A special prosecutor will evaluate whether any charges should be filed against Alfred Lovato, the resigned state police officer who was riding with Carlos Fierro when the lawyer fatally struck a pedestrian with his vehicle and fled the scene.

District Attorney Angela "Spence" Pacheco on Friday appointed Donna Bevacqua-Young, a former prosecutor who mainly handled drunken-driving cases for the Santa Fe District Attorney's Office.

Bevacqua-Young, now a traffic resource safety prosecutor for the Administrative Office of District Attorneys, will "conduct a complete and independent evaluation of the evidence with respect to Alfred Lovato," Pacheco said, "... to ensure that my prosecutorial decisions in the Fierro case are not affected by other considerations."

Authorities have said Lovato, an off-duty member of Gov. Bill Richardson's security detail, was in the passenger seat of Fierro's 2004 BMW when the car hit William Tenorio, 46, of San Felipe Pueblo as he crossed Guadalupe Street just before 2 a.m. Nov. 26.

Witnesses said Fierro drove away, leaving Tenorio lying in the middle of the street. Minutes later, a city police officer pulled over the damaged car on a downtown street.

Lovato and Fierro, whose blood-alcohol content was later determined to be more than two and a half times the legal driving limit, had been drinking at two bars downtown prior to the crash, according to evidence that led to charges of vehicular homicide and causing a fatal accident against Fierro.

Lovato has never been charged in connection with the incident. Lovato asserted his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when called to testify during Fierro's preliminary hearing last month.

Pacheco, who is prosecuting Fierro herself, characterized the appointment of a special prosecutor as "creating a screen between me and Mr. Lovato."

"All of that stuff with Mr. Lovato is a distraction," she said. "I just think it's much better to have someone else outside this office deal with it. From an ethical perspective, this is the best way to handle the case."

However, Sam Bregman, Lovato's attorney, questioned those ethics.

"It's just a matter of retaliation because Mr. Lovato exercised his Fifth Amendment right," Bregman said Friday. "Because she can't get back at him for that, she has determined it's appropriate to spend taxpayer money (on a special prosecutor). It really is amazing."

Lovato has committed no crime, Bregman said, and officials at the District Attorney's Office previously told him they wouldn't charge Lovato.

"Nothing that this DA says anybody can rely on because she's all over the map," Bregman said. "Perhaps she's trying to let us know she doesn't feel comfortable in her job."

Pacheco has denied retaliating against Lovato.

Bevacqua-Young didn't return a phone message Friday seeking comment.

Contact Jason Auslander at 986-3076 or :jauslander@sfnewmexican.com.