Albuquerque Woos International Air Games Event – Albuquerque Journal
Albuquerque officials are meeting with members of an international air games organization with hopes of hosting the next event around the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.
The Albuquerque Journal reports representatives of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale World Air Games are in Albuquerque to evaluate whether the city could be the first in North American to host the next event, which would be in 2019 or 2020.
The FAI World Air Games were held in Dubai last year with 950 competitors from around the world.
The current president of FAI, John Grubbstrom, is familiar with Albuquerque having flown here during Balloon Fiesta. He said the city has much to offer for the FAI, which is based in Switzerland.
Formal bids to host the games are due Nov. 1.
Complaint: US Border And Customs Officers Abusing Residents - The Associated Press
Immigrant advocates are complaining about U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers' actions toward residents along the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso and New Mexico.
A coalition of advocacy groups said Tuesday that they filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security alleging at least 13 residents have experienced abuse, including being falsely accused of being prostitutes and having legal document seized for no reason.
The complaint says the officers have harassed border crossers with legal documents and threatened retaliation when the residents promised to file complaints.
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico Regional Center for Border Rights and other groups in New Mexico and Texas want the allegations investigated.
A spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General did not immediately respond to an email.
Scientists Sickened By Norovirus At Santa Fe Conference – The Associated Press & The New Mexican
More than 30 scientists fell sick after attending a symposium in Santa Fe in early May.
The New Mexican reports that 251 people attended the biomedical research conference at the Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza hotel. The state health department says dozens of them were infected with norovirus, which causes vomiting, diarrhea and stomach cramps. No one was hospitalized or had complications.
Infectious Disease Epidemiology Bureau Chief David Selvage says officials don't know what caused the outbreak. He says the Hilton notified the health department and immediately took proper precautions.
Norovirus can be spread simply by shaking hands with someone who is infected, touching an infected surface or eating contaminated food.
Selvage says the virus likely spread at the symposium because no other guests reported the illness.
Irrigation Ditch Breach Cuts Off Water For New Mexico City – The Associated Press & The Daily Times
A breach in an irrigation ditch has cut off the water supply a northwestern New Mexico community.
The Daily Times reports that Bloomfield city officials are urging residents to take conservation measures after an 80-foot stretch of bank along the Bloomfield Irrigation Ditch collapsed Monday morning.
The ditch fills the city's reservoir with water from the San Juan River. City Manager Eric Strahl says there is enough water in the reservoir to last up to 15 days, but repair work could take longer than that. He says the city has stopped watering its parks and sports fields.
Andrew Dean, chairman of the irrigation district's board, says between 10,000 and 20,000 tons of dirt and rock washed away. He estimates that rebuilding the bank will take at least two weeks.
3.1 Quake Reported Near Texas-New Mexico Border – The Associated Press
A magnitude 3.1 earthquake struck in a remote part of southeastern New Mexico near the Texas border, but there have been no reports of any damage.
The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake hit Tuesday morning southwest of Carlsbad near the boundary of Guadalupe Mountains National Park.
The ranger station at Dog Canyon reported feeling a slight bump, but officials at Carlsbad Caverns National Park — about 45 miles away from the epicenter — said no visitors or staff reported feeling anything.
There have been about 10 small quakes in the region that includes southeastern New Mexico and part of West Texas over the last year. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quakes have averaged around a magnitude 3.0 and most were closer to Pecos and Fort Stockton, Texas.
Law Giving Judges Access To Juvenile Records Takes Effect – The Associated Press
A handful of New Mexico laws are set to take effect Wednesday, including one allowing judges to review some crime suspects' juvenile court histories when making sentencing and bail decisions.
Jaydon's Law, named for an Albuquerque teen who was shot and killed last year, was one of the more high-profile, tough-on-crime measure to win approval in the Legislature this year after House Republicans introduced a slate of enhanced sentencing measures.
