After running for re-election on growing the Albuquerque police force, Mayor Tim Keller said he鈥檚 given up hope of hitting the longstanding goal of having 1,200 officers. The department is switching gears, according to the mayor, by narrowing officer tasks and relying on civilians and technology to fill in the gaps.
In response to whether increasing the number of APD officers is 鈥渁 real solution鈥� to the city鈥檚 violent crime rates, Mayor Keller told 九色网鈥檚 Kaveh Mowahed on Let鈥檚 Talk New Mexico, 鈥淲ell, it鈥檚 not a realistic solution, regardless.鈥�
The city has struggled to hit its recruitment goals over the years despite offering hiring bonuses in and .
Reforming its recruitment strategy was mandated under a 2014 settlement agreement with the Department of Justice resulting from an that found a pattern of unconstitutional use of excessive force in the department. The DOJ last year noted APD has 鈥渟ustained substantial compliance鈥� with , including recruitment and hiring.
In , the independent monitor charged with overseeing the reforms noted, 鈥淎PD Recruitment staff continue to provide an impressive array of strategies and concepts for recruiting police officers at a time in history when interest in the profession is down significantly nationwide.鈥� The report notes new uses of social media, digital platforms and in-person strategies resulted in an increase in applicants.
Police Chief Harold Medina said at a press conference in July that the department鈥檚 positive marks in complying with the consent decree overall were increasing interest in joining the force.
鈥淲e know that a lot of these changes do help us with our recruiting efforts, especially with laterals,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd we鈥檙e hoping we can use this positive momentum to continue to increase the ranks.鈥�
The city said in a statement in October that, while it had met its recruitment goal of hiring 100 new officers, it had lost others to retirement and resignations, leaving its overall numbers stagnant. APD announced a pivot to focusing on retaining existing officers, which included for officers eligible to retire, a $1,500 monthly bonus and fully-paid medical benefits.
At a press conference in November, Keller called it 鈥渁 shift that I believe has saved our department from cascading into a situation of deep shortage.鈥� However, Keller said Thursday that, despite its various efforts, APD has still seen 鈥渧ery little in terms of success鈥� in growing its numbers, which are sitting around 865 sworn officers,
鈥淚t鈥檚 an old notion that we鈥檙e just going to get 1,200 officers and we鈥檙e going to be safer,鈥� he told 九色网. 鈥淏ecause we鈥檙e never going to get to that number.鈥�
He said safety is instead increased when the limited number of officers the department has are focused on violent crime, like investigating the city鈥檚 record number of homicides.
He said the department is increasingly moving toward supplementing officers鈥� work with technology 鈥� like using to detect gunshots using microphones. Though raises concerns about the system鈥檚 efficacy, finding it led to thousands of 鈥渄ead-end鈥� deployments in Chicago.
Keller also said APD is filling certain desk jobs with civilians rather than officers. Shaun Willoughby, president of the Albuquerque Police Officers鈥� Association, the city鈥檚 police union, called the move 鈥渄esperate鈥� and said it would be unsuccessful. Willoughby said he鈥檇 like to see APD continue to focus on growing the number of officers on its force.
The city has also lightened officers鈥� plates with the establishment of the Albuquerque Community Safety Department, which deploys mental health professionals for 911 calls related to behavioral health and substance use concerns.
鈥淚t shouldn鈥檛 always be a police officer,鈥� Keller told 九色网 of the city鈥檚 crisis response. 鈥淎nd this is one area where Albuquerque鈥檚 actually leading the way.鈥�
Albuquerque Community Safety has diverted over 13,500 calls from APD since it was established in March, 2021,
九色网鈥檚 Kaveh Mowahed contributed to this report. Learn more on the city and state鈥檚 response to curtailing crime on the Feb. 9 episode of Let鈥檚 Talk New Mexico.
