Dear City of Las Vegas, NM, the Las Vegas Police Chief, Las Vegas Judges, City of Las Vegas Attorney, District Attorneys, Gov. Suzanna Martinez, and San Miguel County, NM:          

Nine months ago, with the awareness of the incomprehensible animal abuse culture in Las Vegas, NM, (as showcased in Hubble’s abuse case) and yet another national media frenzy portraying our City as “ground zero for animal abuse in NM,” the citizens started a petition demanding change. Everyone from the Governor to the State courts, San Miguel County courts, and City of Las Vegas received a copy. In just days, over 3500 people signed the petition. This is more than the total voters in the 2016 Las Vegas Mayoral election. Hearing the call for animal justice, and realizing how harmful such media is to our tourism, the City met with a local animal rescue, the Animal Welfare Coalition, to create solutions.

While the City of Las Vegas, under the direction of City Manager Elmer Martinez, originally worked to address the status quo of animal abuse in Las Vegas, New Mexico, our current research shows that the new administration under new City Manager Richard Trujillo and new Mayor Tonita Gurule-Giron, and including Municipal Judge Eddie Trujillo, has taken our cause back 1000 steps in just over one month. We are not going to ignore this power play in the name of animal sacrifices. We, citizens of Las Vegas who believe animals matter to a community, who believe basic animal care should be the status quo for any civilized society, who believe that people who abuse and neglect animals should be punished despite excuses of poverty, "tradition," or individual connections with the powerful names of Las Vegas, outnumber the animal abusers you protect. We voted for you because we believed you thought this too. We will not ignore this. We will continue to make noise until we get the peaceful, animal friendly, town for tourism that we know we can be. It is not just animals you are destroying; every business owner and peaceful, responsible citizen in town suffers too. 

Instead of keeping the promises made to the citizens of Las Vegas who want an animal friendly town and the enforcement of animal laws to make that happen, the Trujillo brothers have instead protected the criminals who abuse, neglect, and deny quality of life for local animals. Empowered by team Trujillo who hold both the top judicial and legislative positions in the city, the citizens and its suffering animals have been held hostage. The anti-tether law and the punishment for violations are 100% ignored despite the unanimous signatures of every City Council member in 2012. Both brothers want to change the law to make it easier for people to tether their animals day and night. The brothers are using their power to punish animal supporters and citizens who want change instead. In the last week, two dogs are needlessly dead because of this abuse of power, and the further abuse caused by being ineffective. All promises have been broken. 

The first needless death this week is that of a small terrier named Zeus, owned by Lieutenant Pam Sandoval, an LVPD officer in charge of Internal Affairs complaints and friend of Judge Trujillo. Zeus and his dog family are regulars at the shelter, picked up many times for being allowed to run around the City risking their safety and the safety of drivers. When Zeus was picked up again last week, Lt Sandoval refused to pay the $42 vaccine bill for intake at the shelter. Instead she went to City Manager Robert Trujillo and Judge Eddie Trujillo in protest. Team Trujillo provided Sandoval with an improperly written COURT ORDER forcing the release of her dog without paying her bill at the non-profit rescue shelter, the AWC Pet Center. The next day, Zeus was back on the streets, and the next day, and the next. Now Zeus has been killed due to the negligence of the owner and the lack of protection and enforcement by Team Trujillo.

The second example in the last week is Bandit, owned by anti-animal activist, and friend of the City powers, Juan Romero. Bandit, and his female pack member (name unknown), live and reproduce on their chains 24/7 in the fenced yard of Romero. Two months ago, Romero was cited because his female dog escaped her chain and ran away with her litter of pups behind her. The mama and pups were caught in the middle of the busiest road in Las Vegas, 7th Avenue. When our group attended the court hearing, we heard an ACO tell Judge Trujillo that Romero said that he does not have to follow the laws because "no one would ever prosecute him in this town." Romero was not at that court date, ignored the order to show cause, ignored the second court date, and the second order for cause. His dogs stayed on chains. Meanwhile, Judge Eddie Trujillo, who was able to produce a court order in an hour for Lt Sandoval to escape justice, did not do anything about Romero's disrespect for animal lives, the court or the laws of Las Vegas, NM.  Due to the failure to protect animals by the City of Las Vegas, Bandit escaped his chain and ran into 7th St, and now lies dead in a freezer at the shelter.

