BCSO Sheriff Allen Exposes NM Criminal Justice System Loopholes

Albuquerque, Bernalillo County –

We often write stories about the loopholes and shenanigans within the NM Juvenile and adult justice systems. Yesterday Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen released new internal data from their Operation Route 66 that he says confirms what deputies and residents have been feeling for years: New Mexico’s criminal justice system is failing to hold repeat offenders accountable.
“We started this process to hold ourselves accountable,” said Sheriff Allen. “What we found should
disturb every New Mexican. Our deputies are doing the work, our partners are filing the cases and yet the same people are being released, missing court, and cycling through this system with very few real
consequences.”
This started with BCSO looking in the mirror in the wake of the recent DWI investigation that exposed serious misconduct by officers across multiple agencies, Sheriff Allen directed a full internal review at BCSO.

The Sheriff:
– Removed compromised personnel from enforcement roles,
– Established an Accountability Officer to audit cases and court appearances, and
– Ordered the Office to track its own performance in court in real time.

“Our first priority was to make sure we were doing our job,” said Allen. “You can’t manage what you
don’t measure. So, we built a system to measure ourselves, line by line, case by case.”
As part of that effort, BCSO began tracking every BCSO-related arrest from Operation Route 66 – a multiagency initiative targeting crime along Central/Route 66 – from the moment of arrest through the court process. The original goal was to ensure deputies were showing up, testifying, and presenting solid cases.
“The good news is our deputies are doing exactly what we’re asking of them,” Allen said. “The bad news
is what we found when we followed those cases into the courts.”

What BCSO’s Route 66 tracking shows

Since mid-February 2025, BCSO has been involved in 640 Operation Route 66 cases. An internal review
of those cases shows:
– 260 were “warrant-only” arrests. In other words, deputies were re-arresting people who had already
been released and then failed to appear in court or comply with conditions of release.
– 380 of these cases generated new charges.

• Out of the 640 arrests, 50 defendants in active warrant status again: 26 in Metro Court and 24 in District Court.

• 196 cases are listed as prosecution complete or closed: 151 in Metro Court and 45 in District Court

• 16 cases were dismissed for law enforcement failure to appear. Eight of those absences weredepartmental excused (such as training, pre-approved leave or critical call-outs), and the remaining eight are still under review and are being addressed individually and internally.

The data on how defendants are being released pretrial is particularly troubling.

Metro Court (59 pending cases and 26 are actively in warrant status): 

• 13 defendants were released on their own recognizance at the time of arrest.

• 10 defendants were released on their own recognizance and referred to Pretrial Services.

• 1 defendant was released under “other” conditions (never booked into MDC).

• 9 defendants previously arrested under Operation Route 66 failed to appear for those charges and were re-arrested. 

In other words, all 59 BCSO Operation Route 66 cases still pending in Metro Court involve defendants who were released back into the community, and 26 of those 59 defendants – nearly half – are now in active warrant status after failing to appear.

District Court (90 pending cases and 24 are actively in warrant status): 

• 9 defendants were released on their own recognizance at the time of arrest.

• 36 defendants were released on their own recognizance and referred to Pretrial Services.

• In the remaining 21 cases, the District Attorney’s Office filed Pretrial Detention Motions. Judgesgranted detention in 14 of those cases and denied detention in 7, releasing those defendants to PretrialServices.

Even when prosecutors take the extra step of asking the court to detain high-risk defendants, the results are mixed: 

• 35 Pretrial Detention Motions have been filed in BCSO Operation Route 66 cases.

• 20 were granted.

• 15 were denied, including cases involving first-degree murder, kidnapping, child abuse and shooting at or from a motor vehicle

“ Not all of these are low-level first-time offenders,” Allen said. “Operation Route 66 is aimed at auto theft, drugs and repeat offenders along one of the most crime-ridden corridors in our county. Yet in far too many cases, these defendants are still being released, and we are seeing them again and again in warrant status.”

  Real cases behind the numbers

To help illustrate what these numbers look like, BCSO has prepared case summaries on several repeat offenders that were arrested by our deputies during Operation Route 66. These summaries are being p rovided to the media with this release.

A few examples are listed below:

• Benjamin Boriff (44) has been arrested 21 times in Bernalillo County on charges that include DWI,trafficking controlled substances and receiving and transferring stolen motor vehicles. Under OperationRoute 66, he was arrested for receiving and transferring a stolen vehicle, released on his ownrecognizance and placed on pretrial supervision, failed to appear in court, was re-arrested on a warrantand is currently out of custody again awaiting future court dates.

