Coalition gives A’s to 2 crime bills

SANTA FE — A coalition that includes the American Civil Liberties Union and New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops has awarded high grades to two crime proposals moving through the Legislature — one focusing on the testing of rape-examination kits, the other limiting private employers’ power to ask about the criminal history of job applicants.

The group calls itself nmSAFE and says it’s evaluating legislation based on academic research of what works, among other factors. Receiving A grades are:

A proposal by Sen. Cisco McSorley, D-Albuquerque, to appropriate $1.2 million to help fund laboratory testing of evidence collected when a rape victim participates in a forensic examination.

State Auditor Tim Keller last year estimated New Mexico’s backlog of untested evidence kits is the worst in the country on a per capita basis.

The SAFE coalition said the processing of untested evidence could help identify and prosecute criminals and restore faith in the justice system. The proposal is Senate Bill 7.

A bipartisan proposal that would prohibit private employers from asking job seekers on the initial written application about their history of criminal convictions. The employer would still be allowed to screen for criminal history later in the application process.

Senate Bill 78 is sponsored by Sen. Bill O’Neill, D-Albuquerque, and Rep. Alonzo Baldonado, R-Los Lunas.

The SAFE coalition estimates about one-third of American adults have criminal records of arrests or convictions, and it said they should at least be considered for employment.

The coalition has evaluated a half-dozen bills and is publishing its results at nmsafe.org.

The group gave worse grades to legislation aiming to stiffen criminal penalties, arguing that they don’t do enough to deter crime and are costly to carry out.