From mid-2007 to the end of last year, State Police agent Joey Gallegos was a forensic analyst with the State Police Online Predator Unit, where he investigated cases from all over the state.
“I think some of these offices do a good job and with some of them (crimes against children) need to be a bigger priority,” Gallegos said.
Gallegos cited the Second Judicial District in Albuquerque as more effective than the First Judicial District, which prosecutes crimes in Rio Arriba, Santa Fe and Los Alamos counties.
Pat Davis, public information officer for the Second Judicial District Attorney’s office, said her office has six attorneys dedicated solely to sex crimes because of the number of cases and the special legal expertise required to prosecute them. Those attorneys handle an average of 40 cases at any given time, Davis said.
In comparison, the First Judicial District now has one assistant district attorney, Lara Sundermann, handling all of its crimes against children. Sundermann said last month she is currently overseeing 88 cases — alone.