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Phil Griego
Phil A. Griego (b. 1949) is a former Democratic member of the New Mexico State Senate, representing District 39 from 1996 to March 14, 2015.
Griego resigned in the wake of an ethics investigation in March 2015. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.[1][2] He was found guilty on five counts in the corruption trial on November 16, 2017. Read more here.
Biography
Griego earned his J.D. from the College of Law of the College of Santa Fe. His professional experience includes working as a rancher, and as the CEO of American Surety Title Company.
Committee assignments
2015 legislative session
In the 2015 legislative session, Griego served on the following committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Conservation |
| • Corporations and Transportation, Chair |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Griego served on the following committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Conservation |
| • Corporations and Transportation, Chair |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Griego served on these committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Conservation |
| • Corporations and Transportation, Chair |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Griego served on these committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Indian and Cultural Affairs |
| • Public Affairs |
Elections
2012
- See also: New Mexico State Senate elections, 2012
Griego ran for re-election in 2012. He ran and won against Nicole Castellano and Jack Sullivan in the June 5, 2012, Democratic primary. Griego defeated Republican Aubrey Dunn in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[3][4]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Phil Griego Incumbent |
55.3% | 10,148 | |
| Republican | Aubrey Dunn | 44.7% | 8,195 | |
| Total Votes | 18,343 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Phil A. Griego Incumbent |
43.6% | 1,884 |
| Jack Sullivan | 33.1% | 1,434 |
| Nicole Castellano | 23.3% | 1,008 |
| Total Votes | 4,326 | |
2008
- See also: New Mexico State Senate elections, 2008
On November 4, 2008, Griego was re-elected to District 39 in the New Mexico Senate. Griego had no challenger.[5]
Griego raised $47,925 for his campaign.[6]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of New Mexico scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2015
In 2015, the 52nd New Mexico State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 20 through March 21.[7]
- Conservation Voters New Mexico: 2015-2016 Scorecard
- Legislators are scored on environment and conservation issues.
- Rio Grande Foundation: NM Freedom Index 2015
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills relating to economic issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2014, the 51st New Mexico State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 21 through February 20.[7]
|
2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 51st New Mexico State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 15 to March 16.[7]
|
2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 50th New Mexico State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 17 through February 16.[7]
|
2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 50th New Mexico State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 18 through March 19.[8]
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Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Griego is married to Jane. They have three children, six grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Noteworthy events
Alleged misuse of campaign funds
Opponent Jack Sullivan filed a complaint with the New Mexico Secretary of State against Griego alleging that he was misusing campaign funds. He responded in particular to one claim about a 1955 Chevy truck he used, saying the truck was used solely by the campaign.[9] The Secretary of State approved Griego's expense of the truck.[10]
Ethics investigation
On March 14, 2015, Griego resigned in the wake of an ethics investigation by an interim legislative ethics committee.[11] The subject of the investigation was Griego's involvement in a 2014 real estate deal in which the legislature approved the sale of a state-owned building. Not long after that, Griego said he was contacted by the building's buyer and was made broker of the building.[12] He reportedly made a $50,000 commission on the sale.[13] When asked about the property deal last year, Griego told the Albuquerque Journal, "I didn’t feel there was an ethical problem when I did the deal. We were already out of the session. I didn’t feel I was doing anything wrong."[14] The state's Constitution prohibits lawmakers from financially benefiting from any contract passed by the Legislature during their term in office.[14] According to the New Mexico Political Report, a Senate member said that Griego had two options when the ethics investigation became public: "[t]he choice was resignation or a possible vote on removal from office."[15]
