Posted at: 07/09/2009 6:35 PM
By: Stuart Dyson, Eyewitness News 4; Charlie Pabst, KOB.com
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Albuquerque mayor calls for 100 more cops
The mayor of Albuquerque’s call for 100 more cops on the streets becomes a red meat issue in the race to see whether he’ll stay on the job, or turn over the keys to a new mayor.
Mayor Martin Chavez wants 100 new cops, bumping Albuquerque’s police force up to 1,200 officers. That carries a price tag of more than $8.5 million a year, at a time when city revenues are withering away. Chavez said it has to be done.
"It's just gotta be our priority - you know - we will find it, and if we have to cut elsewhere, we will cut elsewhere - I don't see that occurring because of the stimulus monies available – but, if necessary, I'll make those choices without skipping a beat," Chavez said Thursday.
Opponent Richard Romero says the mayor is grandstanding.
"I'm all for putting more cops on the street, we really need to, but to me this seems more like election-year politics than it does public safety,” Romero said. “This Mayor has had eight years to address this issue.”
Opponent Richard “R.J.” Berry also chimed in on the issue, saying, “I think we have fine folks in the police department - we can add officers as needed - but we have to make crime a priority - we need a new set of eyes on this problem and that's the fundamental aspect of this campaign.
