Gov. Martinez Begins Review Of Capital Spending Bill – The Associated Press
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez is beginning her review of a $295 million capital spending bill passed by lawmakers in special session.
Martinez said Monday she would take her time to examine the projects in the measure and may veto some if she feels the community doesn't want or need them.
She said any line-item veto won't be based on a lawmaker's vote but on if she deemed the project worthy.
Senate Democrats said the passage of the capital spending measure would create jobs across the state.
Sen. Carroll Leavell, a Jal Republican, said the agreement provided critical infrastructure and included more than 1,000 distinct projects across New Mexico.
2 Lose Jobs For Failures Causing Albuquerque Sewage Spill - The Associated Press and Albuquerque Journal
Two water utility employees have lost their jobs as a result of the dumping of 6 million gallons of partly treated sewage into the Rio Grande in February.
Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority Chief Operating Officer John M. Stomp tells the Albuquerque Journal the spill occurred because of a lack of system maintenance.
He says an electrical supervisor was fired, a superintendent retired in lieu of termination and other disciplinary action may be taken.
Officials say a power surge knocked out power to a pump station Feb. 27 and a sewer-lift station at the Southside Water Reclamation Plant.
After power was restored to the lift station, the pump station did not come back on line, causing partly treated sewage to overflow.
Officials Probe Release Of Felon Accused Of Killing Officer - The Associated Press
New Mexico's attorney general is investigating the circumstances that led to the release of a repeat offender who prosecutors say went on to kill a police officer.
Attorney General Hector Balderas this week is summoning about a dozen criminal justice and social service providers who came in contact with 28-year-old Andrew Romero.
Prosecutors have charged Romero with first-degree murder in the Memorial Day shooting that killed Rio Rancho police officer Gregg "Nigel" Benner.
Romero has yet to enter a plea. His public defender, Stephen Taylor, says grand jury proceedings are scheduled for later this week.
Balderas says the judicial system failed by not keeping Romero behind bars.
Romero is a convicted felon who was put on probation when he could have received up to 13 years in jail for possessing illegal drugs, a stolen car and a weapon.
Gov. Pledges $1 Million To Repair Tracks - The Associated Press and Las Vegas Optic
Gov. Susana Martinez is pledging $1 million to improve part of the track used by Southwest Chief in New Mexico.
The Las Vegas Optic reports New Mexico Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary Loren Hatch informed Las Vegas Mayor Alfonso Ortiz of the $1 million commitment Thursday.
Hatch says the money will be used for the section of the track that is in most need of repair, which lies between Lamy and La Bajada hill.
Hatch says the funding is contingent upon a grant being awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation, which requires financial support from local municipalities along the route in order to secure.
Ortiz says several municipalities including Raton and Las Vegas have agreed to contribute, which he says shows how important the current route is.
Feds Identify 2 Killed In New Mexico Plane Crash - The Associated Press
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says a pilot with the Wildlife Services program and a state wildlife specialist died when their plane crashed in northeastern New Mexico.
The agency says pilot Kelly Hobbs and Shannon "Bubba" Tunnell of the New Mexico Department of Agriculture were the only two aboard the single-engine plane when it went down early Friday near Raton.
Officials confirmed Monday that Hobbs and Tunnell were on a mission to curb damage caused by wildlife in Colfax County.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
Hobbs had been a pilot with the federal program since 1992. He had more than 13,500 hours of flight experience and had worked in New Mexico, Colorado and Utah.
Tunnell had been a specialist with the state since 2009 and had extensive training in aerial predator management.
Deadline Passes For Convicted Felon Looking To Hold Office - The Associated Press
The board of directors overseeing one of New Mexico's major irrigation districts has been forced to fill a seat after the governor declined to issue a pardon for an election winner who was a convicted felon.
Matthew Aragon was facing a noon deadline Monday for getting a pardon, but the governor's office says all pardon requests need to go through a long process and that Martinez didn't appreciate being asked to provide special consideration for a political purpose.
Without the pardon, Aragon couldn't take his seat on the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District's board.
Other board members voted Monday to appoint runner-up Beverly Dominguez Romero.
Aragon was convicted in 1997 of shooting at an occupied vehicle or dwelling. Aragon says he served six months of work release and the rest of his nine-year sentence was suspended.
Albuquerque Man Who Raped 13-Year-Old Gets 26 Years - The Associated Press
An Albuquerque man who raped a 13-year-old girl in 1988 has been sentenced to 36 years in prison.
Joseph Blea was sentenced Monday to two consecutive 18 year sentences. An Albuquerque jury convicted him last week after prosecutors showed that his DNA was found on the girl after she was raped by a masked man inside her home more than 25 years ago.
The 58-year-old faces another trial later this year for raping another child and two adult victims in 1990 and 1993.
Prosecutors say Blea wasn't identified as a suspect until a 2010 forensic analysis of evidence collected after the girl's rape tied him to the attack.
