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State auditor probing AG’s animal cruelty task force
State Auditor Hector Balderas is looking into whether Attorney General Gary King is properly handling money appropriated for a task force that has largely focused on rooting out cockfighting since the state outlawed the bloody sport in 2007.
Balderas’ probe was initiated by a complaint from animal-rights activist Marcy Britton, who alleges a number of illegal acts by King and others involved in the Animal Cruelty Task Force, including the misspending of more than $77,000 appropriated by the Legislature. At the core of her allegations is a claim that the task force has no jurisdiction to lead investigations into illegal cockfighting and dog fighting, which she says the task force has done.
Balderas said in an interview that his office has directed the independent auditor conducting the AG’s annual audit to look into “whether those appropriations were properly accounted for and spent properly.” He said his special audit division “is maintaining contact with and coordinating with the independent auditors.”
King spokesman Phil Sisneros, while refuting the allegations made by Britton, said the state auditor hasn’t contacted the AG’s office about the matter, but the AG is prepared to cooperate fully.
The auditor’s probe of the task force, which had not been previously disclosed publicly, is the latest in the back-and-forth between the offices of the two state watchdogs that has been in the news recently. King has his own investigation into allegations that Balderas made improper purchases and had an employee babysit his children on state time, allegations that Balderas says are demonstrably false. In that case, the complaint was actually made to Balderas’ office, but he turned it over to King to avoid the appearance of impropriety.
Earlier this month, Balderas alleged that King might be illegally using a subpoena for documents in the investigation of Balderas to find out what Balderas has discovered about King in the course of his own probes. At the time, Balderas refused to release information about what he is investigating that might involve King or King’s office.
Since then, Britton has provided me with dozens of pages of documentation related to her complaint, including correspondence with the offices of the AG and auditor. It was in that context that Balderas recently confirmed the probe of Britton’s allegations.
Balderas is still not releasing information about other investigations involving King or King’s office.
More about the task force
The animal cruelty task force was created in 2007 by the Legislature and governor. It’s chaired by King, run by the organization Animal Protection of New Mexico and funded by a legislative appropriation that is controlled by the AG’s office. One of the missions of the task force is to “enhance and coordinate the enforcement of animal cruelty laws in New Mexico by facilitating inter-agency cooperation.” It’s in that context that Britton alleges that the task force and King have crossed a legal line.
The AG and task force have no jurisdiction to lead investigations into illegal cockfighting or other animal cruelty, crimes that should be handled by local law enforcement, Britton said in an interview. She said she believes the task force has operated well beyond its authority and, in doing so, has violated the rights of defendants and the law enforcement agencies that should be investigating the potential crimes.
Among her complaints is that the AG is paying Animal Protection to run the task force’s hotline and help in other ways without a proper contract.
Britton said she believes the AG’s motive is earning political favor from the animal-rights community, but King’s “flagrant” disregard for the law should lead to his removal from office. Sisneros, meanwhile, said it appears that Britton “has fabricated a story or scenario that does not relate in fact to our relationship with the Animal Cruelty Task Force.”
Sisneros said some of the money appropriated by the Legislature has been spent on trainings for law enforcement officers and prosecutors on dealing with illegal dog fighting and cockfighting. Some has been spent on a related manual that will be available to law enforcement agencies and the public.
The majority of the $77,900 appropriation — nearly $50,000 — will likely remain unspent and will revert back to the state’s general fund, Sisneros said.
A prior version of this posting incorrectly stated that Animal Protection Voters New Mexico — not Animal Protection of New Mexico — runs the task force.
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I have posted this before but not here.
I am a New Mexican and I own chickens.
Did you know that only one rooster is required to “service” 8-12 hens? Every spring half of all hatchlings are roosters. Do the math.
The following spring these roosters turn upon each other and fight to the death without training or prompting. They do not fight over food; they fight for the right to breed.
Usually the old established bird kills all the younger ones until the year when he becomes too old. These grueling fights last for days into weeks. Only the old rooster has spurs (yes naturally grown sharp spurs) long enough to kill more quickly and efficiently.
Metal spurs can only serve to hasten this Darwinian process and hence could be thought of as more humane.
