ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The City of Albuquerque is now on the hook for more than a million dollars in damages after a jury sided with a group of Albuquerque Police Department Academy officers who claimed nepotism was at play.
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The lawsuit went to trial with seven APD officers claiming they faced retaliation for reporting a cadet. While the city lost the case, they still claim this was a case of hazing.
Attorney Shayne Huffman called it an unprecedented end to an unusual lawsuit: “Nobody had ever seen anything like this.”
Seven APD training staffers were removed from their positions two years ago, after reporting one academy cadet, whose father holds a high rank in APD. “They reported untruthfulness by one of the cadets who happened to be the son of a commander,” said Huffman.
The APD training staff reported Cadet Joshua Vega in August 2023 for lying to staff about not shaving his head, something that was required under Academy rules.
Vega was terminated from the Academy but reinstated a day later. It’s a decision that Attorney Huffman claims came as a result of Commander Vega making a phone call to Chief Harold Medina. “And our seven clients, who were six instructors and their sergeant, they were all removed out of the Academy and investigated for hazing that cadet,” said Huffman.
Huffman said those allegations stemmed from a time when Vega had to shave his head in front of the class. But he said that was a common practice in the Academy for decades called a “smoke session”, when the cadet class must exercise while the violation is addressed. “The investigation found that our clients had not hazed that cadet,” said Huffman.
Huffman said the seven training staffers were simply doing their jobs. A jury agreed in Bernalillo County District Court, awarding the seven staffers $155,000 each for emotional damages. “We should encourage and incentivize people to have the courage to come forward and report something that they believe is wrong. And I hope that this verdict this week sends the message that those people deserve protection,” said Huffman.
All seven of the training officers continue to work for APD, as well as Officer Vega and his father, who is a deputy chief.
A City of Albuquerque spokesperson declined an interview but sent a statement saying the city will appeal the verdict. While also saying in part, “The investigation into the conduct of the training staff was appropriate.”
