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Thursday, August 07, 2025News Coverage Of APD DWI Scandal Still Stymied; Watchdog Speaks Out, Plus: Reader React To Housing Crisis APD cops continue to admit to taking bribes in the sweeping DWI scandal that has engulfed the department and is being traced back 30 years. And former APD sergeant and watchdog Dan Klein and others continue to criticize federal court plea bargain hearings where officers admit guilt but are conducted with no news reporters present. No quotes from the judges, attorneys or defendants and no courtroom sketches. Also, those "perp walks" so familiar to TV viewers where defendants are shown walking into the courthouse for their hearings are nowhere to be seen, unlike in other criminal cases. Klein says: The federal courts are supposed to step in when the system fails and violates the Constitution by not making public (in a timely manner) the docketed plea deals. This means that citizens victimized by the DWI scandal don’t get the chance to see the officers and attorneys who harmed them standing before a federal magistrate and pleading guilty. When justice happens in private there is no justice, this is what our constitution wanted to protect us from. Federal judges, the US Attorney, defense attorneys, the federal court administration seem to be working very hard to keep the public and victims in the dark when it comes to plea deals with the DWI scandal. You don’t see this in any other criminal cases. It drives the belief home that in New Mexico defendants who were part of the criminal justice system get better treatment than those who were not. We would add that the NM media has been alarmingly shy in pursuing their right to attend the hearings and protecting the public's right to know. KRQE has tried, unsuccessfully, but what happened to the NM Foundation for Open Government (FOG)? What other dominoes will be allowed to fall? As for the future APD, mayoral candidates Mayling Armijo and Louie Sanchez are two of the seven contenders on the November ballot who say, if elected, they will seek new APD leadership. HOUSING CRISIS  Joe, I will cut to the chase. The median home price in Albuquerque is $395.000. Income requirement to buy the median priced home is $115,234. Median home income in Albuquerque is $63,971. We've seen inflation in the price of land and price of building materials but when it comes to income, stagflation. If we don't do something to address the wages side of the affordability equation then I fear those alphabet generations will never be "homeowners" in the traditional sense. Another longtime reader, conservative Jim McClure, commented: Thanks for calling attention to the housing crisis. One reason it exists is because politicians believe that high-priced government apartment buildings are the only alternative to homelessness. Another way is to encourage private developers to build starter homes by rolling back government regulations that drive up costs. Wider use of manufactured housing can reduce construction costs. Not just mobile homes: Modular homes (even luxury models) can be quickly assembled on-site from factory-built components. This will require changing zoning laws, streamlining permitting and rolling back environmental rules that add to the costs of every new home. The Navajo Nation recently inked a deal to build manufactured homes and Mayor Keller is using creative zoning to encourage casitas. Instead of just putting people under a roof, encouraging low-cost starter homes will move people into the middle class by making them homeowners. Good stuff, guys. We welcome your comments, criticisms, observations and existential angst. Reporting from Albuquerque, I'm Joe Monahan. This is the Home of New Mexico Politics. Wednesday, August 06, 2025Question For The Day: Why Does Housing Crisis Persist In The Face Of Hundreds Of Millions In Government Spending? Two Projects Offer Answers, Plus: More Crime Beat And NM Redistricting Pondered
The short answer is that building "affordable" housing is anything but. Looking at two developments coming on line in Las Cruces drives the point home. In January, officials broke ground for Amador Crossing, a 50-unit permanent supportive housing complex on the campus of the Mesilla Valley Community of Hope, where residents can access case management, food and health services. $14.2 million of the projected $15.6 million cost has been secured. What is not mentioned is the cost per unit for this development. That comes in at a hair-raisng $315,000 each for those 50 units. That's how fast the crisis burns through nearly $16 million in state, local and federal housing money. Another Cruces development amplifies the point and the math: In May, Las Cruces officials and property developers formally opened a $22 million complex offering 70 apartments for low-income renters built on vacant city land. This one also comes in at $315,000 per unit. We did find one Las Cruces development that averaged $215,000 per unit--still no bargain. Cruces puts it housing gap at 5,600 units. Assume public funding is used to build 2,500. At $300,000 each to construct, the total would be a staggering $750 million. Even at a cost of $215,000 per unit the outlay would be an enormous $537 million. ABQ estimates its housing gap at around 5,000 units for the homeless so the shocking math applies here as well. So why are housing experts maintaining that spending these massive amounts of