Eric L.

Dixon
10056 Menaul Blvd, NE
Apartment C20
Albuquerque, NM 87112-2320

Police Chief Michael Geier

Albuquerque Police Department
400 Roma NW
Albuquerque, NM 87112-2320

Dear Police Chief Geier,

To address the crime issue in Albuquerque, I have provided the below recommendation report.
In it, you will find that I have elaborated on analysis of the crime problem in terms of statistics
as well as news stories. I have also researched what is currently being done in the crime battle
in our city as well as presented some recommendations that I think will enhance your
organization’s ability to further fight crimes: (1) drone use, (2) surveillance cameras, (3) sensor
motion lights and (4) implementation of a legislative oversight committee. I consider these
recommendations important since something of a more acute nature needs to be done to fight
and lower the crime rate in our city. If you consider these recommendations and put them into
motion or incorporate them into an action plan, I sincerely believe they will serve as a basis for
future improvements in lowering crime in our city and making it a place that is more conducive
to both economic progress and a pleasant way of life for all of Albuquerque’s citizens.

Please review the below report and let me know if you have questions or wish to discuss it by
contacting me using the below information. Thank you.

Sincerely,
Eric L. Dixon
Undergraduate Student
University of New Mexico
(575)545-1172
E-MAIL: eldixon@unm.edu
SOURCE: www.neontommy.com

INTRODUCTION
I remember living in Albuquerque in the late 1990s. Back then, crime was present in the city;
however, you could tell that it was not as prominent, or at least did not seem as prominent,
since you could go downtown and feel comfortable enjoying the events on the plaza. Today,
however, you are constantly hearing about shootings and car theft. This recommendation
report will cover the topic of elevated crime in Albuquerque and address the question “How
can we lower the amount of crime in Albuquerque?”. I will provide an analysis of what is
currently being done, to include the methodology I used for such analysis along with its results,
discussion of the results and recommendations on what can be done to lower the crime rate:
use of drones, surveillance cameras, sensor motion lights and employment of a legislative
oversight committee. Please be advised that this recommendation report is primarily
addressed to the Albuquerque Police Department but may also be submitted for review by
governing officials of the City of Albuquerque.
METHODOLOGY
This section of the report highlights all actions I took to research the topic of crime in
Albuquerque. I first looked at statistical data. Then, I obtained news accounts of criminal
activity. Finally, I researched current approaches towards tackling the crime problem.
When pursuing statistical data, I selected the information that was reflective of the most
recent criminal activity in Albuquerque. Once I found the latest information, I perused it to
ensure it provided the statistics that I needed to support my topic of discussion. I also decided
that the statistical data would primarily be graphical information with an interpretation of that
data based on what the graphs provided.
After gathering the statistical data, I went to the websites of the three primary news stations
here in Albuquerque – KOAT-7, KOB-TV, and KRQE News – to locate criminal activity for which
they provided reports. I based my selection on whether the news events of crime occurred
within the past two years. I also made sure that the information in the news reports was
sufficient enough to serve as evidence of criminal activity.
Finally, I obtained information on what local law enforcement authorities as well as state
government is doing to resolve the crime problem. I tried to obtain data that was no earlier
than two or three years old. I also tried to include images or pictures to support my findings
here, as well.
To conclude, I did not have too much trouble gathering all the data I needed. However,
when obtaining news accounts of criminal activity, some of the reports did not have enough
information; therefore, I ended up obtaining less information than what I could have obtained.
Likewise, when it came to current approaches, information related to the use of a law
enforcement trailer was more than three years old. However, I still considered it pertinent to
my topic since it contained much valuable information.

RESULTS
In this section, you will find the details of my research that I conducted on the topic of crime in
Albuquerque. The statistical data is represented in the form of charts along with a discussion of
each. The news accounts are provided with an indication of the date on which each criminal
activity or actions by law enforcement to fight such occurred. Finally, a brief account of
approaches recently or currently taken by law enforcement and state government is provided.

STATISTICAL DATA
Below, you will find two sets of statistical data indicating the crime rate in Albuquerque in
relation to the national crime rate. The first one is a table that provides the number of various
criminal acts per 100,000 people. The second one is two graphs reflecting an overall average of
property and violent crime, respectively, specifically for the year of 2016:
SOURCE: http://www.areavibes.com/albuquerque-nm/crime/
SOURCE: https://www.cityrating.com/crime-statistics/new-mexico/albuquerque.html

For both sets of data, you will notice that crime exceeds the national representation of the
same crimes committed in Albuquerque. Of note, crimes related to stealing, such as motor
vehicle theft and robbery, are substantially higher.

NEWS ACCOUNTS
Even though much statistical data exists on crime in Albuquerque and elsewhere, more
evidence of elevated crime in our city is indicated in the numerous news accounts that are
broadcasted on the three main news outlets: KOAT-7, KOB, and KRQE News. The following are
a small sampling of various accounts of crime within the city of Albuquerque:

June 29, 2017: A suspect was barricaded in his house until the SWAT team arrived. He was
charged with shooting a woman. The woman was not killed and was expected to live. He also
had an accomplice who got away and was at large during the broadcast of this report.