• Mario Sena (42) has 14 arrests that include trafficking controlled substances, possession of a firearmby a felon and residential burglary. During Operation Route 66, he was arrested on new firearm anddrug charges, released on his own recognizance with pretrial supervision, failed to appear and was re-arrested on multiple warrants before ultimately receiving a three-year prison sentence only afterrepeated violations and new charges.

• Jeremy Bradley (45) has been arrested 41 times in Bernalillo County. His history includes kidnappingwith intent to commit sexual offenses, aggravated stalking, abuse of a child and domestic violence–related offenses. Under Operation Route 66, he was arrested, released on his own recognizance withweekly pretrial supervision, failed to appear, was re-arrested on a warrant with additional charges andultimately served a 35-day sentence with credit for time served before being released again.

• Jonathan Orozco (29) has 29 arrests, including protection order violations, auto burglary andcriminal damage to property. While already facing multiple felony cases, he stole a BCSO bait carduring an auto theft operation and was detained. After later being released on his own recognizance, hestole a second BCSO bait car in a separate operation and was again released on his own recognizance.

Additional attached summaries include Roxanne Thompson (10 arrests) and Ramon Martinez (20 arrests), both of whom have long histories of narcotics, weapons and child-related charges that ended in dismissals, repeated releases or minimal consequences despite failures to appear and new offenses.

“These are not theoretical charts or anonymous statistics,” Sheriff Allen said. “These are real people with double-digit arrest histories who continue to be released, miss court and pick up new charges. That is exactly what our community means when they talk about a revolving door. That is not a sustainable system.”

When the system fails, victims pay the price

BCSO’s data are not the only warning sign. Recent high-profile cases in Bernalillo County have shown that even when someone is killed or seriously harmed, dangerous offenders can still avoid meaningful jail time. In one such case involving the killing of a 13-year-old child, a defendant ultimately avoided serving a 12-year prison sentence.

“I hear it from victims’ families every single week,” Allen said. “They look at me and ask, ‘How is this possible in New Mexico?’ And the truth is, the system is making it possible. New Mexicans are not crazy or overreacting. The system really is failing them.”

Moving cases federal: Operation Triple Beam

In response to what he describes as a “revolving door” at the state level, Sheriff Allen has directed BCSO t o increase its partnership with federal agencies, including the U.S. Marshals Service, through Operation Triple Beam. The goal is to move as many qualifying cases as possible into the federal system, where penalties and detention standards are often stricter for repeat violent offenders, armed felons, and organized criminal activity. “We are not going to keep feeding a broken system and expect different results,” said Allen. “If the state process will not consistently protect the public from repeat offenders, then we will work with our federal partners to find a system that will.”

A call for transparency and real reform Sheriff Allen says this is not about partisan politics or attacking individual judges. It is about data, accountability and public safety. “We cleaned our own house first,” Allen said. “We created an Accountability Officer. We tracked our own failures and our own performance in court. Now we’re asking the rest of the system to do the same.” Sheriff Allen emphasized that he is willing to work with anyone who is serious about fixing this problem. He says this is not about passing blame, but about a call to action and a commitment to give the public the transparency and real accountability they deserve. He looks forward to working with the courts, the Legislature and community partners to find a resolution to what he calls an unsustainable and systemic problem.

Sheriff Allen is calling for: 

• Full public transparency from the courts on pretrial outcomes, including how often defendants on ROR or supervision pick up new charges, fail to appear, or end up back in warrant status. 

• Serious legislative action to give judges and prosecutors stronger tools to detain proven repeat violent offenders and armed felons pending trial. 

• A renewed focus on juvenile accountability, especially for young offenders repeatedly involved in violent crime, auto theft, and gun offenses. 

“New Mexico has a long history of coddling criminals,” Allen said. “That culture has to end. Our laws, our court rules and our practices must support victims and communities, not make excuses for the people who terrorize them.” The Sheriff says BCSO will continue to publish internal data so the public can see, in plain language and plain numbers, how the system is actually working. “The people of Bernalillo County deserve honesty,” Allen said. “We will own our mistakes. We will show you our numbers. And we will keep fighting for a justice system that finally puts victims and community safety first.”