He said he was accused of crimes but not convicted. Griffin was released from federal prison on Feb. 5. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) A state district court judge says an effort can move ahead to try and recall Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin from his seat as an Otero County commissioner on accusations of using the office for personal gain. More:Griffin recall to begin collecting signatures on Mescalero Reservation. "We are disappointed that Commissioner Griffin was not able to be here for the entire process. Commissioner Griffin's rhetoric is only getting worse. If allowed, a recall petition against Griffin with a sufficient number of signatures could trigger a special election within months. The petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin began circulation on July 1. Otero County Commission talks aftermath of Couy Griffin statement. Once the recall petitions are signed by the lower court justice who initially approved them, recall supporters will be given 90 days to collect 1,574 signatures to get the recall on the ballot. I believe I still have much support in my district. Michelle Lujan Grisham would name a replacement. More:Griffin gets guns back, but only at home, Although Griffin's trip to Washington, D.C. in September 2019 was initially for the proper reason of attending a regional county commissioners conference, the reason stated on a travel voucher submitted by Griffin was "meeting with President.". SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) A political committee has begun circulating a petition to recall Cowboys or Trump founder Couy Griffin from public office as a commissioner in Otero County. I will not be intimidated, I will not be threatened, and I sure as Hell wont back down!! Supreme Court allows recall effort against Trump booster The petition alleges that Griffin neglected and misused his position as a county commissioner while skipping public meetings and. Those grounds arethat Griffin violated the Campaign Reporting Act, Governmental Conduct Act and that he allegedly committed embezzlement, racketeering, money laundering and making or permitting a false voucher for public funds. Only the March 11 complaint was heard in the April 8 recall hearing. He denies allegations that he knowingly entered barricaded areas with the intent to disrupt government as Congress considered Electoral College results. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) An effort to recall the founder of Cowboys for Trump from his public office as a county commissioner can move forward, under an order Monday of the New Mexico state Supreme Court. The recall would be voted on by Otero County District 2 voters - 1,574verified signatures would need to be gathered for a recall election to proceed. Griffin, who founded the organization Cowboys for Trump, was arrested in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 17, for his alleged role in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Nicole Maxwell can be contacted by email at nmaxwell@alamogordonews.com, by phone at 575-415-6605 or on Twitter at @nicmaxreporter. In the first half of 2021, Ballotpedia tracked 164 recall efforts against 262 officials. Im really financially strained all the time. Enjoying our stories? You know, they believe in individual freedoms and individual liberties. The petition can be signed only by currently registered District 2 Otero County voters. Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin presides at a public meeting in Alamogordo, N.M., on Thursday, May 13, 2021, in a shirt with a "C4T" logo that stands for Cowboys for Trump. 2023 www.alamogordonews.com. Otero County Clerk Robyn Holmes says a successful petition would put the question on the November general election ballot for local, nonpartisan races. I just want those that have already come to the conclusion that Im guilty, I just again ask you to put the brakes on a little bit and let the legal process take place, Griffin said. Of a reported $5,000 collected, $300 remain in the Committees coffers. He is confronting misdemeanor criminal charges in the Jan. 6. insurrection on the U.S. Capitol, where he appeared on an outdoor terrace and tried to lead the crowd in prayer. NMPED opens public comment on proposed social studies standard, New push to expand nuclear radiation compensation includes New Mexico sites, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. This was the most recall efforts for this point in the year since the first half of 2016, when we tracked 189 recall efforts against 265 officials. The allegations could only be determined to be malfeasance,misfeasance, violation of his oath of office or a combination of all three. Contacted Monday, Griffin called the recall initiative frivolous and vowed to stand strong. Griffins term runs through 2022. New Mexico requires a number of signatures equal to one-third of participation in the previous election. Powell is representing Griffin in that case, now before the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver. Griffin formed Cowboys for Trump in 2019 with a group of rodeo acquaintances, vowing to hold horseback-riding parades nationwide in support of Trump. Otherwise, Griffin is up for possible re-election in 2022 for a second, four-year term. Those voters in my district are constitutional conservatives. This story has been updated with a statement from Couy Griffin and more information about the recall process. I mean, how much bigger representation can you bring to Otero County? Griffin said. ALAMOGORDO, New Mexico A political committee has begun circulating a petition to recall Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin from public office as a commissioner in Otero County. ? The original