Lordsburg Mayor Greene narrowly avoids new DUI arrest

The original version of this story referred to time stamps in error, and has been updated.

Lordsburg Mayor Glenda Greene, 50, came close to being arrested for driving under the influence on May 28, police body-worn camera video shows.

City police pulled her over to investigate after allegedly observing her speeding on Motel Drive, swerving as she made a turn onto Main Street and rolling over a traffic median. These events are not visible on the video, but the officer that followed her describes his observations to another officer who responded to the traffic stop.

"It's Glenda," one officer says on camera, as another officer audibly sighs.

On August 14, 2021, less than three months before she was elected mayor, Greene was pulled over by New Mexico State Police in front of her home. In a criminal complaint, the officer said her performance on field sobriety tests indicated she was driving under the influence. Submitting to a breath test, the complaint stated her breath alcohol sample was .15, well over New Mexico's legal limit of .08.

That December, she pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor in Hidalgo County Magistrate Court. An open container charge was dropped by prosecutors as part of a plea agreement. She was given a deferred sentence under which the charge was dismissed upon completion of a year's probation.

Last December, the court certified that she had satisfied her probation despite being stopped in Silver City for speeding on June 11, 2022, while driving a vehicle without an interlock device as required by the court. Greene pleaded no contest to driving with a suspended license and to speeding. Grant County Magistrate Judge Maurine Laney granted her a deferred sentence of 90 days’ probation. Greene paid $142 in court fees, and after 90 days the charges were dismissed.

Lordsburg Mayor Glenda Greene (City of Lordsburg)

In body camera footage from the two Lordsburg police officers on May 28, Greene is seen in the driver seat of her pickup truck with a young child, identified as her foster son, secured in the front passenger seat as she tells officers she was on her way home from a birthday party for Hidalgo County Manager Tisha Green.

The Lordsburg police video footage was obtained by the Headlight through a public records request.

After exiting the vehicle, the officers tell Greene she smells of alcohol and is unsteady on her feet. She tells them she had "three or four" alcoholic drinks earlier in the evening and repeatedly asks them to "let me just get him home," referring to the child.

One of the officers calls Lordsburg Police Chief Aaron Salazar, while the other says to Greene, "You’re the mayor, I’m your employee," and Greene replies, "That doesn't matter."

The officers tell her she could have called for a ride home and express concern for the child's safety.

On Salazar's instructions, the officers called New Mexico State Police to take over the traffic stop so as to avoid a conflict of interest. State police arrived at least 40 minutes since the initial traffic stop, to investigate and conduct field sobriety tests, during which time the child was given a ride home as Greene waited.

Video shows the state police officer approach Greene after conferring with a Lordsburg officer and calling a NMSP sergeant to confer.

"You’re right there at that point," he advises Greene. "I don't think you’re quite over the limit off the clues that I saw, but I think you’re right close to it. … I’m not going to arrest you tonight, but — yeah, don't. If you’ve had any, I’d just say don't drive."

Greene received a ride home and no criminal charges were filed.

On Thursday, Greene declined an interview and provided a written statement instead in which she praised the police officers handling the stop, suggested she had been exonerated and characterized the incident as a political attack by parties she did not name. A short while later, she disavowed her statement and declined to discuss the incident further.

"As a public official, I have come to expect personal attacks from all directions, even from personnel within City departments," she wrote. "I understand that and appreciate the city police recognizing the obvious conflict and handing this off to state police, who ultimately found no basis for the allegations against me, which was 100% the right call."

Lordsburg Mayor Glenda Greene is seen on police body camera footage during an early morning traffic stop on May 28, 2023. (City of Lordsburg)

When a reporter pointed out that the state police officer in the video said he believed she was right at the legal limit and warned her about driving after drinking, she declined to comment further. Her original on-record statement continued:

"So much negativity comes from a handful of disgruntled, vengeful people who have made it publicly clear that their intention is to ruin me. They constantly skew information and try to pass it off as factual. This is disheartening for those claiming to be professionals. But again, this comes with the territory I signed up for as a public official.

"Have I made mistakes in the past? Clearly. But I have paid for those mistakes. I love this community and I work hard for the City of Lordsburg and will continue to do so, in spite of the malicious attacks I face on a daily basis."

Greene, an Albuquerque native who graduated from Lordsburg High School in 1991 according to her bio on the New Mexico Elks Association website, has managed several businesses and served on multiple boards. Her first term as mayor expires at the end of 2025.

Algernon D’Ammassa can be reached at [email protected].