Albuquerque Police Dismiss Officer Charged In Shooting – The Associated Press
An officer charged in the on-duty shooting death of a homeless man last year has been fired from the Albuquerque police force.
Officer Dominique Perez's dismissal was largely expected under a city policy that indicates the department can take disciplinary action upon indictment of an officer or a formal criminal charge.
Police spokeswoman Celina Espinoza said Tuesday that Perez's employment with the force has ended after a hearing was held regarding his employment.
Perez and now-retired detective Keith Sandy were arraigned last month in the March 2014 shooting of James Boyd. They pleaded not guilty to assault and second-degree murder charges.
A jury trial is scheduled for August 2016.
Defense attorneys say the officers shot Boyd because he posed a danger to police.
Since the shooting, Perez has remained on administrative leave amid protesters' calls for his firing.
District Attorney At Odds With State High Court Over Rule – The Associated Press
The New Mexico Supreme Court will consider proposed changes to rules it set for Bernalillo County this year to help expedite criminal cases.
The court imposed rules in February to force the busy 2nd Judicial District Court to work through its backlog. The Supreme Court required prosecutors to share evidence upon which charges are based with defense lawyers at the time of arraignment, which can happen several days after an arrest. The cases must then be completed in 6 to 12 months.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that the Bernalillo County Criminal Justice Oversight Committee has proposed changes to the rule that include doubling the time for police to provide initial evidence to prosecutors in some cases.
Correction: This story corrects stories from Nov. 11 and Oct. 27 when the Associated Press reported, and KUNM broadcast, inaccurate information about the timing of arraignments. The rules in question call for arraignments within 7 to 10 business days – depending on whether the accused person is in jail - not the 48 hours originally reported. We regret the error.
New Mexico Sees Increase In Medical Marijuana Patients – The Associated Press
New Mexico Health Secretary Retta Ward says New Mexico has seen a significant jump in the number of patients participating in the state's medical marijuana program over the past year.
Ward testified Tuesday before the Legislative Finance Committee in Santa Fe. She told lawmakers about 18,000 people are enrolled in the program, an increase of about 7,000 since the beginning of the year.
Ward attributed the increase to changes made earlier this year.
There are currently more than 20 qualifying conditions, including chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The state has been petitioned to add attention deficit hyperactivity disorder to the list. That petition will be discussed during a public meeting later this week.
The state also is in the process of licensing a dozen more nonprofit producers.
Closings Begin In Civil Case Over New Mexico Wildfire – The Associated Press
It will be up to jurors to decide whether two electric utility companies should be held liable for one of the largest wildfires in New Mexico's recorded history.
Attorneys delivered their closing arguments Tuesday in state district court in Bernalillo following weeks of testimony.
The Las Conchas fire started in 2011 when an aspen tree fell onto power lines that stretched through national forest land in the Jemez Mountains.
Jemez Mountains Electric Cooperative operated and maintained the power lines. Tri-State Generation and Transmission Inc. provides the cooperative with electricity and is also named as a defendant.
There are more than 300 plaintiffs in the case, including property owners, insurance companies and Native American communities.
The threat of post-fire flooding continues to loom for the tribes.
Detention For Albuquerque Police Shooting Suspect Ordered – The Associated Press
A federal judge has ordered that an ex-convict arrested in the shooting of an Albuquerque police officer remain jailed pending trial.
Attorney Marc Robert said the magistrate judge on Tuesday issued the detention ruling after hearing arguments about whether 34-year-old Davon Lymon should be released pending trial.
Robert declined to comment further on the case.
Lymon is charged with being a felon in illegal possession of a firearm — a charge filed against him Thursday. He was arrested several hours after Officer Daniel Webster was shot multiple times during a traffic stop.
ACLU: Assisted Suicide Protected By New Mexico Constitution - Russell Contreras, Associated Press
An attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union says allowing competent patients to end their lives without prolonged suffering is a constitutional right in New Mexico.