I suppose that if I was brave enough, I could copone the roosters and kill them myself for the freezer. I raise chickens primarily for the eggs and the pleasure of tending them.
Having direct knowledge of the nature of these creatures, I am pro-cock fighting.
I do not attend the cock fights but I had the experience as a child. It is deeply a part of my culture. I suggest that unless you tend to a flock of your own and at least attend a cock fight that you can not possibly presume to judge my culture.
Richardson wants to put down this ancient New Mexican cultural activity for his own craven self-serving ends.
Do we “free” Americans really want MORE prohibitions placed upon the citizens. What are we going to throw MORE erstwhile productive citizens into the Prison Industrial meat-grinder?
Will I be arrested when my roosters turn upon each other in the Spring?
For you folks that buy your chicken in a bag, the way THAT chicken is tormented in mass produced industrial conditions should be against the law.
In outlawing cockfights all over the country, goody two shoe well intentioned short sighted meat eaters have relegated all breeding of chickens to the big factory farms.
The big corporate farms don’t breed for beauty, strength or spirit. They are breeding passive slig meat.
Enjoy your slig meat grown in drawers.
Joseph, if you think the Greens have been silent on the war in Iraq (and other wars) then I guess you haven’t been paying attention. But I wouldn’t expect someone who thinks dogfighting should be legal would be very aware of current events. I guess you think it is a violation of liberty to ban setting kittens on fire too, huh?
If, however, you think setting kittens on fire should in fact be illegal then you have set the stage for passage of others laws to prevent cruelty, ala dog and cockfighting bans.
So which is it? Should it be legal to set kittens on fire, or do you agree that there in fact should be restraints placed on human behavior to prevent animal cruelty?
As for those who are trying to destroy anothers point of view, the party guilty of that crime would be one Marcy Britton who seeks to silence a task force that is campaigning for an excellent purpose.
Although I am not an enthusiast of participating in Cock or dog-fights, I don’t believe anyone has the moral right to stick their nose in someone else’s business.
Likewise I am confident that if the greens, which includes all the animal rights do-gooders are not run-out-of-town there will not be any such thing as freedom, individual rights or personal property.
Morality, like beauty is in the eye of the beholder and cannot be legislated. It has been tried for thousands of years and has always failed — unless the real objective was to make man a servant of the rulers, which has succeeded.
Those who seek to destroy another’s point of view are probably the worst offenders of tolerance. Example, why aren’t the greens and wildlife experts shouting to the stars that human wars cause more destruction to all forms of life than Bull Fights, dog and cock fights or any other so-called inhumane action?
We have fought the ART’s across the contry for our sport and now an ARA makes the case for us!
They have violated our constitutional rights taking away the sport of cockfighting that was refereed by Abraham Lincoln himself!
These animal rights people think they can take our culteral rights and our birds away to fight them as we have done for centuries in this great nation.
We are glad Britton finally joined our side to fight for our rights to fight chickens and those ARAs won’t pay her off from supporting our freedom to fight them as God meant them to be.
The animal rights activist are very clever. By offering a reward for animal fighting they are able to befriend many Attorney Generals. A few pictures and a little cozy pr then bingo. They get a powerful lobbiest for minimum cost. In South Carolina H$US purchased our AG for cheap.
Learn about these people here.
http://www.vidoosh.tv/play.php?vid=4360
Is Marcy Britton really an “animal rights activist”? I ask because it sounds like she is doing favors for the cockfighters and dogfighters. It’s obvious she has such jealousy of Animal Protection Voters that she is willing to use her energy to destroy a noble effort to end animal fighting, even though the only beneficiary would be those that pit animals against each other in death matches.
Marcy Britton needs to find a new cause other than being a pawn for animal abusers.
Wow, this has really turned into some kind of catfight! I wonder what the running total of the actions of these two elected officials is costing taxpayers. All while they dillegently work to find nothing in the end. The Dem party leaders won’t let that happen…
The accusations sound like a smear campaign to me. What are Marcy Britton’s credentials as an “animal rights activist?”
What animal rights organization is she a member of? Obviously she does not represent any such organization, as she is filing the complaint as an individual. She could just as easily be a supporter of cock fighting.