As the days inch closer to the first Española City Council meeting after the municipal elections, talk among city officials continues to center on the increasingly controversial Phillip Chacon.
The newly elected District 2 city councilor will sit in on his first Council meeting Thursday (3/20), where Mayor Alice Lucero will assign the councilors committee seats.
Chacon has come under scrutiny after he was arrested March 9 for allegedly choking and hitting his son.
While Chacon awaits his March 31 arraignment hearing in magistrate court, many city councilors are staying mum on the issue.
Mayor Pro Tem Dennis Salazar and Councilor Cory Lewis declined to comment on the specifics of the case, but did offer their support for the Española Police Department and Police Chief Eric Garcia.
“I just feel that whatever happens, that I do trust in the Española Police Department to conduct a thorough investigation,” Salazar said.
Chacon was publicly critical of the department over the last month of his campaign and has filed two tort claims against it and the city.
His criticism is especially pointed when it comes to Det. Solomon Romero and Garcia, who Chacon accuses of “remote controlling” the department from afar, usually accompanied by comments that Garcia should “bat local or get out of the batter’s box.”
Chacon said he discussed possible committee appointments with Lucero March 10 and was confident after the meeting, that he would be appointed to the Public Safety Committee — an appointment he’s openly lobbied for since getting elected.
Some councilors felt uncomfortable with the prospect of Chacon joining the Public Safety Committee while continuing to feud with the police department.
Salazar, who’s currently the chairman of the Public Safety Committee, said Chacon wouldn’t be an appropriate choice with the controversy surrounding him.
“Right at this time, I do not feel it would be a good fit until its (the investigation and complaints) resolved,” he said.
Councilor John Hernandez, who was elected to his first four-year term after being appointed by Lucero in 2013, echoed Salazar’s comments.
“Given his relationship with the police department, I think it would be best if he served on a different committee,” Hernandez said.
Lewis was more emphatic in his opposition to Chacon’s potential appointment to the Public Safety Committee.
“Absolutely not,” Lewis said. “He said he’s going to get rid of the police chief and I think he’s (Garcia) doing a good job.”
Lewis has also been a frequent target of Chacon’s. At a Feb. 25 Council meeting, Chacon said he filed a complaint against Lewis with the Office of the Secretary of State alleging the District 4 councilor did not live in Española.
Speculation has mounted over the past year that Lewis lives in Alcalde instead of Española, though no conclusive evidence has been provided to prove the assertion.
While Lewis wasn’t present at the meeting to respond to Chacon’s comments, he did offer a defense of his residency in a later interview.
Lewis said his North McCurdy Road residence has been owned by his family since before he was born and he continues to stay there part-time. He said he spends the rest of his time at his girlfriend’s house “out of town.”
“I have nothing to hide,” he said.
While they might not have anything to hide, Councilor Pedro Valdez and Lucero were certainly quiet about their thoughts on Chacon.
Valdez declined to comment on Chacon’s arrest without more knowledge of the case and said all committee appointments are at Lucero’s discretion.