By MARCO V. LUCERO  

As your elected sheriff for the past six and a half years, I have done my best to provide services that hold true to my faith, the Office of the Sheriff and my passion to enhance public safety. With little or no resources provided by local government I have done my best to provide services. 

I know that life pits us with those who do not agree with what we try to do. I know that despite our good intentions, some people are going to smear us. I realize that is part of holding public office. I have learned to be tolerant of those who take this route, and I have reached a point to agree to disagree with them. 

In our most recent budget hearing discussion with council regarding the reallocation of a resources to the Sheriffs’ Office, there were no additional resources granted. The majority of you have expressed your wishes to have an elected Sheriff in our county in the November 2016 election. We are now in June 2017 and the only effort to reinstate some of what was taken away by county council prior to the vote, is being done by Councilor Pete Sheehey. 

Let’s look at what is being asked in Councilor Sheehey’s resolution. The Sheriffs’ duties are to:

• Continue the Sex Offender and Notification Act (SORNA);
• Reassign the Civil Process Responsibilities;
• Security of the Justice Center/Courthouse;
• Prisoner Transports in and out of Los Alamos County; and,
• Recognition that in rare instances, Law Enforcement Certified Sheriff staff do have the duty to Investigate Crimes that may be seen as a potential conflict of interest of our local Police Department. 

Councilor Sheehey is proposing BASIC duties that are done by every Sheriff’s Office in our state. It is essential to have those checks and balances in every community.

With regard to the SORNA requirements as dictated by statute 29-11A-4, those duties are specifically assigned to every Sheriff’s Office in our state. As your Sheriff, I hold this as one of my highest responsibilities if not the highest. After working in law enforcement, going on my 29th year, I have found that the worst crimes, are the crimes against our children. Though the homicide investigations I’ve investigated and helped prosecute were horrific, the suffering of those victims was over. An innocent child victim is left with the scars for the remainder of their lifetime. We need to do all we can to keep our children safe.

The Civil Process is an unglamorous oftentimes bearer of bad news duty of the Sheriff’s Office that also is dictated by statute 4-41-14. When the Sheriff or Deputies knock on your door, it’s usually to give notice to appear in court, you’re being sued, someone has filed a restraining/protective order against you or you’re being evicted.  

These duties were transferred to the Police Department in June 2016. I’m sure the LAPD and the citizens would rather have LAPD patrolling their neighborhoods preventing crime rather than trying to track down a person to serve a court notice.

Courthouse security is currently being conducted by a private security company. They average 20 hours/week at an expense first paid by the budget of the Municipal Court and are now being paid out of the Police Department’s budget. The private security officers are armed and not law enforcement certified. Though I believe they have some training, the Los Alamos County Sheriff deputies that were let go as per Council’s and the County manager’s choice, were far more qualified to take on this responsibility.

Prisoner transports in and out of Los Alamos County, too, are responsibilities held by Sheriffs’ Offices throughout our state and are currently being done by Jail staff and LAPD. Again, I believe that it would better serve the community to have Jail and LAPD staff focusing on security of the jail and officers patrolling our neighborhoods. I believe that by transferring these duties to the Los Alamos Sheriff’s Office, all personnel would serve the community in a more effective and efficient manner.

We are blessed in Los Alamos to live in a community that is relatively safe, and crime rates are minimal in comparison to our neighboring counties. I credit that to the good people who live and work here. I also recognize that we do have good law enforcement officers who work for the LAPD who do their best to keep our community safe.

In accordance to statute 29-1-1, it is the duty and responsibility of every Sheriff in our state to investigate crimes that are brought to his/her attention. Since my election, I can count on two hands the number of criminal complaints brought to my attention by citizens of Los Alamos. Of those, I recommended to the complainant that approximately half be investigated by LAPD. In those rare occasions, when it involved a registered sex offender living in our county, or when there was a documented expressed concern by the complainant that the LAPD may be conflicted by conducting the investigation, I completed those investigations.

I recall when I first campaigned to be your sheriff in 2010, I was surprised to hear from a number of local residents who didn’t even know Los Alamos had a Sheriffs’ Office. Having worked for over half my life in the Offices of the Sheriff here and in Santa Fe, I have witnessed and truly believe in having that executive branch of law enforcement that answers to you, the people. 

Some may say that we have that with our state’s Attorney General’s Office, but I believe that a local person would and should feel more comfortable going to their local Sheriff, and having that Sheriff available to address their concerns.

More than 5,300 voters in Los Alamos County voted to have the Office of the Sheriff. I’m sure that the vast majority of them didn’t vote to have the office as an “ornamented position” that only serves papers or participates in local parades.

Resolution 17-08 would provide your Sheriffs’ Office with BASIC duties, which would enhance public safety and provide for better services to the community.

Getting this done would require sufficient budgeting and staffing. Some may express concerns of budgeting the resolution. We have the allocated $8 million+ budget approved to the LAPD.  Since these duties are currently being done by them, we can transfer those funds necessary to the Sheriffs’ Office to perform said duties.

I want all to understand, that regardless how council majority votes regarding this resolution, I will continue to serve you to the best of my ability.