APD responds to more than 200 domestic violence calls over holiday weekend

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — From last Wednesday through Saturday, the Albuquerque Police Department responded to 207 domestic violence calls. That’s a 46% increase from the week before, during that same period.

Two of those calls ended up becoming deadly.

One call was made near Golf Course and Ellison, where family members showed up at the house for Thanksgiving and police said a woman was found dismembered. Investigators arrested her husband. According to a criminal complaint, he had been diagnosed with a form of dementia that can lead to unusual behavior.

Another tragic domestic violence case involved a municipal court judge in Los Ranchos. Police said Diane Albert was killed by her husband, Eric Pinkerton, in a murder-suicide.

APD Chief Harold Medina addressed the rise in calls during the holiday weekend.

“We also looked this morning at the number of domestic violence calls on Thanksgiving itself, and this is the highest number we could see in the last 10 years for domestic violence calls,” Medina said.

This year alone, APD had 71 domestic violence calls on Thanksgiving. It also shows that domestic violence calls have increased significantly since the pandemic.

Domestic Violence Resources

• Victim’s Rights and Assistance – CABQ
• New Mexico Coalition Against Domestic Violence

To find more assistance and resources for victims of domestic violence, click here.