New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez has reignited her fight to bring back the death penalty as the state reels from a recent string of horrific murders, including the slayings of two police officers and three girls.
The Republican governor, who won her first term in 2010 as a staunch supporter of capital punishment, said she will push for the state Legislature to overturn the ban on executions in January. Her announcement came shortly after a 33-year-old officer was gunned down by a fugitive at a routine traffic stop on Aug. 12.
“The man who killed Officer Jose Chavez from Hatch Police Department for a simple traffic stop, people need to ask themselves, ’Do those people that are charged deserve the ultimate penalty, which is the death penalty?’” Ms. Martinez told KRQE-TV. “I say, ’Yes, they do.’ “
The timing may never be better for the term-limited governor, who has been stymied by Democratic lawmakers in her quest to bring back capital punishment after former Gov. Bill Richardson, a Democrat, signed the ban in 2009.
Already, the public appears to be on her side. A survey released Aug. 23 found 59 percent of registered New Mexico voters said they support reviving the death penalty, while 34 percent oppose it, and just 8 percent are undecided.
Those in favor of capital punishment included 58 percent of independents, said the Public Policy Polling survey commissioned by NM Political Report.
Whether Ms. Martinez succeeds may depend in large part on the outcome of the November election, in which all 112 legislative seats are up for grabs. Republicans, who control the state House, are expected to push a tough-on-crime message, while Democrats, who hold the state Senate, have dug in against the repeal.
Also lined up against the governor’s effort is the ACLU of New Mexico, which has accused Ms. Martinez of “focusing her energy on moving New Mexico backwards instead of forwards.”
“Talk about misplaced priorities. If Governor Martinez wants to address the safety of our police officers, she should focus on investing in real solutions that increase the safety of our communities,” the New Mexico Democratic Party said in a statement.
The biggest obstacle for opponents may be the mood of the public after a summer marked by bloodshed.
Less than a month after Officer Chavez was killed, Alamogordo Police Officer Clint Corvinus, 33, was slain in a shootout with a felon. His Sept. 2 death drew hundreds for a candlelight vigil Tuesday at the Otero County Fairgrounds.
Ms. Martinez has placed her emphasis on reinstating the death penalty for the murders of officers as well as children, a reference that many New Mexicans will now associate with the May 2 killing of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike.
The 80-pound Navajo girl was abducted, sexually assaulted, beaten with a tire iron and left for dead in the New Mexico desert. Her younger brother, who also was kidnapped, was turned loose in a case that drew international shock and attention.
Ashlynne’s funeral was attended by thousands, including the governor and Navajo Nation president. A Navajo man, 27-year-old Tom Begaye Jr., has pleaded not guilty after being charged with her murder, although the FBI released a statement saying he admitted to the crime.
“I think of poor Ashlynne and the horror she went through. Does the monster who killed her deserve the ultimate punishment? Yes, absolutely,” said Ms. Martinez in an Aug. 17 statement.
New Mexico was rocked again in late August, when two girls were slaughtered in Albuquerque: Victoria Martens, 10, who police say was drugged, raped and strangled by friends of her mother; and Nhi Nguyen, 11, who was gunned down with her mother by her stepfather before he killed himself.
The spate of violence has spurred calls for more children’s services and programs to prevent domestic abuse, but there’s little doubt that the brutal crimes also have bolstered Ms. Martinez’s chances of leaving office in two years with the death penalty back in place.
“People need to ask themselves if the man who ambushed and killed five police officers in Dallas had lived, would he deserve the ultimate penalty? How about the heartless violent criminals who killed Officer Jose Chavez in Hatch and left his children without their brave and selfless dad?” said Ms. Martinez. “Do they deserve the ultimate penalty? Absolutely. Because a society that fails to adequately protect and defend those who protect all of us is a society that will be undone and unsafe.”
New Mexico has not held an execution since 2001. Nineteen states have abolished the death penalty, most recently Maryland in 2013, while 31 states have capital punishment in some form.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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