Santa-Fe County DA Makes Smart Decision; Bernalillo County DA Still Lost

The Eye told you this bogus case was going, you guessed it; nowhere. According to the Journal (read it here), “Rape charges against former top criminal judge Albert S. “Pat” Murdoch are being dropped for now, but police say they expect to refile them along with new charges, unrelated to the original case.” Realistically, the only “thing” police can expect is a huge lawsuit for filing a ridiculous case against a prominent district judge after a shoddy “two day” investigation.

The Santa-Fe District Attorney’s Office apparently doesn’t want to embarrass our local cops for a bungled investigation. The Santa-Fe DA is wise to dump this case and wash their hand of anything having to do with it. A rookie DA would see this case is garbage, little alone a seasoned DA.

If the police are relying on any evidence gathered after the initial bungled investigation, they can forget it. Murdoch’s dream team of attorneys will have that evidence suppressed easily.

According to the Journal, “Attorney Nancy Hollander said she welcomed the dismissal because Murdoch ‘should never have been charged in the first place.’” Hollander continued to state, “I still believe my client is a victim and he will be fully vindicated.”

Everyone should like this comment by the police, “Albuquerque police would not confirm the nature of possible new charges, citing the ongoing investigation.” What happen to the “two-day” investigation? The police can do a shoddy “two-day” investigation, arrest a prominent judge, and paste his face all over the media; but, they can’t comment now on possible new charges. This is laughable if it was not for the fact that a judge’s career has been ruined.

Interesting how APD’s Doug West, stated, “However, APD Commander Doug West, who oversees the Vice unit, said they were not related to the rape case and surfaced when detectives scoured through hundreds of phone and computer records.” It is looking more and more like West and crew are trying to drum up some new charges in an attempt to save their behinds. This type of activity will only cost the City more money in liability.

The story continues and with West’s statement, “Detectives are still examining records, which is the reason the charges are being temporarily dropped.” With so much material still left to review, police and prosecutors would likely not meet the 60-day deadline to prosecute after arrest,” West said. Oh really, once again, what happened to the “two-day” investigation to arrest a prominent judge right off the bench?

The bottom line will come when the police finally discuss the root of the problem and the real criminal; the whore who repeatedly and voluntarily went to Murdoch’s house to be paid $200.00 per visit. The article states, “Police were also investigating that woman for possible extortion, because she had apparently been trying to sell the video on the street…”

Murdoch to Walk on All Charges

Is it possible for a man who is paralyzed from the waist down to walk? Here in Albuquerque it is. The Eye On Albuquerque called this one from the beginning and now it is coming to light, all charges against Presiding Criminal Judge, Pat Murdoch, will be dismissed. This case is a classical illegal search and seizure case. When this is all over, Murdoch will be the only true man standing.

It has now come to the attention of the DA’s office that the evidence obtained in the Murdoch case was obtained illegally. The Great State of New Mexico passed a voyeurism law that prohibits the video taping others in their homes, restrooms, etc… What does this mean, for Murdoch’s dream team; it means that the video will be suppressed. As a result of suppression, everything else obtain as a result of the illegally recorded video will be suppressed by the courts as well. This means that the Albuquerque Police Department does not have a case and the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office looks like a bunch of buffoons for allowing this bogus trash in the first place.

This will clear the way for Murdoch to sue the Albuquerque Police Department and the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office. The dollar amount may be well over a million dollars. This case will never go to trial. Any jury that sees a respected presiding district court judge who is paralyzed from the waist down, whose career and life was ruined by the reckless acts of the Albuquerque Police Department and the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office will quickly grant an enormous award; around the four to ten million dollar range. Berry may be asking for a tax increase to cover the millions of dollars that Schultz keeps costing the City of Albuquerque. The City will be wise to pull out the “Sam Costales Check Book” and start writing out those zero’s behind that first digit.

One last thing for Kari Brandenburg; amend the charges against Murdoch; this will help Murdoch’s dream team show malicious prosecution. This will open up the DA’s checkbook wider. As you know juries are big on retaliation.

