On June 7, 2024, Norm Wheeler, 6th Judicial district attorney candidate, spoke to residents at Wranglers Bar and Grill hosted by Delfina Jimenez. She had provided a beautiful assortment of food and snacks for everyone.

Wheeler went over what process must be followed to hold law breakers accountable and the work it requires to answer a person attending. It takes more than pressing charges alone. If the DA (district attorney) does not act the law breaker will be released. Papers need to be filed and if they have not been, the judge has to release them. He used the example of someone arrested for drug trafficking and, if papers have not been filed that this person will be a danger, the judge has to release them. He said he had been the deputy DA in Espanola and the first year he had by himself filed forty-five of these, so many that the judge complained he had been filling up his jail.

Wheeler said, "The chief law enforcement of the district is the district attorney." George Gzoka, currently a defense attorney who attended, added that, "It is not just your opinion but it is statutorily written that the district attorney is the chief law enforcement officer."

A resident attending said he felt the local police have had their hands tied and could not do anything. Everyone in uniforms had been doing the best they could. Wheeler went over what the DA could do to fight to keep the people in jail. The person speaking had been referring to the problems with crime faced by the residents living in the SPIN (supporting people in need) facility area. Wheeler said, "If the DA does not act, the people will be released."

The resident said many people have lived in this neighborhood for generations and now they feel they can't even protect themselves and it had become a bad place. Wheeler said the DA has to present the evidence and figure out what that judge will listen to and not allow these people to be released. "There are different kinds of danger. Drug trafficking is a violent offense." The DA must be willing to fight things out in court.

"A great attorney knows the judge, not just the law. Each judge listens differently." He referred to a judge he had dealt with in Rio Arriba County that felt drug traffickers would not be a danger to the community. Wheeler said, by the time he left that job, the judge agreed they would be a danger to the community.

Some of Silver City's local officials had attended, a council person, as well as sheriff's department and police department personnel . Wheeler cited a city ordinance that says if someone is creating a nuisance that is reducing the value and use of your property, they can be dealt with using that ordinance. He said it has been something he has already begun to look at. "I invite you to hold me accountable."

"Unfortunately, people think they are doing a good thing but there are ripple effects for everything." The question will be how to help things for everyone. The resident pointed out that the problem they have been having has been spreading and now downtown has had to start dealing with the same things they have. Wheeler said he had seen the concern on this from many residents on Facebook, and on Grant County Information that has thousands of followers and other publications.

The position of district attorney has a more direct effect on the health of a community than any other positions. Wheeler went on to say that "The health of a community from his perspective is in direct proportion to the relationship between the DA and law enforcement. You need to choose a DA that will develop a good relationship with law enforcement."

Many of the people attending had a lot of questions on how to fix the current problems plaguing Silver City. One thing brought up concerned the problem that many law enforcement officers have had to stand up against defense attorneys. This has happened because they have been told the DA's office does not have enough prosecutors.

Wheeler said if the DA has enough resources there would be nothing to stop them from prosecuting these. When the DA does not have an attorney to go in on a case the officer has to become the prosecutor against a defense attorney. "It is not fair for an officer to have to go against a defense attorney." He went on to say, "We needed to deal with people when they have done something not so serious before it comes to them doing something very serious."

Another resident wanted to address that currently they do not have enough prosecutors to handle the cases and asked if that had been the reason. Wheeler said yes. She next asked if funding has been the problem. Wheeler said the financial year end June 30, 2024, and last time he had looked they had a half million set aside for prosecutors and that had been about a month before. He told them the Grant County Beat has had some articles recently that have information on this issue. "Verify the information for yourself and draw your own conclusions."

He did point out that one of the articles had said that the 6th judicial district had been rated for 60 employees, but it should have said 40. Through an IPRA (Information of Public Records Act) for the 6th judicial district of employees (attorneys and support staff) since January 2021 when the current DA came on, they have had a turnover of 35 of the employees. "They had some wonderful employees that are no longer there." You will have to discover why that has happened. "I have support from many that were in that office and are now in the office." He added to verify everything he had told them.

A resident asked if he would hire back some of the attorneys and he said yes. He said currently he has been working in Las Cruces with the grand jury and he has met some marvelous attorneys that have said they would like to come here. He has also been contacted by some of the former ones here that would like to come back. "I intend to invite some of those back."

A healthy atmosphere has to be important for a work environment. "My job will be to find the best people, point them the direction they need to go and get out of their way so they can do it."

In the past Wheeler said he had received questions about competency and what could be done when it has been used to keep people from being prosecuted.

Under the constitution before someone can be tired, they must be deemed competent to help their attorney. If a defense attorney thinks their client is not competent to stand trial, they must file a motion to the judge. In that case the judge will assign a psychiatrist to evaluate that person. Gzoka went over what they would be evaluating. Wheeler said when the evaluation comes back, it may say the person will be incompetent to stand trial. Now it will be up to the DA to accept or deny that evaluation. If the DA accepts the evaluation the person will be released. The DA has the right to contest that evaluation. It can be handled in different ways. He went over the ways it could be contested and fought out in court. It all comes back to the DA.

He cited a Deming article that pointed out how few jury trials the 6th judicial district had in 2023. The article said it had only been seven felony jury trials in the three counties of the district. In a similar sized district, Wheeler said in the same year that district had done over one hundred. Why had the district had so few? Wheeler said they don't go to trial because the offers by the DA have been so good they have been accepted. Gzoka agreed.

Wheeler said, "I think drug traffickers are destroying communities." All cases start at magistrate court and magistrate judges look at probable cause. He had gone to a number of magistrate judges and asked how many of the cases they saw had to do with substance abuse or alcohol. They ranged from 70-90 percent. The people have not just been doing drugs they commit robberies of all kinds to pay for those drugs. "If we can help decrease the drug use, we are helping the people, and it will help the community."

Wheeler said he has worked in four different districts, and this one has the best drug officers. They work hard and have good cases. They develop such good cases federal prosecutors will take them. "When I left in 2020, they had six drug traffickers and they had good cases against them. They had major felonies, multiple felonies and some major time in jail to face, one would have been 36 years. This current DA office changed the charges, and the person is probably out of jail at this time."

"Everything that has been an issue here is not a democrat or republican problem, it is a community problem."