Child Molestation Charges Dropped Against Former Police Officer

Associated Press

AZTEC — Child molestation charges have been dropped against a former Bloomfield police officer because of a lack of evidence, the district attorney's office said.
"The things we had to prove, we didn't think they had the evidence to move forward,'' said Deputy District Attorney Terry Walker.
Joseph Goodman, 54, had been charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one of criminal sexual contact of a minor.
The 11-year-old daughter of a former girlfriend had accused him of touching her inappropriately while the mother was out of town on a family emergency last year, according to court documents.
Goodman resigned from the Bloomfield force in February 2004.
The district attorney's office began its investigation after Goodman's arrest earlier this year, but Walker said the office could not find enough to substantiate the allegations.
"Sometimes there's not sufficient evidence to support (a case),'' she said.
The charges were dropped last month.

N.M. Officers Suing Taser Firm

The Associated Press

PHOENIX— Police officers in New Mexico and four other states have filed lawsuits against Arizona-based Taser International Inc., claiming they were seriously injured after being shocked with the electronic stun gun during training classes.
All of the lawsuits have been filed in the past two weeks, including four in Maricopa County Superior Court here on behalf of officers in Florida, Kansas, New Mexico and Ohio.
The officers allege they suffered "severe and permanent" injuries, including multiple spinal fractures, burns, a shoulder dislocation and soft-tissue injuries.
The lawsuits challenge Taser's principal safety claim and accuse the company of misleading law enforcement about the extent of potential injuries. They also accuse company officials of concealing reports of injuries to at least a dozen other law enforcement officers.
Taser, based in Scottsdale, has marketed the weapons to 7,000 law enforcement agencies and promoted the gun's safety.
The devices temporarily paralyze people with a 50,000-volt jolt delivered by two barbed darts that can penetrate clothing.
The American Civil Liberties Union reports more than 130 deaths in the United States related to Tasers, while Amnesty International reports more than 120 deaths in the U.S. and Canada— both figures since June 2001.
Taser International has consistently denied that its products are to blame in the deaths, arguing that none have been directly linked to Tasers.
The company also contends Tasers have saved thousands of lives— suspects who might otherwise have been fatally shot by police.
In a statement Friday, Taser vice president Steve Tuttle said the company planned to "aggressively fight" all of the lawsuits.
In their lawsuits, the officers allege they were injured in training classes between August 2003 and October 2004.
They say that Taser instructors did not reveal any medical information suggesting that the guns could cause injuries and they claim the company has ignored important research suggesting the guns could be extremely dangerous, if not fatal.

All City Officers to Carry TASERs

By Joshua Akers, Journal Staff Writer

Every police officer working the streets in Rio Rancho will soon have a TASER.
The Department of Public Safety is ordering 28 new TASERs with money it received from a federal grant.
Rio Rancho received $23,107 from the Bureau of Justice Assistance to purchase the TASERs. Each costs just over $800.
The city plans to use an additional $2,107 from forfeited drug funds to purchase five cases of TASER cartridges and pay for training on the weapon.
Deputy Chief Steve Shaw said Friday that the TASER is one of the most effective weapons in the city's arsenal.
"It is the most effective less-than-lethal-force weapon we have available to us," Shaw said. "Not just for Rio Rancho, but in all law enforcement."
The TASER, which looks similar to a handgun, fires two metal probes into a suspect. Once the probes connect, a charge of electricity is sent through the connecting wires that immobilizes the person.
Rio Rancho officer Shelby Smith has trained DPS officers on TASER use for the past two years.
Smith said the modern TASER evolved from the early "stun guns," which were handheld.
"The stun gun was more of a pain weapon that a suspect with enough concentration or high pain threshold could fight through," Smith said. "The TASER is more effective because it mimics the electric impulses the brain sends to the muscle."
A five-second jolt from the TASER gives officers the opportunity to handcuff an unruly suspect, Shaw said.
DPS has seen the number of officer and suspect injuries drop since it began using the TASER in 2001, Shaw said.
"Prior to the use of the TASER, we would see a lot of officers with knee injuries or torn rotator cuffs and suspects with injuries that resulted in lawsuits against the city," Shaw said. "Since the TASER, I cannot recall the last injury we've seen from a confrontation with a subject."
As more and more law enforcement agencies have employed the TASER, some people have questioned the safety of the weapon.
Those questions were brought on by the deaths of some people after being shot by the TASER.
Shaw and Smith said there were other factors involved in those deaths beside the TASER.
"I don't think any of those incidents are directly attributable to the TASER," Shaw said. "With the people that died, there were other things going on like drugs."
Smith said officers who are trained to use TASERs are instructed to make a judgment call about when the TASER should be used.
The city hopes to have the majority of its officers trained to use the weapon by the end of this month.
TASERs will be distributed to field officers once they arrive.
Rio Rancho currently has 28 officers carrying TASERs. DPS has 20 TASERs ordered and plans to order the 28 to be paid for with the grant money as soon as the City Council approves a budget adjustment.
Shaw said when the TASERs arrive depends on the company's production schedule.
The council is scheduled to consider the budget adjustment at its meeting Sept. 14.