August 23, 2017: Albuquerque police arrested multiple individuals in a drug bust. This took
place after local citizens voice their frustrations and contacted the police. In successfully
arresting the suspects, the police used undercover tactics, and they even offered to provide
some of them rehabilitation assistance to manage their substance abuse problem.

May 10, 2017: In the Old Town section of Albuquerque, a business called History and Ghost
Tours of Old Town experienced four acts of vandalism and theft in five days. The business
owner advised she did not experience such in the 10 years during which her business has
operated.
JANUARY 30, 2018: Albuquerque police arrested multiple individuals and recovered 23 vehicles
stolen. Some of the suspects possessed prior convictions. Also, according to this news story,
the police plan to continue similar operations for the balance of the year

FEBRUARY 8, 2018: A shooting was reported near the intersection of Central Avenue and
California Street. A female was shot in the leg but is expected to survive. The police
anticipated that the suspect eluded them by sneaking through a nearby trailer park. Residents
and drivers were later allowed to return to the local area.

JANUARY 31, 2018: 911 calls reported to one or more local dispatchers indicated an individual
driving erratically in and out of traffic lanes. When the police finally caught up to the driver,
they found out that the driver of the jeep was one of their own fellow officers. They discovered
that he had multiple open bottles of liquor on his person and in his jeep. He was arrested for
committing a DWI offense.

Again, this is only a small amount of news accounts reflecting criminal activity in our city, and
you will find more incidents of crime from viewing the news on television as well as observing
both statistical data and news on the website of the three news stations mentioned above.

CURRENT APPROACHES
Law enforcement is constantly doing all it can to fight crime. It has even employed basic tactics,
such as going undercover to stop the drug bust as indicated above in one of the news accounts.
However, they have also employed the use of technology, such as helicopters (used in the
operation in the news account where they arrested the car thieves) and even computer
systems. Albuquerque police are currently using what is called the Criminal Justice Information
Systems database to track and process information on criminals. Lapel cameras are also some
of the latest technology they use to account for activity during an arrest which can serve as
admissible evidence in court when prosecuting criminals. Use of law enforcement trailers have
been employed since 2012, which has the capability of delivering real-time video to IT devices
used by law enforcement, such as smart phones and laptops. Similar video capture has also
been accomplished in the use of lapel cameras. As well, law enforcement is using the latest in
vehicles adapt to chasing criminals, as illustrated below:
SOURCE: https://www.cabq.gov/police/documents/2016-annual-report-final.pdf

Aside from technology, law makers have tried to play their part in pushing for legislation to
lower crime. According to a KOAT-7 news report on February 15, 2018, the state legislature
drafted multiple bills to address the crime problem in Albuquerque. These included the
following measures: (1) tougher penalties for criminals with firearms and (2) assist inmates with
drug addictions and mental health issues after release from prison. The legislators also pushed
a budget proposal in conjunction with these bills to provide funding for police departments.
Even before this attempt at pushing legislation, on January 31, 2018, the following legislative
measures were also pushed by state legislators in one bill: (1) augment retention bonuses as
incentive to keep officers, (2) provide Medicaid and mental health resources for criminals after
completion of their sentences, (3) heavier rules for DWI ignition lock device removal and (4)
adjust non-violent crime penalties to ensure DA’s offices can focus on more serious crimes.

DISCUSSION OF RESULTS
The conclusion that should be made on the above results is that more actions need to be made
to pursue combat of crime in Albuquerque. When it comes to the statistics, it is apparent that
more criminal activity is happening overall in Albuquerque versus the rest of the nation,
particularly when it comes to car theft and robbery. The news accounts reflect only a small
amount of crimes occurring in Albuquerque. However, these criminal acts still serve as an
indication that crime is not being addressed sufficiently when it comes to combating it. As well,
the current approaches show that law enforcement and the state government have been taking
approaches to fight crime, even though the crime is still high. Use of technologies such as
helicopters, law enforcement trailers and lapel cameras have helped, but still are insufficient to
lowering the criminal activity. Finally, even though the state legislature has worked on passing
laws to address the crime problem, I found no evidence in my research to suggest that these
laws are being effectively enforced or employed to keep criminals behind bars. It is possible
that they are still working on getting these laws implemented, but, until more evidence is
provided, I cannot say definitively that legislation is currently and effectively addressing the
crime problem.
RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
So, given all these approaches and the latest crime statistics, the question remains: how can we
lower the crime in Albuquerque? A couple of hypotheses should serve as part of an approach
to further answer this question: (1) various technologies aside from those in service can address
the elevated crime and (2) more oversight of Albuquerque’s legal process can contribute to
crime reduction.