Here is another case for the IRO to look into. The Murdoch caper will need to be administratively reviewed and swift action must be taken in order to save what little credibility APD has left. At this point the final domino from the Fifth Floor will fall; DC Paul Feist. Obviously Feist being a deputy chief had knowledge of the shoddy investigation and approved it. When the Murdoch fiasco broke, Feist was on television acting conservatively smug and victorious, as did Commander Doug West. Another two careers flushed down the toilet.

Gov. Martinez; get off your tail feathers and do something. The “lame duck” routine is getting old and quite frankly, it has been old for a very long time. This goes for all of us including the Republicans who back your duff. All this is “public corruption,” do something, anything or you will be a one termer just like Berry.

Berry will need to be a man and give the orders to clear the Fifth Floor. Berry needs a lifeline from someone out there who is known for their credibility, boldness, a stand-up kind of guy, who has dignity and honesty to lead APD. The new leader will need flexibility to hire, fire, and promote as he deems appropriate. Repairs will take many years.

Is the IRO’s Investigation Pointing at the Entire Fifth Floor?

Our Eyes are claiming the IRO’s (Independent Review Officer) investigation is pointing at more than just White, Schultz and Paiz. Our Eyes claim that the APD Fifth Floor is standing on a banana peel. A slight push and the entire Fifth Floor will slip into the grave. Meanwhile Schultz is in hiding. Does anyone know why “The Chief of Police” would be in hiding?

Our Eyes are telling us that others from the Fifth Floor have been out “attorney shopping” in hopes of protecting their derrière. Even if they “Attorney-Up;” it’s not going to help any of their souls. They bartered a deal with Darren; the Devil. Our Eyes also claim that Schultz may be gone a few days or a few months. Our Eyes claim that he will have a boot print on his rear.


More proof; in today’s Journal (read it here)Chief Schultz, who is the leader, at least in theory, of the Albuquerque Police Department said Thursday, “he was not aware of any such orders given to Walck.” This was in response to Walck stating that Paiz had ordered him to alter his police report which is a public document. Walck refused the illegal order. Walck stated via his attorney that he was advised an hour later that he was now a target of an IA investigation. Doesn’t that add up to intimidation of a witness, or black mail, or extortion? The Eye seriously doubts that Paiz even goes to the powder room without telling Schultz. On a situation of this magnitude, Schultz knew nothing? Here is a suggestion for the IRO and the future criminal investigator that gets this case, pull the e-mail and the Blackberry records. They will prove what we have told you all along. Paiz has a fairly good reputation, it is doubtful she will ruin her career completely to help Schultz and White. Both are lost causes; Paiz should cut her losses and come completely clean with the truth.

Here is another question. Schultz claims he knew nothing. How does the Mayor’s Office know that Walck “refused his commander’s order?” According to the Journal, the Mayor’s Office stated, “Walck also refused his commander’s order to complete the report.” Schultz is the Chief of APD but yet he knows nothing and the Mayor’s Office does? What? Really? Schultz also stated, “…Internal Affairs had been looking into why Walck did not complete his report the day of the incident, contrary to department policy.” Now Schultz is stating that his IA Lieutenant doesn’t keep him apprised of complaints involving the Chief Public Safety Director’s wife? What? Really? This sound like more fibbing.

If Schultz is not running APD, who is? He allowed a bogus arrest of Judge Murdoch which will cost the City of Albuquerque a fortune! Murdoch will be a very rich man. A two day investigation based on the word of a whore and her pimp; this is a horrible atrocity. Detective One-O-One; do not trust prostitutes or their pimps. Is that really that hard to understand?

The big question now is; will White actually cooperate, if he does will he lie again? Now that White has left City services; will he even participate with an investigation, knowing the lies that he has already told publicly?

Here is a snag, William Deaton’s girlfriend, Geraldine Rivera, who is a retired state district judge, is best friends with Darren White. Does this claim create a conflict of interest for Deaton? We already know that Deaton does not have the authority to investigate non sworn APD officers. The Eye has not forgotten that Perry signed a contract with Deaton and that contract may be completely illegal. Perry being an attorney should know better.

All this may be the rumor mill; maybe not…Stay tuned!

Is AFD’s Fire Chief Breen, using AFD Funds for his own Benefit?

