HispanicBusiness

Struggling to fill vacancies on the force, the Santa Fe Police Department is considering recruiting Mexican nationals, even though such a move would require changing a state regulation that limits employment in law enforcement to U.S. citizens.

"A high percentage of our community is made up of Mexican citizens, men and women who have lived a large part of their lives in this country. I don't see why they can't be good candidates to become police officers," Sgt. Marvin Paulk, in charge of recruitment and training for the Santa Fe police, told Efe.

He added that the department has had 20 vacancies for the past six months because of the lack of candidates who meet all the force's requirements.

Paulk said that the main obstacle is the selection process, given that candidates must have a series of physical and psychological aptitudes to be accepted at the police academy.

"I know that there are state and federal laws that prohibit hiring officers who aren't U.S. citizens, but I think that we should consider the possibility of changing these rules," the sergeant emphasized.

According to census figures, the city of Santa Fe has a population of about 66,000, of whom 48 percent are Hispanic, most of them with Mexican heritage.

Paulk proposed using procedures similar to those used by the Army, which allows foreigners with legal U.S. residence to join and serve the country while they await citizenship.

"If they can go to war, I don't see why they can't also be police officers," he said.

Paulk said that another factor to consider in hiring Mexican citizens who are long-time U.S. residents is that they would be bilingual, an advantage for an officer in cities like Santa Fe with its high percentage of Hispanics.

"These people are legal residents. They've lived their whole lives in this community. I think they can be of great value in combating crime," Paulk said.

"They are people who love this community and who are familiar with the problems," he added.

The sergeant acknowledged that his proposal is far from becoming a reality because first changes would have to be made in both state and federal laws.

"I don't know how much support this idea would have, but I think that it's time to think outside the box," he emphasized.

Paulk did not rule out the possibility of formally presenting his proposal at some point to Santa Fe Mayor David Coss and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, himself the son of a U.S. father and Mexican mother.

In Paulk's opinion, putting his idea into practice would alleviate the recruitment problems confronted by the majority of the police departments throughout the country.

The Santa Fe police force has 135 active officers, and next week it will begin an intense television advertising campaign in Spanish to attract the personnel it needs.

Paulk said that the recruitment process is more difficult since Santa Fe must compete with other police departments, security agencies and the Army for candidates between 21 and 30 years of age.

"Therefore, I think that we should give a chance to people who are concerned about the communities where they live with their children and families," he said.