From Crisis to Recovery, Albuquerque Community Safety Marks Man’s One Year of Progress
Recovery success story powered by cross-team support and community partnerships.
One year ago, Alfonzo Ramirez jumped off the Carlisle and I-40 bridge while under the influence. Today, in a remarkable turnaround made possible through Albuquerque Community Safety’s coordinated response and community providers, he is helping others overcome substance use as a leader in sober living and recovery programming.
Early childhood abuse and family trauma led Ramirez to start drinking alcohol at just seven years old. At 15, cocaine entered his life. His addiction led him into a life of crime, including drug dealing and auto theft in Albuquerque.
At the age of 17, he was so elusive that then-Governor Gary Johnson sent a letter to his mother warning the family of possible consequences.
At 20, he pled guilty to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
“I felt immediately admitting to the crime was the only way I could stop myself from causing further harm,” said Ramirez.
Ramirez spent 15 years in prison. During his incarceration, his mother died, he joined a high-profile gang, and began using heroin. After his release in 2024, he continued using hard drugs.
Following his release in 2024, ACS teams across Opioid Education and Prevention (OEP), the Violence Intervention Program (VIP), and leadership worked on multiple occasions to connect and reconnect Ramirez to medication-assisted treatment, transitional housing, employment pathways, and long-term peer support.
As is the case with many individuals, Ramirez’s path has not been linear.
On April 15, 2025, while hallucinating on methamphetamine, Ramirez found himself at the I-40 and Carlisle overpass. He jumped off the bridge, falling more than 20 feet onto the pavement below. The fall left him with a broken right hand and femur, a shattered pelvis, and severe facial injuries.
ACS did not give up on him. The division’s Hospital Based Violence Intervention Program reconnected with Ramirez while he was hospitalized.
A key figure in Ramirez’s journey is Freddie Sedillo, a Certified Peer Support Worker with ACS’s VIP team. Sedillo, who once recruited Ramirez into the gang life while both were incarcerated, has since transformed his own life after imprisonment and substance use. Now, he uses that lived experience to guide others away from violence and addiction.
“I know what it means to be trapped in that life because I lived it,” said Sedillo. “Being able to help Alfonzo choose recovery instead of returning to harm is exactly why this work matters.”
Eight months ago, ACS’s Violence Intervention Program (VIP) and Opioid Education and Prevention (OEP) teams connected Ramirez to Anchor Behavioral Health. The center provides counseling, sober living support, and outpatient recovery services, helping Ramirez make an incredible turnaround.
Today, he helps manage sober living house programs through Anchor Behavioral Health, where he has taken on increasing leadership responsibilities. This summer, Anchor is sending him to Idaho to help launch a new recovery program.
“God has a purpose for me,” said 45-year-old Ramirez. “I wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for ACS. They never gave up on me, I needed that push.”
“Alfonzo’s story is a powerful example of what happens when people are met with compassion, accountability, and real pathways to healing,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “ACS and our community partners are proving that recovery is possible and that lived experience can become leadership.”
ACS’s OEP team supports individuals and families affected by opioid use by providing overdose follow-up, education on prevention and treatment, and pathways to recovery. If you or someone you know can benefit from the services, please contact us at [email protected]