DA’s Office had no choice but to dismiss DWI cases
One of the most difficult decisions a district attorney has to make is whether or not to dismiss a case. When the current United States attorney first informed my office that multiple Albuquerque Police Officers were under federal investigation for allegedly taking bribes – that their credibility and trust as police officers was compromised – it was like a gut punch. It made me sick to my stomach.
Those now-former officers were part of the Albuquerque Police Department’s DWI Unit.
The law requires the district attorney to disclose information that questions a witness’s credibility to defense attorneys and DWI cases are highly dependent on the testimony of police officers.
These now-former APD officers were placed on what’s called a Giglio list, meaning they have serious credibility and trust issues. That is why I had no choice but to dismiss cases involving those officers.
I have to follow my ethics as a prosecutor – that our witnesses are honest and we can prove a case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Certainly, no prosecutor who understands Giglio and DWI cases would ever question this decision.
When the federal investigation came to light, we looked at each DWI case before it was dismissed to see if we could proceed to trial without those officers now on the Giglio list.
If at all possible, we moved forward with solid cases.
We are going to continue to work with our law enforcement partners. This is an investigation taken on by the feds, and that investigation needs to be done and completed to their satisfaction.
And I can assure the public, the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office is steadfast when it comes to convicting drunk drivers. In the past year, we have had 1,279 DWI convictions.