Laura Schauer Ives made the argument Monday in a landmark case before the New Mexico Supreme Court.
The justices are being asked to throw out the state's assisted suicide law. It could be weeks before a ruling is issued.
The New Mexico Attorney General's Office contends the final decision on the legality of the practice should be left to state lawmakers, not the courts.
The legal challenge began in 2012. It involves a Santa Fe woman with advanced uterine cancer who wants courts to clarify New Mexico's laws preventing her from ending her life and putting doctors in legal trouble.
New Mexico Lawmakers Worried About Climbing Medicaid Costs – The Associated Press
The price tag for providing health care to hundreds of thousands of low-income New Mexican is on the rise, and state lawmakers are concerned future costs will be unsustainable.
New Mexico is one of the states that opted to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Enrollments have surged and federal aid will soon be scaled back, putting more pressure on states to come up with the difference.
Republican Rep. Jason Harper of Rio Rancho described it as a ticking time bomb.
Harper and other members of the Legislative Finance Committee discussed the program's costs during a meeting Tuesday in Santa Fe.
State officials are requesting nearly $1 billion from the general fund for the program for the 2017 fiscal year. Included is money to cover a shortfall this year.
Environmentalists Seek To Overturn Plan At Navajo Coal Plant – The Associated Press
Environmentalists have sued to overturn a plan for pollution controls at a coal-fired power plant on the Navajo Nation.
In a complaint filed Monday, three environmental groups allege that a federal advisory group met in secret to craft the plan and denied the public an opportunity to weigh in.
The Interior Department and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are named as defendants. Neither agency immediately returned requests for comment Tuesday.
The EPA had proposed cutting haze-causing nitrogen oxide emissions by 84 percent at the Navajo Generating Station near the Arizona-Utah border.
The advisory group offered an alternative adopted by the EPA. The proposal gave the power plant owners more time to implement pollution controls.
The coal plant powers a series of canals that deliver water to Tucson and Phoenix.
Cancer Patient In Assisted-Suicide Case Improves – Associated Press
A woman who helped spark a legal challenge to New Mexico's ban on physician-assisted suicide says her cancer is in remission.
Aja Riggs told reporters Monday after the New Mexico Supreme Court heard arguments in the landmark case that she still wants the option to end her life because the cancer could return.
The 51-year-old Santa Fe woman says that's why she wants justices to rule that some terminally ill patients in New Mexico have a constitutional right to end their lives with a doctor's help. Five other states allow doctors to assist such deaths.
Scott Fuqua, a lawyer for the New Mexico Attorney General's Office, says the issue should be decided by state lawmakers, not the courts.
A ruling from the state Supreme Court is expected to take weeks.
Four-Year-Old Road Rage Victim's Funeral Set For Tuesday - Mary Hudetz, Associated Press
The funeral Mass for a 4-year-old shot and killed on an Albuquerque freeway is set for Tuesday, with hundreds of mourners expected to pay their respects.
The family of Lilly Garcia said in an obituary that she "captured so many lives with her beautiful smile and captivating personality," and she rarely said goodbye. Instead, she said "see you later."
Her family says Lilly had just completed her second day at her pre-school when she was tragically shot the afternoon of Oct. 20 following a road rage dispute that involved her father's pick-up truck and another car.
Police arrested and identified 31-year-old Tony Torrez as the shooter a day later. He has been charged with murder, assault, child abuse and other crimes.
Mistrial For School Exec Hired After Sex Abuse Charges – Associated Press
A judge has declared a mistrial in the case against a Colorado man who was hired by New Mexico's largest school district after he had been charged with sexually abusing two young boys.
Jurors in Denver told the judge on Monday they couldn't reach a unanimous verdict in the case against Jason Martinez.
Martinez was arrested in Denver in 2013 and later given a job at an Albuquerque school district after officials failed to complete a background check. The outcry over his hiring led Albuquerque Schools Superintendent Luis Valentino to resign.
Prosecutors said Monday they would seek a retrial against Martinez.