civil complaint was filed March 11 with amended complaints filed March 24 and April 5 by the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin. Griffin's motion for dismissal was heard in theApril 8 recall hearing and denied. New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Vigil on June 28 affirmed a lower courts ruling to allow an effort to recall Couy Griffin (R) from his position as the District 2 representative on the Otero County Commission to move forward. The original civil complaintwas filed March 11 with amended complaints filed March 24 and April 5 by the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. The Otero County Commission discussed the aftermath of Couy Griffin's statement. Griffin, elected in 2018, says allegations in the petition are frivolous and without merit. ", Get caught up:Otero Commissioners to discuss calls for resignation of Couy Griffin on Thursday. The petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin began circulation on July 1. He is fighting for his political future amid a recall initiative and state probes into his finances. "I want every person to have confidence in my representation," Griffin said. "As reported before, roughly 30% of the signatures received were from registered Republican voters indicating this was not a partisan issue. to stand with my fellow Americans in protest of what will one day be known as the biggest rigged election in American history.. ", More:NMPED opens public comment on proposed social studies standard, Griffin said he would proceed with his Commission duties, and represent a constituency he said value "individual freedoms and liberties.". I would have wanted him to have the opportunity to argue his points here," Sanchez said. I still have a lot of confidence in the people in my district, Griffin said. "The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin is very pleased that we have been found with probable cause, no less for all five of the allegations we presented.". Griffin described Cowboys for Trump as a name brand he proudly created and still wears on shirts in public, but says his visit with Trump in the Oval Office at the White House in September 2019 was an opportunity to raise concerns about the management of federal lands in Otero County. The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, Otero County District 2 Commissioner, NEEDS YOUR HELP!! Only current Otero County District2 voters can sign the recall petition. The Committee said its fundraising report would be delivered to the state Oct. 4. A probable cause determination is not a guilty verdict, rather it is a determination that the defendant most likely committed the crimes/issues alleged against him or her. Bidens victory was certified by officials in each of the swing states he won and by Congress on Jan. 6 after Trumps supporters, fueled by false allegations of widespread election fraud, stormed the House and Senate chambers in a failed attempt to prevent certification of how Americans voted nationwide. District Court Judge Manuel Arrieta on Thursday, April 8, 2021, ruled in favor of a group of recall petitioners who say that Griffin had repeatedly abused his authority and should be subject to a recall election this year. The recall is one of several legal battles which Griffin finds himself in, including a federal trespassing charge for which he was arrested on Jan. 18. Griffin said the allegations against him were baseless and politically motivated. The failed recall petition accused Griffin of failing to attend commission meetings, using his elected position for personal gain in promoting a support group for former President Donald Trump, improper travel vouchers and violating state restrictions on gifts to public officials. All rights reserved. Retired military veteran Paul Sanchez and other members of the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin are accusing Griffin of using his elected county position for personal gain. Its just to help with the financial burdens of not only the legal defense, which that is part of it, but also just to survive, Griffin said of the donations. ", More:New push to expand nuclear radiation compensation includes New Mexico sites, The signatures collected represent "78% of what was required," the Committee post read and "26% of the total votes cast in District Two during the last election.". Griffin appealed Arrieta's ruling to the New Mexico Supreme Court which in turn affirmed the ruling. Cowboys for Trump . Just a small donation to get the most dangerous County Commissioner we've EVER had removed from office! And Im damn sure no quitter!!". The. Contact us at editor@ballotpedia.org. Recall supporters did not collect enough signatures by the deadline on September 28, 2021. In 2021, a committee began circulating a petition to recall Griffin from office, accusing him of missing numerous county meetings, . However, New Mexico State Auditor Brian Colon said the funds, donated to Griffin by G.B. Griffin has not been criminally charged in reference to the September 2019 travel voucher. The Otero County Clerk's Office, although not a participant in the recall proceedings, is interested to ensure that, if a recall is triggered, it is done in an orderly and clear fashion "so the voters are clear on the process," Ivey-Soto said. In a written order, state Supreme Court justices unanimously rejected an appeal from Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin and upheld a lower court ruling that found adequate reasons for voters to circulate a recall petition. The hearing was only to establish probable cause, in other words to determine if there wasevidence of truth to the charges alleged. Click here to subscribe. Griffin said he would not resign. "The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin has received the official petition to Recall Otero County District 2 CommissionerCouy Griffin today (July 1)," Committee to Recall Couy Griffin today,"spokesman Paul Sanchez said. Arrietaexplained that this case does not warrant a jury trial since the April 8 hearing was most likely to be the only hearing in the case and that a verdict was not to be administered and if a recall petition is successful and a recall election imminent, then the voters of Otero County's District 2 would be the jury. Griffin, 47, once led his Republican posse on a ride from . "Recall is intended to be difficult and it is intended to be a very serious matter,"Ivey-Soto said. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee, File), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. In a 50-minute online documentary and political origin story released in August, Griffin recounts his own travails inside a Washington, D.C., jail for nearly three weeks after his arrest in the run-up to President Joe Bidens inauguration. They say Griffin. Sanchez presented the allegations to Arrieta even after Griffin left the hearing. Third Judicial District court Judge Manuel Arrieta determined probable cause existed to proceed with a recall lawsuit filed against Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, initiating procedures to remove Griffin from public office. Griffin formed Cowboys for Trump in 2019 with a group of rodeo acquaintances to hold horseback-riding parades across the country in support of then-President Donald Trump, and has ascribed to unsubstantiated claims of massive 2020 election fraud. Several of the allegations listed in the recall petition are among the things for which Griffin is being investigated by the New Mexico Attorney General's Office. They say Griffin used his office to solicit contributions to Cowboys for Trump that covered his personal expenses. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) An effort to recall the founder of Cowboys for Trump from his public office as a county commissioner can move forward, under an order Monday of the New Mexico state Supreme Court. The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin said Thursday in a news release that it has begun collecting signatures in efforts to scheduled a recall election. Today, Couy Griffin is divorced, disparaged by family and confronts a political recall drive, a state corruption investigation and federal charges. . Separately, Griffin is confronting federal charges in connection with the U.S. Capitol siege on Jan. 6, where he appeared on an outdoor terrace and attempted to lead a prayer. Bill) Richardson appointed judge in Manuel Arrieta," Griffin said in an email April 7. A Democrat last sat on the Otero County Commission in 1994. A publicly appointed defense attorney is representing Griffin in the Jan. 6 case, and Griffin says he is represented by Powell free of charge in his lawsuit against the New Mexico secretary of state. He is also awaiting trialon charges ofknowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authorityfor his alleged role in the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. A state district court judge this month found good cause for a recall petition, but Griffin says the hearing took place unjustly at the same time as an Otero County commission meeting where he was being pressured to resign. Griffin, who founded the organization Cowboys for Trump, was arrested in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 17, for his alleged role in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Couy Dale Griffin (born 1973) is a former politician who served from 2019 to 2022 as a county commissioner for District 2 of Otero County, . Calls mount for Griffin's removal During his incarceration, Griffin's fellow Otero County Commissioners, New Mexico Attorney General Hector. Griffin insists Cowboys for Trump is exempt as a for-profit group and wants a 2019 state law concerning independent political expenditure groups to be declared unconstitutional. The recall is one of several legal battles which Griffin finds himself in, including a federal trespassing chargefor which he was arrested on Jan. 18. "It is now in their hands.". The effort to recall Otero County District 2 Commissioner Couy Griffin failed by 345 signatures. "I would rather these allegation brought forward be heard from a group of peers rather than a (former Gov. Griffin was accused of trespassing onto. Griffin founded the support group for President Trump that held horseback parades across the country. Prior to Griffin's leaving the hearing, Arrieta told him that the Otero County Commission would have a quorum present without Griffin and that this hearing may be more important at this time. The hearing was held in the old Otero County Commission Chambers in the Otero County Courthouse across the street from the Otero County Administration Building. Griffin was arrested in Washington after vowing to take his guns to the inauguration of President Joe Biden, and has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor criminal charges in connection with the siege on the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, where he appeared on an outdoor terrace and attempted to lead the crowd in prayer. I myself wear Jan. 6 as a badge of honor, Griffin says in the film, infused with orchestral tones. A state district court judge says an effort can move ahead to try and recall Griffin, the Cowboys for Trump founder from his seat as an Otero County commissioner on accusations of using his public office for personal gain. The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin said Thursday in a news release that it has begun collecting signatures in efforts to scheduled a recall election . Their