Mayor Keller Announces Top Leadership Team for Innovative New Albuquerque Community Safety Department
April 26, 2021
Today Mayor Tim Keller announced the inaugural top leadership team for the innovative new Albuquerque Community Safety (ACS) department. Mariela Ruiz-Angel will serve as the Director, along with deputy directors Jasmine Desiderio and D’Albert Hall. Desiderio will step into the position of Deputy Director of Policy and Administration. Hall will take on the role of the Deputy Director of Field Response.
Ruiz-Angel is the first-ever director of the department, following its creation last year as Albuquerque carved its own path to reimagine public safety. She previously served as the City Coordinator for the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs.
Desiderio previously served as the COVID-19 Vaccine Project Coordinator at the State of New Mexico Department of Health. There, she was instrumental in the planning, logistics and operations of implementing the New Mexico COVID-19 vaccine plan.
Hall comes to Albuquerque following more than 15 years in Las Vegas, Nevada addressing the needs of adolescents, young adults and their families for Clark County Department of Family Services.
“Mariela, Jasmine and D’Albert represent a strong leadership team with a powerful combination of skills to steer ACS as we bring it to life and continue to reimagine public safety in our town,” said Mayor Keller. “This inaugural leadership team will activate this innovative new department and bring impactful change to Albuquerque. Mariela has been instrumental in building the foundation for ACS over the past 10 months, and with Jasmine and D’Albert coming on board, we are another step closer to Albuquerque becoming a safer place for everyone.”
ACS includes trained professionals such as social workers, housing and homelessness specialists, violence prevention and diversion program experts. The department gives 9-1-1 dispatch an option when a community safety response is more appropriate than a paramedic, firefighter or armed police officer. These efforts will bolster expanded investments in violence intervention, diversion programs and treatment initiatives.
As the City shaped the first-of-its-kind department, it conducted a six-month public engagement process, taking input from thousands of Albuquerque residents, community leaders, advocates and experts in related fields.
Mariela Ruiz-Angel, Director of Albuquerque Community Safety
Mariela Ruiz-Angel is a proud Chicana, born and raised in the border city of El Paso, Texas. She understands the needs of diverse communities and works to empower, educate, and advocate for all Burqueños. Prior to her appointment as Director of ACS, Ruiz-Angel was the City Coordinator for the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs (OIRA). In her new role leading the third branch of public safety, Ruiz-Angel is working to ensure that the department follows through with its mission of advocating and promoting a citywide culture that values the voices of all residents. She brings to the City of Albuquerque an extensive background in education, business development, and corporate customer relations.
Ruiz-Angel holds a Master of Business Administration in Human Resources and a Master of Social Work in Leadership and Administration.
Jasmine Desiderio, Deputy Director of Policy and Administration
Jasmine Desiderio previously served as the Project Director of a Native American Youth Suicide Prevention program, where her roles included strategic action planning, policymaking, program development and evaluation, community outreach and engagement, data surveillance, grant administration and training facilitation. Desiderio brings eight years of experience in coordinating multidisciplinary, interservice and interagency teams to strategically design and implement injury prevention services ranging from crisis intervention, suicide prevention and postvention programs in northwestern New Mexico. She is currently in the Organization, Information and Learning Sciences Ph.D. program at the University of New Mexico. Her research interest focuses on applying innovative methods of human performance technology, organizational development, and evaluation research to address adversities amongst marginalized populations.
Desiderio holds a Master of Arts in Professional Counseling and Guidance from New Mexico Highlands University, and a Bachelor of Arts in both Psychology and Criminology from the University of New Mexico.
D'Albert Hall, Deputy Director of Field Response
D'Albert Hall comes to Albuquerque by way of Las Vegas, Nevada. Prior to his appointment, Hall was employed as a Family Service Specialist and Child Development Specialist for Clark County Department of Family Services. There he addressed mental health, domestic violence, substance abuse, physical abuse and child abuse/neglect concerns. Much of his time was spent working with families in their homes or at an emergency shelter. He provided treatment and behavioral intervention to abused, neglected and abandoned children, many of whom are behaviorally or emotionally impaired or medically fragile. Hall provided crisis intervention, family and child counseling and mediation principles and techniques.
His volunteer work includes time as a coach for troubled youth and children that come from low socio-economic back grounds, where he promoted higher education and provided guidance for troubled youth.
Hall’s wife Jocelyn is a native to Albuquerque. They have three beautiful children together and love attending the city’s annual balloon festival.
Hall holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with an emphasis in social welfare and a Master of Arts in Sports Management.