On February 29, 2016, the New Mexico Attorney's General Office charged Griego with nine criminal counts over his involvement in the sale of a state-owned building. The nine criminal counts include: 3 counts of fraud, 1 count of perjury, 1 count of tampering with public records, 1 count of financial disclosure violations, 1 count of bribery and solicitation and 2 counts of "violating the ethical principles of public service."[16] According to the complaint, Griego earned more than $50,000 in commission from the sale, but he failed to disclose it, which is required by state law. He also failed to disclose his interest in the deal when it was discussed in the legislature. Griego has denied any wrongdoing and has vowed to fight the charges.[17]
On April 4, 2016, Griego pleaded not guilty to the charges.[18]
After a number of delays, the four-day hearing began on July 5, 2016.[19] On July 8, 2016, District Judge Brett Loveless ruled that there was enough probable cause for Griego to face trial on nine charges. One felony fraud count was dismissed before the trial. The trial began on October 30, 2017.[20][21]
On November 16, 2017, Griego was found guilty on five of the eight charges in the corruption trial. He was found guilty of one charge each of fraud, bribery, and having an unlawful interest in a public contract. He was also found guilty of two counts of ethical violations.[22][23]
On February 16, 2018, Griego was sentenced to 18 months in prison and more than $47,000 in fines. He was also sentenced to five years of probation upon his release from prison and ordered to complete 1,000 hours of community service.[24][25]
Campaign finance investigation
In June 2017, a Santa Fe County grand jury charged Griego with 22 criminal counts related to his campaign finance reports. Griego allegedly used his campaign funds for personal use and lied about it. Of the 22 charges, Griego was charged with "13 felony perjury counts; five felony counts of embezzlement; a felony fraud count; two misdemeanor counts of filing false campaign reports; and a misdemeanor count of illegally paying a Santa Fe auto repair shop with campaign funds." He pleaded not guilty to the charges.[21][25]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for Phil + Greigo + New + Mexico + Senate
- All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
- New Mexico State Senate
- Senate Committees
- New Mexico State Legislature
- New Mexico state legislative districts
External links
- Profile from Open States
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1996
- Voting record from New Mexico Votes.org
Footnotes
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedruido - ↑ Albuquerque Journal, "Hearing in ex-state senator's corruption case to begin," accessed July 6, 2016
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Official Primary Results," accessed April 15, 2014
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Candidate List," accessed May 12, 2014(Archived)
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2008 General Election results," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Report on 2008 campaign contributions," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 New Mexico Legislature, "Session dates," accessed July 9, 2014
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2011 Legislative Sessions Calendar," accessed June 6, 2014 (Archived)
- ↑ Capitol Report New Mexico, "Phil Griego responds to charges of misusing campaign money — including the ’55 Chevy," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ Current Argus, "NM Watchdog: When it comes to campaign expenses, you can keep on truckin' in New Mexico," accessed October 29, 2015
- ↑ koat.com, "Sen. Phil Griego resigns mid-session," accessed March 20, 2015
- ↑ abqjournal.com, "Sen. Phil Griego resigns from NM Senate," accessed March 20, 2015
- ↑ sfreporter.com, "UPDATED: Santa Fe County Balks at Gov.'s Request on New Senator," accessed March 20, 2015
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 abqjournal.com, "Sen. avoids possible censure by resigning," accessed March 20, 2015
- ↑ New Mexico Political Report, "Griego resigns from Senate," accessed March 20, 2015
- ↑ krqe.com, "State of New Mexico v. Phil A. Griego," accessed March 4, 2016
- ↑ Washington Times, "Ex-New Mexico state senator charged with fraud, other counts," accessed March 4, 2016
- ↑ theeagle.com, "Ex-New Mexico senator pleads not guilty to fraud charges," accessed April 4, 2016
- ↑ Albuquerque Journal, "Hearing in ex-state senator's corruption case to begin," accessed July 6, 2016
- ↑ Albuquerque Journal, "Former Sen. Phil Griego to face trial on nine corruption charges," accessed July 12, 2016
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Santa Fe New Mexican, "Griego facing 22 new criminal counts," June 19, 2017
- ↑ Santa Fe New Mexican, "Former New Mexico senator to be sentenced in February," November 30, 2017
- ↑ Albuquerque Journal, "Griego found guilty of public corruption," November 16, 2017
- ↑ Albuquerque Journal, "Judge sentences Phil Griego to 18 months in prison, hefty fines," February 16, 2018
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 The Bellingham Herald, "Former New Mexico state senator gets 18 months prison term," February 16, 2018
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by ' |
New Mexico State Senate District 39 1997–March 14, 2015 |
Succeeded by Ted Barela (R) |
