Copyright © 2021 Albuquerque Journal
The Acequia dispute in Cleveland turned violent, some say after several people reported an argument that broke out on July 31 over attempts to remove the Acequia bypass canal block to Richard Fresquez’s property.
New Mexico state police were called to the scene shortly before noon after receiving a call that Fresquez and a group of people allegedly entered the Rey Villa property – where the block is located. The officers tried to track down the suspected intruders, but were unsuccessful.
Villa declined the journal’s requests for comments on Wednesday.
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According to Fresquez and other witnesses at the scene, the group tried to dig the filled trench with a backhoe, but when they started, Villa and other landowners chased them away. Fresquez said he was injured in a fall while on the run.
At around 4:30 p.m., state police said they had received another call where Fresquez reported that he was chased from his property by two men. State police said they were unable to enter the property due to muddy roads and weather. He is currently out of the hospital and recovering.
State Police did not report that anyone was injured or arrested as a result of these incidents, but Fresquez and Kathleen Dudley – who were in the attempted removal of the Acequia Block – claim that she was pushed and Fresquez’s injuries were a result of these incidents.
Carla Gomez, mayor of the Acequia de los Vallecitos de San Ysidro, denied that the July 31 events turned violent. She said she was not there but the attempt to remove it was completely illegal.
Gomez said she speaks as an individual, not as mayor, and that the whole situation could be resolved if Fresquez pays his dues and adheres to the Acequia Association’s irrigation schedule. She said she reached out to Fresquez earlier this year to try to end the dispute but received no response.
The water diversion channel to the Fresquez property was backfilled earlier this year by the acequia association due to a fee dispute.
She said the acequia association had no choice but to take criminal action against Fresquez.
On July 21, Fresquez was charged with four illegal Acequian uses of water. The criminal complaint against Fresquez accuses him of continuing to use water from the Acequia and of interfering in the Acequia trench. The misdemeanor charge has been filed in Mora County District Court.
Fresquez said he doesn’t currently have a lawyer and the charges don’t make sense. He claimed the state had no jurisdiction over the Acequia.
Tom Clayton, 4th Judicial District Attorney, was unable to answer questions about the Acequia dispute at press time.
Moises Gonzales, an associate professor in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of New Mexico, said there were Acequia government units before New Mexico was a state, and the earliest laws in New Mexico concerned water.
He said that disputes over Acequia were very common and that he was not surprised that a dispute had become criminal, referring to Fresquez’s alleged illegal water use. He also said that Acequia Associations will be viewed as their own administrative units and incorporated into state law.
There is also international protection for Acequias as the governing bodies are enshrined in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. This treaty, which ended the Mexican-American War in 1848, recognized the property rights of New Mexicans and pueblos that were brought under US sovereignty – which, according to the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, included Acequias.
There are dozens of lawsuits and jurisprudence in New Mexico related to Acequias over water disputes, Gonzales said, especially during times of drought. Acequias are more common in northern New Mexico, but are present nationwide.
New Mexico will suffer from water shortages due to the ongoing drought and climate change, he said, and he anticipates an increase in disputes over acequia and water rights.
