ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Street racing has been a deadly and destructive problem in the metro for decades. Tackling it is a top priority for Albuquerque leaders as lawmakers head back to our Roundhouse in January.

On Tuesday, city leaders met at Eubank and Southern, a well-known area for street racing, and laid out their 2025 legislative priorities.

“Most of our crime categories are slightly down, that is a good thing. But they are down from an all-time high so we have a long way to go,” said Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller.

Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina said the department’s traffic division gives out hundreds of citations a week for people racing, but it is still a big issue.

They want lawmakers to increase penalties for reckless driving, so they carry as much weight as homicide charges.

“We have limitations on our reckless driving and how we can charge an individual. Right now, as the charge stands, an individual who is involved in drag racing and is purposely doing that drag racing and injures or kills an individual, that person is open to manslaughter at the most,” said Medina.

He also said the department is asking lawmakers to crack down on felons caught with firearms.

“How many times have I stood in front of the media and talked about the fact that I would rather have a case prosecuted federally with their limited resources because their laws have teeth as opposed to the state of New Mexico for a felon in possession of a firearm,” said Medina.

Lastly, they asked for some changes with who investigates shootings by Albuquerque Police officers and think a statewide task force aside from law enforcement is the answer.

“One that is independent of every police chief, one that is independent of every county sheriff. One that the public can have great trust in that there is going to be a fair, impartial investigation,” said Medina.