Candidates for gov. offer strategies to fight crime
Lujan Grisham urges partnerships; Pearce proposes work for convicts
Democratic candidate for governor Michelle Lujan Grisham says the state should do more to help local governments equip their law enforcement officers with the best technology.
Republican candidate Steve Pearce says the state should have “camps” where criminals could work off their time and turn their lives around.
Crime is a concern for most New Mexicans. A Journal poll in September found that statewide, 96 percent of New Mexicans considered crime to be a “very serious” or “somewhat serious” problem.
New Mexico in 2017 had the highest property crime rate per capita and the second-highest rate of violent crime, according to FBI crime statistics.
Both gubernatorial candidates have some creative fixes in their toolbox. Lujan Grisham and Pearce said much of the crime in the state is closely linked to substance abuse and addiction, so treatment is a crucial part of the solution.
And both have said that, if elected, they will re-examine the state’s pretrial detention rules, which changed as the result of a constitutional amendment that voters approved in 2016. The amendment said suspects shouldn’t be held in jail just because they couldn’t afford bond, but that judges can order them to remain incarcerated if there is convincing evidence that no release conditions would guarantee public safety and their future court appearances. Critics have contended judges citing the amendment are allowing too many serious offenders out of jail.
But the two candidates also have their own ideas on how to reduce crime and improve the criminal justice system.
‘Restoration camps’
Pearce said he wants to put convicts to work. He said he would create “restoration camps,” where prisoners, if they so chose, could do manual labor instead of serving their time in prison.
Pearce envisions that convicts who successfully complete their time in camp would avoid having a felony conviction on their permanent record, which would allow them to get jobs and contribute to society.
“I want to restore the forest so I’m visualizing a lot of labor ... People could go to prison or go out here and work pretty hard for a couple years and get out of the restoration camp without a prison sentence and without a criminal record,” he said in an interview. “That choice to allowing them to reclaim their life at the beginning point is going to be key. I’m trying to figure out a way to have some consequence without the full penalty. (Now) you get a two-year (felony) sentence and it’s like a life sentence.”
Lujan Grisham said the state should be a better partner with local governments and make sure they have the best technology to help fight crime. For example, she mentioned funding agencies to buy gunshot detectors, which is
a technology that Albuquerque police recently announced it was implementing around the city.
Gunshot detectors are instruments that will alert officers if a round is fired within a one-mile radius or farther.
“That’s something a governor can do to lead,” she said.
Lujan Grisham said such investments would help the state’s coffers once crime goes down, and more businesses would be willing to relocate here and more people would be excited to visit.
“If this economy’s doing better because it’s safer, then there’s more money for the state to do investments in a number of areas,” she said.
Gun control
Lujan Grisham’s campaign website offers several gun control policies she would support. Those measures include bans on bump stocks and highcapacity magazines, requiring universal background checks to stop people with domestic violence convictions or a history of serious mental illness from getting a firearm and a crackdown on firearms trafficking and “straw purchases.”
Pearce has an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association and a concealed carry permit. He is an outspoken proponent of the right to bear arms. Following school shootings, he has offered to help schools take advanced safety precautions, which could include arming highly trained personnel and securing the entrance points onto school grounds.
Pearce said he is not in favor of reducing sentences or releasing some inmates early, but he wants to improve the state’s parole system. He said the state should play some role in finding a job and a place to stay for people who are qualified to be released from prison so they could be more successful while on parole.
Lujan Grisham questioned why the state is spending a significant amount of money to keep elderly inmates in jail, inmates who she said are no longer a threat to society.
“If we have somebody who is not a danger to the community, why are we doing long-term care for a 90-year-old incarcerated individual who could be in the community for half that cost?” she asked.
Marijuana legalization
Lujan Grisham said she supports legalized recreational marijuana, while Pearce said he only supports legalized medical marijuana.
Lujan Grisham’s campaign website says she would support legalization efforts as long as patients who use cannabis for medical purposes are protected and any plans prioritize public safety. She points to it as a new source of revenue for the state. Regarding medical marijuana, she is in favor of lifting state-imposed limits on how many plants people can grow and expanding qualifying conditions.
Pearce said in a Journal questionnaire that he supports the state’s medical marijuana program but doesn’t want to legalize marijuana, even though some envision it as a revenue-generating opportunity. He said his focus would be on getting more New Mexicans to enter the workforce.
Both candidates, who are giving up seats in the U.S. House of Representatives to make their bids for governor, attended criminal justice-related campaign events this week.
Pearce appeared alongside law enforcement officials from multiple agencies after it was announced he had received endorsements from the Albuquerque Police Officers Association, the largest police union in the state.
“They trust directness,” he said. “They trust honesty.”
Lujan Grisham appeared alongside 2nd Judicial District Attorney Raúl Torrez at Emerson Elementary when it was announced that Albuquerque had received a $1 million federal grant to help create better relationships between police and community groups in the city’s International District, which has some of the highest crime rates in the city.
Lujan Grisham said partnerships such as those, when community leaders and law enforcement work together, can greatly reduce crime.