Our Eyes are telling us that Fire Chief Breen used AFD funding to rent space at the Albuquerque Convention Center starting Friday, July 22, 2011, till Monday, July 25, 2011. The reason for this huge expensive rental is to have open “forums” to defend himself against the up-coming vote of “No Confidence” the local AFD Union 244 is planning. Plus, late Thursday, Breen issued order# 149 which states that Breen will allow up to eight out of district units and all in district units to attend his Gala Event.

At odds, the Mayor’s Office recently created a policy that no city time can be used for union business. Breen is allowing twenty four on-duty units to attend his meeting. The memo speaks about, "recent labor dealings." The entire reason Breen is having these meetings is because of 244’s decision to have a vote of “No Confidence.” All of AFD is 100% in the local Union 244. Why is it okay for Breen to allow one-third of the entire on duty Fire Department to attend his meeting after the Mayor’s Office stated that this is prohibited?

If this is true; it is completely wrong and unacceptable. Fleecing public monies and public services for ones’ own personal benefit is corrupt.

Does anyone think it is an appropriate use tax payer dollars for the AFD Chief’s personal benefit? Here are a few ideas. First, AFD owns a brand new academy Breen could use for free. Breen could use the APD Roger Hoisington Academy or the City/County Chambers. There are many appropriate places the City owns throughout Albuquerque that could be used for free. Second, the Fire Chief could go to each station without cutting services to the public. Here’s a crazy idea, go out and ride, take a few calls with your personnel.

It appears Breen is picking up where White left off. This type of behavior will not sit well with the rank and file in AFD nor the citizens of Albuquerque who will be missing one-third of the on duty fire personnel.

Breen should be a model of good stewardship of taxpayer dollars. Wastes like this should not be tolerated by the Berry Administration. Oops, The Eye forgot, “One Term Berry” allows liars and bad behavior to thrive.

If Breen wants to get his name out of the headlines, he will need to burn down the barn or trump up some charges on someone else. Maybe poor Judge Murdoch was playing with matches while the prostitute was videotaping. This administration is a farce…

Prisons Before People

A constant of political/social discourse is the topic of what to do with those elements of society who chose to treat the rest of us as prey. Most arguments revolve around either punishment or rehabilitation. We'd argue that neither is all that important... more on that later.

One constant is a lack of space to house these dangers to society. Jails tend to fill up and governments have a hard time keeping pace with the demand - particularly when they're buying $40 MILLION buildings or theaters for the profitably challenged... but we digress.

Programs like the Community Custody Program were created to relieve the pressure on jails by putting these predators back in society - supposedly with careful monitoring and close supervision. To date judges have been setting the who and how of the CCP with input from jail officials.

One consequence of the county's CCP program was the recent release of a violent criminal Jamie Alderete. Records indicate that Alderete had been arrested no less than 32 times since 1990. Despite his violent history, Judge Albert "Pat" Murdoch decided that the best place for Alderete to be was back in society, back with a plentiful supply of victims.

On Tuesday, Alderete was charged with beating his pregnant girlfriend while wearing his ankle bracelet. According to a criminal complaint, the victim told officers that Alderete began punching her head, then rammed his knee into her stomach and punched her in the back.

Alderete said he was going to make the victim lose her baby. She is two months pregnant, according to the complaint.

Conditions of Alderete's custody allowed him to be outside his home between 11:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. to attend school, MDC spokeswoman Heather Lough said.

-ABQ Journal (Subscription)

As you can tell, Mr. Alderete is a real gem and from the Journal's description of his criminal history his actions are hardly surprising. What's troubling is that Judge Murdoch despite previous run-ins with the criminal felt compelled to send him back out into society to continue his criminal career.

Now the Legislature wants to stick their collective noses into the issue. It seems that some folks are upset about Judges releasing criminals like Alderete over their objections, so in their less than infinite wisdom they would like to transfer the decision making process over programs like the CCP from judges to jail officials.

Twin bills being discussed in state House and Senate committees would give jail administrators, rather than judges, final say in determining who gets placed on CCP.

Jail director Ron Torres has said that the collaboration between the judges and jailers "always seems to be on thin ice," because some judges have reservations about the program, while others order it over the jail's objections.

-ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Like the argument over punishment or rehabilitation the argument over who chooses which criminals to release back into society misses the point. Prisons weren't created to punish or rehabilitate, they were created with the express purpose of keeping criminals away from the rest of us. Sure, taking away someone's freedom could be considered punishment and that punishment might cause some to rehabilitate, but those side benefits are nothing when compared to the very real benefit of protecting the general public from dangerous predators.

Look, the problem is the program. We don't doubt that we have an overcrowding problem and if the program has to exist, we'd prefer a judge be calling the shots not some unelected bureaucrat. However, programs like the CCP put the concerns of prisons before the safety of people. Violent offenders like Alderete have no business being allowed access to general society. It's time to realize that the best place for them and for us is not in the community, but rather behind bars.

Justice Served? Hardly

Judge Pat Murdoch reversed himself Friday and sent Elton John Richard II home to his family with time served, a five year probation, and the bill for Daniel Romero's funeral. It was a step towards righting a wrong that started when Richard plead guilty to manslaughter and ended when Judge Murdoch initially sentenced Richard to 2 years in prison and four years of $500 a month restitution to Daniel Romero's family.

There were a lot of wrongs in this case starting with Daniel Romero who made the wrong decision to try to pay off a drug dealer by stealing a vehicle from the wrong man. Romero's string of wrong decisions continued when he refused to be taken into custody to wait for the police, when he attacked the Marine whose Bronco he had tried to steal and when he ultimately turned to attack him for the last time.

Daniel Romero wasn't the only one to make the wrong choices. District Attorney Kari Brandenburg made the wrong choice when she decided to prosecute a man who only did what any police officer would have done in the same situation. Billy Blackburn, a high power attorney (one of the best really) was wrong when he advised his client to take a plea rather than go to court. Judge Murdoch was wrong when he accepted the plea and doubly wrong when he imposed his initial sentence.

Finally after all of those wrongs, Judge Murdoch did the right thing by reducing Richard's sentence. The problem is one right doesn't undo all of the wrongs that preceded it.

We have to admit that we initially struggled with this story. No one wants to see a fleeing man gunned down. But as we looked into the story we became more and more convinced that Richard acted in the best traditions of law enforcement and the Marine Corps. He protected his family and the rest of us, while restraining himself from using deadly force until he felt his life was in danger.

Ultimately, the only way that all of these wrongs can be righted is for the Governor to pardon Richard. Mr. Romero is dead because he was continually in the wrong. Mr. Richard lost the life he knew because of the wrongs done to him. Governor Richardson has the power to return a man's life - he should exercise that power and right all of the wrongs that came before.

Choices

Life is about choices - big and small, the fateful and the inconsequential. After an unspeakable tragedy, we spend a great deal of time examining the choices that led to a fateful event. Most of the time, we’re trying to lay blame or attempting understand events by playing “what if” or “connect the dots.” Each dot is a pivot where the choices made could have led to a very different outcome. Thought’s like “if I’d just left a few minutes earlier I would have avoided the accident” or “if we’d just noticed a large number of middle eastern exchange students taking flight lessons with no real interest in landing a plane” become obsessions.

The Elton John Richard II case is a perfect example of what happens when someone arrives at one of these pivot points and fails to recognize the predictable outcome of a simple choice. It’s only fitting that we examine some of those points – points where different choices could have led to a far less tragic outcome.

It all started years ago when Daniel Romero chose to involve himself in activity that could only be described as risky and one that ultimately led to his demise at the hands of a determined Marine. Make no mistake - Daniel Romero sealed his fate when he chose a life of larceny. His family argued at sentencing that Romero had helped people along the way - it's probably even true - but the simple fact is Romero chose to make stealing from others a part of his life.

(Sidebar)
Folks, armed robbery should be a dangerous occupation. One should certainly give serious consideration before deciding to go into the field. Societies' mistake is that we’ve created a system of laws, legal precedents, and administrative rules that serve to protect offenders and endanger the rest of us.

