contender from the ballot.

Trump is separately appealing to state court a ruling by Maine’s Democratic secretary of state, Shenna Bellows, that he was ineligible to appear on that state’s ballot over his role in the Capitol attack. Both the Colorado Supreme Court and the Maine secretary of state’s rulings are on hold until the appeals play out.

The high court’s decision to intervene, which both sides called for, is the most direct involvement in a presidential election since Bush v. Gore in 2000, when a conservative majority effectively decided the election for Republican George W. Bush. Only Justice Clarence Thomas remains from that court.

Three of the nine Supreme Court justices were appointed by Trump, though they have repeatedly ruled against him in 2020 election-related lawsuits, as well as his efforts to keep documents related to Jan. 6 and his tax returns from being turned over to congressional committees.

At the same time, Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh have been in the majority of conservative-driven decisions that overturned the five-decade-old constitutional right to abortion, expanded gun rights and struck down affirmative action in college admissions.

Some Democratic lawmakers have called on Thomas to step aside from the case because of his wife’s support for Trump’s effort to overturn the results of the election, which he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. Thomas is unlikely to agree, and there was every indication Friday that all the justices are participating. Thomas has recused himself from only one other case related to the 2020 election, involving former law clerk John Eastman, and so far the people trying to disqualify Trump haven’t asked him to recuse.

The 4-3 Colorado decision cites a ruling by Gorsuch when he was a federal judge in that state. That Gorsuch decision upheld Colorado’s move to strike a naturalized citizen from the state’s presidential ballot because he was born in Guyana and didn’t meet the constitutional requirements to run for office. The court found that Trump likewise doesn’t meet the qualifications due to his role in the U.S. Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021. That day, the Republican president had held a rally outside the White House and exhorted his supporters to “fight like hell” before they walked to the Capitol.”

Links to quoted news sources are here:

https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-insurrection-2024-election-0baac5ba0c1868e437e365af17eeab2

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-colorado-case-2024-ballot-supreme-court/

THE INSURRECTION CLAUSE

More than two dozen states are seeking to keep former President Donald Trump off the 2024 ballot because of his actions surrounding the January 6 riot and relying on the insurrection clause of the United States Constitution. It is Section 3, entitled “Disqualification from Holding Office”, of the Fourteenth Amendment that is referred to as the  insurrection clause.  It states as follows:

No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

The cases in Michigan and Colorado are among the most notable.  Many have been dismissed, while secretaries of states in places like New Hampshire and Oregon have said they don’t have the authority to exclude Trump from the ballots in their states.

THE COLORADO SUPREME COURT RULING

The decision from the Colorado Supreme Court finding Trump cannot hold the presidency was unprecedented and marks the first time a presidential candidate has been deemed ineligible for the White House under Section 3 known as the insurrection clause the  United States Constitution.  Trump is appealing the ruling and it sets up a politically charged showdown before the Supreme Court that has huge implications for the 2024 presidential election.

On December 19, the Colorado Supreme Court kicked former President Trump off the state’s Republican primary ballot under the 14th Amendment in a 4-3 ruling, making it the first state to block him from seeking the presidency because of his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.  The court put its ruling on hold until January 4, so Trump can first seek review from the  U.S. Supreme Court. Trump’s spokesperson quickly vowed to do so, meaning Trump’s name automatically remains on the ballot until the justices in Washington resolve the appeal.

“The Colorado Supreme court affirmed he engaged in insurrection by inflaming his supporters with false claims of election fraud and directing them to the Capitol — preventing him from a second White House term under the 14th Amendment’s “insurrection clause.”  The state justices determined that the office of the president is covered under the insurrection clause, which specifically lists those who previously took oaths to support the Constitution as “a member of Congress,” “officer of the United States,” “member of any State legislature” or an “executive or judicial officer of any State.”

The district court had ruled that the office of the president was not covered under the clause. “We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” the upper court wrote in its decision. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”

If allowed to take effect, Colorado’s secretary of state may not list Trump’s name on the 2024 presidential primary ballot, nor may she count any write-in votes cast for him.

Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump’s campaign, blamed the decision on the “all-Democrat appointed” court, swearing to appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. The seven-member bench of Colorado’s Supreme Court was entirely appointed by Democratic governors; six later faced voters and won retention elections, while the seventh will do so next year.

“The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision tonight and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision,” Cheung said. “We have full confidence that the U.S. Supreme Court will quickly rule in our favor and finally put an end to these unAmerican lawsuits.”

Norma Anderson, a petitioner and former Republican majority leader of the Colorado House and Senate, said in a statement that the plaintiffs’ win bolstered their efforts to protect the state’s elections.

“My fellow plaintiffs and I brought this case to continue to protect the right to free and fair elections enshrined in our Constitution and to ensure Colorado Republican primary voters are only voting for eligible candidates,” Anderson said. “Today’s win does just that.”

…  .

The Colorado Supreme Court decision has been stayed until the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether Trump is barred by the Civil War-era provision, which prohibits those who “engaged in insurrection” from holding office.

The link to the quoted news source is here:

https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4368569-trump-kicked-off-colorado-ballot-in-14th-amendment-case/

The link to read the full Colorado Supreme court ruling is here:

https://www.npr.org/2023/12/20/1220583273/trump-colorado-supreme-court-ruling#:~:text=The%20Colorado%20Supreme%20Court%20on,to%20the%20U.S.%20Supreme%20Court.

MAINE’S SECRETARY KICKS TRUMP OFF BALLOT

On December 28, Maine’s Democratic Secretary of State Shenna Bellows  removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the Constitution’s insurrection clause, becoming the first election official to take action unilaterally as the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether Trump remains eligible to return to the White House.

Bellows found that Trump could no longer run for his prior job because his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol violated Section 3, which bans from office those who “engaged in insurrection.” Bellows made the ruling after some state residents, including a bipartisan group of former lawmakers, challenged Trump’s position on the ballot.

Bellows issued the decision after presiding over an administrative hearing earlier this month about Trump’s eligibility for office. A bipartisan group of former state lawmakers filed the challenge against Trump. In her decision, Bellows concluded that she has a legal obligation to adhere to the 14th Amendment’s insurrectionist ban and remove Trump from the primary ballot.

Bellows wrote in part in her 34-page decision:

“I do not reach this conclusion lightly. … I am mindful that no Secretary of State has ever deprived a presidential candidate of ballot access based on Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. I am also mindful, however, that no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection. … The oath I swore to uphold the Constitution comes first above all, and my duty under Maine’s election laws … is to ensure that candidates who appear on the primary ballot are qualified for the office they seek”

The Trump campaign immediately slammed the ruling.  Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement:

“We are witnessing, in real-time, the attempted theft of an election and the disenfranchisement of the American voter”.

The Trump campaign said it would appeal Bellows’ decision to Maine’s state courts. Bellows suspended her ruling until that court system rules on the case.

Legal experts said that Thursday’s ruling demonstrates the need for the nation’s highest court, which has never ruled on Section 3, to clarify what states can do.

Links to quoted news sources are here:

https://apnews.com/article/maine-trump-presidential-ballot-election-insurrection-081fd38ce1f20be9b8423cb2f8c66dee

https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/28/politics/trump-maine-14th-amendment-ballot/index.html

A NEW MEXICO CASE CONNECTION

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is also pushing to remove Trump from State Ballots. CREW was successful in its effort to remove a New Mexico County Commissioner Couy Griffin from his post due to his participation in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

A district judge in New Mexico barred Otero County commissioner and “Cowboys for Trump” founder Couy Griffin, citing a clause in the 14th Amendment that prohibits those who have engaged in insurrection from serving. Griffin was convicted of a misdemeanor trespass charge. The judge’s ruling was the first time in 150 years that the provision has been used to disqualify an official and the first time that a court has ruled the events of January 6 were an “insurrection.”

Griffin was arrested on January 8, 2021, on a federal misdemeanor trespassing charge related to the January 6, 2021 insurrection. Griffin was convicted of the charge on March 22 and sentenced on June 17 to 14 days’ time served, ordered to pay $500 restitution, pay a $3,000 fine, complete community service and one year of supervised release.

