Diverse Community Volunteers to Assist in Police Chief Search

All Santa Feans Encouraged to Complete Community Survey

February 13, 2022 — Beginning on Monday, City Manager John Blair and Community Health and Safety Direct Kyra Ochoa will conduct two dialogue sessions with each candidate who qualified to be the next Santa Fe Police Chief. A diverse cross-section of Santa Feans will participate in the two panels. One panel is comprised of people with experience in public safety and the second is comprised of community partners.

“The diversity and experience of these panelists will be a great asset as we move forward in the search for our next police chief,” said City Manager Blair. “We urge all Santa Feans to make their voices heard and complete the police chief search community survey.”

Here are the dialogue session panelists:

Public Safety Dialogue Sessions

·    Kathy Armijo-Etre, Vice President of Mission, CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Medical Center

·    Julie Ball, Office of the Public Defender

·    Bernard Brown, Director, Regional Emergency Communications Center

·    Mary Carmack-Altweis, First Judicial District Attorney

·    Bill Dimas, Former Santa Fe City Councilor and retired Magistrate Judge, Police Commissioner, and police officer

·    Rebecca Hildebrandt, Vice President, Santa Fe Police Officers Association

·    Tony Trujillo, President, Santa Fe Police Officers Association

Community Partner Dialogue Sessions

·    Marcela Diaz, Executive Director, Somos un Pueblo Unido

·    Bridget Dixson, President & CEO, Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce

·    Jose Esquivel, Mayor’s Youth Advisory Board

·    David Fresquez, President, Santa Fe Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President

·    Gerald Pacheco, President, Los Caballeros de Vargas

·    Tomás Rivera, Chainbreaker

·    Maria José Rodríguez Cádiz, Executive Director, Solace Crisis Treatment Center

·    Dorothy Seaton, Chair, Veteran’s Advisory Board

All Santa Feans are encouraged to complete the community survey, which will help identify the qualities, values, and priorities the community wants in the City’s next police chief. The community survey is available in English and Spanish. Residents can complete the survey online or download a copy that can be returned via postal mail or email. Printouts of the survey will be available for the next two weeks at libraries and recreation centers. The deadline to complete the community survey is February 25, 2022, at 5:00 p.m.

Once the dialogue sessions are completed and community surveys are submitted, City Manager Blair and Director Ochoa will determine which finalists will move forward to the next step in the selection process. Beginning the week of February 28, 2022, the finalists will meet in person with City Leadership, including Mayor Alan Webber and the City Council, and they will each participate in a question-and-answer session with the public. City Manager Blair expects to decide on the selection of the next Santa Fe Police Chief by the end of March.

Media contact: Dave Herndon, Communications Director; daherndon@santafenm.gov