Sham and more...

The leaders of Albuquerque seem to be living in upside down land. Not only in how they spend our money, but in how they address challenges on the street…

Faced with spending about $10,000 or more than $500,000, the Albuquerque City Council openly revealed how they could care less about citizen tax dollars. A citizen initiated ordinance which would change the “viability” date of late term abortions from 24 weeks to 20 weeks, is prepared to go to the voters. But instead doing what they have the power to do and include the measure on October’s city ballot, city councilor’s are instead desiring to have a special election for the matter. At issue are to matters: 1) Can the city council approve an election resolution and 2) can city clerk Amy Baily certify the 12,000 or so signatures of the approximately 28,000 turned into her by September?

Costs for a special election are anticipated to run between $500,000-700,000. But why spend $10,000 when you can spend over half-million?! Instead of moving forward with the necessary resolution and offering to supplement Amy Bailey’s staff to certify the necessary signatures by hiring people, the members of Albuquerque’s city council want to bilk tax payers for the cost of the special election. While they had no problem approving a “consulting fee” of $10,000/per month for recently departed chief of police Ray Schultz, city councilors can’t seem to assign a few people for $20/per hour to help count signatures.

But this kind of upside down thinking shouldn’t surprise us. Even though the current mayor, RJ Berry is supposed to be a “businessman” (we thought that meant making and saving money not wasting it…) under his administration, APD has shrunk and not grown. At latest report there are approximately 853 sworn officers. And his approach to dealing with crime in the city is also the inverse of what needs to be done. Instead of dealing with it, he hides from it then says it doesn’t exist.
Under Berry, gang violence has increased and now there are midday shootouts where recent gang violence spilled up to 70 bullets into the streets in gun fight last Sunday afternoon (READ IT HERE). This didn’t happen in some remote section of the “International District” or some destitute area of the South Valley, but in the busy intersection of Menaul NW/4^th NW. But because of officer scarcity no dayshift officers responded to the call nor swingshift officers. Only an off-duty sergeant who was headed into work but whose shift wasn’t to start for another half hour.

When asked about this mess and the lack of officers, newly pressed APD Chief Allen Banks openly stated to City Councilor Ken Sanchez that APD’s Gang Unit has not been disbanded but merely “dispersed.” (By the way, even KRQE anticipated gang violence weeks ago (READ IT HERE) and we at the Eye called it months ago).

SIDEBAR

We will be reporting more on this motorcycle gang war. There is a MAJOR turf war that is headed for Albuquerque between the 505 Banditos and California's Hells Angels. The Berry Administration will not tell you to be cautious but we here at the Eye call it like it is; we will tell you to use extreme caution!

END SIDEBAR

Like STD’s the legacy of disgraced former Nefarious Public Safety Director Darren White continues to give. Just recently the city settled a high profile case where he encouraged aggressive action on citizens back in 2010. In the fabled “4^th Street Mall” case, we got to see how litigation rich targets, also known as Leah Kelly and Jennifer Jara, pushed their badge around on citizens not violating any crime (READ IT HERE). And this is the second case in this incident that the city settled with the total tab running to about $100,000.

The conduct of officer in this incident is really beyond comprehension. We’ll let you see this for yourself: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5I9RhVaW72E.But hey, when the Nefarious Public Safety Director Darren White says the gloves are off, he means it (See the Memo below)!

This is the same Leah Kelly who would be involved in a shooting a few months later which has yet to fully litigated. Will the city settle this one also or will they take it to court and risk another $10 Million? Given the target of the shooting was found to have not committed any crimes and Kelly has, well, an endless discipline and complaint history we expect there to be a lot of fireworks in this mess. We'd like to see the lawyers involved in this matter grill White as to what personal liability does he have Kelly's actions against her victim/target. By failing to discipline Kelly and Jara for their behavior on the 4th Street Mall did he encourage and incite such aggressive behavior? If not for White's inaction to appropriately discipline Kelly and Jara did they not feel they were untouchable and fully empowered to go on their own shooting rampage?

The point is folks, just when we thought things couldn’t get worse, well they are. Then there is the matter of some discriminatory practices involving what is known as “The Kirk” that we at the Eye have uncovered.  We’ll leave that for next week though…..

Interim Chief Banks starts off by Lying to City Council

During Monday night’s meeting before the Albuquerque City Council, Berry’s’ newest blunder, Albuquerque’s new Interim Chief of Police, Allen Banks, told his first bold-face lie to the Council as Interim Chief. Ray Schultz must be proud of his protégé.