public dollars on housing is the most effective solution to the shortage? Because facilities like shelters or jails often cost $31,000 to $44,700 per person a year without addressing root causes like housing scarcity. Building housing, even at $315,000 per unit, remains cheaper in the long term than the recurring costs of institutionalization or homelessness, The problem is daunting and exacerbated by an era of vast income inequality and rising housing costs that persist. That's why what seems like enormous public housing expenditures may actually be only putting a finger in the dike. CRIME BEAT Tuesday we reported on APD's stats showing a decline in crime in the city in the first half of 2025. Here is some follow-up with this news: Crime nationally decreased in every category in 2024, including murder, violent crime and motor vehicle thefts, according to data released by the FBI on Tuesday. It reflects a trend experts have been tracking as reported numbers of violent crimes continue to drop from a spike immediately following the COVID-19 pandemic. While the report included good news, a violent crime still occurred on average every 25.9 seconds in the United States last year, according to the FBI's annual Unified Crime Report. . .This year's report used data submitted by 16,675 different agencies, which the FBI said covers. . .about 95.6% of U.S. residents. REDISTRICT HERE?  Joe, given the presidentially-inspired redistricting hijinks playing out in our neighboring state, perhaps majority NM Dems should consider using the special session to make the 2nd congressional district even more Rep. Gabe Vasquez-friendly than many think it currently is. Game on, n’est pas? "Is not?" is the question posed by frenchmanAndre. But, no, the game is probably not on. Vasquez won his southern-based congressional district by 10,000 votes in 2024 with strong showings in Bernalillo and Dona Ana counties. The 2nd Congressional District has already been gerrymandered plenty so there's no need for legislators to order Brian Sanderoff and company to start penciling in new boundaries. This is the Home of New Mexico Politics. E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com) Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here. Tuesday, August 05, 2025ABQ Crime Down? Yes, According To Latest APD Stats For The First Half Of Year; Numbers Set Stage For Debate In Mayoral Contest, Plus: First Half Santa Fe Crime Stats Paint Mixed Picture
That assertion always draws sneers as the headlines never cease informing us of the latest spree of violence. Nevertheless fresh stats for the first half of this year from APD show an overall decline in the city's crime rate over last year, a report sure to be touted by Mayor Tim Keller as he seeks re-election and perhaps one to be challenged by his six opponents. From the Downtown ABQ News: With citywide data now available through the first half of the year, all major categories of crime are down compared to the same period in 2024. Auto theft has dropped 40 percent, residential burglary is down 14 percent, and commercial burglary has fallen 24 percent. Taken together with shoplifting, those major nonviolent crimes are down 25 percent. Meanwhile, the three main categories of violent crime tracked by APD - aggravated assault, sex crimes, and robbery - are down 12 percent. Homicides, which make up their own category, have declined 28 percent. The closely watched murder rate went from 47 slayings in the first half of 2024 to 34 this year, says, APD, putting ABQ on track to finish the year below 80 homicides. In 2024, the city recorded 89 homicides, a rate of about 15.8 per 100,000 residents, higher than the national average of 6.5. 2023 saw 94 homicides. It's important to note that crime continues to creep down from historic levels so whether the electorate is "feeling it" remains crucial to the political impact of the apparent decline. The city credits APD finally hitting its stride for the drop. Some Republicans give Trump credit, citing his immigration enforcement and drug interdiction efforts as well as fostering a get tough environment toward criminals. Others say the stats are down because people are simply not reporting many crimes but that doesn't explain the decline in the highly reported violent crime category. One sticking point is the increase in gun violence by juveniles, a point made by MLG as she ponders a special legislative session dealing with crime and other matters. Dem gubernatorial candidate and Bernalillo County District Attory Sam Bregman has made youth violence a key plan of his tenure. DATELINE SANTA FE  Reports of some types of property crimes in Santa Fe have dropped in the first half of 2025, compared with the same period last year, while violent crimes have surged. City crime statistics at the year’s midpoint show a significant rise in alleged assaults — 33% — and sex crimes — 28% — while the numbers of reported burglaries, vehicle thefts and larcenies have decreased. The number of reported robberies, meanwhile, has remained steady. Overall, city police have seen a more than 6% increase in the total number of reports for the eight offenses tracked in the agency’s monthly report. . .The drop in reports of property crimes continues a trend of decreases seen in 2024. Reports of vehicle thefts have decreased more than 17% this year compared with the first half of 2024, after a 5% decrease in the overall numbers for 2024 compared with 2023. Vehicle