Las Cruces police chief responds to officer’s foul language in confrontation

The Las Cruces police chief told ABC-7 he does not condone an officer’s use of foul language in a confrontation from early April which ended in an arrest.

“It was unprofessional, but it was dealt with as a personnel matter,” Chief Patrick Gallagher said.

A Las Cruces police officer approached a woman who appeared to be engaging in suspicious activity, according to reports. That woman, later identified as Jasmine Allen, is accused of ramming her vehicle into two separate patrol cars.

When a separate officer responded, Allen attempted to flee, as seen in the video. The two got into an altercation where the officer cursed three times.

“It’s not an easy situation,” Gallagher said. “We are faced with very difficult situations, dealing with people who don’t want to comply with our direction.”

Gallagher said there is no excuse for foul language, however, at least the conflict ended peacefully. He said a suspected criminal was taken off the streets.

“She’s facing justice for those charges,” Gallagher said. “Nobody was seriously injured in this instance… we don’t condone it. It was unprofessional, but I would not highlight that small part. It’s been dealt with internally.”

The police chief told ABC-7 the department will not release the officer’s name or disciplinary files because he was not the arresting officer in the case. In the state of New Mexico, an officer’s disciplinary record is not public record.