For all those who love and respect animal life, and those of us who live in Las Vegas and have not received the change we were promised, it is time, again, to raise our voices.  Please share this petition, but even more, please raise hell at the City so the new administration and the righteous Team Trujillo are forced to make animal lives matter. Call the Mayor at 505-454-1401. Write to: 1700 Grand Ave., Las Vegas, NM. Email etrujillo@ci.las-vegas.nm.us; rtrujillo@ci.las-vegas.nm.us and the City Council. We have a friend in Councilman Vince Howell who likely has no idea this is happening: vhowell51@gmail.com You can get copies of the public records documenting evidence for all claims we have made here by calling the City or visiting City Hall. This new administration needs to know that we care about this matter and we will not rest until they work for those of us who want respect for animals and enforcement of the laws in Las Vegas, NM, and not for the criminals who break the laws protecting animals. #hubblestrong #justiceforhubble #animallivesmatter

Once again, we the citizens of Las Vegas who will not tolerate a culture of animal abuse must demand support from the City of Las Vegas.

THE CITIZENS OF LAS VEGAS ARE FED UP AND WE ARE DEMANDING:

1. Enforcement of both local and state animal abuse laws against lawbreakers, including city/county licensing, breeder licensing, anti-tether, spay/neuter, Rabies vaccines, and of course abuse and neglect.

2. Stop using the court system like a kindergarten where everyone gets 10 chances to do better. While people are not being punished, their animals still are. This is unacceptable. Investigate and pursue prosecution for all law breakers and ordinance violations and stop allowing judges to dismiss every single case over and over. Follow your own statutes and the fines and punishments given in the ordinances not what a judge with no law degree thinks it should be. 

3. Provide fair and balanced enforcement and stop protecting friends and family who neglect and abuse their animals.

4. Stop using poor people as an excuse for cruelty and ignorance. It insults both people who struggle financially and it is problem-based rather than solution-based. 

5. Stop attacking local rescues publicly. Work with local rescues by supporting their efforts and educate the public about modern science and modern behavioral science concerning animal care instead of “it has always been this way.” 

 

THE ORIGINAL PETITION SEPTEMBER 2015

In the past week, we, the citizens of Las Vegas, saw on TV and read in newspapers about a dog (named Hubble by his rescuers) you allowed to live on a chain in OUR town for every single day of his eight years of life, who was bred for money and chained outside by the Abeytas, his original family, and then when they lost him, as a chained dog with the Alirez family, his second owners. Because of your lack of enforcement, follow-up on calls, and inability to prosecute animal crime, Hubble was allowed to be forgotten on the end of a prisoner’s chain, was outside in the elements of every season, was allowed to be starved to near-death by the Alirez family and still may die from it, was allowed to be left without veterinary care, neglected, abused, and treated with extreme cruelty, and no one said or did anything. We were further horrified to learn that in the last two years there have been at least 10 similar cases in our community, none of which ever made it to a courtroom, none that ever punished anyone for these crimes on animals. In the last decade or more, not one single animal crime was prosecuted. You inability to do your job gives outsiders an impression of a hellish place without an ounce of humanity or love for anything. We work very hard in this community and choose to stay and make our lives here, and we are disgusted by what you are allowing to happen. Just who do you think you are that just because you have seats of power, you are above human decency, and that you can do so in our good name? You work for us!!! 

     As members of this community, we want to uphold the vision of a quaint, historic, mountain town ripe as a desirable tourist destination. We want to live in peace and prosperity with a reputation that does not dishonor and embarrass our families. We ask you, where was Animal Control the last eight years before Hubble’s horrible hell came to this? Furthermore, why is Animal Control sitting over in Community Development/code enforcement with not an ounce power to enforce, pursue, investigate, and prosecute law breakers? Why aren’t our laws to protect animals (and us) enforced upon criminals who break them? You have an anti-tether law so why does no one enforce it? Now you say you think the anti-tether does not work and you want to get rid of it? A thing cannot work if you do not use it. For example for many years a chained, now aggressive, matted and neglected dog sits right at the edge of the parking lot of the police department!! You have ignored all the calls about him too. We have animal cruelty laws in this town and in the state of New Mexico so why does no one enforce them? Where are the police and judges who are supposed to uphold laws to increase the standards humanity and civility in Las Vegas?  What will the State offices say when we barrage them with thousands of calls?  

