"How long has this been going on?" So asks a great pop hit from 1974 and it's the question the city and state are now pondering about the APD DWI scandal. It may not go back as far as that song but close, say two prominent Legal Beagles.

First, longtime activist, politico and blog contributor Steve Cabiedes, 56, summed up the feelings of Mr. and Mrs. Albuquerque when he appeared before the City Council meeting Monday night to lament the decades-long fiascos that have damaged the department and the community:

I was a 29-year-old young man in 1996 asking for this city to get a handle on its use of force and police corruption. Now, I have wrinkles in my eyes, gray hair on my chin — and we’re still dealing with the same thing.

An ABQ Legal Beagle with lengthy experience comes with personal insights about a lawyer who is now wrapped up in the scandal. 

Mayor Keller says the alleged bribe-taking by cops in exchange for walking on DWI court cases goes back a decade. But our Beagle says think again:

Joe, Tom Clear III has provided entertainment, food, and drink for ABQ police officers at his home in Tanoan for years. This entertainment was not, to my knowledge, on a strictly quid pro quo basis, but it does not seem to be a coincidence that in, primarily metro court cases, a coterie of officers would fail to show for interviews, trials, and pretrial proceedings when Mr. Clear was on a case. The idea that this is only a decade-long case of corruption is laughable. I first heard of Clear’s shenanigans almost 30 years ago. There are several now retired stars of the APD who were complicit at some level over the years. 

Another of the city's legal veterans, attorney Kari Morrissey, says our Legal Beagle has it right:

I will say that as a lawyer who has been practicing criminal defense in Albuquerque for almost 25 years, I am not surprised as to these developments.

That's a lot of potential criminal activity left uncovered. With cops getting away with this kind of caper apparently for so long, it's little wonder that a culture of corruption has persisted up to this day in the DWI division. 

SENATE CHASE

Nella Domenici

Here's one of the first pics of Nella Domenici on the campaign trail taken at the Sandoval County GOP convention. 

Domenici, 63, who apparently became wealthy from a stint at a Wall St. hedge fund and other business ventures, says she is kick-starting her campaign with a $500,000 personal donation. That easily makes her the frontrunner for the nomination which is also being chased by former BernCo Sheriff Manny Gonzales. 

In addition to coming with cash, Domenici's campaign says she has recorded this early success: 

. . .She received over 4,000 verified signatures of her primary nominating petitions on the same day she launched her campaign. Further, Domenici reached the minimum threshold of 2,351 signatures within 4 hours of officially announcing her campaign. . . 

Whitney Port

Meantime, Dem Sen. Martin Heinrich, taking note of Domenici's pedigree as the daughter of the late GOP Senator Pete Domenici, comes with this: 

My parents weren’t politicians — my dad was a union lineman with the local utility company, and my mom was a seamstress and an automobile tire factory worker. I was a mechanical engineer before I went into politics, not the former CFO of the largest hedge fund in the world. I’m not in this fight to prop up Wall Street. I’m running for re-election to continue delivering meaningful change for New Mexico, like protecting reproductive rights, passing more common-sense gun safety legislation, and taking action on climate change.

On that gun legislation, Wednesday Heinrich hosted a roundtable in DC on his new assault weapons bill--(GOSAFE ACT)--in response to mass shootings. Among those taking part was TV reality star and  fashion designer Whitney Port. Video is here. 

WHY NO CYFD?

Sec. Schardin Clarke

It's not as if MLG's administration isn't involved in child-well being, despite the criticism it endures for failing to reform the troubled Children, Youth and Families Department. 

The successes the Governor has had establishing programs aimed at the state's youngest were recently outlined in an op-ed by Stephanie Schardin Clarke, secretary for the NM Taxation and Revenue Department. The impressive list makes it all the more baffling why the Guv is stalled out on CYFD which would be another substantive accomplishment. The secretary writes:

The new state child tax credit is the latest in a succession of policies adopted by Gov. Lujan Grisham’s administration to improve the lives of our children from cradle to career. 

These initiatives include the creation of the Early Childhood Education and Care Department, one of the first cabinet agencies dedicated to early care and education in the nation. 

The establishment of the Early Childhood Trust Fund ensures consistent funding for our youngest children over the coming decades. Eligibility for New Mexico’s child-care assistance program has been expanded, making child care free for a majority of New Mexico families.

Keller and Medina

Mayor Keller and APD Chief Harold Medina ended their lay low strategy and came out from behind the curtains Tuesday and began to face the discordant music over the APD DWI scandal.

Keller, seeking a third term in 2025 and now worried about attracting a name challenger, tried his best to spin the scandal away from the 11th Floor at City Hall:

This investigation involves a handful of long-time officers at APD, going back a decade; if true, what these individuals did is a disgrace to the badge, and erodes faith in law enforcement. APD leadership fully supports this investigation and continues to work with our partners to serve justice. Any individuals who engaged in this conduct will never work for the City again, and should be held accountable to full extent of the law. The department’s willingness to drive accountability, especially on its own, reflects how far we have come.

Even if the scandal does go back "a decade" that Keller states, as one city councilor put it Monday, it has "landed on his lap." 

And Keller's contention that APD's "willingness to drive accountability. . .reflects how far we have come" will be put to the test in the months ahead. 

The timeline of who knew what when--the FBI and APD--seems muddled. The US attorney's office will need to address that.

Not to mention the revelation that one of the officers allegedly involved made over $250,000 in pay in 2023--the highest of all city employees. Where is the accountability for that and other overtime abuses?

For his part Chief Medina, like Keller, tried to date the scandal's roots back to the bad old days:

I think we’ve got to remember that they got away with it. If it was occurring, it’s something that’s occurred for over a decade. So obviously they were very good at hiding this. And, we are glad that this administration has been able to bring this to light. . .I mean, we had 150 cases dismissed. It’s horrible. So yes, in a way there is a stain on APD, but I think that there is the general public who’s going to realize that leadership is holding individuals accountable. We’re not sweeping anything under the carpet, and we’re making sure that we fully investigate everything to the best of our ability.

Well, it's not what APD swept under the carpet, it's what they failed to keep off of the carpet--cops gone bad. That does not speak well of the chief's contention that the long-troubled APD has undergone a significant "culture change" under his leadership. 

But his statement about what the general public will take away from the scandal is on point. 

Keller's polling numbers are anemic but because no name challenger has surfaced to take him on in 2025 his chances have been seen as reasonable as he seeks a third term

But will the scandal surface a worthy challenger? The odds are rising. 

The question now is how much does the scandal widen, if at all. Was there any judicial involvement is one question making the rounds. And Medina is cautious on how many APD officers have been involved:

We’ve identified five. We don’t know if it’s going to grow further from there. We don’t know where it’s going to grow from there. But we’re currently at five officers.

That kind of statement is going to keep the media and the public on their tiptoes.

The Mayor is also dealing with a City Council that has turned against him in large part. Especially troublesome for Keller supporters is the attitude of new District 6 Councilor Nichole Rogers who has been aggressive in complaining about various city policies even though she once worked in the Keller administration.

BREGMAN VS. MARTINEZ

Tuesday we carried an attack against DA Sam Bregman by Damon Martinez--his opponent in the June Democratic primary--over the DA's dismissal of those 150 DWI cases in the wake of the federal investigation. That drew this from reader Isabelle Zamora:

Joe, If the City’s defense is that the DWI fiasco has been going on for at least ten years why didn’t Damon Martinez address it when he was US Attorney from 2014 to 2017? Instead, the City hired him to work on the consent decree, which looks like poor positioning on the part of the city. To boot the city still has not addressed the overtime of public safety employees. This reeks of corruption on behalf of the City’s administration. 

Meanwhile, Martinez came with a new hit on Bregman:

Candidate for Bernalillo County District Attorney calls for appointed DA Bregman to donate the campaign money he accepted from Thomas Clear III to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. 

Thomas Clear III resigned as Chair of the Public Defender Commission after his law office was raided by federal agents in the course of an investigation into alleged police corruption. As a result of this raid and the allegations of police corruption, over 150 DUI cases, including defendants represented by Thomas Clear III, have been dismissed by DA Bregman. “The dismissal of these 150+ cases is a tragic loss in the fight against drunk driving. Thomas Clear III’s possible connection to a police corruption investigation and this unfortunate result is disconcerting. The money DA Bregman has accepted from him is now suspect. I call on my opponent to donate this money to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, in an effort to offset some of the damage that has been done.”

PIRTLE PLACE 

The email continues over the scandal involving Roswell area GOP Senator Cliff Pirtle that we covered in the Monday and Tuesday blogs for those needing background. Here's reader Kelley Vigil:

Joe, Pirtle is a predator, plain and simple. Like my husband said, the Grand Old Party is not the party of family values anymore. Has not been for some time. 20 year old McKenzie Luna is a victim who will someday get away from this, hopefully with her child, but not without many bad miles on her. 

