He Deserves to Make a Living, or Enough is Enough?

I read with mixed feelings about the return to the ring of boxer/recovering drug addict and five time world champion Johnny Tapia. On March 6, Tapia 56-5-2 is scheduled to make his return to the ring to fight Jorge Alberto Reyes 21-27-3. I know fellow New Mexican and Albuquerque native Johnny Tapia. No I have never met him personally and besides watching him fight Danny Romero on TV in 1997, a fight no one in New Mexico did not watch, I have only seen him in news clips over the years. So why am I so pretentious as to say I know him? Because I grew up with kids just like him as a young child growing up on Hopewell Street In Santa Fe. Hopewell Street was just down the road from 1801 Espinocitas in Santa Fe. 1801 is better known in Santa Fe as Sangre De Christo Apartments. The Projects as we called them growing up.

All us kids in the area went to Salazar Elementary and De Vargas Junior high back then and even though gang life did not proliferate our generation at that time, there was pretty much stoners, smokers, jocks, good kids and then there were always those who just didn't quite fit in. Drugs never did anything for me but they were all around me. The kids I hung out with all at least did pot, all got in trouble, whether it was stealing, ditching school or fighting and most did it all. I grew up the oldest kid in a family of four, and my single mother always worked two or three jobs and I had to stay home, be in charge and be responsible. By the time I was 15, I stopped doing any of that and began running away from home, hanging with the friends and getting into trouble. All those friends I hung out with are in prison or dead now. This brings me to Johnny Tapia.

Like any convicted felon or drug addict, he has a story to tell. At eight years old as he watched from the barrio he lived in, his mother Virginia was kidnapped, raped, hung, stabbed 22 times with scissors and a screwdriver, and left for dead by her assailant. Because no one believed him family members never called police and the body was found a few days later. Like me Johnny grew up around drugs but unlike me he partakes as well. The term "roller coaster ride" describes Johnny's life to a tee. His boxing nickname is also "mi vida loca" which translated means my crazy life. My mother once told me that there are always people whose life is worse than ours so we should be happy for what we have. I guess Johnny is one of those people.

As I read Geoff Grammer's story of Johnny's release from prison and upcoming fight I can't help wonder why the story glossed over his tribulations and went straight to his triumphs and upcoming fight. Maybe Geoff was trying to give Johnny a second chance and focus on the positive. The only problem is this is not Johnny's second chance, it is his fourth or fifth and maybe even more than that. Johnny has taken his family and fans on a wild ride from boxing to jails, to hospitals, to death and back again. The most amazing thing is the fact that his body has not only stayed living but has managed to stay somewhat fit through all it has been through. Boxing is probably one of the last sports you can do drugs time and time again and still go back for another shot in the arena.

I have long been a proponent of keeping drugs, even pot illegal. I was one of the few sheriff's in all of New Mexico to support medical marijuana but you can read about that in one of my past blog posts. And my stance on drug legalization is based on the fact that as I grew up just about everyone I knew who started with pot went on to other drugs and are in prison or dead today. The few who kicked the habit did so because they were arrested and forced into treatment. I have no doubt what so ever that they would not have stopped otherwise. It is my true belief that treatment rather than incarceration is the answer, but without law enforcement making those arrests most would never see any treatment at all. To those who turned their lives around I give kudos and my prayers of continued success. But when is enough, enough? At what point do you say to Johnny that you cannot do the things you do and still be licensed to fight in New Mexico or any other state for that matter? Tapia tested positive for cocaine three times between 1990 and 1991which lead to a three year suspension from boxing. During the three years he served his suspension it was reported he nearly died three times from drug overdoses. Is he really physically fit to fight? And if he were to die in the ring how many lawsuits will incur and how many people or insurance companies will pay because no one had the foresight to say this man should not be fighting?

If he does not fight how does this man who knows no other career make a living? I understand his wife is an saint for putting up with him, sticking with him in good times and bad and trying to save his life and his career as his manager. As a husband and father he needs to provide for his family and if Johnny really is going to turn his life around and make a new start maybe a complete new start away from his "vida loca" life style that got him here is the way to do it. It always seems that every time he gets out of jail he fights again, makes some money and then returns to the drug scene. I hope that is not the case this time, and while the loosely regulated New Mexico Boxing scene has allowed him back, I do think the sport needs to rethink its rules on drug use and boxing both on and off the canvass.

I don't know if Johnny Tapia will ever read this blog but if you do "demuestre que estoy equivocado".

C.C.A. Loses federal inmates again.