Councilor Ken Sanchez stated to Banks that he understood that the APD Gang Unit was disbanded in APD. Sanchez then asked Interim Chief Banks if this was true. Banks replied, “No,” the unit has not been disbanded but the officers assigned to the gang unit have been “placed” in other units. This is what we located on the internet:

Dis-band (dis’band)                                                                                                                             

 Cause (an organized group) to break up                                                               

(Of an organization group) Break up and stop functioning as an organization.

 

If someone disbands a group of people, or if the group disbands, it stops operating as a single unit. 

~Synonyms~

Dissolve - disperse - dismiss - break up – dissipate 

If Banks “placed” the officers in other units doesn’t this mean he disbanded them? Dissolved the unit? Dispersed the unit? Dismissed the unit? Broke up the unit? Dissipated the unit?  Why does this man lie? Why does he feel the need to lie?  Why can’t Banks stand up for what is right? And in light of the violent motorcycle gang shoot out in the North Valley; doesn’t the City need the Gang Unit more now than ever (more to come on this mess too)? Is Banks simply a “trophy” for Berry to place on the mantel?  

Do something Mr. Banks; stop lying, take the high road, start doing the “right” thing! APD is in disarray and needs strong leadership; not another dump whip boy like Schultz.  

Oh, and yes, we have heard the rumor that Berry has promised Schultz the Public Safety Director position. And, yes, our Eyes at PERA have told us that Schultz has not filed ANY retirement paperwork. So, it does appear Schultz is holding out to stay with the City long term.

Perry Trips on His Own Jaw; Council in Quandary

In today’s Journal (read it here) “Albuquerque Chief Administrative Officer Rob Perry says he asked the city’s independent review officer to investigate a single-car crash involving the wife of then-Public Safety boss Darren White and its aftermath in his capacity as a citizen.” Perry claims that he made the request as a “citizen.” That is clearly a “White Lie,” in a letter from Perry to the IRO, Perry stated, “As we discussed on the telephone today, and at the request of Mayor Berry, I am asking you to conduct a thorough review of the facts surrounding (the crash.)...” Perry was referring to the crash involving Kathy White, the wife of former Public Safety Director, Darren.

Perry stated, “We believe this clearly provides the IRO statutory authority to investigate allegations of impropriety by all parties involved in this incident,” Perry wrote in the letter, dated Tuesday. “I dispatched a letter to Mr. Deaton asking him to do such. To this extent I am a citizen of Albuquerque, and the (letter to Deaton) can be construed as a complaint.”

Perry later stated to the City Councilors that the correspondence he sent to IRO William Deaton “can be construed as a complaint.” Perry opened his mouth and inserted his foot up to his knee. Construed; Perry was obviously double talking. Perry stated point blank that he was complaining and requesting an investigation on behalf of Mayor Berry. Perry sent (dispatched) an official letter on City of Albuquerque letter head and not on his own stationary. We can only be lead to believe that he drafted the letter on behalf of the Mayor during his normal scope and course of duties with the City of Albuquerque. Perry was acting on behalf of the City and not on his own behalf. Perry lied to the public and to the City Council.

The Eye already warned that the contract that Perry signed with the IRO may be illegal. The Councilors have recognized that there is a huge problem here and have asked for an independent investigation citing, violation of the city ordinance, “which states that the IRO is authorized to investigate citizen complaints against sworn police officers.”

Some profound words come from Councilor Ken Sanchez. “This clearly isn’t a citizen complaint,” Sanchez said. “I think the administration is digging itself deeper and deeper into a hole and not being transparent in what they’re doing.

Sanchez also stated, “The bottom line is the IRO doesn’t have the authority to do this investigation based on the contract and the ordinance. And this administration is finding a way to continue it, which is illegal and sets a very bad precedence that we are not following our own ordinances.” The Eye completely agrees with Sanchez which leads us to the next issue.

Perry's lying is terrible but what is worse is the conspiring that is going on behind closed doors. Schultz knows and should have told Perry, who is an attorney, that the City must conduct a criminal investigation first. This information is contained in the APD Standard Operating Manual. Under Garrity since it is a compelled statement, the statement(s) may not be used in a criminal investigation or proceedings. An administrative investigation will be maintained privately and no one will be able to see the facts. The big difference is, on a criminal investigation the results would eventually be made public.


