APD falls short on Job No. 1 of its use-of-force reforms

Nearly two years after the Albuquerque Police Department and the U.S. Department of Justice signed an agreement to reform the police department, APD’s highest-ranking officers are still doing a poor job of reviewing use-offorce cases against their rank and file, according to the independent monitor overseeing APD reform.

At the same time, the monitor said the department showed significant improvement with other aspects of the settlement agreement, including a 93 percent compliance rate with “primary tasks,” or policies outlined in the settlement.

But Job No. 1 of the reforms should be to quickly and thoroughly address cases where cops do things like shoot or beat or tase someone. And according to independent monitor James Ginger’s latest report, when it comes to that most important reform job, APD hasn’t shown up to work yet.

The report says that from August 2016 through January 2017 “zero percent of command personnel, who should have ordered additional investigation to resolve inconsistencies and improve the reliability and credibility of supervisory personnel’s use-of-force investigations, did so! Few systems can survive such a failure rate.”

It was problems with APD’s use of force that led to the Justice Department probe that led to the reforms mandated under a settlement agreement with DOJ two full years ago. Yes, it takes time to change behaviors and address systemic problems in a large bureaucratic organization, but to be told that taxpayers are spending millions on reforms while highranking officers’ investigations of use of force are falling far short is almost as unacceptable as the abuse-of-force actions that landed APD and taxpayers here in the first place.

Police Chief Gorden Eden told the Journal the department “does not agree with (the monitor’s) conclusions and does not know the basis for them. When we have asked to discuss those types of conclusions, we have not been given the opportunity to do so. We hope to have those discussions with the monitor going forward.”

Ginger was pretty specific regarding the use-of-force issue. He said a review of 16 random use-of-force incidents between August and January revealed significant problems with three cases and widespread problems with how the highest-ranking APD officers handled them. For example, when Ginger’s review team asked to meet with APD’s Internal Affairs Unit and the Critical Incident Review Team to discuss the cases, they were told via a memo that neither group had reviewed the cases. That supports Ginger’s claim some use-of-force cases fall into a “black hole” at APD.

What may be most troubling is that Ginger says in the report his team has noticed a “palpable shift” in APD’s approach to changes, and accuses high-ranking supervisors and command-level officers of “deliberate non-compliance.”

But Eden and city Attorney Jessica Hernandez have a point when they question how Ginger can say that when a “look at the raw numbers (shows APD is making) just undeniable progress” and given Ginger’s other comments in the report commending APD for improving in most areas.

APD has said it would like more face time with Ginger so he can explain fully where he has issues and how APD can best respond. Maybe Ginger can set something up to explain this apparent disconnect.

The report also says “there seems to be no one person, unit, or group with responsibility and command authority to ‘make change happen.’” So who is running the show here? Obviously, that should be Eden.

He said when he was hired in 2014 “we’re going to take the department well beyond any findings the DOJ has.” But if he can’t, then Mayor Richard Berry needs to step in. Albuquerque residents are paying for the department, the reforms and in recent years around $20 million in lawsuit settlements — all while relying on APD’s command staff to get the department on a path that protects and respects public safety.

The question now is who will finally make it happen.