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Opinion editorials Handling of Pit Appeal Calls for a Time-Out |
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opinion editorialsThis editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by editorial page staff and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers
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Sunday, April 24, 2011
Can Cops Stop Cutting Each Other Breaks?
The answer to the above, apparently, is no.
How else to explain why an Albuquerque police officer — a sergeant no less — gave a Bernalillo detective a criminal summons for aggravated DWI instead of following procedure and booking him into jail?
Presumably jail is where APD Sgt. Joshua McDonald would have taken anybody accused of driving drunk who didn't have a badge and a gun. And yet, when he was working a sobriety checkpoint April 16 and Bernalillo police detective Berto Chavez came through showing signs of impairment, McDonald instead called Chavez's boss.
Yes, jail isn't a good place for cops. But there is a procedure to hold police officers responsible for their actions while also keeping them safe from the general jail population. Ignoring the rules re-enforces the perception of a blue line that won't be crossed, that every cop gets a break like now-ex-APD Sgt. Richard Guzman, who beat his DWI charge last year.
Guzman's case started with a summons as well.
According to APD Chief Ray Schultz, "everyone arrested for DWI/(Domestic Violence), pending a medical exemption, is to be booked." So far the only medical condition that's come to light is Chavez not remembering how many beers he'd had.
On the plus side, supervisors in APD and the Bernalillo Police Department stepped in quickly to do the right thing — McDonald has been reassigned pending an investigation; Chavez has been suspended.
According to the police report, Chavez identified himself as a Bernalillo cop and repeatedly asked officers at the checkpoint to "help" him out. Following SOP would have helped out all officers more than a system of favors that holds cops above the law.
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