Shake-Up Hits Albuquerque Police Records Department – The Associated Press
An internal investigation has prompted a shake-up within the public records unit of the embattled Albuquerque Police Department.
Three employees have been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. Department spokeswoman Celina Espinoza says investigators are looking at allegations of unprofessional conduct, workplace safety and inadequate supervision.
Espinoza says the efficiency and effectiveness of the Inspection of Public Records Act unit have been affected. She declined to release further details, saying it was a personnel matter.
Javier Urban has been appointed as the acting records custodian for the department.
The unit deals with requests from the media and anyone else who wants access to public documents, video and audio.
New Mexico, Feds Reach $73M Settlement Over Nuke Mishap – The Associated Press
The U.S. Energy Department has agreed to fund more than $73 million in infrastructure projects around the state to settle a dispute that stems from a radiation leak at the federal government's troubled nuclear waste dump in southern New Mexico.
The agreement was announced Thursday following months of negotiations. It represents the largest settlement in DOE's history.
The state initially levied more than $54 million in penalties against the agency and its contractors for numerous permit violations at Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
A drum of waste packed at Los Alamos and shipped to the repository contained incompatible ingredients. A chemical reaction ensued, the lid breached and radiation escaped.
New Mexico Environment Secretary Ryan Flynn says the DOE needed to be held accountable for what happened.
Martinez Appoints New Regent For Eastern New Mexico Univ. - The Associated Press
Gov. Susana Martinez has appointed educator Dan Patterson as member of the Board of Regents for Eastern New Mexico University to replace the late Brett Leach.
The university announced the appointment Thursday.
It said Patterson has served as superintendent and deputy superintendent of school districts throughout New Mexico and Colorado, including Moriarty Municipal Schools, Las Cruces Public Schools and Carlsbad Municipal Schools.
ENMU President Steve Gamble said Patterson's career as a teacher and administrator in secondary and higher education gives him understanding and the needs and demands of educational institutions and how they can best serve students.
Patterson currently serves on the New Mexico Public School Insurance Authority.
Lech died April 3. He was appointed to the regents in February 2011.
Middle School Student Rebuked For Wearing Rosary To Class – The Associated Press
A middle school student in northwest New Mexico says she was sent to the principal's office and asked if she sold drugs or was involved with a gang after she wore her rosary to school.
Eighth-grader Latanyia Clah tells KOB-TV that she and her sister began wearing their rosaries to school after receiving them as Christmas gifts. The administration at Tibbetts Middle School in Farmington said the Catholic prayer beads are inappropriate attire.
A Farmington Municipal Schools spokesman said they consulted a priest and found a prevalence of gang members using rosaries as symbols, which prompted administrators to ask students to stop visibly wearing them.
Latanyia's mother, Delphyina Clah, says she does not see why her faith means her children are in a gang.
4 Men Charged In Connection To Dairy Farm Abuse Case – The Associated Press
Four men have been charged with cruelty to animals after undercover video showed workers at a southern New Mexico dairy whipping cows with chains and wire cables and kicking and punching the animals.
The Roswell Daily Record reports that the four were charged Monday. They were employees of the former Winchester Dairy LLC near Dexter.
All four men are scheduled to be arraigned May 11.
The farm ceased operations in September after an undercover investigation by Mercy For Animals documented employees whipping, kicking, stabbing and shocking the animals.
After the video was released, the dairy said in a statement that animal care and well-being are central to its operations.
Review: No-Bid Deal For Police Body Cameras Was 'Greased' – The Associated Press
A New Mexico review has found that Albuquerque's former police chief potentially violated ethics rules by influencing a $1.95 million contract to purchase body cameras and then going to work as a consultant for the supplier.
State Auditor Timothy Keller released a report Thursday that says former Chief Ray Schultz and his subordinates gave Taser International an unfair advantage for the 2013 contact.
Keller says the contract circumvented the competitive bidding process. He cited an email sent by Schultz to a Taser salesman that assured the company the deal was "greased."
