Police: Another Albuquerque Officer Involved In Shooting - The Associated Press
Police say an Albuquerque officer has fatally shot a man who had just fired at officers.
Tuesday's shooting marks the department's third this year and comes a day after Bernalillo County District Attorney Kari Brandenburg announced she was seeking murder charges against two officers for the March shooting of a homeless man.
A police statement said the latest shooting happened just before 5 p.m. after officers were dispatched to a busy eastern Albuquerque street after a report of suspicious criminal activity.
The officers arrived and took one man into custody, but another man fled on foot. Police say the man later fired shots at the officers, and at least one officer returned fire. Police say the man was wearing body armor, and his weapon was found near his body.
Albuquerque Deputy Chief Robert Huntsman told reporters that no officers were seriously injured.
New Albuquerque Police Shootings Rock Fatigued City – The Associated Press
Within two weeks, two Albuquerque officers have been shot, two Albuquerque officers have been charged with murder and three officers have fired their weapons.
After months without a police shooting, the fatigued New Mexico city is back in the national spotlight following a tumultuous start to 2015. Police say an Albuquerque police officer on Tuesday shot and killed a suspect wearing body armor who fired at police.
On Monday, Bernalillo County District Attorney Kari Brandenburg announced that she was seeking murder charges against two officers for the March shooting of a homeless man.
Meanwhile, the city of Albuquerque and the U.S. Justice Department are working to decide on a monitoring team that would oversee the troubled police force.
Advocates are vowing to resume protests.
Difficult Driving Conditions On I-25 In Northern New Mexico – The Associated Press
Difficult driving conditions are reported on portions of Interstate 25 in northern New Mexico as central and southern areas of the state continue to get more snow.
The state Department of Transportation says stretches of I-25 near Las Vegas and Raton are icy and packed with snow in spots.
Other highways with difficult driving conditions this morning include U.S. 64 east and west of Raton.
The National Weather Service says precipitation will diminish by this evening, with snow expected today in the west-central and southwest mountain regions and along the eastern slopes of the Sandia and Manzano mountains southward into Lincoln County.
Meanwhile, areas of fog and freezing fog are expected to return to valleys of northern and western New Mexico by evening.
Albuquerque, DOJ Face Deadline On Monitor Team Agreement - The Associated Press
The city of Albuquerque and the U.S. Justice Department are facing a deadline to agree on a monitor to oversee the Albuquerque Police Department.
Under the terms of a signed agreement, both sides today must notify U.S. Judge Robert Brack that they have come to terms on a monitoring team. If both sides can't, they'll have until Jan. 28 to submit their own suggestions.
The monitor comes as a result of an agreement to overhaul Albuquerque police amid allegations of excessive force.
An independent monitoring team will oversee how changes to Albuquerque police procedures are adopted.
Federal officials say the team also will have access to all documents, personnel, facilities and information related to the settlement agreement.
Bernalillo County Moves Forward With Proposed Tax Increase - The Associated Press and Albuquerque Journal
Bernalillo County residents and other people shopping in New Mexico's most populous county may be paying more in sales tax come July.
The county commissioners were divided Tuesday as they moved forwarding with setting a gross receipts tax of a quarter of a percent to raise about $40 million a year to help close a budget shortfall and pay for new mental health programs.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that the commissioners split along party lines in a 3-2 vote, with Democrats in favor and Republicans opposed.
The county will publish legal notices about the planned change, and a final vote by the commission will take place in February.
If approved, the tax would go into effect July 1.
The county has projected a $53 million shortfall.
Los Alamos County Seeks End To Contract With Airline - The Associated Press
Los Alamos County wants to end its contract with a small airline that recently grounded its planes.
County officials say they have taken action to terminate the contract for service with New Mexico Airlines, giving the contractor 10 days' notice.
The last day for flights under the contract will be Jan. 23.
County officials say New Mexico Airlines suspended service for two weeks in December and hasn't operated flights between Los Alamos and Albuquerque for the past week.
Coin Toss Decides Acting Leader Of Navajo Nation Council - The Associated Press
A coin toss has decided the temporary leader of the Navajo Nation Council.
Tribal lawmakers met in a special session Tuesday shortly after they were inaugurated to decide who will be the speaker pro tem.
The vote ended in a tie between Kee Allen Begay and LoRenzo Bates. Lawmakers looked to one of their attorneys for advice, and he recommended a coin toss.
Begay will serve as head of the legislative branch until the council selects a permanent speaker at its winter session that starts Jan. 26.
Bates had been filling in as speaker since April when former Speaker Johnny Naize was placed on administrative leave months after he was charged in a criminal case. Naize later pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to commit bribery and resigned.
Ted Turner Ranch Aims To Aid Endangered Black-Footed Ferrets – The Associated Press
A more than half-million-acre ranch that straddles the New Mexico-Colorado border and is owned by media mogul Ted Turner has asked for permission to import black-footed ferrets.
The highly endangered carnivores have struggled across the Great Plains, and the Vermejo Park Ranch wants to bolster their numbers as part of a recovery program spanning 12 Western states.
It will be up to the New Mexico Game Commission to clear the way for a permit for the ranch during a meeting Thursday.
Biologists at the ranch have been working for years to recover the species.
This marks the first time they have to jump through an extra hoop of review because of a regulatory change involving the importation and release of carnivores on private land in New Mexico.