Closing Arguments Expected In Civil Case Over Wildfire - Russell Contreras, Associated Press
Closing arguments are expected in a civil case involving utility companies' role in one of the largest wildfires in New Mexico's recorded history.
Attorneys from both sides are expected to make their cases Tuesday in Bernalillo before state District Judge Louis McDonald.
The Las Conchas fire in 2011 started when an aspen tree fell onto power lines that stretched through national forest land in the Jemez Mountains.
Jemez Mountains Electric Cooperative operated and maintained the power lines. Tri-State Generation and Transmission Inc. provides the cooperative with electricity and is also named as a defendant.
There are more than 300 plaintiffs in the case, including property owners and insurance companies.
The threat of post-fire flooding continues to loom for Native American tribes and the Jemez State Monument.
Group Challenges Restoration Plan In Jemez Mountains – Associated Press
A plan to restore about 170 square miles of overgrown forest in northern New Mexico's Jemez Mountains is drawing criticism from one environmental group.
WildEarth Guardians has filed a formal objection to the plan by the Santa Fe National Forest. The group contends some of the activities would cause more harm than good.
The group pointed to the construction and reconstruction of 120 miles of road to access timber, saying soil and water quality would be affected.
WildEarth Guardians also claims the project violates federal environmental laws, regulations and policies.
Forest officials say the Southwest Jemez Mountains Landscape Restoration aims to make forest more resilient to wildfire and other large-scale disturbances. The long-term project calls for a mix of logging, prescribed fire and other activities.
Grant Ensures Southwest Chief Will Continue In NM – Albuquerque Journal
A federal grant will help ensure Amtrak’s Southwest Chief keeps running through New Mexico
The Albuquerque Journal reports a $15 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation will be used to upgrade a rail line used by the route.
Amtrak officials had discussed rerouting the Southwest Chief last year over questions on how to pay for track maintenance in New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas.
The Southwest Chief operates daily service between Los Angeles and Chicago. In New Mexico it stops in Gallup, Albuquerque, Lamy, Las Vegas and Raton.
New Executive Director Selected For New Mexico Museum – Associated Press
Margaret Marino is returning to the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque, this time as its executive director.
The museum is a division of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, which announced Monday that Marino will assume her new duties on Nov. 23.
The department said Marino was selected as a result of national search process that included a search committee recommending finalists to Cultural Affairs Cabinet Secretary Veronica Gonzales and Gov. Susana Martinez.
Marino started her 30-year museum career with the New Mexico as an evaluator and most recently served a decade as executive director of the North Museum of Nature and Science in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
She said in a statement released by the department that she's eager to return to New Mexico.
Transformer Will Be Heaviest Load Ever For New Mexico Roads – Farmington Daily Times, Associated Press
State officials say trucks traveling through the Four Corners region this week will be hauling the heaviest load ever transported on New Mexico public roads.
The Daily Times reports that the trucks will be moving a transformer made in China and taken to Houston via the Panama Canal.
The 1.7-million-pound transformer expected to arrive in Thoreau Monday is part of a project at the Pinto substation in Utah.
It will travel to Thoreau by rail. The New Mexico Department of Transportation says a second transformer, slightly lighter than the first, will come through the area about two weeks later.
The first transformer will leave Thoreau at 10 mph, pulled by one truck and pushed by five.
The transportation department will look for road damage once the caravan has left the area.
State Will Investigate Mora Superintendent Case – Santa Fe New Mexican
State officials will investigate how a superintendent was hired in Mora without proper credentials or experience.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the Public Education Department will hire an independent investigator to examine the case of Charles Trujillo. The Las Vegas Optic revealed he faked his education credentials and work experience.
Trujillo was placed on administrative leave last week. He was hired earlier this year by the Mora school board, which is led by his uncle, George Trujillo.
Charles Trujillo previously served as chief of the Public Education Department's Licensure Bureau, which did sign off on his administrative license for this job, according to the New Mexican.