NM Public Safety secretary blasts CEO of Law Enforcement Certification Board

The secretary of the state Department of Public Safety (DPS) blasted the leader of the Law Enforcement Certification Board (LECB) on Friday, accusing the chief executive officer of spreading falsehoods, mishandling an internal matter and compromising the integrity of the board.

A simmering dispute between DPS Secretary Jason Bowie and LECB CEO Joshua Calder erupted into public view Friday when Bowie inferred Calder should be fired and issued a scalding statement saying he had demonstrated “a lack of moral character.”

The statement came after the LECB included Bowie’s name on the board’s Friday agenda under “disciplinary and litigation matters” — next to a Las Cruces officer who was just convicted of manslaughter for fatally shooting a man.

New Mexico State Police spokesman Ray Wilson said Bowie’s name should not have been posted to the agenda. In his statement, Bowie said his rights had been violated because the LECB gave him no formal notice or details of the complaint against him. In a statement, Bowie said such complaints can only be filed by sworn law enforcement, and accepting the complaint against him from a civilian “will set a dangerous precedent.”

Calder, in response, said “neither statute nor code” limits who can submit a misconduct report and “we take all citizen submissions currently.”

Wilson said, during Friday’s meeting, that Bowie “was limited to three minutes to counter the allegations” in the complaint.

“For that reason, Secretary Bowie felt he needed to release his statement,” he said.

Calder told the Journal he was just doing his job in taking up the complaint against Bowie, and called Bowie’s words “slanderous.” He said the complaint against Bowie, which he would not detail, was filed by Rachel Feldman, a civilian and member of the Law Enforcement Standards and Training Council. Calder said the complaint “is unique” and he believed a discussion on how to handle it would happen in Friday’s meeting.

A recording of Friday’s meeting was not immediately available.

The New Mexico Police Chiefs Association is set to meet next week to discuss the matter.

The original issue, according to Bowie’s statement, stemmed from a Nov. 26 email from Calder asking for a salary increase for a DPS employee, which was denied as human resources provided “an alternative solution.” Bowie said Calder was “dissatisfied” with the outcome and emailed the board on Jan. 6 seeking an emergency meeting and “falsely claimed” that DPS had taken his work computer and phone.

Bowie said Calder’s email was leaked the following week and Bowie was invited by a board member to the emergency meeting, set for Jan. 22, but it was “abruptly canceled” a day before. Bowie said the board member, who has since resigned, told him Calder admitted to them that his statements about losing the phone and computer “were false.”

“Yet, despite knowing Calder lied, the board took no action to hold him accountable,” Bowie said.

Instead, according to the statement, Bowie’s name appeared on Friday’s agenda under allegations of misconduct “based on, and what I understand to be, a citizen complaint” founded upon gripes from Calder, his email, or media reports.

“Not once has he attempted to correct the record or take responsibility for his false statements. Instead, he has chosen the most destructive path possible,” according to the statement.

Bowie said Calder texted him on Wednesday night “from the very phone he falsely claimed I had taken” and asked for an “amenable solution.” Bowie said the text came hours after Calder sat down with the Santa Fe New Mexican “to further slander me, my reputation, and DPS.”

“Calder serves at the pleasure of the board, and given his clear dishonesty, this board has the authority to dismiss him today,” according to the statement. “... This situation is deeply disappointing. However, if the right decision is made today, I remain committed to rebuilding the relationship between DPS and the LECB, assisting in the board’s mission, and ensuring its legislative intent is upheld.”

Calder, in response, said he had “nothing to gain personally or politically” from the citizen complaint against Bowie or as CEO of the LECB.

“It was not some big promotion or payday... I applied for this position at the request of law enforcement professionals I admire and respect. I used to admire Bowie,” he said in a statement. “Those that prodded me to apply, know my character, work ethic and skills, but they also know my flaws. I am human like every other law enforcement official in this state and, as such, I will make mistakes, like sending an email to my board during a heightened emotional state. I find these mistakes to be failures if they don’t make me a better person. When making decisions regarding the certifications of our law enforcement professionals, I keep this in mind.”