Escape Attempt Causes Water Leak At Gallup Detox Center - The Associated Press and Gallup Independent
A client at the Gallup Detox Center lost his chance at escaping the building when he stepped on a water pipe and caused a leak that shut down the facility.
The Gallup Independent reports Facilities Manager Ansley Curley says the incident occurred Friday morning.
Curley says an individual had tried to escape the facility after going to the bathroom. The client went up into the ceiling and stepped on an old, corroded pipe that was part of the sprinkler system.
According to reports from Metro Dispatch, the detox center had been temporarily shut down.
Crews arrived at the facility and spent about an hour replacing the piece of pipe that had been broken. The facility later reopened.
City General Services Director Rick Snider says the client didn't get out.
Southwestern New Mexico Wildfire At 30 Percent Containment - The Associated Press
A lightning-started wildfire that has burned more than nine square miles of the Coronado National Forest in extreme southwestern New Mexico is about a third contained.
Officials say approximately 300 personnel were assigned to fight the fire as of Sunday but that some will be released Monday because rain is forecast for the area.
As of Monday, containment is reported around 30 percent of the fire's perimeter.
The fire is burning mostly grass and brush just across the state line from southeastern Arizona.
Crews on Sunday worked to hold and secure existing fire lines around the perimeter and officials say the fire is growing very slowly.
Public Service Co. Of New Mexico: Power Restored In Santa Fe - The Associated Press
Public Service Co. of New Mexico says power has been restored to parts of Santa Fe where an outage knocked out service to 11,000 customers.
Power was out for part of Monday morning on the city's north side, including the downtown area.
The utility says repair crews found that a large bird got into equipment, causing the outage.
Convicted Ex-New Mexico Sheriff Gets Certification Revoked – The Associated Press
A former northern New Mexico sheriff convicted in a road rage case is no longer a peace officer in New Mexico.
The New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy Board voted Tuesday to revoke the officer certification for former Rio Arriba County Sheriff Thomas Rodella.
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas told reporters Rodella's conviction was an embarrassment.
Rodella was sentenced in January to 10 years in federal prison for abusing a driver in a bizarre, off-duty traffic stop that prosecutors described as a fit of road rage. He also was ordered to pay a $200,000 fine and $10,335 in restitution.
The former lawman was elected sheriff in 2010, despite having been ousted as a magistrate judge by the state Supreme Court two years earlier for misconduct.
Obama Administration Warns 2015 Wildfires Could Be Costly – The Associated Press
Despite a wet spring, the Obama administration is warning that this summer's wildfires could drain the federal firefighting budget.
The Agriculture and Interior departments said Tuesday that could force them to transfer money from programs meant to improve long-term forest health.
Federal fire managers say heavy precipitation in May reduced the likelihood of wildfires this month across much of the nation, but the danger will increase from July through September.
The government says federal firefighting costs are expected to range from $810 million to $1.62 billion this year. The high end would exceed the firefighting budget of about $1.4 billion.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Interior Secretary Sally Jewell are scheduled to discuss the fire outlook later Tuesday in Denver and argue for a change in the way firefighting is funded.
Navajo Code Talker Remembered For Service To Community – The Associated Press
Flags will be lowered across the Navajo Nation until sunset Friday in honor of a Navajo Code Talker.
Tribal officials say Bahe Ketchum, of Kaibeto, died Monday in Flagstaff. He was 96.
Tribal President Russell Begaye commended Ketchum for defending the United States in World War II, using a code based on the Navajo language that stumped the Japanese.
Ketchum was among hundreds of Navajos who served as Code Talkers. He was part of the 6th Marine Division from 1944 to 1946.
Ketchum's son, Marvin, says his father was ready to board a train in Phoenix when he ran into an officer with the U.S. Marine Corps who suggested that he enlist. He remembered his father as a positive role model who thrived in community service.
Lightning-Started Wildfire Reaches 50 Percent Containment – The Associated Press
A lightning-started wildfire in southwestern New Mexico continues to wind down amid favorable weather conditions.
Fire managers say crews now have containment lines around 50 percent of the fire. It has burned more than nine square miles of the Coronado National Forest in extreme southwestern New Mexico.
The number of assigned personnel dropped from nearly 300 to approximately 270 on Monday, and officials say more will be released Tuesday because of recent rain and because the fire is no longer growing.
The fire has burned mostly grass and brush just across the state line from southeastern Arizona.
Judge: New Mexico Man Can Stand Trial For Hate Crime – The Associated Press
A 59-year-old man accused of making anti-Semitic threats against the owner of an Albuquerque Jewish deli has been found competent to stand trial.
A federal judge ruled this week that John Ng can face a federal hate crime charge.
According to a criminal complaint, Ng posted threatening anti-Semitic notes in late January and early February 2014. He was arrested by the FBI for interfering with the victim's federally protected rights by threatening the victim and interfering with her business because of her religion.
He has been released to a halfway house in Albuquerque, and as part of his conditions of release, he is prohibited from going to Nosh Deli in this city's Nob Hill district.
If convicted, Ng faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison.