Highlights Of The Week
It was a busy week in Albuquerque, with the mayoral election and the continuing problems at the Albuquerque Police Department dominating the news.
So we're doing a roundup of some of the biggest stories of the week. The stories are posted below.
The independent monitor in APD's reform case with the U.S. DOJ issued yet another scathing report on APD's unwillingness to reform itself. It was the sixth lousy report for APD in three years.
The really big news was the fact that the city went public with allegations that the independent monitor, James Ginger, was biased against APD. The bombshell was that APD Assistant Chief Bob Huntsman used his lapel camera to secretly record Ginger in March of 2016. That revelation brought outrage from many quarters. We'll have to wait and see what the federal court judge overseeing the case has to say about APD's spying on an officer of the court.
There was also what one critic called a "devastating" report on the lack of progress on a plan to clean up the Kirtland Air Force Base fuel spill that threatens the city's drinking water supply.
There was a televised mayoral debate in which the two candidates, Dan Lewis and Tim Keller, spent an hour telling everybody who was watching how inept and unqualified his opponent was to be mayor. That left me thinking why would anybody vote for either of the two.
And back to APD. A story published on Friday revealed that APD's ranks could actually shrink this year because recruitments might not be keeping up with retirements and other departures.
If you missed these stories, here's a chance to see them. And if you did see the, well, why not read them again?
As always, thank you for your support. Please tell your friends, relatives and enemies about the ABQReport. And if you've got story ideas, or just want to complain, you can call me at 505-306-3260, or email me at abqreport@gmail.com
Thanks,
Dennis Domrzalski