ABQ Homicide Blog (revised)

Status Quo 

There is a preconceived notion among Burqueños’s and Burqueñas’s that we have issues when it comes to violent crimes, and especially homicides. Unfortunately, the notion is justified. In 2022, Albuquerque was ranked as one of the 10 most dangerous metro areas in the nation.  Albuquerque’s violent crime rate is currently 10.1 per 1,000 people, which is significantly higher than the national rate of 4.0 per 1,000 people.  

However, what has recently added more fuel to the fire is the recent upward trend in Albuquerque’s homicide rate. The typical rate for homicides before 2015 was between 30-40 murders and between 60-80 murders from 2016-2020. Unfortunately, from 2021-2022, the homicide rate increased astronomically, and is currently between 110-121 murders (See in Figure 1). 

  

Figure 1 Source: “A look back: ABQ ends year with 121 homicides - Albuquerque Journal (abqjournal.com)” (Cathryn Cunningham, Albuquerque Journal, 2022) 

When Burqueños and Burqueñas began to voice their concerns and frustrations regarding violent crimes and homicides, typically the fault is directed to APD. But even though the 2022 homicide rate was recorded as the largest total in decades, APD’s homicide clearance rate was recorded at 93%. The homicide clearance is defined as the comparison of all homicides that occur in a year to all the homicide arrests made in that year. Based on how the current national clearance rate is just above 50% (which was recorded as an all-time low), APD’s Criminal Homicide Unit definitely deserves their flowers. 

APD’s Criminal Homicide Unit Investigation Unit is crucial for holding offenders accountable and providing closure to victim’s families and friends. However, having an exceptional homicide clearance rate does not reduce the number of homicides that occur. 

However, the scapegoat for the rising violent crime and homicide rate in the eyes of many Burqueños and Burqueñas is Albuquerque’s Mayor Tim Keller. Based on how crime was a prevalent issue during the 2021 Albuquerque Mayoral Race, Keller understands the importance of tackling the city’s decade-long crime problem. So, what is Keller’s Administration doing to combat the rising violent crime and homicide rate?  

Well for starters, it certainly helps when 31% of Albuquerque's city budget is allocated towards APD. In addition, Keller created the Metro Crime Initiative (MCI), which is focused on shared accountability, shared responsibility, and short-term action. The MCI was established in 2021 to convene with public safety leaders to create action items that can be implemented in the short-term to tackle crime. Although the MCI deliverables and actions are intended to be comprehensive to tackle all aspects of crime, there are initiatives strictly focusing on preventing homicides and violent crimes. The City of Albuquerque (CABQ) has provided a list of the 2021 MCI accomplishments and has provided a new “to-do-list" for the 2023 MCI.  

  

Figure 2 source: “Keller says his initiatives ‘fight crime in a real way’ - Albuquerque Journal (abqjournal.com)” (Adria Malcolm, Albuquerque Journal, 2021) 

During the 2022 MCI, Keller’s Administration made it a goal to find solutions to combat gun violence. One solution that was presented in the 2021 MCI was House Bill 9—Bennie Hargrove Gun Safety Act, which requires individuals to responsibly store their firearm/s and keep them out of the hands of children. However, from my knowledge, this is the only action that was taken by the MCI to decrease levels of violent crime and homicides. The passage of this legislation was unsuccessful in the 2022 New Mexico Legislative Session, but was finally signed into law this past session. In addition, the 2021 MCI focused on providing more funding for Violence Intervention Program (VIP), which was established in 2020. VIP was created to address the rise in violent crimes and serves to help APD identify and work with people who can fall victim or can be involved with gun violence in the future. However, from the investigation conducted in my report, these are the only actions that have been taken to decrease levels of violent crime and homicides.  

So, what do we do? Well, luckily for you, I have some policy options that attempt to solve this issue. 

1st Policy Option: The Creation of the APD POP (Problem Orientated Policing) Unit  

The first policy option is creating a new APD unit that would focus on using Problem-Orientated Policing (POP) practices as a proactive approach to prevent violent crime. POP is focused on (1) ensuring that officers have a full understanding of the underlying problems that contribute to violent crimes and (2) responding faster to incidents and creating avenues that will prevent individuals from committing violent crimes. POP practices are associated with reducing street crime by 33%. 

The APD POP Unit is intended to foster a relationship with members of the community, while also working collectively to develop tactics that would lead to changing the environment associated with high rates of crime. Examples of changing the environment would be adding more streetlights in certain areas, adding more police cameras in particular areas, and helping the community organize a neighborhood watch committee.  

