The Prevention of Violent Crime and Promotion of Community Safety Pueblo of Taos Technical Assistance Site Visit Taos Pueblo, New Mexico

Overview and Method of Assessment This assessment came as a result of a technical assistance request made by the Taos Pueblo through the ONAP Crime Prevention and Safety task order.

As a part of the assessment process, interviews were conducted with members of the Taos Pueblo Police Department, Taos Community Center, Taos County District Attorney’s Office, New Mexico Gang Task Force and Taos County Sheriff’s Department. Analysis of data and personal impressions provided by the Taos community regarding the presence of gang activity and related narcotics trafficking and its impact on the people of the reservation provide the basis of this report.

Taos Pueblo Demographics and Background Taos Pueblo is the only living Native American community designated both a World Heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and a National Historic landmark. The multi-storied adobe buildings have been continuously inhabited for over 1000 years.

The tourist trade, arts, traditional crafts and food concessions are important employment sources at the Pueblo. Some Tribal members Adobe-style buildings in are employed in the town of Taos. The Pueblo has a centralized Taos Pueblo, NM management system where Tribal members are employed in a variety of occupations.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) maintains an elementary school, located behind the south Pueblo in an area restricted to the public. The majority of teachers are Native American. There is also a preschool program for three and four year olds. An Education Committee comprised of Pueblo members oversees the education of students and monitors a scholarship program for students seeking higher education. Native American children also attend public schools in the city of Taos.

The nearby city of Taos, NM operates a Children’s Center, however, resources on the Pueblo for Tribal children is limited since the closing of the Boys & Girls Club of Northern New Mexico.

Tribal Government A Tribal Governor and War Chief, along with staff for each, are appointed yearly by the Tribal Council, a group of approximately 50 male Tribal elders. The Tribal Governor and his staff are concerned with civil and business issues within the village and relations with the non-Indian world. The War Chief and staff deal with the protection of the mountains and Indian lands outside the Pueblo walls.

Tribal Law Enforcement

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At present, the Taos Pueblo Police have 18 commissioned positions budgeted, but are working at a diminished staffing level. They also have six support personnel and six dispatchers. The Pueblo has its own Tribal court.

Assessment Findings During the course of the assessment, it was universally agreed that there is a gang presence on the reservation, and that it is expanding. One of the problems the reservation faces is insufficient manpower to fund or staff a Gang unit. As a result, there is no formal intervention, suppression or interdiction efforts. In addition, there are no multiagency gang task force operations. Because of budget constraints, patrol staffing has been reduced. Respondents indicated that patrol deployment was sufficient to handle calls for service but there was no margin for proactive initiatives. There are approximately 680 gangs totaling 13,800 members in New Mexico. Due to the close proximity of the Pueblo to the city of Taos and surrounding areas, city gangs tend to be Pueblo gangs.

Many of these gangs are involved in drug-related activities. Among these are prison gangs, including New Mexico Syndicate and Barrio Azteca, and street gangs, such as the 18th Street, Los Padillas, and San José gangs. The retail distribution of illicit drugs is the primary source of income for gangs in New Mexico. As a result, gangs often resort to violence to protect their turf and distribution base. The competition for drug distribution has intensified gang rivalries, leading to violent confrontations and adversely affecting public safety in the urban areas of the state. Although the Taos County Undersheriff said a 2010 double shooting of two teens in Taos had nothing to do with gang activity in the area, Taos residents stated that the MS 13 gang members tag a shooter and the two victims were members of the same gang. local building on the Taos Pueblo reservation. There are as many as nine gangs operating in Taos County, according to Bill Hubbard, an investigator with the District Attorney’s office and head of the Taos County Gang Task Force. “They don’t exactly make their membership rosters available to me, but I estimate the number of gang members between two and three hundred, ranging in age from twelve to their mid-twenties,” he said. He allowed that there might be more than that with a wider age range if The Banditos, a motorcycle gang operating in the area, is included.

Juggalo or Insane Clown Posse Much violence that occurs between rival gangs centers on issues of respect and turf. Several shootings in Taos in recent years were triggered by members of one gang disrespecting a member or members of another in some way, including stealing a rival’s drug stash, according to Hubbard. Regarding turf, he pointed out that graffiti is a kind of gang newspaper. Symbols spray-painted on buildings are how gangs mark or dispute turf.

Taos staff and community members have observed signs of gang graffiti and “crossing out” on state highway and USFS signs posted near the Pueblo and along USFS roads in the area. This is not unusual, as this activity is prevalent throughout the Taos area.

