Suspect terrorizing Nob Hill businesses off the streets, but for how long?

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Running a small business in Albuquerque has its challenges, but there's one person in particular that's making things especially difficult. It's a man employees, police, and even attorneys say they want to help. But as KRQE Investigates learned, the justice system seems to be failing them all.

Patty Klaus owns and manages the Chocolate Dude, a shop that's been around for more than a decade. "There's benefits to being on Central and being in Nob Hill," said Klaus. "It's a lovely area and we want to be a big part of the community."

She's all smiles with her team making chocolate. But over the last year, there's one person who's been keeping their workplace on edge. Michael Garcia is well known to Albuquerque Police and businesses along Central.

Klaus said she and her staff first became aware of Garcia in January 2023. Friendly staff would offer him coffee and water at first.

However, Klaus said his behavior shifted when they'd ask him to move along. "Then after that, it slowly progressed," Klaus said. "He started getting more aggressive."

Escalating behavior Store surveillance cameras capture Garcia threatening employees, aiming a pretend gun at them. In another incident, he's bashed in their window. "We actually had to lock customers in with us," she recalled.

Over the last few months, Klaus said Garcia has taken a swing at one of her employees. In another instance, she said they were finally able to get him outside, "And then he sat on our patio for two hours, exposing himself and masturbating to the public," Klaus said. " We called the police multiple times."

"We've arrested him nine times, just in 2024," explained Albuquerque Police Commander, Kyle Hartsock. "So averaging at least one time a month for a variety of offenses from, obviously misdemeanor criminal trespass, to felony criminal damage to property, and investigated reports of him assaulting and battering people that work and live in this area. And seemingly, out of nowhere."

Commander Hartsock explains the Chocolate Dude isn't alone in reporting problems with Garcia. He's accused of harassing staff at Olo Frozen Yogurt and kicking in the glass at the nearby Boba Tea.

"For us, he will not leave," an Olo employee is heard on lapel video telling an APD officer. "And he has taken his pants down, and he's naked in the shop," she added.

According to police reports, witnesses said he punched a worker at Einstein Bagels, and in August, he's accused of punching a female manager at the 66 Diner.

"It's boiling over," explained Commander Hartsock. "And it shouldn't get that far."

So, why is the system failing here? Garcia's had dozens of arrests and criminal charges dating back nearly 20 years. But court records also show he's been found incompetent to stand trial. And when that happens in a misdemeanor battery, for example, the case gets dismissed, and Garcia gets released with no help for him or his victims.

"Michael Garcia is a good example of someone who I feel like the system is not set up to help, and it is going to continue to cause problems in our community," explained Steven Diamond, Deputy District Attorney in Bernalillo County.

"So there are constitutional issues," Diamond told KRQE. "We can't convict people who are incompetent."

"For a person like Michael Garcia who might be dangerous, affecting our community, we're limited in what we can do to help him out and also to help protect our community," said Diamond.

The issue of 'competency' in court If someone is found incompetent and dangerous by the court, that person can be sent to the Behavioral Health Institute in Las Vegas to be treated back to competency. It's a temporary process and a cycle records show Garcia went through after a 2021 arrest.

"This guy assaulted my brother at work," a witness is heard telling an Albuquerque police officer in 2021. Police video shows officers responding to a call for help from food truck staff.

"He asked us for pizza," the man told police, referring to Garcia. "We told him, 'You gotta go home. You can't be around here, we're trying to work and stuff.' And he took the glass, the pint glass, and smashed it against my brother's face.'"

In that case, Garcia was charged with aggravated battery. Court records show he was evaluated for competency to stand trial. He was found dangerous and incompetent by the court, and ordered to the BHI in Las Vegas, New Mexico for treatment. Less than six months later, the case was dismissed citing, "The defendant could not be treated to competency."

"The problem often is that there aren't the places to send them that are effective in addressing the issue," said Chief Public Defender, Bennett Baur. Baur is with the office that represents clients like Garcia.

