ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Folks in South Valley took their concerns straight to the sheriff and district attorney Wednesday night. 

Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen says he’s working to bring license plate readers and gunshot detectors to the South Valley. 

KOB 4 caught up with Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman before Wednesday night’s discussion started. He says it’s all about getting everyone on the same page and keeping communication open. 

“We think it’s really, really important to get out in the community and hear what people’s thoughts are on the issues of crime. What they see working, what they see not working and making sure we’re all being consistent when it comes to crime,” said Bregman. 

What Allen and Bregman heard was a lot of frustration. The meeting was a question and answer style, and many people stood up saying they’ve seen the same problems in their community for years – with no feedback or solutions from law enforcement. 

“It’s a slum. It’s really bad, and a lot of speedsters, a lot of crime. In my general area not much but the streets are dilapidated, seems like nothing is going well,” said Leo Candelaria, a South Valley resident. 

“It’s so ugly and horrible. We see so much going on all the time. Speeders they don’t obey the law they just pass red lights, and it gets old,” said Simi Lucero, a South Valley resident. 

A few other major concerns include pedestrian deaths and drugs, including people selling and using drugs out in the open.

Another question that came up was what do we do about cars without license plates? That got some laughter from the crowd, indicating it’s something people see a lot of in that part of town. 

Allen pointed out that’s on their radar and that they’re really ramping up patrols specifically on Rio Grande and Coors. The traffic unit is also conducting special operations to look for speeding, aggressive driving, and other illegal behavior behind the wheel. 

Allen says cars without license plates could be stolen, or associated with firearms or narcotics.

Bregman and Allen plan to hold town halls across the county to learn about issues unique to each area. The next one will be on the West Side at the end of the month.