Judges can access youth records of defendants younger than 30 under the law. The measure will not apply to crimes committed by a defendant before age 14.
A law to create a more comprehensive criminal database for courts and law enforcement to access also is among laws set to go into effect Wednesday.
Lawyer Says Indian Land Buy Effort To Need Money – The Associated Press
An attorney for an American Indian group says U.S. officials will need more money from Congress to cover the costs of an initiative to return land on reservations to tribal ownership.
John Dossett with the National Congress of American Indians says the U.S. Interior Department program is working well. But he says the $1.9 billion put into it under a 2009 legal settlement won't be enough to get the work done.
The program consolidates individual parcels of land with multiple owners and turns the property over to tribes to be put to beneficial use. It expires in 2022.
Interior officials on Tuesday added 63 reservations in 16 states to the initiative, bringing the total number involved to 105.
Internal Report Says APD Won’t Have 1,000 Officers Until 2031 – KOB-TV
The Albuquerque Police Department has struggled with a shortage of officers and now a leaked report indicates the department won’t return to having 1,000 officers until 2031.
KOB-TV reports the document was give to some city councilors and suggests it will take years for APD to reach a consistent staffing level of 1,000.
The report also suggests that reaching that level will require a consistent class size of 80 in the yearly police academy, but those levels have only been reached twice in over 10 years.
However, a APD spokesman said the report is a draft and the final version will have more positive projections.
Ex-Navajo Lawmaker Faces Jail Time At Sentencing Hearing – Associated Press
A former Navajo Nation lawmaker convicted in a scheme to divert tribal funds to his family members will be sentenced Tuesday.
Mel Begay was convicted on 10 criminal counts in the investigation of the Navajo Nation Council's use of a now-defunct discretionary fund.
About two dozen other former lawmakers reached plea agreements with prosecutors to resolve criminal or ethics charges.
Prosecutors say Begay has shown no remorse. They're asking a tribal judge to sentence him to three years in jail followed by a year of probation. They're also seeking nearly $34,000 in restitution, $50,000 in fines and 1,000 hours of community service.
Begay's attorney, Jeffrey Rasmussen, says jail time is not appropriate. He's confident the conviction will be overturned on appeal but cannot challenge it until after the sentencing hearing.
Albuquerque Budget Focuses On Capital Projects – Albuquerque Journal
The Albuquerque City Council adopted a $526 million budget on Monday that includes a series of capital projects throughout the city.
The Albuquerque Journal reports councilors voted to borrow $18 million for the projects, which range from a complex for baseball and softball, a memorial park for murder victims buried on the West Mesa in a mass grave, a new library and a visitor center focused on Route 66.
Councilors also added nearly $800,000 to an incentive designed to retain longtime police officers and forestall retirements as the Albuquerque Police Department struggles with staff shortages.
There is also $185,000 to hire an assistant city attorney as part of helping APD carry out reforms required by a consent decree with the U.S. Justice Department.
2 Counts Dismissed In Navajo Case Against Urban Outfitters – Associated Press
A federal judge has dismissed two counts in a lawsuit the Navajo Nation filed against clothing retailer Urban Outfitters Inc.
U.S. District Judge Bruce Black in New Mexico says the tribe didn't show that the "Navajo" mark is famous.
Black wrote Friday that few courts have found trademarks to qualify as "famous." The legal definition must be met to move forward with federal and state dilution claims.
Black says the "Navajo" trademark is more of a niche and not recognized as a household name in the United States.
Six other counts remain in the 2012 lawsuit that centers on trademark infringement, unfair practices and false advertising.
Urban Outfitters and its subsidiaries, Free People and Anthropologie, are named as defendants.
Albuquerque Delays Decision On Solar Proposal – Associated Press
The Albuquerque City Council wants more time to consider a resolution that calls for getting 25 percent of the electricity used by city facilities from solar resources by 2025.
The vote to defer the measure for another two weeks came Monday night during an hours-long meeting.
