Valdez will run for Cibola County Sheriff

By Jim Maniaci
Cibola County Bureau

Johnny Valdez

GRANTS — Undersheriff Johnny Valdez, who has been Cibola County Sheriff Manuel Lujan's right-hand man the past eight years, has announced he will seek to succeed his boss, running in this summer's Democratic Party primary election.

During the eight years, they teamed up to improve the department greatly, concentrating on simultaneously raising the low pay and providing modern equipment.

In 1998, a certified deputy fresh from the academy received a salary of about $18,000 a year, plus benefits. This year the same position pays slightly more than $25,000, plus benefits. Valdez would like to keep the salaries competitive with other agencies in the area.

His main goal will be to work with the Cibola County Board of Commissioners to about double the number of certified deputies in the field to 20. Currently, including the sheriff, undersheriff and acting lieutenant there are only a dozen, with 25,000 residents in the county.

The 42-year-old San Rafael resident also wants to concentrate on sending the deputies to specialized training, such as he has done.

"During my time as a deputy, I was assigned to investigate any and all child-related crimes," Valdez said. He has experience in working with youth, being a former long-time local youth sports coach.

Valdez also sees the need to prepare for increased population in Cibola County.

"We're going to feel Albuquerque's growth in the near future," said Valdez, who is a former Grants-Cibola County School District board member. He wants to be ready for this and believes his efforts the past eight years have helped build a solid foundation on which to do this.

For another part of continuing the improvement program, the father of three said, "I want to focus on how to do better criminal investigations. And I want to be able to work more with the communities and the county commissioners to better protect our people and their property."

Valdez noted, "Every time a deputy goes on duty, he or she has the possibility of affecting somebody's life. Inevitably we're going to affect somebody's life, whenever we come into contact with them. Today law enforcement is what each person makes of it. As we all know, it's not the highest-paid career. To be successful in your law enforcement career, you have to be dedicated to working with people."

The Clayton, N.M., native came to Cibola County in June 1983 as a patrolman for the Milan Village Police Department, then spent about three years as a CCSO deputy sheriff. In February 1990, he joined the state's Motor Transport Division as a field inspector for the agency which specializes in the 18-wheelers, serving in District 6 in the Grants-Gallup area.

From October 1994 to November 1998, he left law enforcement and worked at the McKinley Paper Company near Prewitt. Valdez returned to law enforcement in 1998 when he became Lujan's undersheriff.

He and his wife Tracy were married in 1986 and have a son, Stephen, 16, daughter Jocelynn, 14, and son John Mark, 6. Although his hobbies are outdoor hunting, archery and shooting handguns, he has not had much time to devote to them in recent years. So what spare time he does get, Valdez said he likes to spend with his family, mostly with their school activities.

— To contact reporter Jim Maniaci, telephone 285-6184 in Grants or (505) 870-7775 (cellular).