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Thanks to AG for getting Richardson’s records released
Heath Haussamen
The attorney general’s intervention on behalf of those seeking to gain access to former Gov. Bill Richardson’s office files should not have been necessary.
The simple fact of the matter is that the law doesn’t say that Richardson can have his office’s records kept secret for eight years, regardless of what he asked the state’s archive center to do. It’s obvious from a reading of the law.
But first, for those of you who haven’t heard about this story, here’s the skinny, from the Albuquerque Journal:
“State records administrator Sandra Jaramillo reversed course Tuesday after advice from the state attorney general and said she would release documents from Gov. Bill Richardson’s administration if they qualify as public records.
“Jaramillo had denied some requests for records on the basis of an agreement with the former governor. Richardson, who left office at the end of 2010, turned over the records from his eight years in office on the condition they be sealed for eight years — a condition also used by some former governors since 1967.”
To justify the tradition that has been used by “some former governors,” Jaramillo cited this 1967 law, which she said allowed governors to seal their office’s records:
“The state records administrator may accept and place in the state archives the personal files, records and documents of elected state officials or of former elected state officials, subject to any reasonable restrictions, moratoriums and requirements concerning their use by other persons.”
That’s it. The law is clear: It deals with “personal” files, records and documents that elected officials or former elected officials want to give the state records administrator. It’s not referring to documents that come from the office of the governor – records that belong to the people of the State of New Mexico and are not the governor’s “personal” property.
Fortunately, King stepped in
But in this state, tradition has often trumped law, and many governors, including Richardson, have had their office’s records sealed for a time.
Fortunately, Attorney General Gary King stepped in. His chief deputy, Al Lama, sent a letter to Jaramillo stating that the law doesn’t allow the sealing of records. Lama wrote that the law applies “only to personal records.”
“Accordingly, the State Records and Archives must, upon request, allow inspection of public records transferred to the State Records Center by former Governor Richardson” except for records that qualify for another exemption under law, Lama’s letter states.
So now, with the state’s top law enforcement officer stepping in and telling her that tradition doesn’t trump the law, Jaramillo is ready to release the records.
It’s a shame that the attorney general had to step in at all, but we’re fortunate to have an attorney general who was willing to do that in spite of the potential political consequences. King, like Richardson, is a Democrat, and some want the records specifically to hunt for things related to the pay-to-play scandals that plagued Richardson’s administration.
Nice job, AG King. Keep it up.
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Well, NorthernPride, since you seem to see putting a “D” after someone’s name as a sin, let us reflect, shall we?
-Former Governor Richardson: No investigation anywhere (of the many that have been performed) has ever managed to indicate that he did anything illegal. The AG’s office lacks the authority to prosecute “unethical”.
-Former Secretary of State Vigil-Giron (and associates): Have been indicted after a Federal audit and a lengthy investigation by the AG’s office.
-Former Secretary of State Herrera: Is still being investigated, in an investigation that the AG quite willingly made public during an election… hardly a “for the good of the party” move there. Come to think of it, refusing to do the same thing is something that the members of the GOP fired David Iglesias for.
-Former PRC Commissioners Jerome Block, Sr. and Jerome Block, Jr.: Both indicted in mid-April of 2009, trial on hold pending appeal of judicial decision to eliminate several charges.
-Former Housing Authority Director, Region III Vincent Gallegos: Indicted in mid-2009 for money laundering, fraud, and embezzlement.
-Former Las Vegas schools employee Roberta Vigil: Convicted for misuse of public funds.
This is all in addition to multiple successful cases against abuse of funds of our Medicaid system and fraud against its recipients, the addition (and successes) of a new DWI prosecutor, convictions against human trafficking, and the successful halting of the White Peaks land swap for clear violations of public auction laws (the only case involving a Republican elected official).
Seriously, you’re just flat wrong. Attorney General King has not only done his job, it could be argued that he has disproportionately exercised the will of his office against members of his own party. The only real sin committed by Attorney General King is, quite obviously, that he is a registered Democrat.
It seems as though you have selective memory as well as you failed to actually give an example of someone being held accountable for violating the publics trust but of course you could not. Of course King is not wasting our tax dollars, you need to actually prosecute a case to spend any money! I personally don’t feel that prosecuting individuals who steal our states money is a waste of my tax dollars.
Nobody has been held accountable, eh? Hm, you people really do have a selective memory. Just because he’s not wasting taxpayer money by using the office to carry out the Republicans’ witch-hunts (as Matt Chandler essentially promised to do) is hardly a reason for all your animosity. Stop pretending it isn’t a reaction to his party affiliation and your fantasy that “Democratic=corrupt” and just admit that the actual law matters less to you than winning.
The wheels of justice move slowly? Only when it pertains to cases that AG King works on. No one is snarling at Democrats, just the overall inactivity of our elected AG. 4 years and nobody has been held accountable? Excuses are like……well you probably know the rest.
To DJ and NP, the wheels of justice have always moved slowly. Furthermore, the AG office is not an agency that acts independently, they respond to the will of the people. In this case, a demand that the records be released had to be made before the office could respond. What if no one gave a hoot about Richardson’s records?
What you should really be doing, instead of merely snarling at Democrats, is to lobby your state legislators for more clarity in the law. Seems to me that (1) the governor’s office should be required to turn over all public records on an ongoing basis, not just at the end of his/her term in office and (2) the definition of what is a “public” record should be defined for the state records administrator, not by her.
And the correct spelling is Vigil-Giron, not Vigil-Jiron.
Oh Gary, thank you so much for taking on Richardson when his approval rating is tanked and he has out of office for good. Where have you been the last 4 years when Richardson was being investigated by the feds? Where are you on the promise that you will hold the former secretary of state(s) accountable?
Gary, your best bet is to ride off in the New Mexico sunset. You’ve been in politics 3 decades now, and just came within a few points of getting knocked off by a young political new comer. They do say third times a charm, but not for runs at the governor’s office.
What actions are those IcarusPhoenix? The Rebecca Vigil-Jiron case has still not been resolved, come to think of it, not a single case has been resolved by AG King! What has he done? And people feel he will make a good governor? Wow!
And every single time he takes another action, you claim that it’s an illusion or an isolated incident and that the previous ones that you also claimed were illusory or isolated at the time never happened. Frankly, Dr. J, your ability to dismiss every the individual piece of evidence as isolated at the time of its occurrence and then forget about it later is becoming comedic.
Why don’t we just look at the record of this AG (or any in the last 20 years) doing anything about any of this. Words mean nothing to a politician, only actions count and he has none to speak of.
Again AG Gary King shows he has what it takes to be an honest governor. By clarifying the law he shows that he is willing to abide by it when it comes time for him to leave office. You don’t think King is all for open, transparent government? Take a look at the public records project he has going, only one in the state to take that first step.
One more example of our Aspiring Governor being a day late and a dollar short.
I hope we learn more about what Richardson did while in office, how he made decisions and conducted himself amid scandal and controversy. Doubtful, however, that anything would surface that would end up in legal actions against him. Even he should be smart enough to purge any bad stuff.