actions should represent the best interest of their constituents and spend tax payer money responsibly," the Committee statement read. At the time, Sanchez thought that Second Judicial District Judge Manuel Arrieta had to sign off on the petition, when the petition only needed a stamp from the court clerk's office. Just a small donation to get the most dangerous County Commissioner we've EVER had removed from office! For the recall to proceed, Arrieta must sign the petition to recall, triggering a 90 day deadline for the Recall Committee to get the required signatures. The hearing continued for about an hour after Griffin exited the hearing. The second amended complaint against Griffin is 141 pages long and alleges failed to meet his duties as a public servant, including missing regular Otero County meetings. Nicole Maxwell can be contacted by email at nmaxwell@alamogordonews.com, by phone at 575-415-6605 or on Twitter at @nicmaxreporter. Griffin said he was informed that the recall had fell short on Sept. 28 from a friend. This ruling said the process of recalling Griffin from his elected office, a decision first assertedApril 8 byThird Judicial District Court Judge Manuel Arrieta, may proceed. If we quit we lose. New Mexico allows recalls at the county level for malfeasance or misfeasance in office or violation of the oath of office by the official concerned. Those actions must have occurred during the officials current term of office in order for a recall effort to be approved to circulate petitions. 296. Griffin is under scrutinybased on five allegations that led New Mexico Third Judicial District Judge Manuel Arrieta to find probable cause for a recall. Cowboys For Trump was founded by Griffin in 2019 as a for-profit entity to promote the political agenda of then-president Donald Trump. On the 7th of January, after being part of the crowd that attacked the US Capitol grounds on 6 January (and live streaming from it), he made a vide The fund drive highlights a photograph from the White House Oval Office of President Donald Trump posing with Griffin, who wears a shirt with the Cowboys for Trump insignia. Griffin is also under investigation by the New Mexico Attorney General's Office for potential criminal charges relating to the September 2019 travel voucher issue. In April, Arrieta foundthere was probablecause to proceed with the recall petition. That travel voucher was approved and a check was cut to Griffin in the amount of$3,237.48. If you agree that he needs to go, please like the @RecallCouyGriffin FB page. He sees himself . Griffin was released from federal prison on Feb. 5. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin has filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court as he seeks to fend off an effort to recall him from office as a county commissioner in southern New Mexico. Griffin says the film about him was put together by Trump-allied attorney Sidney Powell and her group, Defending the Republic. The recall committee is seeking final approval of its petition before it can be circulated for signatures. Retired military veteran Paul Sanchez and other members of the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin are accusing Griffin of using his elected county position for personal gain. Griffin, who co-founded political advocacy group Cowboys for Trump in March 2019 to promote the agenda of then-candidate Donald Trump, is alleged to have used his office as county commissioner to further his organization's work. On Monday, June 28, the New Mexico Supreme Court affirmedthe Second Judicial District Court determination that probable cause existed in the case to recall Griffin. If Griffin is recalled from office, Democratic Gov. On June 28, JusticeMichael E. Vigil, Chief Justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court affirmeda lesser court's opinion that there was probable cause to recall District 2 Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin. So its been a blessing.. "On a personal level I feel that I can always do better, but generally speaking Iam pleased to know that Otero County and my district (in) particular still have a strong conservative fabric. Couy Griffin, who was charged for breaching the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, is disappointed the former president didn't follow through on his promise to jail Hillary Clinton. Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, the founder of Cowboys for Trump, discussed his past and future in politics from the porch of a tidy double-wide trailer in Tularosa, N.M., on Wednesday, May 12, 2021. A state district court judge says an effort can move ahead to try and recall Griffin, the Cowboys for Trump founder from his seat as an Otero County commissioner on accusations of using his public office for personal gain. 2023 www.alamogordonews.com. Ballotpedia is the digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections. Michael E. Vigil, Chief Justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court affirmed, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, Otero County District 2 Commissioner, NEEDS YOUR HELP!! Feb 3, 2021. "The remaining balance will be donated to a local non-partisan, non-profit in accordance with what the committee decided prior to fundraising," a news release from the Committee read. It states his conduct resultedin his banishment from the Mescalero Apache Reservation, that he used county resources for non-commission reasons namely forGriffin's political advocacy companyCowboys for Trump, filing an improper travel voucher and violating the Gift Act when he received approximately $3,500 from a restricted donor to pay back the travel reimbursement from the travel voucher.

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