Officer Accused Of Rape Is Fired

Around the Metro Area , Journal Staff Reports

An Albuquerque police officer accused of raping a 14-year-old girl was formally terminated Wednesday.
Shortly before his firing, officer Timothy Chavez and his attorney met with Police Chief Ray Schultz Wednesday to plead their case, which is required by APD policy.
After the meeting, Schultz reviewed the case against Chavez and then fired the undercover vice officer.
According to court records, Chavez was arrested May 24 on charges of kidnapping and sexual penetration stemming from allegations that he met the teenager on a telephone dating service and raped her inside her home.
Chavez was with the department for about 13 years.

APD Officer Named in Other Excessive Force Lawsuits

Associated Press

One of two Albuquerque police officers that a New York heart surgeon says roughed him up has been named in four federal lawsuits alleging excessive force.
Surgeon Vincent Moss, who is on a two-month sabbatical working at Gallup's Indian Medical Center, was arrested early Sunday on charges of disorderly conduct and refusing to obey an officer. He was released on $75 bond.
Moss contends two officers threw him to the ground, separating his shoulder, and falsely arrested him after he complained to a bar manager about not being served. He said he suspects he was badly treated because he's black.
The bar's manager said Moss was aggressive and officers acted appropriately.
Police Chief Ray Schultz has asked the city's independent review office to investigate.
One officer listed on the criminal complaint against Moss is Allen Hancock — one of two officers named in a 1998 federal lawsuit that alleged Hancock crushed a man's hand with his foot during a traffic stop, The Albuquerque Tribune reported Friday.
That man, who is black, settled for a "reasonable'' amount, said his attorney, Philip Davis.
The Tribune said Hancock was named in another 1998 federal lawsuit alleging he refused to let a Hispanic man tend his wife after her head was cut when she was knocked down by another officer. The lawsuit alleges Hancock made the man take four blood-alcohol tests that all were within the legal limit, so Hancock broke the device and charged the man with DWI.
The man was found not guilty, and the lawsuit was settled and dismissed in 1999. The Tribune said attorneys in the case could not confirm what the city paid.
Albuquerque police spokesman John Walsh said Hancock is a veteran SWAT officer and that SWAT officers often are the subjects of complaints given the high intensity of the situations where they're called.
Figures from the Albuquerque Police Oversight Commission said that in general, complaints against officers are rising.
Hancock is among numerous officers named in two pending federal lawsuits.
One, filed in March, accuses 15 Albuquerque officers of using excessive force during an anti-Iraq war protest in March 2003. It alleges they fired beanbag rounds, pepper spray and tear gas at the peaceful protesters.
Hancock is among 19 Albuquerque officers and four Rio Rancho police officers accused in a 2004 federal lawsuit of breaking into the home of an elderly women, her daughter and two teenage children to serve a search warrant.
The lawsuit alleges officers tossed in flash-bang grenades, pointed guns at the family, made abusive comments, handcuffed the elderly woman so tightly she was hospitalized and injured the other woman by stepping on her back.
Nothing was found at the home and no one was charged.

City Moves to Fire Vice Cop

By Jeff Proctor, Journal Staff Writer

Albuquerque officials will not wait for an indictment to begin the process of firing police officer Timothy Chavez, who is accused of raping a 14-year-old girl.

"He received termination papers today, and that's the first step of the process," Mayor Martin Chávez told the Journal editorial board Thursday. "We knew the day we got the DNA back that he wasn't going to be with the police department anymore."

A personnel hearing is scheduled for the middle of next week, where an up or down decision will be rendered on Officer Chavez's job, said John Walsh, an APD spokesman.

Officer Chavez, 33, was arrested May 24 on charges of kidnapping and criminal sexual penetration. He was placed on leave with pay.