If you’ve ever wondered why we’ve got such a huge problem with auto-theft in the Albuquerque area the answer is simple – APD is not allowed to pursue a criminal that is fleeing in a stolen vehicle. The result is predictable, somewhere around 600 vehicles are stolen every month. More importantly, criminals know about the policy. So what do you think they do when an officer attempts to pull them over… what would you do?
(End Sidebar)

Perhaps Romero's worst choice and biggest mistake was to try and steal from a man who had the training and the determination to protect his property and his family. His last choice was to try and flee from justice and the detention that he rightly deserved.

Now take a look at the actions of Romero's victim. Yes, victim. There's no other way to describe a man who will be serving a two year prison sentence for making sure that Romero would never pose a threat to society again. Remember, Romero is dead today because he chose to flee from justice – that choice cost him his life.

From all accounts Richard made every attempt to take Romero into custody – repeatedly ordering Romero to stop and lay on the ground. If Richard had simply wanted to execute Romero it would have been far simpler to shoot him in his yard. Richard chose to protect his property, he chose to protect his family, and ultimately he chose to protect the rest of us.

There were other choices along the way... The DA chose to prosecute, the defense chose to enter a no contest plea, and the judge chose to sentence Richard to two years in prison and order him to pay the family $500 a month.

This is where we believe Judge Murdoch erred. The admission of guilt inherent to the no contest plea gave the judge a tremendous amount of discretion. Unlike Romero, Richard chose to remain at the scene, he chose to enter a plea accepting the consequences under the law, and he chose to face a judge without remorse, accepting the consequences of his actions.

(Sidebar)
Is it just us or does it seem strange to pay the family of the deceased (not victim) $500 a month for five years when they're at least partially responsible for the choices that Romero made? It's kind of like life insurance for thieves designed to replace the income lost from their ill-gotten gain. Talk about theft - Richard kept his Bronco and thanks to Judge Murdoch now has to pay the family of a thief enough to buy them one.
(End Sidebar)

Now Governor Bill Richardson faces a choice. Whether or not commute the sentence of a Marine whose only crime is serving justice by attempting to detain for prosecution a convicted criminal. We think the choice is an easy one. Commute the sentence to time served and drop the AFLAC for felons provision. Crime shouldn’t pay - not for the criminal not for the criminal’s family.

It's too bad that Romero ended up dead. But the truth is Romero's record of armed robbery indicated that his fate would more than likely have been the same even if he'd faced a less competent adversary. More importantly, it's hard to predict how many innocent victims Romero would have created along the way and how many bodies might have been left in his wake.

As a society we need to take a very long hard look at the laws governing administration of justice by civilians. We as a people have a right and a duty to do everything within our power to protect our families and our property from people who would take them from us unlawfully. If we truly want to be safe, we need to take part in our own protection. The Constitution guarantees us that right and there’s little doubt that the founding fathers intended that we play a role and take responsibility for our own safety.

In the meantime, we need to address the immediate concern of Elton John Richard II. Under the law he may be guilty of a crime (and has admitted as much), but to us he's a hero that made all of us just a little bit safer.

----- Post Script -----
We've seen a couple of references to the lack of remorse that Richard showed at his sentencing. Why should this be an issue at his sentencing? It seems to us that Mr. Richard faced his sentencing in the same manner as he faced a felon attempting to steal his property and flee... with clarity of thought and without emotion. Otherwise, Mr. Richard would have simply shot the offender in his yard and avoided a mile and a quarter run.

You need to ask yourself whether or not a police officer involved in the exact same sequence of events would be required to feel remorse. First of all, he would have never been prosecuted, but should he have felt remorse anyway? We'd say absolutely not.

Remember, there's right and wrong and then there's the law and they don't always overlap. Mr. Richard may have been guilty under the law but in our opinion, his actions were not wrong and completely justified. We applaud Mr. Richard for facing his sentence without pretense and without a false display of emotion even knowing that such a display would more than likely have reduced his sentence. That takes courage and the conviction that you did everything right and shouldn't be held against him.

The executive powers of pardon, clemency, and commutation were meant for cases like this. The founding fathers understood that the law is not always applicable and created a safety valve to be used by executives to right a wrong in specific cases where the law cannot or should not apply. Governor Richardson wields that power here in New Mexico - he should use it to right the wrong perpetrated by the courts in the name of a law that should not have been applied.