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Albuquerque police outline manpower and roles for National Guard help
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The Albuquerque Police Department has provided more details on just how many guardsmen will be used and what roles they will fill to assist officers after the governor declared a crime-related emergency in the city.
APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said Friday that 60 members of the New Mexico National Guard will fulfill non-law enforcement duties for the department starting in mid-May.
Of those deployed, 36 will help secure scenes and perimeters during incidents and investigations, 12 will help operate drones for the Real Time Crime Center, and 12 will work with the Prisoner Transport Center to “help evidence collection and other tasks that often delay officers from returning to the field for patrol.”
The guardsmen will not be armed or wearing fatigues, and they will not have law enforcement authority, according to APD and the NMNG.
“This assistance will have an immediate impact and allow our officers to do more proactive policing,” APD Chief Harold Medina said in a release. “We appreciate the National Guard and their willingness to help us keep Albuquerque safe.”
The pilot project, as it has been described by Mayor Tim Keller, was announced Tuesday when Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham declared an emergency in Albuquerque to release $750,000 in funds for the deployment.
Medina and Keller have said the NMNG offered help earlier this year, and the plan has been in the works ever since.
Guardsmen are currently undergoing a lengthy training in Santa Fe to ready them for the mission.
“I appreciate APD and the Guard working together to define the roles for the Guard members to free up APD officers to focus on responding to crime,” Keller said in the release. “This is helpful, meaningful and the right type of support for our community, APD and the Guard.”