thefts spiked in 2023, when the city saw 675 reports — the highest number recorded in a year, according to the department’s recent annual reports. Overall, residents of ABQ and Santa Fe can take heart that the peak rate of crime appears to be behind them as juvenile crime still casts a dark shadow. The battle for how the public perceives all his will be played out on the mayoral campaign trails over the next three months. This is the Home of New Mexico Politics. E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com) Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here. Monday, August 04, 2025A Special Session Of The Legislature? MLG Leans Into One But The Necessity Called Into Question --During the last special session of the legislature last July, it took only hours for MLG's crime-fighting proposals to be ignored and for the 112 lawmakers to adjourn and go home. All other bills also died. She risks the same outcome if she insists on another special. --That's because there is no preordained deal with the legislative leadership. It's been a head-scratcher, that the Governor goes into these sessions with no agreement, an essential element to get what she feels is needed. She appears on on track to see that happen again. It may be that she knows crime is such a top-of-mind concern that doing something, doing anything, strengthens her public position. --MLG says a chief reason for the special would be to approve legislation to shut down the three ICE detention centers in the state in reaction to Trump's immigration enforcement. That proposal failed to pass at this year's regular session and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Joe Cervantes waved a red flag over the plan at a committee hearing last week. --Also, let the state's congressional delegation do their job. ICE is a federal issue. US Reps Gabe Vasquez and Melanie Stansbury as well as Sen Heinrich have been active on that front. There is no need for the Governor to confront DC over this now unless it is for political purposes. --The Guv's concern about federal cuts to Medicaid and food stamps is shared by many but the fact is that most of the big cuts don't even take effect until after the November 2026 midterm elections.The legislature's regular January '26 session will provide plenty of time to prepare and even then uncertainty will still prevail over whether the cuts will stay in place. --The cuts to the social safety net have been addressed in part by the establishment of a $50 billion Rural Healthcare Fund which should prevent drastic measures from occurring at the state's rural hospitals, although Democrats express skepticism over the fund's effectiveness. --New Mexico's giant surpluses from the oil boom can cover the Medicaid and food stamp cuts in the intermediate term--if they happen--and it would take a simple measure during a regular session to transfer funds to them. Exactly what the Fourth Floor expects to walk away with from a special is foggy. Until the reasoning becomes less opaque and pre-session deals are announced, Republicans will score points accusing MLG of grandstanding. Bringing attention to her deep disagreement with the White House on immigration, her support of the social safety net and her longtime advocacy for sterner gun control measures are widely supported by the majority party. It's just that a regular session--not an expensive and nonproductive special session--is the appropriate venue. THE MLG VIEW  You said at the end of the legislative session you wanted a special session to address crime, juvenile crime in particular. Is that still a possibility? It is still a possibility. We’ve been meeting with leadership staff. There’s more movement to be in a more productive place for a special session. But we’re not where we need to be and there’s no reason to call them and not have any effort. Plus, I don’t want to do three or four or five or six special sessions, as we see what rolls out from the feds, particularly in the next couple of days [this interview took place on May 21, prior to the U.S. House May 22 passage of the GOP budget bill]. And I think there’s widespread agreement by the Democratic leadership that we should adjust our priorities and our budgets to reflect whatever we need to do and can do in the short term to protect New Mexicans. Do you have an ideal scenario of how the state would make up Medicaid funding shortfalls? I think that the fact that we’ve got money in reserves…there are things that we can do. My pitch to the Legislature today—and of course, I haven’t seen what’s coming, although I have a pretty good idea—is we should try to sustain to the degree that we can for a year. And it’s really two [years] between now and when [the 2026 midterm elections] would take hold in Congress, but see if you can stem the closures of rural hospitals and healthcare clinics, and that we don’t lose any movement to hold onto OBGYNs, which is precarious. That’s my perspective today. It’s still a lot of money and we’d have to game it out. It could be as little as $1 billion that we’d have to come up with in healthcare. It could be as much as $3 billion and that’s before you get to education and the [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program]. This is the Home of New Mexico Politics. E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com) Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here. |
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