Socorro Mayor: Former PD chief violated city policy when releasing dash cam video

The mayor of Socorro said Tuesday the former police chief violated city policy when he released dash cam footage of a traffic stop involving the city manager’s son.

The incident happened in January 2018, but the investigation does not revolve around the city manager picking up her son where he was pulled over on suspicion of driving under the influence.

Instead, police are investigating the release of the video by Carlos Maldonado, the police chief in Socorro at the time. Maldonado resigned without explanation soon after the video was leaked. At the time, residents in Socorro were also asking city manager Adriana Rodarte to resign.

Tuesday, Mayor Elia Garcia told reporters there was very little the City could do to hold the former chief accountable for his actions, but council member Rene Rodriguez said more needs to be done. “I’m going to introduce an agenda item so that we can pursue any legal matters against him and try to see if the sheriff’s office is willing to press charges. You know, it’ll be to their discretion,” said Rodriguez.

According to an incident report, an officer pulled over Diego Salais for speeding back in January. The report states Salais admitted to having two beers. The report also states the officer noticed a white substance on Salais’ nose. After the officer conducted a test on scene, the substance allegedly tested positive for the presence of cocaine. However, no charges were filed.

The report states Salais told the officer his mother is Rodarte, the city manager. Dashcam video obtained by ABC-7 shows a woman dressed in black arriving at the scene and speaking with the officer. A police report states the woman seen in the video is Rodarte.

“It’s wrong for her and it’s wrong for the city,” Socorro resident Daniel Hernandez said. “We already have bad images of corruption here in Socorro and they’re always talking about transparency. If it’s out there, they should act on this and find what’s really going on.”

“We don’t get special treatment,” Hernandez added. “Everyone should get the same treatment.”

“It makes some of the city representatives look bad,” Socorro resident Pilo Morales said. “We cannot trust them anymore and they know that. If I was the city manager, I would resign.”

Rodarte explained what happened that night. “A phone call was placed to me by our officer because officers have that discretion. Never did I ask them to release my son, to give me my son. I have a 21-year-old and a 23-year-old and they are boys …. once he leaves, once he closes the door, I can’t control what he does,” Rodarte told council.

An officer at that same council meeting, with knowledge of the incident, said the officer involved in the stop made the decision to release Rodarte’s son. “The officer, who is an expert in DWI, did not feel (Salais) would have flunked the DWI exam,” the officer said.

When asked why the City of Socorro was placing more emphasis on the leak of the dash cam video instead of what is seen in the footage, Mayor Garcia simply answered, “yes.”