Police called to Española PD chief’s home twice

Visits dealt with domestic disputes

The Española Police chief had the Taos Police Department call on him twice in 2016 for domestic disputes with his wife, according to Taos police reports released to the Journal Thursday.

One heavily redacted report says Española Chief Matthew Vigil threw items at his wife in late October, and another says Vigil was drinking and got into a heated argument with his wife that may have turned physical.

Vigil and Española Mayor Alice Lucero did not return calls for comment Thursday. A call to the Taos District Attorney’s office asking if the cases were still pending was not returned either.

Vigil didn’t give officers voluntary statements in either report. The reports don’t identify Vigil as an officer, but they were provided by the TPD in response to a public records request that identified Vigil as the Española Police chief.

Vigil, who had been deputy chief, was appointed to the Española chief’s position in May after former Chief Richard Gallegos retired.

The October report says Vigil was served by Taos County deputies with an order of protection filed by his wife. She wrote in her filing that “Respondent threw multiple items at me striking me in the face and lip,” at 1 a.m. on Oct. 30. The report also says a Taos officer went to the Vigil residence while the woman gathered her belongings.

The TPD was also called to the Vigil household Jan. 12. When officers got there, Vigil’s wife was crying, and said she and Vigil got into a heated argument and that Vigil “went crazy,” according to the report. She said Vigil, who was not there when officers responded, had been drinking before the argument and she was worried that he might harm himself if he wasn’t found soon.

Vigil showed up later and said he was very upset about what happened, but didn’t go into detail. He showed an officer some red marks on his shoulder, but he said he didn’t want to say anything without an attorney and didn’t want to get his wife in trouble.

The officer wrote that he went inside the house while Vigil’s wife and their children gathered their belongings, and saw a couch overturned in the living room.