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Taos District Attorney Donald Gallegos said the dominant gangs in the area are allied with the Surenos and Nortenos -- two gangs that originated in California. "What we have in Taos is mainly the home-grown variety," said Gallegos. "Members range in age from middle school through their late teens. Two of the better-known ones in Taos are Barrio Small Town (BST) and Varrio Cruz Alta (VCA)." Another is Los Surenos 13, which is thought to have some connection to an Albuquerque chapter of Los Surenos which, in turn, is connected to a Los Angeles group. BST and Los Surenos 13 are thought by local law enforcement officials to have about 30 members each and VCA may have as many as 20. There are no known female gangs in Taos but a number of girls and young women Juggalo gang graffiti support existing male groups, "Sort of like an auxiliary," Gallegos said.

Local law enforcement officers say there was and may still be a gang at Taos Pueblo called the Rez Riders. They don't seem to have impacted Taos or conflicted with local groups. Officers say there are indicators that the much-feared Central American gang called Mara Salvatrucha was making inroads into New Mexico.

Sureños and Norteños (National) The original Mexican Mafia prison gang members, most of who were from southern California, considered Mexicans from the rural and agricultural areas of northern California weak and viewed them with contempt. To distinguish themselves from the agricultural workers or farmers from northern California, members of the Sureños and Norteños gang members tag local Mexican Mafia began to refer to the Hispanic buildings on the Taos gang members who worked for them as Sureños Pueblo reservation. (Southerners).

Inmates from northern California became known as Norteños (Northerners) and are affiliated with the Nuestra Familia prison gang. Sureños gang members' main sources of income are retail-level distribution of cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and methamphetamine within prison systems and in the community as well as extortion of drug distributors on the streets. Some members have direct links to Mexican drug trafficking organizations and broker deals for the Mexican Mafia as well as their own gang. Sureños gangs also are involved in other criminal activities such as assault, carjacking, home invasion, homicide, and robbery.

Sureños can be classified into three major types. Real Sureños are Southern California Hispanic gang members who have migrated from their breeding grounds in "Califas" and settled in the local community. Individually, many of them are sophisticated hard-core gang thugs. There are a handful of these individuals in the Taos area.

Most were probably not high level gangsters when they were in California. These "less than hard-core busters" can sometimes become big fish in a small pond by utilizing their "I'm from L.A." credentials. These types are known to be dangerous out of a need to make a name for themselves and prove their “credientials”.

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Both the "hard-core" and "wannabe" gang member will boldly mark their new home with gang graffiti claiming their original Los Angeles Varrio such as "WF," "F-13," "XV3," and "MS-13." They might also write "So Cal," "213," or "310" (telephone prefix numbers); and sometimes the words "SUR 13," "South Side," or "Sureños."

The second type of Sureño is a gang member recruited and indoctrinated from the local community by the first type. Most of these "second-hand Sureños" have never been to Southern California. Norteños gang members' main sources of income are the retail-level distribution of cocaine, heroin, marijuana, methamphetamine, and PCP within prison systems and in the community as well as extortion of drug distributors on the streets. Norteños gangs also are involved in other criminal activities such as assault, carjacking, home invasion, homicide, and robbery.

Breakdown of gang activity in and around Taos Pueblo, NM

Principal Criminal Activity Perpetrated by Taos Pueblo Gangs Criminal conduct identified as universal among the gang members are:

Burglary of residence Intimidation Burglary of business Sexual assault

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Drug sales Weapons offenses Fraud Vandalism Tagging

Technology Impact There seems to be a significant usage of internet and related communications technology being used to facilitate criminal activity among the gangs in the Taos area. Social networking, texting and music videos were all identified as significant sources of communications, threats, challenges and glorification of the gang lifestyle.

The New Mexico Gang Task force has identified a significant linkage between Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTO) and New Mexico gangs. This includes gangs in the Taos area. Technology is used for communications, surveillance and information sharing between gangs and DTO’s.

Primary Drugs Primary Drugs being trafficked on the Taos Pueblo based on arrests, seizures and community input:

Drug Prevalence Cocaine Powder Low Crack Cocaine Low Methamphetamine High Psilocybin (Mushrooms) Moderate Pharmaceuticals High Marijuana High

Factors Impacting Aggressive Gang Enforcement Based on the information available, it appears that the Taos Pueblo Police are somewhat constrained in their gang interdiction efforts by budgetary and personnel considerations. The state of New Mexico and Taos County officials attempt to support gang enforcement in the region, however, budget restraints, jurisdictional issues and cultural considerations all impact the ability of tribal officials and local agencies and their combined efforts at gang interdiction and prevention.

While Tribal Police have a sufficient depth of experience and personnel in the patrol ranks to answer routine calls for service, a lack of adequate staffing has resulted in the following enforcement deficiencies:

 No targeted criminal gang enforcement  No dedicated gang interdiction or suppression unit  No organized gang intelligence analysis  No proactive law enforcement and community collaboration dedicated to impacting the gang influence within the reservation.

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