The resolution calls for an implementation plan to be drafted by the city's energy conservation council by 2017. The plan would cover various options from retrofitting existing city buildings with solar arrays to the construction of a new solar farm.
Councilors Pat Davis and Isaac Benton introduced the measure. They say it's too hard to say how much the effort will cost given that the price of solar continues to drop.
They say the installation of more solar panels would serve as a hedge against rising energy prices and the effects of climate change.
From Munich, Germany, to Vancouver, British Columbia, cities around the world already have set targets to reduce emissions and boost the use of renewable energy.
Attorneys Seek Dismissal Of Deputy's Homicide Charge – KOB-TV, Associated Press
Attorneys for a Santa Fe County sheriff's deputy charged with the fatal shooting of a fellow deputy have asked a judge to dismiss a first-degree homicide charge against their client.
KOB-TV reports that Tai Chan's lawyers filed a motion last week saying prosecutors don't have evidence proving that Chan prepared, deliberated or planned the October 2014 killing of Deputy Jeremy Martin. They also claim there's sufficient evidence showing Chan acted in self-defense the night of the killing.
Chan's trial had originally been scheduled to begin in September 2015, but has been rescheduled three times. A judge agreed in February to push the trial date back to May 23.
Chan is accused of fatally shooting Martin after an alcohol-fueled fight at a Las Cruces hotel.
US Wildfire-Fighters Making Plans For 2016 Season – Associated Press
The nation's primary wildfire-fighters are getting ready for the 2016 season, which is expected to be worse than average in Hawaii, Alaska and the Southwest.
U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will meet with regional forest officials Tuesday to discuss plans and preparations. The Forest Service is part of the Agriculture Department.
Last year, wildfires burned a record 15,800 square miles nationwide. Seven Forest Service firefighters died.
Forecasters said earlier this month the potential for significant fires this season will be average or below-average in most of the nation, but dry conditions could make thing worse in some regions.
The Forest Service spent more than $1.7 billion on firefighting last summer. Officials say fires are eating up a growing share of the agency's overall budget.
New Mexico School To Hold Conference On Gold King Mine Spill – Daily Times, Associated Press
A conference about the Gold King Mine spill is expected to bring experts from across the state and nation to a New Mexico college.
The Daily Times reports that the two-day conference begins Tuesday at San Juan College in Farmington. It will include presentations on the condition of local water sources before and after an Environmental Protection Agency crew accidentally released water polluted with mine waste into the Animas River last August.
The New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute is hosting the event in collaboration with other organizations.
Institute director Sam Fernald said in a press release that the conference will help four states, two tribes and several agencies share information.
Luna Community College Cutting Job Amid Major Budget Cuts – Las Vegas Optic, Associated Press
Luna Community College announced it is cutting jobs amid major budget cuts.
The Las Vegas Optic reports President Leroy "Huero" Sanchez issued letters to at least five employees last week, notifying them that they won't have jobs come July 1.
The layoff notices came just two days after the Luna Community College Board of Trustees approved a new organizational chart for the college.
Sanchez has said that the new organizational chart contains savings for the college as the school faces a shortfall.
Gary Martinez, Luna's director of trades, was one of those who received layoff notice. He says employees who are being let go weren't given reasons.
2 Air Force Scientists From New Mexico Receive Honors – Associated Press
Two chief scientists who work at the Air Force Research Laboratory in New Mexico have been honored with the 2015 Presidential Rank Award.
Air Force officials made the announcement Monday, saying the awards were presented to Robert Peterkin and Greg Spanjers last week during a ceremony in Washington, D.C.
The awards are given annually to a small number of senior government executives and professions for extraordinary service. There were 13 winners this year.
Spanjers oversees the development of advanced space technologies for critical Air Force missions including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
Peterkin is responsible for all Air Force research and development in the areas of high-energy lasers, high-power microwaves and advanced optical technologies for space applications.