Keller is referring the findings to prosecutors to determine whether Schultz, now the assistant police chief in Memorial Villages, Texas, or anyone else should face criminal charges.
Schultz and Taser have denied wrongdoing in the case.
Audit: Officer Retention Program Rushed, Poorly Executed - The Associated Press
A review by internal auditors suggests the Albuquerque Police Department's officer retention program wasn't well executed.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that the program, which provides pay incentives to police officers nearing retirement but willing to stay, didn't require a commitment from officers to remain for a certain period of time.
Public records show that four officers received retention pay even though they entered early retirement.
The city overpaid participants a total of $32,000 through early March as it changed eligibility requirements for the program.
Albuquerque police said in a statement that the department has corrected many of the problems and was fighting to keep seasoned officers.
City councilors are reviewing Mayor Richard Berry's budget proposal, which includes $1.7 million to continue the incentive program.
New Mexico Agencies Get Funds For Veteran Housing - The Associated Press
Public housing agencies in New Mexico will share more than $300,000 for programs aimed at helping homeless veterans.
A total of almost $65 million will go to agencies across the United States to provide housing and services for more than 9,300 homeless veterans nationwide.
The money is being awarded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
U.S. Sen. Tom Udall says veteran homelessness is a national tragedy and the funds mark one small step toward helping those who have served their country and are homeless to rebuild their lives.
The city of Albuquerque will get the largest award of more than $195,000. The other recipients are the Bernalillo County Housing Authority and the Mesilla Valley Housing Authority in southern New Mexico.
Head Of Intel's Rio Rancho Plant To Retire - The Associated Press and Albuquerque Journal
The head of Intel's manufacturing plant in Rio Rancho has announced his retirement.
Kirby Jefferson has served as head of the plant for two years and plans to step down in October. He has worked for Intel for more than three decades.
Site factory manager Bert Blaha will take Jefferson's place.
The Rio Rancho plant opened in 1980 but has been shedding jobs as the company makes investments in other plants around the world.
In 2005, the Rio Rancho plant had 5,300 employees. Now, spokeswoman Liz Shipley tells the Albuquerque Journal that the workforce numbers around 2,300.
In recent years, there has been speculation about the future. Jefferson fueled some of that at an economic forum last year when he predicted a drop in local production within two years.
NTSB: Train Worker Likely To Survive If He Hadn't Jumped - The Associated Press
Officials say a crew member who was aboard a freight train that struck a parked train in New Mexico probably would have survived if he had not jumped from the train right before impact.
National Transportation Safety Board investigators said Wednesday that the locomotive's survival area was completely intact after it struck the train parked on a siding. They say a manually operated switch was locked in place, sending the train onto the side track.
One of the two Southwestern Railroad crew members on board was killed. The other was injured.
Officials say the crew applied their train's brakes to try to stop it as the accident unfolded Tuesday morning about 10 miles southeast of Roswell.
The NTSB says the train was going 31 mph at the time of impact.
New Mexico Joins Race To Build Storage For Nuclear Waste - The Associated Press
Two counties in southeastern New Mexico have joined the race to build an interim storage site to house spent nuclear fuel from the nation's reactors.
Officials from Lea and Eddy counties and Holtec International gathered Wednesday at the National Museum of Nuclear Science and History in Albuquerque to outline their plans.
The agreement between Holtec and the Eddy Lea Energy Alliance addresses the design, licensing, construction and operation of an underground storage site on 32 acres between the communities of Carlsbad and Hobbs.
Holtec President and CEO Kris Singh says the company expects to apply for a permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission within a year.
Some members of Congress have shown renewed interested in the mothballed Yucca Mountain project in Nevada. In West Texas, a private firm also has plans to build a temporary storage facility.
New Mexico AG: Uber, Lyft Drivers Need Drug Testing - The Associated Press
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas says drivers of ride-booking services Lyft and Uber in the state should face drug testing requirements like taxi drivers.
Balderas sent state regulators a letter Wednesday and asked them to strengthen public safety standards around ride-booking services.