The City Council is right on target and should stay the course. Schultz, Perry and the City are attempting to use legitimate means to keep the illegal doings private, hidden and concealed. The City Council must react strongly and demand a full and complete criminal investigation. Don’t be fooled by the simpleton games that Schultz and Perry are playing; they are trying to conceal crimes that were committed. This type of behavior is going to place us on the AP hotwire and ruin the rest of the City’s reputation. This is looking more and more like some of the things that transpired in New Orleans,Louisiana, that caused DOJ to come in and take over the PD.

The City Council has stated they will ask for an independent investigation from the City's Inspector General. The Mayor's spokesperson stated the administration will respect the Council's opinion. This is agreeable to the Mayor's Office because it will still be an administrative case which can be kept secret. The Council must demand a criminal investigation first; and then an administrative investigation may take place afterwards.

Instructions; do not lie and stop trying to hide the truth. Schultz and Perry should know that the truth always comes out in the end. Councilor Ken Sanchez stated, “I think the administration is digging itself deeper and deeper into a hole…” The Eye agrees complete with this statement and offers this advice; if you want to get out of the hole, quit DIGGING!

White Lies would get you Fired, but not Darren’s White Lies

How do you know Albuquerque Public Safety Director, Darren White is lying? His lips are moving! It has become common place to hear of another White lie from the “Burro” Award recipient, Darren White. City Councilor Ken Sanchez called White out in public on his lies. In the opinion page of the Journal (read it here), Sanchez blasted White for repeatedly lying to the public. The Eye has done several stories documenting other lies that White has told.

Sanchez in his open letter to the Journal set the record straight. According to the letter, White lied when he was interviewed on KOB-TV; White said that voters were assured that Public Safety Tax money would not go to salaries and benefits. Sanchez stated clearly, “That is absolutely not true.”

Sanchez went on to chastise White and the Berry administration (and rightfully so) for diverting 3 Million dollars per year for up to thirty years “in order to borrow money to pay for boutique capital projects that the city may not be able to afford to operate.” That same money could have purchased new police and/or fire vehicles.

Sanchez also stated, "In the same Journal article, White asserted that the city has not followed the five-year expenditure plan that I referred to earlier. Once again, that is simply not true. In fact, through fiscal 2009, the last year of the five-year plan, the Public Safety Quarter Cent Tax had purchased more than $34 million in public safety equipment, including nine fire engines, six rescue vehicles, one command vehicle, 32 sedans, one brush truck, one SUV and dozens of police vehicles. In addition, the city used Fire Public Safety Tax money to renovate the Fire Academy, to renovate fire stations 2, 15 and 18, and for miscellaneous maintenance and capital equipment." This was simply another one of White's lies.

Sanchez backed up his claim by stating, “It’s important to point out that since the inception of the Public Safety Quarter Cent Tax, the city’s Office of Internal Audit has conducted a management audit and a follow-up audit on the use of the proceeds of the tax. One of the purposes was to determine whether Public Safety Tax dollars were being used in accordance with the law. Both the management audit and the follow-up audit found only minor technical issues, but absolutely no misuse of the funds.”

Kudos to Councilor Sanchez, thank you for educating the public and setting the record straight. Oddly enough, if you or Eye lied the way White does, we would be fired. White lies constantly and nothing is ever done. Maybe fibbing and being a tattletale is truly Darren Whites job because that is all he seems to do. It is no wonder the culture of corruption thrives in the City.

It is time for new leadership. When election time comes, please vote your conscience.

Who’s Zooming Who?

The Albuquerque City Council voted and approved a one-year extension for the Redflex Camera “money maker machine.” Only two City councilors voted “no” on the Scam-era’s fleecing operation. Bravo to councilors Dan Lewis and Michael Cook for standing up to the money hungry councilors. Now the question is who is zooming who?

The morons on the city council and others; such as, the Albuquerque Journal Editorial Board pound their hands on the poppet and proclaim that this is all in the name of “safety!” The Eye begs to differ. We all know this is in the name of money. The City of Rio Rancho did not lie to their constituents’; they clearly stated that the Scam-era’s are to generate revenue. And, oh yeah, they might help out with that safety issue too… The City of Albuquerque lied and continues to lie.

