Anthony police chief resigns citing hostile working environment

Anthony Police Chief Joe Baca abruptly resigned last Friday.

In the resignation letter obtained by ABC-7, Baca states he had “seen inappropriate terminations, as well as a hostile work environment by the Mayor.”

Baca goes on to state he “cannot in good conscience continue to be stressed out not knowing from one day to the next if (he) is going to have a job or not.”

In a phone interview Thursday, Baca told ABC-7 two employees were fired without cause and he feared he’d be next. He claims the employees told auditors that the mayor had misused per diem funds, and that’s when they were let go.

“No employee should have to worry about whether they’re going to have a job one day to the next. The employees have rights and, unfortunately, she’s violated two of the employee’s rights,” Baca alleged.

Mayor Diana Murillo-Trujillo denies those allegations. She says she saw Baca’s resignation letter for the first time Thursday when ABC-7 showed it to her. She said only the Board of Trustees received the letter and she learned of Baca’s resignation after the board emailed her.

“That’s misinformation; that’s not true,” the mayor said after reading the letter.

Murillo-Trujillo said no one has been terminated recently and dismissed Baca’s accusations as politics.

“I wish him the best wherever he left or in his new journey and that everything goes well for him,” the mayor said.

She said the process of hiring a new chief is already underway. She will oversee the department, with assistance from commissioned peace officers, until a new chief is on the job.