Following Trump’s announcement that he would make a third bid for the White House, CREW released a statement saying it would work to ensure that Trump is disqualified from ever holding office again.  A statement from CREW said this:

“We warned him that should he decide to run again, we would be taking action to ensure the Constitution’s ban on insurrectionists holding office is enforced.  Now we will be. Trump made a mockery of the Constitution he swore to defend, but we will see that it is defended.”

In an interview with ABC News, a CREW official said its focus now is doing whatever possible to keep Trump off the ballot. CREW Executive Vice President and Chief Counsel Donald Sherman said this:

“I will say we are focused on winning. We are not focused on getting our name in the paper … We are focused on bringing the strongest cases possible in order to win and hold the former President accountable. And we are making the strategic choices in order to effectuate that.”

Griffin has now announced that he is appealing his case to the United States Supreme Court.

TRUMP CERTIFIED TO BE ON NEW MEXICO BALLOT

Former President Donald Trump is among a slate of presidential candidates New Mexico’s major political parties certified on December 22  to appear on the state’s June 4 primary ballots amid uncertainty about whether any state can bar the former president from contention under anti-insurrection provisions of the U.S. Constitution.

Trump is among five contenders for the GOP nomination who a presidential primary nominating committee certified for New Mexico’s primary ballot. The Republican Party reserved the option to withdraw candidates from the primary until mid-February if any drop out of national contention.

For now, the certified Republican candidates include former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.

https://apnews.com/article/new-mexico-prepares-presidential-primary-93dd0c2d3df57f349123fc53cc5ede93

COMMENTARTY AND ANALYSIS

Donald J. Trump is the first American President to be impeached twice and the first former president in American history to be charged with  both state and  federal crimes in four separate criminal indictments in 4 separate states.

The four criminal indictments will proceed through the Republican primary season, an overlap of legal and political calendars with no precedent in American politics. Fifteen states and American Samoa hold their GOP primaries on March 5, known as Super Tuesday, which is also the day after his first trial is scheduled to begin in Washington on charges that he unlawfully sought to overturn the 2020 election.

Trump is dominating the Republican field and may secure much of the support he needs by Super Tuesday, by which time almost half of delegates who select the nominee at the GOP convention will have been awarded. Even if he were to be convicted in Washington or another trial, top party leaders and many voters have indicated they would stand by Trump anyway. And Trump and his allies are pushing to dismiss and delay the trials and have worked with state parties to craft rules favorable to him.

The Republican National Convention rules do not include any provisions specific to the unprecedented scenario unfolding. Bound delegates must vote for a particular presidential candidate at the convention based on the results of the primary or caucus in their state. As in past years, every state party must bind its delegates to vote for their assigned candidates during at least the first round of voting at the national convention, with limited exceptions for a small number of delegates. A candidate wins the nomination if they clinch a majority, which is 1,215 delegates.

https://www.abqjournal.com/ap/what-if-donald-trump-is-convicted-the-2024-republican-convention-rules-dont-address-the-issue/article_df3e52da-f70e-5e71-b231-bf749eceddfb.html

Although the Colorado and Main rulings remain on hold until Trump’s appeals are resolved, enabling his name to remain on the ballot in the meantime, the US Supreme Court decision to hear the Colorado case equips the Supreme Court to provide a national resolution in advance of the general election.

Trump’s political fate now lies in the hands of the conservative-majority United State Supreme Court, which includes three Trump appointees and that has never squarely resolved the meaning of the 14th Amendment’s insurrection ban. But that may not matter anyway.

The current Supreme court conservative majority has reversed long standing cases, including a woman’s right to an abortion, arguing state’s rights are controlling. Complicating matters for the Supreme Court is that all states have laws that control requirements that must be met for a person to appear on the ballot and for that matter have processes in place to decide who can be disqualified and removed from the ballot and on what grounds.

We are about to see just how very political the United States Supreme Court has become especially if it rules that States can not decide who can be removed from the ballot.

Colorado Supreme Court Ruling Kicks Trump Off Ballot; Michigan Supreme Court Keeps Trump On Ballot; Main Secretary of State Kicks Trump Off Ballot; Analysis and Commentary: US Supreme Court Front And Center Of Trump’s Fate