This newly formed unit will certainly increase the presence of law enforcement in areas of concern. Increased police presence in areas that are associated with high rates of violent crime may be reassuring for some Burqueños and Burqueñas, but for others, may lead to becoming concerned. The purpose of this unit is to work with the community, and if people become fearful, this will affect police officers' ability to communicate effectively with community members. 

2nd Policy Option: The addition of Police-Initiated Stops to the MCI   

The second policy option is the addition of police-initiated stops to the 2023 MCI. This would focus on creating deliverables and actions that would focus on police-initiated stops for both pedestrians and drivers. 

I don’t know about you, but I can speak on behalf of all Burqueños’s and Burqueñas’s and say that getting “pulled over” sucks! Although getting “pulled over” may suck, police-initiated stops have been one of the most common and effective police tactics used and has a correlation to reducing violent crimes by 13%. The legal legitimacy for police-initiated stops is based on the Terry v. Ohio Ruling. 

 

More police-initiated stops will lead to (1) changing police officers' mindset to becoming more proactive instead of reactive; (2) allowing police officers to fully understand their effects on crime when they conduct stops (which can boost the morale of officers and the department as a whole) and (3) consistently building an understanding of the community and the individuals who reside in it. 

One major and crucial downfall for this policy, ironically, is how police-initiated stops will increase significantly. “Well Isaiah, didn’t you say that increasing police-initiated stops is good avenue to decrease levels of crime?” Well, in a sense, yes. However, there are significant repercussions for this policy option.  

What is important to keep in mind is how police-initiated stops disproportionally effect people of color and low-income neighborhoods. Based on how almost 50% of Albuquerque's population is Hispanic and how 16% of our population lives in poverty, this could certainly be detrimental. Increasing the number of stops can also affect the mental and physical health of members of the community. All of these components can affect people’s attitude towards the police, which could lead to individuals not wanting to communicate with law enforcement.  

We want our fellow Burqueños and Burqueñas to feel inclined to call the police if an issue arises, and not the other way around. 

3rd Policy Option: Strengthening pretrial detention criteria   

The third and final policy option would be geared towards strengthening pretrial detention criteria. Although there is not an association that this will reduce violent crime and homicide rate, there is an association that pretrial detention secures the appearance of defendant at trial and prevents the defendant from inflicting additional harm to the community. But why is that important? 

Even though this may not be a proactive approach, it certainly mitigates the chances for defendants to re-offend and is an effective way to protect the community as a whole. The importance of expanding the criteria for the release status and conditions for a defendant will reassure that the defendant remains in pre-trial detention until their trial and will not be a danger to the community. Pre-trial detention is not only used for individuals who are accused of committing a violent crime, but also used for all other types of crimes as well. With that in mind, being able to hold defendants under pre-trial detention for any type of crime can limit their ability to commit a more server and heinous crime in the future.  

At face-value, this seems like an effective solution to keep defendants in custody who are linked to committing a violent crime. However, expanding the pre-trial detention criteria would lead to expanding Albuquerque’s detention facilities and hiring more staff. Investing more in jail services may not sit well for my fellow my Burqueños and Burqueñas. Which is valid. Increased incarceration, even if justified, is linked to social and racial disparity. It also doesn’t help when people point out how New Mexico’s incarceration rate is 773 per 100,000 people, which is higher than the national average (See in Figure 3). Another concern that is presented is how pre-trial detention can be effective in the short-term but can be detrimental in the long term. Not only can this increase recidivism rate, but it can lead to loss of employment, loss of housing, and family separation.  

 

Figure 3 Source: “New Mexico profile | Prison Policy Initiative” (Prison Policy Initiative, 2021) 

So... What would my recommendation be?  

Out of the three policy options, I choose to stick with the creation of the APD POP Unit. This is not only an innovative policy option but it will serve to (1) decrease the levels of crime, (2) engages officers to become more proactive in their policing approach, (3) allows officers to form relationships with the communities that are of concern, and (4) gives officers a deeper understanding of the underlying components of why crimes are committed in said area. 

However, every policy has its flaws. The biggest concerns I identified for the creation of the APD POP Unit is the major influx of police officers in high crime areas. Not only will there be a large police presence, but police officers will began initiating more conversations with members of the community. It is hard to justify if my fellow Burqueños and Burqueñas would be willing to actively engage in conversation with law enforcement.  

However, for the Burqueños and Burqueñas who are intrinsically motivated to change the environment of the community they reside in, this newly formed unit would be greatly beneficial. The constant communication with law enforcement can lead to police officer gathering valuable information from a community, which would lead to providing proactive measures and solutions to change the environment. The ability to (1) scan the problem, (2) analyze what contributes to the problem, (3) respond to the problem, and (4) assess how the solution worked and where it needs to be improved has shown to be remarkably effective in preventing crime.