At the time, Police Chief Ray Schultz said he would fire Chavez once the officer was indicted by a grand jury. Schultz said he expected an indictment within 10 days.

Chances for a speedy indictment ground to a halt, in part, because Officer Chavez is related to or has worked with several people on staff at the Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office.

To avoid an obvious conflict of interest, District Attorney Kari Brandenburg asked Attorney General Patricia Madrid to take over the case.

The AG's Office is still considering whether to take the case, spokeswoman Sam Thompson said Thursday.

Rather than wait for a decision from Madrid's office in Santa Fe, Albuquerque officials are using the results of an APD internal affairs investigation to start the process to fire Chavez.

"As of (Thursday) the chief had received and reviewed the results of the internal affairs investigation and recommended termination," Walsh said.

According to the City Attorney's Office, an indictment or the results of an internal investigation does meet the due process
requirement for termination of a police officer.

Chavez, an undercover vice officer, is accused of meeting the girl over the telephone dating service Live Links, according to court records. He allegedly asked if he could come to her house, then came over and raped her there.

DNA taken from the girl's body matched the officer's, court records show.

Police Abuse? Visiting surgeon weighing options in wake of confrontation with Albuquerque cops

By Leslie Wood
Staff Writer, The Independent
http://www.gallupindependent.com/2005/july/072105pabuse.html


From the home in Gallup where he is staying, GIMC heart surgeon Vincent Moss talks on the phone Wednesday with attorneys about a potential lawsuit against the Albuquerque Police Department for excessive use of force. [Photo by John A. Bowersmith/Independent]

GALLUP — A 34-year-old Gallup Indian Medical Center heart surgeon reclined on a plush cream sofa on Wednesday night as he juggled telephone calls from zealous attorneys hoping to represent him in a potential lawsuit against the Albuquerque Police Department.

To be exact, nine attorneys, from across the nation, have contacted Maryland native Vincent Moss since news broke about an incident where police allegedly beat him up outside an Albuquerque tavern.

However, the officers and bar owner assert appropriate force was used and Moss came toward them in a threatening manner.

Moss was visiting Albuquerque for the weekend after hearing of the city's reputation.

"I was just walking the beautiful streets of Albuquerque," he said. Moss said he approached Maloney's tavern manager Dave Buehring to question why he had not been served, after he had been ignored by the bar's wait staff for nearly 30 minutes.

Albuquerque police officers reportedly watched as Buehring and Moss discussed his treatment outside the downtown establishment and only took action once Moss followed Buehring back into the bar to settle a tab.

The incident escalated when officers grabbed Moss by the shirt and eventually pushed him onto the ground causing his shoulder to dislocate. Meanwhile, Moss said he was trying to introduce himself as a Gallup physician.

In addition to a dislocated shoulder, Moss sustained multiple bruises on his upper arm and left eye. He was subsequently booked into the Albuquerque detention center and made a $75 bond about 12 hours later.

Due to his injuries, Moss said he is unable to conduct surgery without an assistant. He plans to investigate the incident to determine whether a lawsuit is warranted.

"I want to gather all the facts to decide whether I should pursue legal matters," Moss said. "... but I do know excessive force was used."

He's not certain if his neglect as a customer was race-related because the tavern was filled with more than 100 customers at the time, he said. But he did call witness statements that he came toward the officers in an aggressive stance "a complete lie."

"It's unfortunate it happened to me," he said. "But what is fortunate is that I'll do something about it. I'll do whatever it takes."

Moss is temporarily working at GIMC as a heart surgeon until he is deployed to Iraq in September.

"He has been able to do things they usually can't accommodate," Louise Frechette, said of the surgeon who is temporarily staying at her and her husband's home.

When he arrived in Gallup in late June at about 2 a.m., Moss said he was followed to his Linda Street residence by at least three Gallup police officers who were patrolling the area.

He said a female officer pulled him over and asked if he was lost. The officers then followed Moss until he arrived at the location.

"It's so vague that it's not worth filing a complaint," Moss said. "I can't say it was race-related, but you can never rule it out."

He said incidents such as this are a more common of an occurrence since his arrival to the southwest. Gallup Police Chief Sylvester Stanley said it is not the department's policy to pull over a vehicle without probable cause.

"It's not our procedure to follow people regardless of their color," Stanley said.

However, he invited Moss to meet with him if he had a complaint.

Moss said he has already discussed the Albuquerque incident with the Mayor Martin Chavez, the police department and the governor's office.

Buehring could not be reached for comment, as of press time.