All the local media who are played by the Berry Administration, report on the Scam-era’s and make unsubstantiated claims based on the City’s secret monitoring system that the City claims show red light violations increased over 200%. That’s strange; shouldn’t accidents at these intersections have increased by 200% accordingly? Someone is zooming someone else here and numbers do not match up. That basically means someone is lying and fudging the numbers.

Here is a thought for our City leaders; “We the people, for the people, by people.” The people of Albuquerque voted you into office to voice the will of the people. If you cannot do that, then send the Red Flex Scam-era’s to polling booths and let the people vote. This seems like a simple concept but our City leaders refuse to submit to the will of the people. Why would the City leaders and administrators like Chief Schultz be so reluctant to permanently shutting down the Scam-era’s? Do these people have some other type of interest in keeping the Scam-era’s proceeds flowing? Who has investment from the City in Red Flex? Does the City of Albuquerque’s have any investments in Red Flex? Any of these scenarios would clearly be inappropriate and a clear conflict of interest.

Red Flex is a for profit company; not a public safety none-profit agency. According to the Journal (Read here) Redflex lobbyist Dick Minzner said Redflex will reimburse the City for any administrative cost and at the same time stated that “the company hopes that enough citations are issued to make the program a money maker for the company…” Does anybody in Albuquerque really think that Redflex is going to take a loss when they are a for profit company? The answer is NO, we will see the cycles of the lights change again to ensure that Redflex remains profitable.

Shame on you City Councilors for condoning Reflex’s ripping off the public and to Councilor Sanchez who stated in the Journal, “I’m very pleased with the contract the administration has put together.” Councilor Sanchez, you should never be “pleased” when our citizens are being swindled.

Take a look at some of the people on the council and the predicament that their primary employers are in due in part to their inabilities or abilities such as Brad Winter. APS is in shambles and it’s getting worse daily. Some of the councilors need to clean out their own closets before they even open another door. The main issue that plagues APS is fiscal irresponsibility.

The citizens of Albuquerque have the right to decide how they wish to be policed. If it is the will of the voters to keep the Scam-era’s, so be it. However, if the public decides they do not want to be fleeced any longer by the City’s and Redflex’s greed, the Scam-era’s need to go dark forever.

What are our City leaders so afraid of? Is it loss of revenue to the City? It is loss of other investments? Below are a few other problems that will find their way into the debacle that has been created by Chief Schultz and company. Schultz is the one who brought Redflex to Albuquerque when he came from Scottsdale, Arizona. Take a look…

“Minnesota Supreme Court Strikes Down Red Light Cameras.” (Read here)

“Houston voters reject red-light cameras by wide margin.” (Read here)

“Missouri: Judge Finds Red Light Camera Program Illegal” (Read here)

The Honorable City Council President, Ken Sanchez, Apparently Believes in Honor

Albuquerque’s Public Safety Director, Darren White's truthfulness has come under fire recently, particularly after the January 3rd city council meeting where city councilor members did not understand why White said one thing to them, and another to the Police Department. White spearheaded the new take home car policy which removed vehicles from approximately 180 loyal, seasoned police officers. The vehicles were removed from sworn officers. It seemed no one understood his reasoning or his antics. Meeting after meeting, one man stood by the officers, stood by public safety; that man is the Honorable City Council President, Ken Sanchez. He was vocal about his views and remained open-minded throughout this entire ordeal. President Sanchez was never ashamed for his continued support of the officers and the public’s interest. In fact, President Sanchez went to the APOA Union Meeting held on January 20th, vowing his support and his will to fight. He encouraged officers to stand up for their beliefs and continue to voice their opinions.

It appears that the relentless pressure from the Honorable City Council President, Ken Sanchez, has crushed the will of the foes involved. So, what does this mean? According to our Eyes it means that as of 6:00 P.M. tonight all 180 plus officers get their cars back! The Honorable Ken Sanchez knew what was right for the officers, right for the citizens and right for public safety. Once again, maybe the “Berry Bad Mistake” folks will take note of this admirable man and follow suit. It should also be noted that the Honorable Governor of the State of New Mexico, Suzanna Martinez, placed a moratorium on the purchase of any new cars for the State of New Mexico, except for public safety. Simply said, public safety must come first. For those in the Berry Administration who keep missing this important point, we can pull out the crayons and draw you a picture that you might be able to understand.

