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Thursday, February 28, 2008
Moriarty Municipal Judge
The Telegraph sent each of the Moriarty candidates for municipal judge an identical questionnaire. Here are their answers:
Dorothy J. Encinias
AGE: No answer.
OCCUPATION: Started my career in the legal field immediately after high school as a receptionist to a legal secretary and after I got my paralegal certificate, have worked as a paralegal for well over 15 years.
EDUCATION: Graduated from Moriarty High School in 1980. Attended Albuquerque Career Institute and obtained my Paralegal Certificate in 1991.
FAMILY: Single mother of two beautiful kids, Brittany, 21, and Caleb, 13, and a very proud grandmother to Mikaylee, who is almost 11 months old.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: As a paralegal/legal assistant, I have extensive background in both civil and criminal law. I have performed legal research, drafted legal documents for review by attorneys, and worked with inmates at Torrance County Detention Facility on post-conviction proceedings. I was previously elected to the office of Municipal Judge for eight years (two terms) and was appointed by the council in June 2007 to complete Judge Hart's term after he resigned. I have a good professional relationship with the various police agencies that come before the Municipal Court. I am a hard worker, loyal, trustworthy and very committed to my work. My experiences as municipal judge have helped me to grow as an individual.
PRIORITIES: See below.
BIGGEST ISSUES: A good judge has to decide every case on its merits and determine a sentence that both protects society and punishes the offender. No candidate for a judicial position should ever stand before you and say that he or she will rule a certain way in a case. Each case brought before the Municipal Court must be decided on its merits. Individuals from different cultures, different levels of education and different financial status, come before the Court. Therefore, when it comes to sentencing an individual, the elected judge must be compassionate and understanding of each situation, as each individual is unique, and consider all the facts, as each case is different, in order to make a impartial sentencing decision.
As judge, you can't make everyone happy because there are always two sides. One side is always going to feel like they were done wrong in your decision or sentencing, but as judge, you have to know that you've made the best, honest and impartial decision that you can, and down the road, a lot of times, that person will come back and thank you, because the decision that you made helped them to change their lives.
As judge, I have not allowed my family, social, political or other relationships to influence my judgment. Further, I have not misused my judicial power to advance any personal interest or interests of another. If elected, I will continue to display impartiality and avoid situations that may create bias in my decision-making, and create impropriety where a conflict may arise.
People ask me, "Why do you want to be judge?" My answer to that is very simple, because I love what I do. It gives me satisfaction in knowing that I have helped someone, whether it is helping that 9th-10th grader who received a citation for speeding by having him attend a driver improvement school or Teen Court (or helping him to realize that not only is he paying for the citation, but that his parents' insurance rates will be increased for each citation that he gets); or helping that person who received a citation for driving on a suspended license obtain his driver's license by paying old citations, etc., or helping that person who received a DWI, by imposing the penalties such as DWI school, victim impact panel and alcohol counseling and rehabilitation that may be what he needs to rehabilitate himself.
I believe I am the best qualified candidate for the position of municipal judge for the city of Moriarty because of my work background, my previous tenure as judge, and for my loyalty to the city of Moriarty and its residents.
Joseph C. Garcia
AGE: 47
OCCUPATION: Currently school bus driver.
EDUCATION: High school graduate. Graduated from New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy 1983.
FAMILY: Henrietta Garcia, wife. Daughter, Ariana Garcia. Stepchildren, Samantha, Francisco, Gabriel, Natalie, Peter and Kerri Romero; Dusty and Andrea Dennison. Six grandchildren.
POLITICAL OF GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: Twenty-three years law enforcement. Three years correctional.
PRIORITIES: Working with and for the community. Young people.
BIGGEST ISSUES: No answer.
David Ronald Van Bibber
AGE: 57
OCCUPATION: Medically retired. I am a disabled veteran from my service in the U.S. Navy.
EDUCATION: I graduated from Manzano High School. I have a B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Albuquerque. I attended Masters degree classes from Webster University. I received extensive professional training from the U.S. Air Force to become a Quality Assurance Engineer.
