On Thursday, the City of Albuquerque held their third listening session on the governor’s executive order to deploy National Guard troops to boost capacity of the Albuquerque Police Department.
During the meeting, Police Chief Harold Medina said assistance from the National Guard will free up other resources and increase the city’s capacity for outreach.
“Sometimes situations just necessitate somebody who could listen and hear somebody and help them through what they're struggling with,” he said.
State Rep. Patricia Roybal Caballero (D-Albuquerque) said the root cause of crime needs to be addressed first.
“Crime is not the fault of the individual,” she said. “Crime is a systemic issue. It's caused by being in a constant cycle of poverty and not having access to equal opportunity, to any type of opportunity.”
New Mexico National Guard Maj. Gen. Miguel Aguilar emphasized the community ties his troops have to the city.
“Almost everybody that is in the Guard is a New Mexican. Albuquerque is our home. We care about it,” he said.
Aguilar made clear during the meeting that the National Guard will not be handling firearms unless instructed to by the governor.
An attendee who identified as Tony, a retired New Mexican, was concerned of the lack of oversight from the Department of Justice. He said this executive order is an easy way out.
“This is not a solution. It's just a band-aid, a very misguided band-aid,” he said.
Tony said zero input was taken from residents before deployment.
“The fact that this was all sprung on us at the last minute makes me think that changes to these policies can also be made at the last minute and without us knowing,” he said.
Medina and Aguliar said they will continue to listen to feedback from the community.
Support for this coverage comes from the Thornburg Foundation.