Cornell Corrections runs the old Bernalillo County Detention Center in Downtown Albuquerque. It is a 900 bed facility now called the Regional Correctional Center. After the new Detention Center was built the county leased the old one to Cornell who reopened it as a private facility. The bread and butter of the deal was the fact that Cornell would lease the majority of the beds to ICE, the Federal Immigration arm of homeland security. over a third of the beds are often taken up by these federal immigration prisoners. Cornell has messed up and the Feds are pulling the prisoners out of the facility. (subscription required for link)

Cornell used to run the Santa Fe County Detention Center in the late 90's and up to around 2001. Things got so bad at the time that all Federal Prisoners were pulled from that facility as well. The Santa Fe County Detention Center was over built at the time of construction with the promise that all the extra beds would be used by the Feds who pay a premium price for housing of their prisoners. When the Santa Fe County Detention Center was full of Federal Prisoners it made profits that have never been seen again.

I was very surprised when Cornell made the deal to take over the old B.C.D.C. and made the deal to house federal prisoners there. When Cornell left Santa Fe they left us with a Federal investigation into civil rights violations and an order that barred any federal prisoners from being housed in Santa Fe. Santa Fe taxpayers are still paying the bills for their mismanagement today.

I don't know if Cornell can break the lease with the county but if they can, watch out they will be on the run, if they can not then look out, until more paying customers can be brought in they will cut staffing and medical and anything else they can because the bottom line, profits will be the only thing that matters. Profits cannot be derived from the old B.C.D.C. with only 300 prisoners.
My guess is that Cornell will be looking at Bernalillo County to save them by sending more overflow and prisoners from the new facility which is often overcrowded. It will be a deal with the devil if that happens.

End Homelessness, Private Prisons and Jails

Yesterday I was up and out of the house really early to attend Mayor David Coss's Blue Ribbon Panel tasked with coming up with a plan to end homelessness in five years. It is an ambitious goal. I give a lot of credit to Mayor Coss for beginning this process. I was asked by Mayor Coss to sit on the panel and I was happy to do so. I am not a morning person so I am glad the next meeting is not at 7:30 am like the first one was. The first meeting was introductions and preliminary discussions while the next meeting will begin breaking the group up into committees. The Santa Fe New Mexican's Henry Lopez was up early to cover the meeting. The one thing I have always admired about Mayor Coss both when he was a Councilor and as Mayor was his ability to think "bigger picture" and not just take on the easy political issues. These types of initiatives take courage to even begin and most politicians will not take them on for fear of the high chance of failure to do more than make short term gains both politically and realistically. This group seems highly motivated and knowledgeable so I see good things coming out of these meetings.

The New Mexican's Steve Terrell did a piece on private prisons and this subject always interests me. It was a standard piece which contained the usual quotes from the firm Rothstien and Donatelli. All reporters run to them for their negative quotes whenever doing a prison or jail story. The firm has made millions off the backs of governments and taxpayers while purporting to be advocates for prisoners. I have said it before and I will say it again when this firm puts even 10% of the millions they make into any inmate programs whether it be vocational training, living skills or substance abuse programs I will have a little more respect for them.




















Donatelli mentioned that Santa Fe County was struggling to run its jail after years of it being run by private entities. One of the reasons the County, (any County for that matter) has to struggle is that resources and money that could go towards operations and programs go to insurance and legal costs to fend off those who make a living taking advantage of taxpayers and getting the easy money to be made in the lawsuits against jails. The Firm Donatelli and Rothstien collected two million dollars for 6 months work in the Strip Search lawsuit. Even if they worked all day every day 40 hours a week this comes out to a ridicules hourly wage.

District judges and defense attorneys try to keep prisoners who are sentenced to prison out of the prison system by having prisoners sentenced to say five years in prison but deferring all but 364 days. What this does is burden the county jails with hard core prisoners who belong in prison and whose bill should be paid by the state but because of the deferred sentence they end up with the bill for their incarceration being paid by the County. Private jails and prisons have not been good for New Mexico and that is one of the few areas where Donatelli and Rothstien and I agree. Privatization does make more sense for prisons than jails and I have yet to see a jail in New Mexico where it has worked out. On the other hand the State of New Mexico sets up jails for failure. State inmates are forced to be housed in county run jails with counties forced to foot the bill.

It also means that a jail which is not equipped or able to afford programs to reintegrate felons into society is saddled with long term housing of felons. Exactly the type of housing a prison is designed for. The legislature refuses to address these problems because it would mean increasing State Corrections costs considerably. As more and more jails bankrupt county budgets you are going to see increased pressure on legislatures from the local governments to do something about this. Remember all politics is local and legislators have to run in their local districts and more and more roads, libraries and other local services are suffering because of jail costs.

Ok, this is one of my longer blog posts and I tend to go off on tangents where jails are concerned. It is an issue which both intrigues me and incenses me. We have a lot of dedicated people in Santa Fe County who really care about the jail and having a well run jail that has meaningful programs. We just struggle because of costs and burdens saddled on local governments by law firms who take advantage and the state government.

.....One final note, I do have some really good friends who are attorneys so on thier behalf I offer this disclaimer.

*** Nothing in this blog is meant to label all attorneys and any remarks which resemble attorneys living or deceased is purely coincidental, accidental or on purpose depending on which portion of this disclaimer stands up in court.