Back in mid-December (which feels like an eternity ago), we blogged about a report showing that, according to local reporters, New Mexico was the third-most corrupt state in the nation.
The numbers were good when we looked at how New Mexico did in terms of raw numbers of guilty officials (we were 48th) and guilty officials per capita (46th). But then there was a twist: ”Reporters who cover the Roundhouse in New Mexico think it’s a pretty darn corrupt state — we’re ranked No. 3,” Marjorie Childress wrote. “…Does this mean our reporters are biased? Or does it mean we have really poor ethics laws and really poor prosecution by U.S. attorneys in our state?” she asked.
Incredibly, we really didn’t know the answer back then. I guess now we do.