Court Orders Bill Richardson To Attend Driving School—Associated Press
Former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is pleading no contest to charges of driving away from a traffic accident without notice.
Richardson dialed in remotely to a municipal court hearing on Friday in Santa Fe and agreed to pay $56 in court costs and complete a defense driving class under the judgment. A sentence of 90 days unsupervised probation is on hold while Richardson completes the requirements.
In January, Richardson rear-ended another vehicle at low speed in downtown Santa Fe, drove off and was tracked down quickly by police. A police video shows Richardson initially feigning ignorance before acknowledging to a Santa Fe police officer that he bumped into another car and didn't pull over.
Court records show that a charge of driving too close was dismissed.
US Secretary Asks French Authorities To Prevent Auction of Acoma Shield—Associated Press
U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell is asking French authorities to prevent the auction of a ceremonial shield from a New Mexico Native American community, saying the item was believed to have been stolen decades ago from its rightful owners.
In a letter Friday to the auction house regulator in France, Jewell detailed specific reasons why the Acoma Pueblo shield should be removed from Monday's planned sale in Paris.
The letter included an affidavit from the granddaughter of one of the tribe's traditional leaders who cared for the shield. She testified that the item went missing during the 1970s when the family's home was broken into.
Jewell's correspondence also included documents from the tribe's legal counsel and preservation officer attesting to the importance of the shield and its status under tribal customary law.
Donald Trump Breaks With Nation's Only Latina Governor—Morgan Lee of Associated Press
It was a stunning rebuke — even by Donald Trump's standards — aimed at the nation's only Latina governor at a political rally in her home state of New Mexico.
At a raucous political rally this week in the nation's most Hispanic state, Trump chastised Republican Gov. Susana Martinez for not doing her job when it came to unemployment, federal food aid and even containing the Syrian refugee crisis.
Martinez says she won't be bullied into endorsing the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, calling accusations as political pot shots.
The public spat has dampened any lingering speculation that Martinez might be picked as vice president to attract more female and minority voters to the Republican ticket. She joins other prominent Republicans who have withstood attacks as Trump tries to consolidate support.
French Auction House Defends Upcoming Sale Of Sacred Items—Associated Press
The Paris auction house criticized for putting up for bid objects held sacred by Native American tribes is defending its upcoming sale.
EVE auction house director Alain Leroy said Friday all the items are of legal trade in both the U.S. and France and that tribes will have an opportunity through the auction process to acquire their past.
Monday's planned auction will feature hundreds of religious items and art pieces from the Americas, Africa and Asia. Included is a ceremonial shield from a Native American tribe in New Mexico.
Acoma Pueblo Gov. Kurt Riley argues it's illegal to trade and sell Native American items considered sacred or used in worship. He has reached out to the French people through an open letter in an effort to halt such auctions.
Inmate Escapes Montana Women's Prison In Billings—Associated Press
An inmate serving time for drug possession and for walking away from a prerelease center has escaped from the Montana Women's Prison in Billings.
Associate Warden Bob Paul says 26-year-old Christina Becker was assigned to the garden maintenance crew and apparently escaped over the perimeter fence at about 10:30 a.m. Friday.
Becker is 5 feet, 3 inches tall, weighs about 150 pounds and has blonde hair, blue eyes and a light complexion. She was last seen wearing grey shorts and a navy blue T-shirt. She was serving a five-year sentence for possession of dangerous drugs and a consecutive three-year sentence for walking away from the prerelease center in July 2015. She was located in her home state of New Mexico in November.