Editorial: Doña Ana DA’s election loan strategy troubling

One would think that a former federal prosecutor and defense attorney would understand the ins and outs of anything that even resembles money laundering.

And that it’s something best avoided.

But then, this is New Mexico.

So newly elected Doña Ana County District Attorney Mark D’Antonio of Las Cruces can argue there’s nothing wrong in getting $40,000 in loans from a company, whose partners include a Democratic Party honcho, and then turning $28,000 of that cash over to his own campaign as a loan from himself in his own name.

Even though the Democratic political operative is Las Cruces businessman Edgar Lopez, a player in the pending bribery case against former District Judge Michael Murphy. Lopez has not been charged in that case.

D’Antonio, who demonstrates that he lacks the moral compass required to lead an office entrusted with enforcing state laws, likens his loan from Lopez’s Puerta Privada LLC to one from a bank. Election law would prohibit Lopez from simply donating that amount of money to D’Antonio.

However, banks have strict rules regarding lending — and repayment — and don’t have a stake in defeating a Republican incumbent in the November election.

D’Antonio’s defense against alleged violations of campaign contribution caps and third-party contributions: “It’s not like I’m getting the money for free or anything.”

Time will tell whether that’s an accurate statement. Meanwhile, it’s not like Doña Ana County is getting a prosecutor who seems capable of identifying a potential election violation — at least from an ethical standpoint if not a legal one — when he sees it.

A complaint detailing the allegations against D’Antonio has been sent to New Mexico Attorney General Gary King. It’s important to the taxpayers of Doña Ana County that the AG issue a clear legal opinion on them.

Since it appears their DA is unable to.

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.