everitt's story doesn't wash

KRQE TV did a piece tonight on the "review" of the aps police department. link

Everitt commented, during an interview with Jessica Garate, "When concerns were raised, that was the first thing that I thought of; was to bring in the experts."

"When concerns were raised, the first thing I thought of..."

There were a number of complaints regarding Gil Lovato that were filed with the district's Equal Opportunity Services Office at least as early as last year. Is she claiming no knowledge of those complaints alleging misconduct by her chief of police? Gil Lovato reports to Tom Savage. Lovato's attorney indicated in an earlier KRQE report that Savage was in fact, in the loop. Did Savage not report to Everitt on the multiple complaints, investigations and their outcomes? Did the APS EOSO office not report to Savage?

Let's give Everitt the benefit of a very small doubt; she is out of the loop; she doesn't know what is going on even at the highest levels of her administration. Not a good sign, but it would explain her ignorance of previous problems.

With this post, she knows about them now; for sure. All of the paperwork on the complaints is a matter of public record. If she actually has the interest in transparency and accountability that she would like us all to believe that she has; she will release the truth as it exists in the form of public records which are subject to the New Mexico Inspection of Public Records Act.

I will make a public records request for those records. Rigo Chavez will dance around the requests for a few months. At some point it will be obvious that Everitt/APS has no intention of complying with the requirements of the New Mexico Inspection of Public Records Act. A suit could be filed in the second judicial district court to force compliance.

The lawyers from Modral would show up to make sure that the truth is suppressed. They would not reveal the name of the administrator(s) who authorized the spending of public resources to prevent the release of public records. I am assuming that it is an administrator that gives Modral its orders. It may be Paula Maes who tells her husband's lawyers what to do. Maybe Modral just takes it upon themselves, to drive up their billable hours. We will never know. The end result is that the public records will never be surrendered.

Everitt could prove that everything that I have just alleged is nonsense; that I am just a "disgruntled" former employee making up all this crap as I go. She could prove that by telling Rigo Chavez to comply with the law and release the documents within three business days.

You will know the truth by the end of this week/beginning of the next; I will have the documents or I will not.

But back to the original point; let's assume that Everitt knew nothing of the EOSO complaints. That would mean that she "first became aware of the problem" in the administration of her Praetorian Guard by the first of this year. She can hardly claim not to have know at that point because it was all over the news that he had been placed on administrative leave. Even if she is out of the loop; she can hardly maintain that she didn't see it in the papers or on the news.

So now all she has to explain is why the first thing she thought of; an independent review of the aps police department, wasn't announced until today, and won't start until next month; five months after everyone else knew the truth. Lovato is earning three hundred dollars a day while he is on "leave".

There are at least two obvious possibilities; Beth Everitt is incompetent and this is the best she can do; or she is corrupt, and this is the best she will do.

A third possibility defies imagination; but if if does exist, surely there is a paper trail with which she can defend her failure to protect public resources and public interests in the APS. Maybe no one ever called her back or answered any of her letters requesting their help.

(please remember that when Michael Vigil was sent home for his aggravated DUI; she and the board promised the community that APS employees on administrative leave would not just get paid time off; they would have to work in some capacity for the District. Lovato could easily have spent the last four months as a crossing guard; he is qualified and has a uniform. It would seem that the "work while we investigate your misconduct" policy is hit or miss. Perhaps it only applies to subordinate employees, not administrators.)