Photo of Berry from campaign website

Two of the claims–about trollies and immigration–in a recent radio ad for incumbent Mayor Martin Chavez are “provably false,” according to a “fact check” e-mail sent out by the campaign of one of Chavez’ opponents, RJ Berry.

The Berry campaign says that in the radio spot Chavez disavowed support for a “modern streetcar/trolley system” in Albuquerque, and that he claimed Albuquerque is not a “sanctuary city.” Both of these claims are untrue, Berry’s statement said, citing numerous newspaper articles.

The radio spot in question was provided to the Independent by the Chavez campaign. It has the theme “politics as usual” and seeks to debunk campaign statements by Chavez’s opponents that “distort the truth.”

You can listen to it here.

Here is what the ad says about the streetcar proposal that has been debated in the city for a number of years now:

Mayor Martin Chavez has never supported a trolley system. He does support a modern light rail, but only if passed by the voters.

And on the topic of Albuquerque being a “sanctuary city” when it comes to undocumented immigrants, the ad says:

All individuals that are arrested and are here illegally are reported to immigration for deportation.

Mass transit

The question of what exactly Mayor Martin Chavez has supported by way of a rail system may be a matter of semantics: “streetcar,” “trolley car,” or “light rail.”

The City of Albuquerque website describes the proposed mass transit project as a “modern streetcar,” and here is how the project is described:

A streetcar is an electrically powered, 66-foot long, 8-ft wide mass transit vehicle.  Each vehicle can carry up to 150 passengers. It shares the existing roadway lane with vehicles on steel rail tracks set within the pavement.

How do they work?

Streetcars feature a pole that touches an overhead wire, called catenary. Once the power reaches the streetcar through the trolley pole, it is fed to motors, which are called traction motors that are located on each wheelset. The overhead wire, or catenary, isn’t as eye catching as one might imagine. Like street light poles, the catenary poles come in decorative styles that add to streetscapes. …

Albuquerque Police Department policy about questioning immigration status

In the news release, the Berry campaign says “Albuquerque has been referred to as a “sanctuary city” after the Chavez administration prohibited police from checking the immigration status of people in their custody, except in very limited cases, such as human trafficking.”

The Independent reported on the sanctuary city claim by the Berry campaign in June, when Berry said the city’s policy was partly to blame for the violent robbery of a crowded west side Denny’s Restaurant during which a worker at the restaurant was killed.

The policy itself says that police officers can ask a person about their immigration only if its relevant to a criminal investigation. And, Chavez administration spokesperson Deborah James told the NMI in June that nothing prevents police from investigating and arresting someone for a crime, regardless of their immigration status.

Federal immigration authorities check the immigration status of people who are arrested and booked into the metropolitan detention center.

Advocates for immigrant rights told NMI they agree with Chavez that Albuquerque isn’t a “sanctuary city,” saying the police department’s policy about checking immigration status was more accurately an anti-discrimination policy. As I wrote in June:

“We don’t have sanctuary cities in New Mexico,” said Rachel LaZar, executive director of El Centro de Igualdad y Derechos. …

APD’s policy regarding questioning people about their immigration status is better thought of as an anti-discrimination policy, LaZar said. And without it, undocumented immigrants are unlikely to report a host of various crimes — like sexual assault or child abuse — for fear of being deported.

“Ask the hundreds of immigrants families that have been separated in Albuquerque if we live in a sanctuary city, and you will hear a resounding, ‘no,’” she said. “There’s nothing that affords sanctuary from Immigration Customs and Enforcement here.”