We can only wonder what statement, if any White will make. It was his idea after all to take the cars away. Do you think he had an epiphany? The timing of his epiphany comes into question, as the Vote of No Confidence is due to be voted on in less than three weeks. Is he hoping officers will think he is the hero, and it is because of him that the cars are back? Give credit where credit is due. In fact next time you see Ken Sanchez, tell him "Thank You…Thank you for doing your job, thank you for being fair, thank you for your hard work, and most of all thank you for not allowing yourself to be bullied.”

A special recognition must be given to Councilor Debbie O’Malley for standing up and voicing her thoughts, also!

Political Theater

Councilors Ken Sanchez and Rey Garduno are looking for their time in the political spotlight. The two have alerted the media that they plan to try and add Mayor Berry's new APD illegal immigration policy to tonight's council agenda. Their objective is to prevent the mayor from checking whether or not a criminal has already committed a crime by entering the country illegally.

In addition, the two intrepid councilors are proposing that the city join the few states, schools, and cities that are "boycotting" Arizona. Siding with Sanchez and Garduno is none other than Isaac Benton.

This isn't Benton's first foray into international affairs. Back in January of 2009, Benton characterized the Israeli conflict with Palestine as "genocide" (ABQ Journal - Subscription).

Look... Mayor Berry's new SOP, is no different than checking those who are arrested for wants and warrants. We'd argue that the policy doesn't quite go far enough, but the truth is Berry's policy could have prevented the rape of a six year old girl earlier this month.

Juan Gonzalez told police he has "problems touching little children" after he was arrested earlier this week on suspicion of sexually assaulting a 6-year-old girl at an Albuquerque gym, officials said.

Gonzalez, a 20-year-old Mexican national, was being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center late Thursday on a $200,000 cash-only bond, jail records show. He is charged with criminal sexual penetration, kidnapping and evidence tampering. 

- (ABQ Journal - Subscription)

Not all immigrants are criminals - not even illegal immigrants (except for that whole illegally being in the country thing). But what Sanchez, Garduno, and Benton are proposing is that police officers intentionally ignore the crime of entering the country illegally when performing a legal investigation.

This looks to us like a case of political "me toos" designed to garner support from a far left constituency. It certainly makes for good political theater, but in reality a majority the public wants a secure border and Mayor Berry's new policy is a step toward that goal.

Dumbsticks

One of the more bizarre stories to hit the air this week was KOB TVs Monday story about Councilor Don Harris' pilfering of drummer David Garibaldi's drumsticks (see it here). According to the story, Harris left with his pilfered prize after inviting himself back to the band's dressing room prior to the Hispano Chamber's La Noche Encantada.

Garibaldi gave his tepid approval for the councilor to make off with the sticks but later was troubled enough by the encounter to write a scathing letter to every member of the Albuquerque City Council. KOB's story included a few excerpts from Garibaldi's letter, but we managed to get our Eyes on a complete copy of the missive.

Don,

David Garibaldi here. I'm the drummer with the Tower of Power,and we met Saturday evening at The Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce gathering. Ever since our meeting I was troubled by what transpired, so I thought I'd drop you a line and express my thoughts to you.
Just to recount the events surrounding our meeting...

Prior to our show, you and your son came into our dressing room without asking and introduced yourselves to me, our guitarist Jerry Cortez, and trumpet player Mic Gillette. You wanted your son to meet us, which we were more than happy to do. We spoke for a few minutes and you mentioned that you were a lawyer and a politician and that you played saxophone at one time, had studied music and when you began to play after graduating, you said music wasn't a very good life.

You expressed this to some folks who have been very successful musicians all their lives. I'm 63 years old and have been playing the drums since the age of 10, and a working musician since the age of 17. As a boy, my dream was to travel the world playing the drums...I'm living my dream. My work is well documented and my reputation speaks for itself.

After the show I again saw you and your son backstage, and you showed me a pair of drum sticks that you had taken off of my drum set. I was pretty surprised and said that your taking them wasn't a good idea. i didn't want to make a scene and allowed your son to keep them...you said something about not knowing what the "protocol" was. Then, in the dressing room in front of most of the band members, you asked me why that wasn't ok...I replied "because you didn't ask".

Again, I didn't want to make a scene and embarrass you in front of your son and said he could keep them, but in retrospect, I should have asked for the sticks back and said what I'm saying now. Our dressing room is our sanctuary before shows where we can relax and focus on our performance, so I wasn't expecting to have to deal with you in that way.

