By Ryan Boetel / Journal Staff Writer
Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry plans to let
a bill that would create a new external oversight system for the Albuquerque
Police Department become law, according to his spokeswoman.
The American Civil Liberties Union said the
bill is a major step in the right direction. But the Albuquerque Police
Officers Association said it “threatens the rights of police officers” and
“poses significant liability issues for the city.”
The mayor plans to take no action on the
bill, mayoral spokeswoman Breanna Anderson said, meaning it will be enacted by
Monday unless he changes his mind and vetoes it over the weekend.
The measure would create a Civilian Police
Oversight Agency, which would be funded from one-half of 1 percent of APD’s
budget, and be separate from City Hall and the City Council.
The agency would answer to a board that would
replace the Police Oversight Commission. The board would comprise nine members
approved by the council.
The agency and the board would investigate
civilian complaints against officers, internal affairs complaints and
use-of-force incidents, which include officer-involved shootings.
The board would then make recommendations to
the chief of police on officer discipline after reviewing those cases. If the
chief does not follow the recommended discipline, he would have to give his
reasons in writing within 30 days.
Peter Simonson, executive director of the
ACLU in New Mexico, said he does have concerns that the new bill would cause
the board to focus on citizen complaints instead of examining bigger policy or
systemic issues facing the department. Because the agency and the board are
tasked with reviewing all civilian complaints against officers, he questioned
whether they would have time to analyze bigger issues.
“In my opinion, it’s a major step in the
right direction,” Simonson said. “My hope is that the community will keep
engaged, and monitor how it’s doing and advocate for improvements.”
Albuquerque Police Officers Association
President Stephanie Lopez said some aspects of the bill conflict with policies
in the contract between the APOA and the city.
“The APOA urges the Mayor and his people to
take an extra careful look at this proposal,” Lopez said in a statement. “We
believe it not only threatens the rights of police officers, but poses
significant liability issues for the city.”
She said in an interview that the union’s
biggest concern is that the board would have access to statements officers make
under what is known as “Garrity” protection. That means the statements can be
used only during an administrative review and not in a criminal trial.
The bill, which was sponsored by Councilors
Rey Garduño, a Democrat, and Brad Winter, a Republican, states that the
Department of Justice found that APD’s “external oversight system contributed
to overall systemic problems with APD’s use-of-force encounters with citizens.”
