For those that don’t know me, I grew up in a family-owned funeral home and was taught early on about appreciating the gift of life and the reality of death. We are all raised with the mindset that we are born to eventually leave this Earth. Though hard to understand at first, we accept the fact that life does in fact come to an end, whether it be by accident, illness, or simply just coming to the end of a long journey. What we are not prepared for is when a loved one is violently taken away from us because someone else does not respect the sanctity of life. Constantly we hear about the revolving door of our judicial system and the impact it plays on us. Consider the families of Cypress Garcia and Elmer Sanchez, Jr.; their respective parents, children, siblings, aunts and uncles have laid them to rest knowing that our current system has potentially failed them.
The thought that we can live and work freely in this world with the common principle of pursuit of happiness without living in fear should be a basic preface for everyone. We are at a crossroads with the raging crime epidemic affecting the State of New Mexico. Unfortunately our local enforcement agencies are severely hampered by minimal resources or staffing shortages that are affecting all aspects of the workforce in today’s world. Add to that – the basis that individuals that have been accused of committing serious crimes to life and property continue to walk amongst us and we are subjected to this atmosphere that has been created by the judicial system. Additionally, crimes to property should also not be overlooked – consider a longtime business owner who works hard each day to provide for their family, contribute their gross receipts tax to our community, helps sponsor the Little League Teams or the many community celebrations we have. They lock and secure their building at the close of the business day like so many other businesses and they are subjected to burglaries that not only cost them physical and emotional damage – many times these offenders purposely destroy the space beyond recognition.
Police Chief Mizel Garcia keeps me posted about burglaries we have in this community, I know many of the small business owners and the struggles they endure to provide for their families and also support this community. The commercial burglaries are just a fraction of the property crime we endure within our community, the complete disrespect for the theft of personal property from our homes and yards and the disregard for property boundaries just amplify an ailing judicial system. It also saddens me when it is the repeat offenders committing these crimes and they have yet to be punished for their actions or carry a simple blatant regard for anyone but themselves. Many of the decisions regarding legislation regarding our criminal justice system are derived from our New Mexico State Legislature. Fortunately, we are blessed that New Mexico still has a citizen legislature where our delegation still live, work and shop in the communities they serve.
I implore the public to reach out to our State Senator Leo Jaramillo, State Representatives Joseph Sanchez, Susan Herrera, and Christine Chandler and ask for their assistance with much needed criminal justice reform to echo and be the change we seek in our communities.
2023 is a 60-day Legislative Session so this is an excellent time to organize and rally to bring to the forefront the issues we are facing in our communities.
The Española Valley is an extremely special place, this is the only place my family and I know as our home; we have lived in this beautiful Valley for 12+ generations. The massive amount of pride that comes out of this community shocks other cities throughout the State; I often joke that people of the Valley just have strong hearts and thick skin to shout from the rooftops they come from this amazing place. I have witnessed some amazing things when this Valley can unite with a common plan and vision to demand better. I have always stated there is strength in unity.
Regardless of our personal differences, we are always committed to building Española as a wonderful place to live, work, and play!
We believe in Española!
John Ramon Vigil is the mayor of Española and a board member of Jemez Electric Cooperative.