FAMILY: My mother and stepfather live in Sweetwater Hills and have lived there since 1973. I have two brothers living with their families in Edgewood. I am the oldest of six. I have 3 children, Jeremy age 32; Eric, 31; both are married. My daughter Laura, is 19 and attends UNM. I also have six grandkids.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: I have never run for office, but I love to observe political races. My work experience has been in the area of public service. I served in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in Vietnam with River Boats, after which I served in the Pacific Fleet. In college, I minored in Public Administration and Economics. After college, I went to work in Civil Service for the Air Force. I served at both Kirtland AFB and in Baltimore. After three years, I went to work as an independent contractor for the Department of Energy. I was able to work for 15 yrs. My career ended with a serious back operation. Currently, I am medically retired.
PRIORITIES: Use my experience and integrity in serving my community. Serving as Moriarty municipal judge, my vision will revitalize and renew confidence in the city judicial system. I will invest the time necessary to work with the community, business owners, schools, police, corrections, animal control, and right down to the individual citizen. This is not a "part-time" effort, but an investment to serve the community on an "as needed" basis; being available 24-7. A part time effort is not going to be enough for the growth we are about to experience.
I also have volunteered my time to the read/write group in an effort to help non-English speaking people improve their communication skills. This will help to strengthen our community with the working skills these folks bring with them.
BIGGEST ISSUES: I do have concerns for Moriarty. My chief concern is with the safety and freedom of our citizens. We all need to have peace of mind. Are we completely safe here? Are we able to maintain social order? Can we count on our public servants and officials to sufficiently protect us from harm in our homes, driving on our streets, sitting in our parks, shopping at our local businesses? Are our kids protected from drugs, gang activities, drunk drivers, etc.? Are our businesses adequately protected from criminal entities?
When Wal-Mart opens, the racino gets under way and opens, and the city experiences population growth, is it going to be status quo or are undesirable elements going to challenge us more than they do now? My vision is to see that growth is positive, productive, and prosperous. We are in a time of wonderful opportunity and prosperity.
I will diligently work to prepare and commit myself for the demands that lay ahead. I am ready and focused for the growth Moriarty is going to experience. Part time attention is not going to get the job done. I am ready to serve. I am ready and available for the demands of the Municipal Court. I am ready with an independent, balanced approach in providing fair, impartial, and just decisions. Decisions will be based on the strength of evidence and testimony from both the prosecution and the defense. If found guilty, the punishment should appropriately fit the offense and should help the offender to again become an asset to the community and set an example to others.
MORIARTY CITY COUNCIL
The Telegraph staff sent each of the Moriarty candidates for council an identical questionnaire. Here are their answers:
Steve Anaya
AGE: 51
OCCUPATION: Executive vice president of the Realtors Association of New Mexico.
EDUCATION: Moriarty High School, Bachelor of Business Administration from New Mexico State University.
FAMILY: Wife Shara, and sons Eric and daughter-in-law Lauren, Jeffrey and Christopher.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: Moriarty City Council, 16 years; USDA State Director of Rural Development, 5 years; N.M. State Fair Manager, 4 years; Torrance County Planning and Zoning, 2 years; Mid-Region Council of Governments Chair, 2 years; NMSU Board of Regents, 5 years; CNM Community College Foundation, 1 year.
PRIORITIES: Public Safety, continue strong police and fire department; infrastructure, water, sewer and streets, continue to upgrade water and sewer facilities and keep streets maintained properly. Quality of life, continue to support projects such as libraries, museums, parks and recreational activities for our youth. City beautification, continue to work on mainstreet beautification as well as neighborhood enhancements.
BIGGEST ISSUES: Job creation, continue working towards creating new high-wage job opportunities. Healthcare Facilities, meet the increased demand of the Estancia Valley. Workforce development, work with business and educational leaders to ensure training opportunities are available.
Matthew Glen Eyster
AGE: No answer.
OCCUPATION: A small-business owner.
EDUCATION: No answer.
FAMILY: No answer.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: Served on the planning and zoning committee.
PRIORITIES: See below.
BIGGEST ISSUES: I believe that Moriarty as a city is at a crossroads. It's time to decide if Moriarty is going to remain a bedroom community of Albuquerque and more importantly Edgewood, or if Moriarty is going to become economically independent. It's time to look at becoming a community where the residents can live, work and shop in their own city.
Richard Jonathan Ipiotis
AGE: 38
OCCUPATION: Owner of eSpider Squad, a Web Design and Internet Marketing Company.