DRONES
Although legislators and law enforcement considered using this technology back in 2015, they
questioned how such technology would be used. However, drone technology can serve
instrumental in stopping criminals given the following conditions and/or circumstances:

1. OPERATION FROM THE AIR – Criminals, for the most part, are concentrating on engaging in
their criminal activity and may not be inclined to look up into the sky. With drones, you can use
the element of surprise and catch the criminals in the act. Also, if weaponized, the drones can
also engage the criminals, possibly diverting gun fire from officers on the ground. This would
give the same officers an easier opportunity to take suspects down who are using firearms with
less exposure to gun fire and a better chance of avoiding injury from the same.

2. PERSONNEL LIMITATIONS – Because law enforcement cannot ALWAYS be in all locations or

even in many locations always, drones can serve in a patrol capacity. The people operating the
drones will not have to concern themselves with confronting the criminals directly and possibly
putting themselves in danger since they would be operating them remotely. Even if the drones
locate criminals in the act, they can track the criminals and relay the specifics on the criminal
activity back to a 911 dispatcher who can notify patrol units and have them pursue the
criminals. Also, and again, if weaponized, depending upon the police department’s rules of
engagement, the drone can engage the criminals if they are committing a crime involving
imminent life and death, such as shooting at a victim or attacking someone with a knife.

3. EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES – For those who are looking for jobs involving IT, use of
drones in the police department can help with the unemployment problem in Albuquerque.
This is the case since, in large part, drone technology relies on computerized devices to enable
it to operate. As well, this can cause somewhat of a ripple effect in the city’s economy in that
more people gain more money to spend and support local businesses who, in turn, can hire
more people themselves because of increasing their revenue.

DEPLOYED SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS

Even though Albuquerque police are using cameras in various ways, more cameras can be
deployed throughout the city to aid in fighting crime. These could be cameras that perform
various functions:
1. SPEED CAMERAS – Just as in the United Kingdom (Britain) and other places, these types of
cameras can serve two purposes on our roads: (1) catch people exceeding the speed limit and
(2) serve as a witness to any criminal activity other than speeding on roadways. Also, such can
be placed in areas along the roadway where they blend in with the surroundings, making them
less detectable by criminals.

2. STREET CAMERAS – Unlike speed cameras, these would be used to ONLY capture activity in
different areas of the city that may be more isolated than other parts. For instance, you could
have such cameras in alleyways and streets with little or no lighting, particularly in
neighborhoods. They would be oriented, however, to where they capture activity on the
streets and NOT in or on anyone’s residence to ensure respect of the city’s citizens’ privacy.

3. MINATURIZED BUSINESS CAMERAS – These would be small enough to where the diameter of
the camera’s lens is no bigger than that of a quarter. Such cameras would serve a more
effective purpose for a business’ security since they would be more obscure than larger
cameras. Below are a couple of examples of miniature cameras (please note: the dime is used
for comparison purposes only):

SOURCE: www.brickhousesecurity.com

SENSOR MOTION LIGHTS

These types of devices are available for use for residential purposes. However, more
widespread use of these devices should be considered for businesses and government offices
and buildings where they are not used. Also, various retailers sell these types of lights, such as
www.lightingdirect.com.

LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE

Considering the above approaches that the City of Albuquerque and the state government has
taken in addressing crime issues, no committee exists that would serve as an organization to
verify and qualify laws that are passed to address crime. Such a committee, called the
Legislative Oversight Committee, would perform multiple functions in examining laws and
ordinances passed by and/or approved by municipal legislators. This committee should also
have some leverage in overseeing government laws. The specific activities this committee may
perform include the following: (1) establish and maintain a database specific to cataloging laws
passed by the state and/or city legislature, (2) either on a daily or weekly basis, carefully
research and examine each law to fully understand its purpose in addressing crime, (3) research
recent applications of such laws to see how they were implemented and (4) based on research
and evaluation of each law, provide feedback along with recommendations to city and/or state
government as to actions needed to either amend or rescind laws if they are insufficiently or
not effective, as appropriate. This committee should work closely with law enforcement since
law enforcement would know first hand where and how laws are enforced on a routine basis.

To conclude, for the sake of the City of Albuquerque and the surrounding communities, we
MUST continue to address the crime problem that it has. We cannot afford to become
complacent about the crime problem and expect someone else to act. Everyone’s input is
valuable, and the recommendations presented in this report can serve, at a minimum, as a
starting point in doing more to fight crime. Perhaps, at some point down the road, others may
look at these recommendations and develop concepts and ideas that will further address the
crime problem in Albuquerque. If you have any questions after reviewing this report, my
contact information is the following: (575)545-1172 or e-mail: dixonel45@gmail.com. Thank
you for the opportunity to present this report to you and have a nice day!

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES:
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“Albuquerque Crime Rate Report (NM).” CityRating.com, 2018. www.cityrating.com/crime-

statistics/new-mexico/albuquerque.html.

Gallegos, Brianna, “Neighbors relieved after a dozen arrested at Albuquerque park.” KRQE
News 13, 23 August 2017. http://krqe.com/2017/08/23/neighbors-relieved-after-a-dozen-
arrested-at-a-local-park/.

Yingling, Sara, “Albuquerque shooting suspect arrested after SWAT situation.” KRQE News 13,
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