When we speak to you, you say it is the “culture” as if cruelty can be considered a culture. It may be your culture, but it is not ours. We are mostly Hispanic, family-loving, animal loving, God-loving, and not supporters of ignorance and abuse. How dare you. You think it is ok because “it is just a dog”? You think it is ok to have Animal Control Officers with barely enough power to pick up strays and dead animals? We pay for enforcement. We elect for enforcement. You think it is ok to ignore every dog bite, every abuse case, and every abuser and law breaker, because you personally do not care about animals? You think it is ok to have dozens of dogs running the streets without rabies vaccines to bite our children, and then never prosecute the owners? What is wrong with you?

Silent parties are guilty parties. Ignoring the laws and those who break them because you are too lazy or because the criminal is your friend or family makes you guilty of every crime they commit. This Alirez family is saying to the media they called Animal Control themselves to get Hubble help. Seriously? A family who finds a dog in Hubble’s condition does not then chain him in their yard, further starve him, keep him on the cold ground, and fail to render veterinary aid or any aid.  Then, when the cops come with a search warrant, they grab as many dogs as they can and take off, making sure to get the pregnant female they can make money off of. Both the occupants had warrants for their arrest. Did you go after them? No. The kind of family that the Alirez’s say claim to be would not need a search warrant to rescue their eight pack of dogs from starvation. They would not have run. Why aren’t these people in jail?  

We want a town we are proud of, a town our youth does not run from, a town that is not a despicable example of humanity, a town that cares enough to punish people for crimes against animals, a town that people want to come visit and spend money in. We will do what we must to have that town. You have hired outside consultants to brand our town to look good, spending thousands of our tax dollars, yet allow it to be a place tourists are afraid of and horrified to visit. By blowing off animal law enforcement, you have made a town that citizens cannot safely walk family pets because around every corner is a free-range dog ready to chase or bite. Are you waiting for one to bite you? Stop blaming the unenforced anti-tether law for this; the problem is they have been allowed to run since the 1800s.

We are not going to let this case or any future cases die in your hands anymore. We are not going to let our city attorney or municipal judge act like kings of their own personal town. This is our town, and we are not ignorant or stupid. All we did wrong was elect you and trust you. That ends now.  We will be following every case and calling the State when you fail to prosecute. We will be in your offices, your courtrooms, your parking lots, and wherever we need to be to ensure you are following OUR laws and enforcing OUR laws, the laws that protect our families including pets. We will replace all of you with people who care about us and our pets. Yes we are angry. Now it is in your hands to do something and earn the respect of your community, your bosses.

THE CITIZENS OF LAS VEGAS ARE FED UP AND WE ARE DEMANDING:

1. Make Animal Control Officers law enforcement officers, not dog catchers hidden away in some office with broken trucks and lack of tools to do their job. Provide them proper training and only hire people who believe in the highest standards of humane care even with their own pets. Stop using Animal Control as a punishment or miserable stepping stone to become a police officer later.

2. Enforce both local and state animal abuse laws against lawbreakers, including city/county licensing, breeder licensing, anti-tether, spay/neuter, Rabies vaccines, and of course abuse and neglect.

3. Investigate and pursue prosecution for all law breakers and ordinance violations and stop allowing judges to dismiss every single case over and over. Teach your police and investigators how to read the statutes or get an interpreter. Send cases to Magistrate rather than Municipal judges.

4. Stop using poverty as an excuse for cruelty and ignorance or intimidation as excuses against citizens who speak up.

5. Work with local rescues by supporting their efforts and educate the public about modern science and modern behavioral science concerning animal care instead of “it has always been this way.”