Lewis, data, community policing what APD needs

“... We need to get the police back into the community, and we’ve got to get the community back into policing, They’ve got to be the eyes and the ears; they’ve got to be aware of what’s going on.” — James Lewis, city’s senior adviser for public safety

It’s not surprising former state Treasurer James Lewis would allow himself to be drafted out of retirement by new Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller. Nor is it surprising he would be tasked with helping to rebuild trust between the Albuquerque Police Department and the community it serves as the city’s new senior adviser for public safety.

Lewis has a reputation as someone capable of stepping into difficult situations and getting things back on track. He did it as state treasurer on two separate occasions.

He was appointed to that post, and subsequently elected to it, in the 1980s after Treasurer Earl Hartley pleaded guilty to malfeasance in office and resigned.

Later, in 2006, Lewis was elected to the first of what would be two consecutive terms as state treasurer after former Treasurers Michael Montoya and Robert Vigil, whose terms spanned 1995-2005, went to federal prison on extortion-related charges.

Lewis calmed the waters, and, along the way, built a foundation of integrity, transparency and accessibility in the office. He spent 38 years working in federal, state and local government before retiring in 2014 — including a stint as chief operating officer for the city of Albuquerque under former Mayor Martin Chávez.

In his new job, Lewis will be overseeing police reform and helping implement community policing in Albuquerque. He is on contract with the city at a rate of $72,000 a year and reports directly to the mayor and chief administrative officer.

For all of his experience and accomplishments, Lewis doesn’t have a background in law enforcement. But that’s the point. “He will bring civilian perspectives to the table as our police department works to implement the (U.S. Department of Justice) reforms,” Keller said in a news release. “James will work closely with Deputy Chief Eric Garcia and the DOJ compliance bureau to bring effective community policing to our streets to tackle the crime epidemic.” Keller couldn’t have found a better person for the job. Make no mistake, Lewis’ new job will be a tough one. APD is in the midst of a yearslong reform effort resulting from a Department of Justice investigation that found Albuquerque officers too often used excessive force, which included police shootings. Meanwhile, crime in Albuquerque has skyrocketed, and the police department is about 200 officers down from the number authorized. And city officials say they are currently grappling with a $40 million deficit in next year’s budget.

But we have no doubt Lewis is up to the task, given what he has been able to accomplish in the past. And it is incumbent on him to hit the ground running by taking advantage of the important data mining done by the prior mayoral administration.

As APD transitions to a community policing model, we urge city and police leaders to embrace the research done by the ABQ i-team. The i-team was created during former Mayor Richard Berry’s administration to gain an understanding and find ways to address challenges facing the city. The group’s studies determined the parts of the city with the highest crime rates as well as the criminal backgrounds of people who have been arrested multiple times. The i-team was funded with a grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies.

We realize it’s tempting to throw out the work done by a prior administration, but that would be a mistake. So, as we applaud city officials for their efforts to move back toward a community policing model, and as Lewis embarks on his daunting mission of ensuring APD reforms are on track and the department is moving forward on community policing, we hope he’ll push APD to take advantage of the insights contained in the i-team’s work. And we leave you with some classic Lewis: When Lewis was leaving the state Treasurer’s Office, a Journal reporter noted anyone who has served in politics as long as Lewis had to compromise or bend their principles. He asked Lewis if he had “ever bent too far.”

“I told Marty Chávez when I went to work for him I will do what’s legal, I will do what’s ethical and I will do what’s good for the community. It doesn’t have to be good for James Lewis, but it has to be good for the community. … That is basically what I stand for.”