EDUCATION: Graduated from Albuquerque High School 1988, N.M. National Guard 1989-1993, Attended TVI 1990-1993.
FAMILY: Married to Dorothy "Chavez" Ipiotis. We have three awesome children: Malena 15, Jonathan 10, Jude 6, and we are expecting one more in July.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: This is my first time running for public office. But I have been in sales and marketing for over 20 years, business owner of 7 years, I am a father of three, and have been married for 10 years. I have been a youth leader at our church for 6 years, and a youth coach for 7 years. I currently serve on the Moriarty AABC Baseball board and have for the past three years. Now that's politics at its best.
PRIORITIES: More jobs with higher pay: As a city we need to work hard to attract companies that will grow with our city. We see 64 percent of our highly skilled and highly educated work force drive into other cities like Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Rio Rancho. We lose tax dollars every day because we lack jobs. Attracting new companies is a must for Moriarty. We must also look at increasing city personnel in all areas. Police, Fire and Public Works are all understaffed. Improve Police and Fire Facilities: Find ways to improve the pay structure for our police and fire personnel. Improve the facilities for both departments. Find creative ways to improve the retention of our trained personnel is a must. It is unfortunate that our city trains police officers and we lose these officers to other departments because of pay issues. I see that both departments are understaffed now, and with the growth we as a community are experiencing we continue to fall behind. I see a need for an independent review of our fire department to assess the needs for improving response times, utilization of personnel and equipment accountability. Our Airport Facilities: Working to improve our airport facilities will help to bring in larger companies. With the larger companies will bring in better jobs to our city. There are federal funds that are available to a municipality to help improve and fund our airport. There are also funds through federal grants that will pay for an airport manager.
BIGGEST ISSUES: Youth programs and Facilities: As a coach and parent I see our youth programs and facilities needing to be a bigger priority for the city. There is a need for a full-time parks and recreation manager to coordinate the growing youth sports programs and to improve the facilities. Last year there were 375 kids who played baseball, 175 played softball, 150 played football, 175 played soccer, 300 played basketball, 40 wrestled, 75 did some type of rodeo events, 75 played volleyball, these numbers do not include youth that participate in 4H Clubs or FFA Clubs. These numbers show the growing need for a person to manage all the needs of these youth organizations and facilities. The youth of today are our future leaders for our city. We must show our youth we care and help shape their future with values, discipline, courage, and strength. I believe that having strong youth programs and great facilities is a must.
Elizabeth Obarr
No response.
Robert (Bobby) L. Ortiz
AGE: 37
OCCUPATION: Survey Field Coordinator/Project Manager.
EDUCATION: I graduated from Moriarty High School in 1988.
FAMILY: I am a single father raising two wonderful children: a daughter named Ashlea Ortiz, 14, and a son named Zackary Ortiz, 8.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: Vice chairman Moriarty Planning and Zoning committee. Worked on numerous projects involving federal, state, local, and international governments.
PRIORITIES: My priority is to try to bring things into our community that will enable our youth to stay in the area as they grow up. For example, higher education opportunities and good paying jobs (anything to keep the kids around dad!). As it is now our youth typically move away to college, and then move to a place where there is a demand for a high-skilled work force. Another high priority is to have some type of family entertainment. This would enable families to spend time together without the hassles and the costs of driving to Albuquerque.
BIGGEST ISSUES: My biggest issue is that Moriarty is inevitably going to grow. I believe it is the City Council that needs to mold development to meet our way of life, not let developers come in and take advantage of our community. I like the "country" or rural atmosphere that our community has and would like to keep that as much as possible. I believe with proper management Moriarty can take advantage of growth and at the same time keep our agricultural roots.
Alexandra L. Strallow
AGE: 18
OCCUPATION: I'm a waitress in Moriarty.
EDUCATION: High school graduate. Currently working on my associate's degree at CNM in Albuquerque.
FAMILY: No answer.
POLITICAL OR GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: I am fairly new to the political field but I hope to bring new ideas to the City Council.
PRIORITIES: Expand Moriarty for the better such as bringing new jobs. I believe Moriarty and its citizens are ready for more development and I hope to be a part of and help with Moriarty's controlled growth.
BIGGEST ISSUES: No answer.
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