That "protocol" you mentioned isn't really protocol...it's my property, and you had no right whatsoever to to my property. You're a lawyer and should know this. Obviously, the rules don't apply to you. The dressing room was our private area, and you had no right to be there without permission. Again, I guess you thought because you're a city council member, you can go where you want, and take what you want. Sorry. You took my property without my permission, and thought it was ok. Your now son thinks it's ok too. Where did you get this idea that you could take what's mine without asking?

You came into our dressing room without an invitation, ate our food without asking, and also took my drumsticks without my permission as a prize for your son. Yes, it only a pair of drumsticks, but sir, they're my drumsticks and they mean something to me...they represent my life and all I've worked for.

I hope we don't meet again...you're what wrong with politicians today. You represent yourself and your own interests and definitely showed how little respect you have for what I do. You're not welcome at our shows. We've been doing this for 42 years, and are serious about our craft. We're also serious about the impression we leave behind.

Your bio says you studied the saxophone with the late Jackie McLean...one of the greats. I'm a fan of his and often listen to his recordings. You studied with someone who understood the tradition of the instrument and respected it. Based on your behavior, I wouldn't include him on your bio...if he knew what you were up to, he probably wouldn't approve of it.

It was an embarrassing moment, totally unacceptable and I have no recourse but to write you, and to Cc your colleagues on the city council, so they'll know what kind of person they're working with, if they don't already. If I knew any media people there in Albuquerque, I'd be including them here as well.

Aside from this, it was a tremendous event, staffed and attended by some very nice people...my compliments to a very professional Joe Bufalino and his crew for making us feel welcome.

Respectfully,

David Garibaldi
Drummer - Tower of Power

You really have to read the full letter to understand how strange Saturday's councilor meets drummer encounter really was. We don't know what the councilor was thinking but his spokesman - Councilor Ken Sanchez - told KOB that Harris would be sending the drumsticks back while Councilor Harris refused requests to go on camera.

Our bet is that for his service above and beyond the call of being president of the city council, Ken Sanchez will be owed a very important favor.

Crossing the Line

Councilor Ken Sanchez is well known for being a major supporter of The Almighty Alcalde. Today that support may have gone too far. Councilor Ken Sanchez has sent an email out to Bernalillo County and city employees attacking Richard Romero.

From: Ken Sanchez [mailto:info@martychavez.com]
Sent: Monday, September 28, 2009 3:37 PM

Subject: Romero Gave $21,300 to Republicans


Dear Supporter,
Over the last five years, Santa Fe Lobbyist Richard Romero has given or funneled $21,300 to Republican politicians. Why did a self described "progressive" Democrat become a Santa Fe lobbyist and use his position to funnel tens of thousands of dollars to right wing Republicans that they use to bash Democrats and advance their right wing agenda? That's not principled and it's certainly not courageous.
It gets worse. Richard Romero didn't just use his own money or his lobbying clients' money to help fund campaigns of right wing Republicans - Romero used money from his 2004 Congressional campaign account to help Republican candidates!
That's right, Richard Romero took money donated by Democrats to help defeat Heather Wilson and used it to help fund Republican candidates. He took the money donated by Democrats to help defeat Heather Wilson and gave it to Republican legislators Jane Powdrell Culbert, Tom Anderson, Bill Rehm and even Richard "R.J" Berry. That's just wrong.
SEE THE FULL LIST OF RICHARD ROMERO'S REPUBLICAN CONTRIBUTIONS!
Over the last five years, Richard Romero donated $21,300 to 28 different Republican members of the legislature. This isn't something from deep in Richard's past - he was giving money to Republicans as recently as June 20th of this year!
Richard Romero is a political chameleon. In 2009, he's calling himself a "progressive," but, in 2004, when he was running against progressive Democrat Miles Nelson in the Congressional primary, Romero positioned himself to the right, using the word "centrist" to describe himself.
We don't need an unprincipled politician in City Hall. Vote 'No' on Richard Romero.
Thanks so much for your time.
Sincerely,
City Councilor Ken Sanchez

Marty has clearly figured out that he needs the support of every Democrat to win in October. This latest email is yet another sign that the Chavez campaign is nothing short of desperate He's even willing to sacrifice one of his closest allies - Councilor Ken Sanchez.

Look, it's not illegal for a councilor to support a mayor. The problem is that the target of the email message is exclusively county and city employees - lists that come from the councilor and former commissioner's time in city and county government.

