TUESDAY December 1, 2020: 'WATCH YOUR SIX' from ZUMA Press award winning Newspaper the Albuquerque Journal photojournalist Roberto E. Rosales and journalist Matthew Reisen: In recent months, private militias across the country have reacted angrily to pandemic lockdown measures, and they have shown up in force at anti-fascist and Black Lives Matter protests. New Mexico has been keeping its eye on unlawful militias, ever since the so-called New Mexico Civil Guard began appearing at demonstrations against police brutality and colonial monuments. In a civil suit aimed at stopping the militia, the state wrote the group ''usurped law enforcement authority,'' noting that ''New Mexico law forbids unregulated private security forces and unregulated paramilitary organizations because they are not accountable to the people, they pose a threat to public safety, and they encourage rather than deter or quell violence.'' However, there's no easy solution to the country's dangerous and growing militia problem. Welcome to: 'WATCH YOUR SIX'
© zReportage.com Story of the Week #764: TUESDAY December 1, 2020: 'WATCH YOUR SIX' from ZUMA Press award winning Newspaper the Albuquerque Journal photojournalist Roberto E. Rosales and journalist Matthew Reisen: In recent months, private militias across the country have reacted angrily to pandemic lockdown measures, and they have shown up in force at anti-fascist and Black Lives Matter protests. New Mexico has been keeping its eye on unlawful militias, ever since the so-called New Mexico Civil Guard began appearing at demonstrations against police brutality and colonial monuments. In a civil suit aimed at stopping the militia, the state wrote the group ''usurped law enforcement authority,'' noting that ''New Mexico law forbids unregulated private security forces and unregulated paramilitary organizations because they are not accountable to the people, they pose a threat to public safety, and they encourage rather than deter or quell violence.'' However, there's no easy solution to the country's dangerous and growing militia problem. Welcome to: 'WATCH YOUR SIX'

New Mexico Civil Guard members practicing target shooting with handguns during a training session in a remote area of central New Mexico. These are members of the New Mexico Civil Guard, the group that made international headlines for its heavily armed presence at an Albuquerque protest that culminated in a shooting in June.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

Guard member NICK LOMAS going over patrolling formations to his team during a gathering of the New Mexico Civil Guard in a remote area of central New Mexico.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

O'RION PETTY taking a knee during a recognizance drill as members of the New Mexico Civil Guard gathered to train in a remote area of central New Mexico.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

Members of the New Mexico Civil Guard begin to arrive at an undisclosed location in central New Mexico for a training session.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

DAVID RICE leading a patrol a sundown in Wagon Wheel, as members of the New Mexico Civil Guard gather to train in a remote area of central New Mexico.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal/ZUMA Wire

JOHN BURKS shoots with an automatic rifle during target practice with the New Mexico Civil Guard in New Mexico desert.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

JOHN BURKS (L)) and three other members of the New Mexico Civil Guard stand with rifles at the ready during a remote dessert training session.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

Guard members BRYCE PROVANCE and NICK LOMAS settling into their camp for the evening. Members of the New Mexico Civil Guard gather to train in a remote area of central New Mexico.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

O'RION PETTY (R) and other members of New Mexico Civil Guard practice stretcher transports during a training session in a remote area of central New Mexico.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

Guard member NICK LOMAS setting out on patrol on a Saturday evening during New Mexico Civil Guard training in a remote area of central New Mexico.
© Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

Armed members of the New Mexico Civil Guard gather around the statue of Don Juan de Onate in Old Town. Steven Baca fired shots and wounded a man as the crowd tried to take down the statue of Don Juan de Onate Statue. The civilian armed-militia group known as the New Mexico Civil Guard attended the protest in an attempt to ''protect'' the statues.
© Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

STEVEN BACA, 31, center fired shots and wounded a man as the crowd tried to take down the statue of Don Juan de Onate Statue. Baca fired several rounds from a semi-automatic handgun, hitting Scott Williams in the torso. Williams was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition. A civilian armed-militia group known as the New Mexico Civil Guard attended the protest in an attempt to ''protect'' the statues. The group took to Facebook to clarify that Baca was not a member of their group.
© ABQ via ZUMA Wire

STEVEN BACA, 31, on ground as he is taken into custody by APD officers, armed members of the New Mexico Civil Guard were also arrested at the scene. Baca fired shots and wounded a man as the crowd tried to take down the statue of Don Juan de Onate Statue in Old Town.
© Adolphe Pierre-Louis/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire

Albuquerque police officers take armed members of the New Mexico Civil Guard into custody after a man was shot while demonstrators try to take down the statue of Don Juan de Onate Statue in Old Town during a protest.
© Adolphe Pierre-Louis/Albuquerque Journal via ZUMA Wire