While Baur agrees with everyone else that Garcia's problems won't be solved in jail or on the streets, other options for people like Garcia are lacking, he said. "The options are really pretty limited," said Baur.

"It's enough of a problem in Albuquerque, I can tell you outside of Albuquerque, in the other 32 counties in New Mexico, it's even more difficult to address people with issues like this," said Baur.

After his most recent arrest for kicking in the glass at Boba Tea along Central Avenue, the state asked a district court judge to hold Garcia in jail pending trial under a preventative detention motion. "You can't ensure the safety of the public, Your Honor," said the prosecutor in court.

"There is a danger posed here," stated Bernalillo District Court Judge, Jennifer Wernersbach. "And I think it's a level of danger that could be addressed by conditions. But in Mr. Garcia's case, I don't know there are conditions I can set that would be followed or that would adequately address Mr. Garcia's needs," she added.

Both the defense and prosecutors agreed Garcia hasn't been able to keep up with scheduled court hearings in the past. During the preventative detention motion hearing, Judge Wernersbach and Garcia's public defender agreed they wanted another option for Garcia aside from jail or the streets, but didn't have one.

In the end, Judge Wernersbach said, "Given that, I will grant the state's motion at this time and hold Mr. Garcia," meaning for now, Garcia will stay in jail pending another evaluation or criminal trial.

Is jail the right place for Garcia? When asked that question, APD Commander Hartsock replied, "Today it is. Because there's nowhere else for him to go. Long term? No. Mr. Garcia shouldn't be in jail, but he also shouldn't be breaking windows and causing this chaos."

While police officers are usually the ones responding to calls from business owners about Garcia, Hartsock explained the police aren't the solution here. "While he might be incompetent and I have empathy for that, other systems need to step in and try to handle this problem," said Commander Hartsock.

"What do we think is going to change this time?" Hartsock said. "If he's let back out with no interventions at all, nothing's going to change. Why would Mr. Garcia change his behavior at all?"

"Either he's going to be the victim of a crime because someone else might just step in and have a different solution for this whole thing, which we definitely don't want," said Hartsock. "Or his behavior is going to get even more violent where he's creating more victims and he could really hurt someone or even kill someone one day."

"We want him to get help. We want him to feel at peace in his world, and feel that he has control in it." Hartsock explained. "We just don't feel that the police department is the answer for it."

Where else can he go? KRQE News 13 also asked about long-term care options or a civil commitment, for example. The DA's office explained a person's crimes usually have to get much worse for those options to be available for the court.

In a civil commitment, for example, Diamond explained there needs to be proof that he has permanently hurt somebody. He said lawmakers need to lower the legal standard and look at the current options available to send someone with serious competency issues.

According to the DA's office and the Law Office of the Public Defender, long-term options for people like Garcia are extremely limited. Baur said he'd like to see the state invest more resources into infrastructure and staff for mental health facilities.

"Albuquerque and all of New Mexico need more inpatient treatment facilities," said Baur. "We need more outpatient treatment facilities. And we need to have that kind of menu of options that a judge, that a guardian, that a social worker can use to send people."

"If there's nowhere to put people...None of those changes and laws are going to help," Baur added.

Knowing he's not on the streets for now, Klaus and her staff can breathe a temporary sigh of relief. "There's the option of continuing to put us in harm's way, or closing the doors," Klaus told KRQE. "It's really frustrating, and very disheartening to even think about that being a possibility."

According to Albuquerque Police records, Garcia has had 88 cases with APD since 2019. APD estimates his cases alone have cost the city roughly $26,163.98 in 'officer man hours,' a calculation based on the hourly wage of a Patrolman 1st Class of $34.53.

An APD spokesperson told KRQE, "There are limitations in that calculation as it does not include time spent by officers on these specific cases after clearing a call for service. It also does not include time spent in court hearings related to the cases."

Garcia is currently at the Metro Detention Center awaiting another competency evaluation. If he's found incompetent to stand trial again, his case will likely get dismissed and he'll be released. It's not clear when that could happen.