Mayor’s Vendetta Endangers Community: Northrup Freed

Town’s response to story posted yesterday:  Yesterday, 8/22/2012, the Town of Taos lost court cases alleging violation of the Town’s sign ordinance.

“Today, I’m handing back the signs the Town confiscated in these cases,” said Town Manager Oscar Rodriguez, “and the town is pulling back the remaining cases associated with this ordinance to give the staff time to revisit the sign ordinance and staff procedures for enforcing it. Once we are confident that we have a strong ordinance and the necessary procedures in place to enforce it, we will bring it to the Town Council for any amendments after a public review process.”

Rodriguez explained that yesterday’s court decision was hinged on the town’s, “Lack of specificity in charging documents.”  He believes that what must be done at this juncture is for the town to redraft the sign ordinance – with extensive public input—and better train the staff in how to enforce it.

Rewrite that ordinance and “get Jeff.”

While Taos Policemen, on and off duty, waited to testify at muni court in Town of Taos V. Northrup, only one patrol car was on the beat Wednesday morning. Top code enforcement officials, also witnesses for the prosecution, were unable to pursue violations of town codes by local developers as well as water & sewer scofflaws within the town limits–due to the distraction of the “sign man.” Thousands of dollars and hundreds of employee hours have been wasted in a fruitless attempt to “get Jeff.” But Jeff was found “not guilty” on three counts of violating the sign code by Judge Kris Edwards on August 22, 2012, aka “Free Speech Day” in Taos.

According to Judge Edwards, the town failed to meet its burden of proof regarding criminal “specificity” on three identical citations (including language and punctuation) by three different police officers but for three different occasions. (Can you say “cut and paste”?)

Basically, Northrup was cited for vague offenses against public safety, health, and welfare, as well as crimes against the town’s theory of aesthetics. Even ace investigator Sgt. John Wentz, the man who broke the Alcantar murder case, couldn’t find the right section of the sign code to charge the sign man though the sign code has been allegedly re-written with Northrup specifically in mind.

Northrup is well known for his advocacy on behalf of animals, cheap gas, and the citizens for honest government.

The sign man has been found not guilty before by a muni judge, a judge who claims he was subsequently fired (or not re-hired) for not convicting the miscreant. The duly elected judge has since been excused and/or recused himself, after convicting Northup “Kangaroo style” in another case. Meanwhile, the town has also tried bypassing muni court and going to district court but District Court Judge “Our Father” Paternoster was having none of that forum shopping and sent the case back to the court of original jurisdiction.

Paternoster himself has yet to rule on the appeal of the famous 4th of July “firecracker” criminal tresspass case in which the Mayor, Councilor Abeyta, and their cronies testified against Northrup. But that case is full of conflicting testimony regarding a two-hour time discrepancy (Think Nixon, Watergate and the Rosemary Woods 19 minute gap).

Allegedly, the Mayor et al claim Northrup appeared at 8:30 pm to warn the adult party animals about children setting off fireworks nearby during the 4th of July incident. But the 911 tape says cops were called to arrest Northrup at 10:30 pm. Our Father has asked attorneys to submit arguments re: “criminal trespassing,” “criminal intent,” and any manner of legal odds and ends in this increasingly complicated and expensive legal vendetta.

The fourth charge on Wednesday morning, which Judge Edwards took under advisement and will decide in a week, concerns a bust for posting temporary signs, allegedly, in the town’s right away at Northrup’s business. The code enforcement officer said he was only “50%” certain that Northrup was in the right away, which according to defense attorney Ian Lloyd, does not meet any standard burden of proof. The town enforcer also said a DOT engineer told him the right away extended from the highway to the telephone pole or post somewhere over there, 10 to 20 feet from the edge of Paseo del Pueblo Sur, at a location adjacent to Mr. Northrup’s business at South Side Copies—so to speak. Eh?

The sign code itself defines and limits right aways to sidewalks, roads, alleys, trails, etc. but says nothing about the width of right aways. Judge Edwards said she would write up findings of fact and conclusions of law regarding the “right-away” violation in a week or so.

The code specifically exempts temporary signs meant for political and community purposes; nor does the code restrict the number of temporary signs for the above. The code seems clear but the interpretation has been politicized by town employees trying to find a way to charge the sign man and satisfy the mayor. Apparently, the chief expert on the Town of Taos sign code is…the sign man himself. Northrup, code enforcement personnel and the officers all remain on friendly and collegial terms.

The Mayor uses temporary sandwich board signs to push alcoholic beverage sales along side the busy Paseo del Pueblo Sur at his restaurant. We suggest El Jefe Morris check out those garish liquor signs, promoting demon rum (or Bud and tequila). The thirsty driver, trying to catch a glimpse of the latest happy hour deal on one of the Mayor’s signs could also be distracted by the tempting message and become a threat to “public safety.”

For more background, see Gene Sanchez’s four-part series beginning today (Aug. 22) under Letters on Taos Friction.