Editorial: APD promotions should consider past judgment

The Albuquerque Police Department’s latest promotions include a head-scratcher — until you understand it comes from a flawed system.

Among six new sergeants is one whose behavior during a 2012 SWAT situation drew criticism for his lack of patience and inappropriate comments. This from an officer who will now be in the role of getting to a tense scene and slowing things down as part of APD’s efforts to de-escalate before bullets fly.

In July, Drew Bader was removed as a team leader in the APD SWAT unit after the Journal obtained a lapel camera video that showed him growing frustrated as he and other officers stood behind an armored vehicle while an armed man refused to come out of a nearby home. The officers criticized laws and APD policies that governed whether they could use force on the man, who ultimately committed suicide after officers fired tear gas and other devices into the home. At one point, Bader used a falsetto tone to mock either the suspect or a member of his family who was at the scene.

At the time, Chief Ray Schultz characterized Bader’s comments as “boy talk” but did say some of them were “inappropriate.” But his new academy director — a civilian brought in at the behest of Mayor Richard Berry to push for a culture change — called the comments unacceptable and said they would be good material for training. Though the chief removed Bader as team leader, Schultz did not subject the officer to more serious punishment such as suspension.

Now, six months later, Bader has passed all the tests and has been promoted to sergeant — even as the U.S. Justice Department investigates APD for use of force and possible civil rights violations after a series of police shootings, 17 of them fatal.

In response to that spike of officer-involved shootings over the past two years, the police department has adjusted its procedures to include sending a supervisor to situations that could become lethal in an effort to slow things down — at least on APD’s end — and to make sure crisis intervention is happening and that procedures are being followed.

Which brings up the question: With Bader’s impatient and inappropriate behavior so close in the rear view mirror, is he really the kind of supervisor who one can reasonably expect to calm things down at a crime scene?

Among qualifications for promotion to sergeant is that an officer cannot have been suspended during the past year, a condition Bader met. Moving forward, the system should be modified to give more weight to incidences of questionable behavior that don’t rise to suspension.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.