by Rodd Cayton
Albuquerque City Councilors traded barbs with Albuquerque Police Department Chief Harold Medina at a budget meeting Thursday night, criticizing the number of command staff in the department, Medina’s internal affairs strategy and a recent decision to seek National Guard troops to assist officers.
Medina and Councilor Louie Sanchez accused each other of disrespectful behavior during the meeting.
“Nice of you to show up in a polo shirt today, Chief,” Sanchez said as Medina stood at the podium. “Thanks for disrespecting us today. Appreciate that.”
“Respect goes two ways,” Medina responded. “You expect me to respect you, respect this body? “Look at the way you just addressed me. And I hope the whole city of Albuquerque just saw that unprofessionalism.”
All nine City Councilors met as a Committee of the Whole, which considers the budget and the capital improvements program proposed by the mayor.
The police department is funded at $286.9 million in the proposed budget, more than any other city department.
Councilors criticized the APD target of employing 1,100 sworn officers; the department has never employed that many. Medina said the APD has about 900 officers, with another 37 starting next week.
Sanchez and Councilor Dan Lewis said the department hasn’t asked for the money it would need to get to 1,100 officers. They categorized the budget strategy as a $5.4 million cut in funding for police services.
Medina said the department won’t be able to hire enough officers to meet the targeted level, and that he wants to be responsible with the public dollars and chose to seek what he needed, rather than ask for more money that he would use for new equipment or other items.
“They took it from you — $5.4 million — and decided ‘we’re going to allocate it somewhere else and called it program spending’ when it’s really a cut to your department,” Lewis challenged.
Medina said he’s comfortable with his budget.
“I’m glad that you’re okay with losing 5.4 million in cuts,” Sanchez said. “It seems to me that the administration threw you under the bus pretty good — and also probably all of us.”
Medina acknowledged that the APD has a higher ratio of executive leaders compared to typical organizations; he said that’s due to a settlement agreement between the APD and the U.S. Department of Justice centered on officers’ use of force.
Sanchez filed to run for mayor against Keller. He implied that a top-heavy organizational structure at APD is harmful to recruitment and retention efforts, as candidates feel their opportunities for promotion are “blockaded” by 49 to 54 individuals above the rank of lieutenant.
He said during his time on the police force, there was a much smaller command staff.
“So how are you going to do something to change your over-bloated upper echelon in reference to putting book boots on the ground?” He said, adding he thought such a reduction could pay for 60 more officers on the streets.
Medina countered that the smaller command staff caused a lack of supervision of officers, leading to the 2012 federal use-of-force investigation that resulted in the settlement agreement.
“I do not want to bring Albuquerque back to 2011,” Medina said. “Because that is why the Department of Justice is here. That is why we had riots and protests.”
He said the APD has since seen reductions in every category of crime and that the department is doing its best job ever of holding personnel accountable.
“I run the department this way,” Medina said. “Someday, there’ll be somebody else here, and if they want to get rid of lieutenants and commanders, they can do so. But I think we have something that’s working.”
Sanchez took issue with the City Council not being consulted about the decision to request National Guard troops from New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
“Councilor Sanchez, the National Guard coming to Albuquerque is an operational decision made by the chief of police of the Albuquerque Police Department, the Governor’s Office of the State of New Mexico,” Medina responded. “There is a separation of powers, and I believe it didn’t fall under the jurisdiction of the city council to make that decision.”
Wow, I can see why our city is the disaster that it is. Terrible mayor, childish virtue-signaling city councilors, and awful police leadership.