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It’s High Noon for Couy Griffin, the now-detained leader of the political group Cowboys for Trump. Griffin is an Otero County commissioner, which also has us-and many of you- wondering, how is this possible?

On Sunday, Jan. 17, just before news broke that Griffin had been arrested by the Capitol Police on an FBI warrant, New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas issued a statement demanding that Griffin resign from his position as commissioner. On Monday, prosecutors filed documents calling him a “danger to the community” and seeking his detention without bond before trial.

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“Danger to the Community”: Feds Move To Detain Couy Griffin Until Trial | The Paper

In a letter sent to Griffin on Jan. 16, the attorney general demanded his resignation on multiple grounds, including accusations that he has misused public office for personal gain, has neglected his duties as a county commissioner, and because of his participation in the January 6th insurrectionist attack on the United States Capitol.

Now, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican, Otero County Commissioners Gerald Matherly and Vickie Marquardt are calling for his resignation. The commissioners had this to say, “The people of Otero County deserve an end to this circus now. We call upon Commissioner Griffin to resign his office immediately. If he does not, we will support the recall effort and the removal proceedings of the Attorney General.”

“An elected office is a public trust, and no official should use it to encourage violence and attack Americans,” said Attorney General Balderas. “My office will enforce the rule of law to ensure the public’s confidence.” Balderas goes on to say that if Griffin does not resign, his office will take legal action to have him removed.

So how hard is it to remove Griffin as an elected official?

To initiate the recall process of an elected official, a district court judge must find probable cause of malfeasance or misfeasance, or a violation of oath of office must be proven, according to Article X, Section 9 of the New Mexico Constitution.

Should any of those instances be proved, a recall petition could then be circulated to voters who cast a ballot in the 2018 District 2 Otero County Commission election. If one-third of them sign the recall petition, a recall election would be triggered, and it could be the final shootout for Mr. Griffin and his posse.

A group of Otero County citizens had already started that process in August, months before Griffin’s Washington, DC escapades. The Alamogordo News reported that Paul Sanchez started organizing that action after an audit by State Auditor Brian Colon found that Griffin had used taxpayer dollars to support his Cowboys 4 Trump trip to New York where he rode his horse through Times Square.

The Paper. was the first news outlet to report on a disturbing series of videos Griffin recorded inside the mob crowd and at a Virginia hotel the next day. Griffin is clearly within the secure area of the Capitol’s west front where the inauguration platforms were being constructed. In that video, Griffin said he would do “whatever it takes to take our country back.”

Couy Griffin is still in federal custody, and U.S. Rep. Yvette Herrell, R-N.M., has deleted social media posts highlighting endorsements of her congressional campaign by Cowboys for Trump and Griffin.

Did you know?
The Paper‘s reporters were the first news outlet to report on Griffin’s videos calling for a new action threatening Congressional leaders and they’ve been on this story ever since.
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