If she was my daughter there would not be enough words and actions to demonstrate my disgust, outrage and fury for what this man has done to my daughter. The least that can happen is he does not represent NM in state government. Somehow I’m guessing that is not a given. The Grand Old Party these days gives a pass for rape and grabbing women in the private parts. His challenger should shout “predator” from the highest peak, but my guess is she won’t. 

State Rep. Candy Ezzell says she is seeking Pirtle's senate seat in the GOP primary, regardless of whether he leaves or stays. 

Reader Larry Gioannini in Las Cruces writes of the movement to make the Legislature full-time with salaried legislators:

Regarding Senate misconduct and it being ignored by the rest of the Senate: And they want to be paid for this? How's that working for you in the U. S. Congress? Pay would be acceptable if campaign contributions were banned. But we've accepted that money is speech and corporations are people and so it goes.

This is the Home of New Mexico Politics.

Damon Martinez

It didn't take long for the APD DWI bribery scandal to enter the political arena. Former US Attorney Damon Martinez, running against BernCo District Attorney Sam Bregman for the Democratic nomination for the seat in the June primary, scored the DA for dismissing over 150 DWI cases that the DA says are compromised by the federal corruption investigation:

The DA’s handling of this corruption case is just another example of why Bernalillo County can’t afford to have someone with less than five years of experience as a prosecutor. . .Bregman is jeopardizing potential cases against other perpetrators by announcing the case to the world. . .and to continue what appears to be his main priority, campaigning. Then he refers all questions to the US Attorney’s office, deflecting his responsibility to the voters he was appointed to serve. 

As a career prosecutor and the former US Attorney for NM. . .I would have led a thorough investigation in order to ensure that none of the now-dismissed cases couldn’t be prosecuted without these officers. For the cases that couldn’t move forward, I would have filed motions to dismiss, but without all of the pomp and circumstance. In doing so, I would have avoided notifying every attorney and police officer in the city that they may be under investigation, and, subsequently, removed the chance to destroy evidence that they now have, thanks to Bregman’s affinity for attention.

As US attorney Martinez was deeply involved in APD and his most recent job was actually at the ABQ police department. That could be a contentious entanglement for him as the campaign develops. Here's a report from when he was hired in 2018:

Martinez, who helped lead the DOJ efforts to get APD to agree to a reform effort and settlement agreement, has been hired as a full-time employee by APD. Martinez will be responsible for helping APD write policies that are not related to the DOJ settlement agreement that he helped negotiate with APD in 2014, said APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos. He [Martinez] will have several duties related to policy development that is not tied to the settlement agreement.". . . 

Shawn Willoughby, president of the Albuquerque Police Officers Association, said that, if what Gallegos said about Martinez's duties is true, the former U.S. attorney will be writing policies about how cops wear their uniforms and take-home cars. "Its concerning for the APOA that the administration would find it beneficial to hire an attorney who doesn't have any extensive police policy writing in his background to deal with policies that aren't related to the consent decree," Willoughby said. "We are talking about policies that are very benign and that should be written and overseen by chief of police and his command staff.

BREGMAN HITS BACK

DA Bregman

Statement from DA Bregman on Martinez criticism:

It is very easy for Mr. Martinez to pontificate on everything he claims our office is doing wrong from the sidelines. My job as District Attorney is to ensure equal and fair justice for all cases that come into our office. 

Apparently, Mr. Martinez’s new job is to criticize the work of our office in an attempt to score political points. I would have hoped that a former federal prosecutor would have understood why we cannot go into further detail about an ongoing federal investigation. 

Unlike Mr. Martinez, it is my ethical duty as the District Attorney to uphold the highest standards of fairness and justice. While he was a senior advisor for the Albuquerque Police Department, exactly what measures did Mr. Martinez put in place to address this situation? 

Over the past year, I have had to make some difficult decisions. I can promise the people of Bernalillo County that every decision I have made, has been with their best interest and well-being at heart. Mr. Martinez’s blatant grandstanding shows one indisputable fact: His decisions are made with his political interests at heart.

COUNCIL REACT

At their meeting last night the scandal was not lost on the nine member city council, two of whom are former APD officers, including freshly elected Dan Champine of far NE Heights District 8. 

