New Mexico Bracing For Powerful Post-Christmas Storm – The Associated Press
Residents throughout New Mexico are being warned to expect the days following Christmas to be especially white and blustery.
The National Weather Service is predicting a wallop of a storm system this weekend that could close down roads during a time of heavy travel. The weather service has issued a winter storm watch for portions of central and western New Mexico and a rare blizzard watch for much of the Eastern Plains due to strong winds that are expected to develop.
Various cities have anywhere from a 23 to 84 percent chance of seeing precipitation Saturday.
In Las Cruces, residents could see up to 7 inches of snow by Saturday night.
Public Service Co. of New Mexico, the state's largest utility, is anticipating power outages and advising customers to prepare emergency kits.
Latino Lawmakers Look To USDA To Address Civil Rights Issues – The Associated Press
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is embarking on a partnership with universities across the country in hopes of infusing its ranks with more diversity as it faces civil rights complaints from Latino farmers and ranchers.
But some members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus are voicing frustration, saying the agency has yet to adequately address their concerns.
The caucus asked for a meeting with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in October, expressing concern about the treatment of Latino farmers and ranchers.
The USDA said this week it can't talk about civil rights because of pending litigation over grazing permits in New Mexico.
However, the agency told the caucus in a letter that progress is being made on other fronts and pointed to the program with the Hispanic-serving colleges and universities.
Prosecutors Argue For Ex-Police Officers' Trial To Stay Put –The Associated Press
Prosecutors are pushing for the trial of two former Albuquerque police officers charged in the shooting death of a homeless man to stay in the city.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that Randi McGinn and Kevin Holmes filed their response in court this week to a request from defense attorneys that the trial be relocated.
In court documents, the prosecutors say Albuquerque's large population would offer a bigger jury pool than anywhere else in the state.
They also say Keith Sandy and Dominique Perez should be tried where the alleged killing occurred.
Defense attorneys had argued media attention surrounding the case made a fair trial impossible.
Sandy and Perez were officers when they shot James Boyd after an hours-long standoff.
Boyd had been camping illegally in the Sandia Mountain foothills.
Holloman Air Force Base To House Immigrant Children – The Associated Press
Holloman Air Force Base will be a temporary shelter for hundreds of immigrant children from Central America.
The Alamogordo Daily News reports that U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has directed the base to house up to 400 children starting in January.
The children are currently in the care of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Alamogordo Chamber of Commerce President Mike Espiritu says health department officials have already visited Holloman to see if the site could work.
The children will be housed in a vacant building that was used by the 4th Space Surveillance Squadron.
Espiritu says they have been immunized and screened for possible diseases.
The children are considered refugees who fled strife in their homeland or are trying to reunite with family in the U.S.
Roswell Man Gets Back Stolen Ashes Of Love Ones – The Associated Press
A Roswell family is back in possession of the stolen ashes of two relatives.
Anthony Garcia says the remains of his wife and stepson were returned to a funeral home Thursday after going missing from a storage unit earlier this month.
Jose Luis Hernandez told the Roswell Daily Record that he was walking near the storage facility when he found the sets of remains behind a bush.
Hernandez figured out what they were after he saw an ad Garcia had placed in the newspaper about the lost remains.
Garcia says someone broke into his storage unit and took several items. But he only wanted the ashes back.
They are now locked in a safe at the funeral home until they can be spread during a planned trip to Oregon.