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The Village of Columbus has received a letter from its jailed mayor, in which Eddie Espinoza agrees to resign if he is paid for April and May.
The Village Board of Trustees voted last month to send letters to Espinoza and Trustee Blas "Woody" Gutierrez requesting resignation by each within 15 days' of the letters' posting, or the board would act to remove them.
There has been no response by midday Thursday from Gutierrez, said Mayor Pro Tem Roberto Gutierrez, who is the embattled trustee's father.
Espinoza, Blas Gutierrez and Police Chief Angelo Vega have been held under a federal indictment since their March 10 arrest. They and nine others are charged in an 84-count indictment alleging firearms smuggling.
The board reviewed Espinoza's letter as its meeting Wednesday night. It has set a Monday, 9 a.m. meeting, likely at Columbus City Hall, to consider Espinoza's response.
"I guess the next thing is for the council to accept the resignation," Roberto Gutierrez said, Thursday, "then proceed."
The Mayor Pro Tem says Espinoza has already been paid for April, so the decision is whether he would be paid for the entire month of May.
Trustee William "Bud" Canfield said it might be less expensive to pay the two men than proceed with a legal course.
The mayor is paid $700 monthly, a trustee $500 a month.
Some village residents circulated a petition in April asking trustees to act to remove Espinoza and Blas Gutierrez. Vega, as an appointed official, had already
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been suspended without pay by trustees.
As Espinoza and Blas Gutierrez are elected, village options are to seek their resignations or, absent that, petition district court to initiate removal.
Canfield said letters to Espinoza and Gutierrez were posted April 29, which would give Gutierrez until May 14 to respond.
If Espinoza and Gutierrez leave office - by resignation or court order - the New Mexico Municipal League's Roger Makin said last month, when the mayor's position is vacant, "the governing body shall appoint a qualified elector to fill the office. They would appoint the mayor, who would, in turn, appoint a council member, with consent of the governing body."
A majority vote would be required in each case.
A second option is holding a special election, which could prove costly, and the regular village election is March 2012.
Seriously, your facing federal time, and your worried about a $1400 before taxes paycheck? I think that's the LAST of your worries buddy!
I had the "opportunity" to meet Angelo Vega, the alleged police chief involved, back in 2010 while in the Academy. He gave the cadets a short 2 minute lecture about ethics.
The Village of Columbus has received a letter from its jailed mayor, in which Eddie Espinoza agrees to resign if he is paid for April and May.
The Village Board of Trustees voted last month to send letters to Espinoza and Trustee Blas "Woody" Gutierrez requesting resignation by each within 15 days' of the letters' posting, or the board would act to remove them.
There has been no response by midday Thursday from Gutierrez, said Mayor Pro Tem Roberto Gutierrez, who is the embattled trustee's father.
Espinoza, Blas Gutierrez and Police Chief Angelo Vega have been held under a federal indictment since their March 10 arrest. They and nine others are charged in an 84-count indictment alleging firearms smuggling.
The board reviewed Espinoza's letter as its meeting Wednesday night. It has set a Monday, 9 a.m. meeting, likely at Columbus City Hall, to consider Espinoza's response.
"I guess the next thing is for the council to accept the resignation," Roberto Gutierrez said, Thursday, "then proceed."
The Mayor Pro Tem says Espinoza has already been paid for April, so the decision is whether he would be paid for the entire month of May.
Trustee William "Bud" Canfield said it might be less expensive to pay the two men than proceed with a legal course.
The mayor is paid $700 monthly, a trustee $500 a month.
Some village residents circulated a petition in April asking trustees to act to remove Espinoza and Blas Gutierrez. Vega, as an appointed official, had already
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been suspended without pay by trustees.
As Espinoza and Blas Gutierrez are elected, village options are to seek their resignations or, absent that, petition district court to initiate removal.
Canfield said letters to Espinoza and Gutierrez were posted April 29, which would give Gutierrez until May 14 to respond.
If Espinoza and Gutierrez leave office - by resignation or court order - the New Mexico Municipal League's Roger Makin said last month, when the mayor's position is vacant, "the governing body shall appoint a qualified elector to fill the office. They would appoint the mayor, who would, in turn, appoint a council member, with consent of the governing body."
A majority vote would be required in each case.
A second option is holding a special election, which could prove costly, and the regular village election is March 2012.
Seriously, your facing federal time, and your worried about a $1400 before taxes paycheck? I think that's the LAST of your worries buddy!
I had the "opportunity" to meet Angelo Vega, the alleged police chief involved, back in 2010 while in the Academy. He gave the cadets a short 2 minute lecture about ethics.
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