He was especially put out by the Keller administration for not notifying the councilors of the federal investigation of APD launched by the FBI and under the supervision of US Attorney Alexander Uballez. 

Champine expressed concerns about a lack of transparency and leadership by the mayor's administration for staying completely silent. It is an ongoing investigation, but the councilor said there are still things the administration can say to the public to assure them that the city leadership takes the scandal seriously. "You dropped the ball," Champine told Keller representatives.

Champine

He also complained that there was no courtesy phone call to any city councilor before the news broke. Search warrants are done quickly and with no notice but Champine said it would make sense for the administration to quickly brief members of the city’s governing board--if not before, at least soon afterwards. 

Councilor Louie Sanchez, a former cop and a Democrat often highly critical of the administration, blamed the scandal on a "lack of leadership" in the city but fell short of calling for the resignation of APD Chief Harold Medina. 

Meanwhile, a higher up in the administration tells us the Feds take down of the alleged DWI scheme is a political hit but believe as more information is disclosed this week it will be clear that the scandal is not going to blow up further. 

A city spokeswoman last night told the council the cases "go back a decade" and involve "a handful of officers" and communications in such a sensitive investigation is "challenging."

The council questioning of the administration is here and begins at 28:00.

KELLER SPEAKS

Mayor Keller broke his silence on the scandal on Twitter during the council session, saying:

While we can’t discuss the details of the investigation into a group of officers, we take these allegations very seriously. Our administration will hold all bad actors accountable, and @ABQPOLICE will continue to work closely with the FBI on the investigation.

BIG BUCKS

Freelance journalist Charles Arasim is on the APD beat and comes with this:  

Newly obtained information puts APD Lieutenant Justin Hunt as one of the officers that had their home raided by the FBI last week. Hunt hit #1 on the list of the 250 top earners for the city of ABQ in 2023. He bagged $256,908.66 on a base pay of $99,070.40.  Is there yet another overtime scandal brewing here as well?

A scandal "brewing?" Doesn't that outrageous paycheck qualify as one? 

PIRTLE ROASTED

McKenize Luna

Readers roasted Roswell area GOP state Senator Cliff Pirtle following our Monday report on how during the opening day of the legislative session he introduced his mistress on the Senate floor along with their new baby as well as his father. He also announced he was thinking about reversing his previous decision and running for another term this year despite the scandal. 

Pirtle, 38, in divorce proceedings with his wife with whom he has three children, was caught cheating in April of 2023. His affair was with young Senate staffer, McKenzie Luna, now 20, the mother of their child.

Last year Luna denied to the media any affair with Pirtle but the affair was confirmed by her presence last week on the Senate floor. 

Roundhouse insiders report Luna was on staff to Sen. Crystal Diamond Brantley of Elephant Butte when she took up with the senator who hails from a prominent Roswell farming family.

No Senators have spoken out over Pirtle's affair with a Senate employee even though he was in a powerful position above her.     

Senate Minority Leader Greg Baca is among those in a cone of silence, even though critics point out he could easily endorse Rep. Candy Ezzell who is running for the Pirtle seat in the GOP primary and send a clear message that Pirtle's behavior is not tolerated by the Senate GOP caucus. 

Reader Carol had a not untypical reaction:

Joe, Thank you! I can't tell you how much I appreciate your coverage of the philandering Cliff Pirtle. I'm glad I wasn't the only one who was absolutely reviled at his audacity to introduce his former employee and partner, McKenzie Luna, along with their newborn child on the Senate Floor! Talk about a ballsy move. 

He has shamed himself, his family (his dad didn't look happy or proud), his constituents, and the important position he was elected to uphold. He was elected to represent his district, not to f. . . around with a 20-year old staff member. How dare him think this all "blew over." Thanks for letting him know that it didn't. 

Reader John Rey writes:

Hello Joe, Ms. Luna's situation can be called the Immaculate Deception, but like another Republican, Senator Pete Domenici, Pirtle was only doing what good old Saint Pete did, all with no repercussions. Heck, Pete even scored a courthouse named after him!

The "Immaculate Deception." They're on fire out there. 

And that is all for now from "As The Roundhouse Turns. . . "

This is the Home of New Mexico Politics.

Why would a group of APD DWI officers set up a criminal scheme in which they accepted bribes from defense attorneys in exchange for agreeing to not show for DWI trials thus insuring the cases were dismissed?