Public Learns Identities of N.M. Crew Involved in Hazing

In a letter to NMFOG in late August, city officials said they wanted to save taxpayer money that would have been spent litigating the issue and provided the information "under protest." The letter, written by city manager James Jimenez, also said the city might refuse to comply with similar requests in the near future, and that any future lawsuits by affected employees would involve NMFOG.

"I think the city did right thing," NMFOG's executive director Sarah Welsh said Friday. "These are not matters of opinion, these are employee statuses and final disciplinary action and are not exempt under statute."

The city identified fire captain Sean Bergen, fire engineer Travis Locher, firefighter/ paramedic Philip Penrose and firefighter/paramedic Joshua Roney as being placed on suspension in 2011.

Roney resigned after being arrested on suspicion of DWI in Albuquerque in July.

Rio Rancho Mayor Tom Swisstack confirmed Friday that the four were suspended in connection with a May hazing incident within the Rio Rancho Fire Rescue department.

Swisstack said the city had hoped to wait for clarification from the Attorney General's Office on what is protected under the "matters of opinion" exception to the New Mexico Inspection of Government Records Act, but said NMFOG did not want to wait.

"I spoke with the city attorney, and they suggested we jointly ask for an AG opinion," Welsh said. "We said we're open to that but didn't want to delay until an opinion came back."

Swisstack said the city might still seek an opinion from the AG's office.

In June, the Journal asked for the names of the four firefighters suspended in connection with the May hazing incident. City spokesman Peter Wells at that time cited a provision in the state open records act that says information that is a matter of opinion can be kept from the public, especially documents in personnel files that could be damaging to an employee.

After the city issued a press release on June 14, saying an investigation into the hazing had wrapped up and that five employees had been disciplined, the Journal also submitted a formal public records request asking for the current employment status from mid-May through June of all Rio Rancho Fire Rescue personnel.

The city news release said the investigation began in mid-May and the city confirmed that five male employees engaged in the "continuous harassment" of a new male employee regarding the "size of his genitalia."

The city allowed the disciplined f ire department employees to use vacation and sick time instead of being suspended without pay. The city provided a list to the Journal, but it did not distinguish between employees who took regular paid time off or gave up their vacation or sick time in lieu of suspension for the hazing incident, making it impossible to determine who had been suspended.

In the documents provided to NMFOG, the city also listed other city employees dismissed or suspended in 2011. Those dismissed were building inspector Joel Joyce, dispatch shift supervisor Philip L. Graybull, and streets and right-of-way workers Nathaniel Hulland and Jeremy Vigil.

Those suspended were accounting technician Lisa Olguin, police officer Matthew Phelps, and line locator Holger C. Benkert, according to the documents.

Copyright 2011 Albuquerque Journal