Police chief tells group that misconduct dealings should be more transparent

Proposal introduced at Law Enforcement Academy Board meeting

ALBUQUERQUE — Members of the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy Board on Tuesday said they will work on the state police chief ’s proposal to post more information online on the panel’s decisions in officer-misconduct investigations.

State Police Chief Pete Kassetas introduced the proposal at a meeting of the nine-member Law Enforcement Academy Board, which is charged with upholding or revoking certifications of police officers across the state who are subject to misconduct investigations.

Much of the board’s current decision-making process occurs out of the public eye in closeddoor executive session meetings. If citizens want to see whether the statewide body has taken any action on an officer’s certification, they typically must obtain such information under state publicrecords law request, an often burdensome process.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Kassetas said the board members should still be able to discuss an investigation in closed-door executive sessions. Board members must hold such decisions privately because they deal with protected information about officers, he said.

But Kassetas added the board could be more transparent about how it arrived at such decisions.

“I think that when the board takes action regarding someone’s certification, we should be very clear what decisions are being made — whether that officer was cleared and those charges were dismissed or whether they were upheld,” Kassetas said.

Members said they plan to vote on Kassetas’ proposal in the board’s next public meeting.

Brian Coss, deputy director of the Law Enforcement Academy, said his research found agencies in other states put varying degrees of information online regarding officers’ misconduct. Coss said he could find only five states that put no such information online.

Kassetas proposed the agency post online the officer’s name, employer, the board’s disciplinary decisions and whether the charges

against an officer were upheld or dismissed.

But Kassetas said he is not advocating for individual police agencies to turn over internal affairs or investigatory reports on officers.

He said the proposal may make officers who are not “holding true to the oath that we took” think twice.

“I don’t want officers walking around worrying about it,” he said. “But it should be ingrained from day one at the academy: You are a reflection of your community and your department and your profession. And when that’s breached, it’s an embarrassment for the entire law enforcement profession.” He called on the Attorney General Hector Balderas to review what information could be posted online.

The chairman of the Law Enforcement Board, Balderas said Kassetas’ proposal is an important step to make such records more accessible. More transparency about the board’s actions will help restore public confidence in law enforcement, he added.

“Clearly, we don’t want taxpayers and citizens having to struggle to gain what is easily accessible information,” Balderas said.