New DA’s first move is to get some political cover

Incoming 2nd Judicial District Attorney Raul Torrez faced no political opposition after the June primary, which he won with the help of $107,000 in PAC support from liberal Democratic billionaire George Soros. Given a “walkover” in the general election by an anemic Republican Party, Torrez didn’t have to face much in the way of questions or take a stand on issues. And now he has assembled a team of seven prosecutors from around the state to review the case against two Albuquerque police officers charged with second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a homeless, paranoid schizophrenic camper — meaning Torrez will have plenty of cover for a decision some will undoubtedly characterize as political. That’s regardless of which way he decides.

If this is any indication of how his office will operate, it looks to be a long four years.

Torrez announced last week his independent review team from seven judicial districts will examine the case against Keith Sandy and Dominique Perez and give him recommendations on whether to refile charges against Perez and whether to retry both former officers. In October, after a 15-day trial headed up by a special prosecutor, a jury deadlocked 9-3 in favor of acquitting them. Soon after, the prosecution dismissed the charge against Perez.

Torrez has promised that “the evaluation of this case will be guided by the law and the facts and nothing else.” Yet it turns out he believes he needs seven other prosecutors — prosecutors who have equally crushing caseloads — to tell him what the law and the facts are in a case that has already been adjudicated.

Sandy retired after being charged; his attorney argues there is no logical way to prosecute only one of the two officers who fired at Boyd.

Perez was fired after being charged; when he took the stand in his trial, the special prosecutor actually thanked him for his military service (two tours in Iraq and a Purple Heart) and said, “I can’t tell you how sorry I am that you were the one sent up into the mess that other officers created.”

That system, how the Albuquerque Police Department handled potentially violent situations involving mentally ill individuals, is what has been, and should continue to be, on trial. To that end, the city paid $5 million to settle a civil case brought by Boyd’s estate. Meanwhile, the department and city are overhauling APD’s use-of-force policies under a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice.

Retrying the officers, who were left unemployed and bankrupt by the prosecution, promises to be costly financially and emotionally to the officers and the community. It does not promise to be successful in terms of a conviction, given the leanings of the deadlocked jury in October.

Torrez has said trials are not “the appropriate vehicles for airing philosophical or political disagreements about the fundamental nature of our institutions.” Expecting seven over-tasked DAs to provide him political cover isn’t appropriate for a DA, either.