At the very least, Councilor Sanchez has crossed the line with the voters and the source of his transgression is none other than The Almighty Alcalde.

Knocking the No-Knock Ordinance

When some terrible tragedy befalls someone or a particularly heinous crime is committed, there's often a public outcry to do something. In other cases, there's not really a public outcry but a political one. Of course there's no such thing as a political outcry, but there is such a thing as political opportunity.

The Almighty One is grasping at such an opportunity with his anti-knocker ordinance. No... The ordinance has nothing to do with last weekend's topless protest in Santa Fe (ABQ Journal - Subscription), it's an ordinance designed force those nasty solicitors to register with the city and for them to comply with a no-knock list.

Hey, we hate being harassed by solicitors as much as the next Eye but if we're not in the mood to deal with a vacuum salesman or some political or religious nut we don't answer the door.

So where's all of this coming from? According to The Almighty One, the registration and no-knock list is a reaction to the 2007 murder of Tak Yi and Pung Yi by a couple of traveling magazine salesmen (Subscription). Apparently in the Alcalde's mind, magazine salesman plus murder equals no-knock ordinance (political opportunity).

It's nonsensical yes, but it gives Marty an opportunity to claim that he's doing something to prevent crime - in this case murder. Look, we have a hard time believing that two rapists and murderers would hesitate for a moment to violate the city's no-knock ordinance when they're already willing to rape and murder - which by the way are a bit more serious than the petty misdemeanor proposed by The Almighty Alcalde.

"The Chávez administration will continue to support citizens against predators who would take advantage of the innocent victims in Albuquerque," a mayor's spokeswoman said.

Chávez proposed the law after two magazine salesmen were accused of killing Tak Yi and Pung Yi at the couple's home. The measure calls for companies to conduct background checks on their solicitors and post a $500 bond. The city would also create a "no-knock" list for homeowners.
-ABQ Journal (Subscription)

If the mayor is so concerned about forcing a few door-to-door salesmen to register with the city, pass background checks, and post $500 bonds, then why doesn't the Almighty Alcalde want APD to report suspected illegal aliens to the federal authorities (read it here)? There are quite literally thousands of illegal aliens running around this city - a disproportionate number of whom are involved in crime.

Meanwhile, Marty is worried about traveling salesmen. Simply put, the no-knock ordinance is a nonsensical, politically motivated, unenforceable piece of, uh... legislation. It doesn't need re-writing as Councilor Ken Sanchez suggests, it needs circular filing.

Money Money Money

If there was ever any doubt that the City of Albuquerque's Red Light Scam-era program was all about the money (there wasn't) it's completely gone now. According to KOB-TV Marty's former treasurer and perhaps closest political ally on the council has had the bright idea to shutdown the scam-eras in intersections that aren't turning the profit that they used to (KOB-TV).

Apparently, Councilor Sanchez spent a little time reading a report on MSNBC.com about the city of Dallas' plan to turn off their scam-eras (read it here). The city council in the lone star state has figured out that while the public safety benefits are negligible not to mention in dispute, the monetary benefit is that was initially substantial starts to dwindle if for no other reason than people are generally smarter than the council and simply avoid the stationary revenue generators.

At the heart of the discussions taking place in city councils and county commissions is tension between the twin benefits that were touted when local governments began installing cameras about a decade and a half ago. Officials were promised that the cameras — which take snapshots of busy intersections, capturing the license plates of any cars that are running the light — would simultaneously save lives and generate millions of dollars in extra fines. [emphasis added]

-MSNBC.com

Now that revenue is down - way down - the City of Dallas is considering shuttering as many as a quarter of their installed cameras and Councilor Sanchez wants to look at following their lead. We also don't think it's a coincidence that Sanchez's move comes just after the legislature voted to confiscate the profit from The Almighty Alcalde's scam.

What is particularly alarming here is that people like Councilor Sanchez will shutdown the cameras in a second if they fail to bring home the bacon but could care less about the little things like due process, liberty, justice, and The Constitution for that matter. They claim that their overriding concern is public safety, but when the crash reduction efficacy of the scam-eras cannot be proven those same politicians continue to support its continuation - right up until the revenue dries up.

It has always been about the money. It will always be about the money. And now these yahoos in the city councils of both Dallas and right here in Albuquerque are all but admitting that the only thing that will end the scam is a lack of... money. They should be ashamed of themselves and we should think twice before we send them back their respective legislative bodies.