Last week, the state's Public Regulation Commission voted 4-1 on new regulations clearing way for the companies to function under guidelines separate from those that govern traditional taxi services. But drug testing requirements were dropped.
The San Francisco-based Lyft and Uber use smartphone programs to connect people seeking rides with people who have cars. Both had been operating in New Mexico despite complaints for taxi companies.
Spokeswomen for Lyft and Uber did not immediately return emails from The Associated Press.
Tourism Department To Get $1.25 Million More In Ad Dollars - The Associated Press and Albuquerque Journal
Advertising will make up close to three quarters of the state's tourism budget in the fiscal year starting July 1.
The Albuquerque Journal reports Gov. Susana Martinez touted this and other ways the state is seeking to boost its tourism industry at a Tuesday meeting with industry representatives.
Tourism officials say the total budget for the coming year is at $13.6 million, including the governor's $1.25 million boost in advertising dollars. In total, the state will be able to spend $9.3 million on advertising to bring visitors to the state.
Martinez has tried skiing and kayaking, and has ziplining on her list of New Mexico adventures. She said people should have these experiences when they visit the state.
A record 32 million people visited New Mexico in 2013.
Judge Orders Man To Return Millions In Misappropriated Funds - The Associated Press and Santa Fe New Mexican
Former venture capitalist Charles Kokesh has to return millions in investor dollars he used to pay himself and other advisers.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the judge agreed with penalties suggested by the Securities and Exchange Commission in a ruling that requires Kokesh to pay $2.35 million in a civil penalty, $34.9 million in "ill-gotten gains," and $18.1 million in interest.
His attorney didn't return requests for comment, but previously argued that his client shouldn't have to pay a large financial penalty because he's broke. Kokesh lost his family's horse park and his personal property to foreclosure last year.
Kokesh argued investors lost money because of the Great Recession rather than his business practices.
Geared toward small investors, his company jump-started dozens of successful businesses.
6 People Indicted In Pharmacy Robberies In Albuquerque - The Associated Press
Six people have been indicted for allegedly robbing pharmacies in Albuquerque to illegally obtain Oxycodone and other prescription drugs.
Four indictments were unsealed Wednesday.
Authorities say three of the suspects, including a woman, have yet to be arrested and are considered fugitives.
They say three of the four indictments include allegations that firearms were brandished at pharmacy employees during the robberies in early January.
Authorities say 20-year-old Victor Hurtado and 22-year-old Joseph Montano were arrested Wednesday in the case.
They say 28-year-old Roy Christopher currently is in state custody and will be transferred to federal custody to face the charges against him.
It's unclear if any of the three men have lawyers yet.
UNM Law School Dean To Step Down - The Associated Press
The dean of the University of New Mexico's law school will be stepping down this summer after taking over just two years ago.
David Herring's resignation was announced Tuesday by Provost Chaouki Abdallah in a letter to the law school community. The university made the news public Wednesday.
Abdallah says Herring will remain at UNM as a tenured member of the law school faculty when his term as dean ends July 1.
The Albuquerque Journal reports Herring's resignation stems from policy disagreements with some faculty members. Herring told the newspaper he came in with clear goals but it ended up not being a good fit for him to lead the law school.
There are no plans for a national search for Herring's replacement.
Police: Boston Marathon Winner's Purse Stolen During Parade - The Associated Press and Santa Fe New Mexican
New Mexico resident Caroline Rotich may have won the 2015 Boston Marathon elite women's division and the hearts of Santa Fe citizens.
But apparently she lost her purse to a thief.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports a car belonging to the Kenyan-born Santa Fe resident was vandalized during a Santa Fe parade in her honor Monday.
Police spokeswoman Lt. Andrea Dobyns said the thief smashed a window and stole her purse sometime between 4 and 5:30 p.m. The official parade schedule had called for the event to end at 6 p.m. at the Santa Fe Plaza.
Rotich for the past eight years has lived and trained in Santa Fe, where she has taken time to help encourage young people in the area to get out and run.