Local News

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez will travel to the presidential battleground state of Ohio next month to deliver the keynote speech at a Republican Party dinner.

Ohio GOP Party chairman-elect Matt Borges said in a statement that Martinez will speak at the state party's annual dinner June 29 in Columbus.

Martinez is the nation's first female Hispanic governor and the first woman elected as governor of New Mexico.

The first-term governor recently was named by Time magazine to its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

The U.S. Marshals Service in Albuquerque has auctioned seized vehicles and raised more than $200,000.

The agency said the auction over the weekend netted $212,175 for law enforcement and victims of crime groups. Among the items auctioned were a 1980 Chevrolet Corvette that sold for $3,800 and a 2005 Chevrolet Corvette that sold for $20,500.

Officials say the items auctioned once belonged to individuals and companies involved in criminal activity.

New Mexico State University is seeking to help ranchers with wildlife management and brush control amid a dangerous fire season.

The school is hosting a wildlife management round-table discussion Tuesday at the Southwest Center for Rangeland Sustainability for area ranchers.

Shad Cox, ranch manager of the Corona Range and Livestock Research Center, says reduced income for ranchers due to drought conditions has made managing wildlife for income diversification a very important component to land management.

The Sundance Film Institute says four Native American filmmakers will be on the Mescalero Apache reservation in Southern New Mexico this week. The visit is the first stage of development for Native writers and directors hoping to release independent films in the coming years.

New Mexico Department of Health officials want to help any victims of an unlicensed tooth doctor who was operating as a "mobile dentist" out of a sedan around Santa Fe.

State health officials are offering counseling and testing services for any victims of a man known as "El Dentista."

The services include no-cost confidential blood tests and referrals for additional services if needed.

Santa Fe police are trying to build a strong case against 36-year-old Eliver Kestler, also known as Eliver Lopez.

New sets of twin arrows are beckoning travelers on Interstate 40 in northern Arizona.

A grand opening for the Twin Arrows Navajo Casino Resort is set for Friday. It's the Navajo Nation's first casino in Arizona, about 20 miles east of Flagstaff.

The 267,000 square-foot building sits across the interstate from an old trading post and rest stop known for the giant twin arrows that point toward the ground.

The League of United Latin American Citizens says two recent cases of Spanish being banned at New Mexico high school games are examples of a "disturbing" pattern.

Ralph Arellanes, New Mexico LULAC state director, said Monday that the group has heard of a least five cases of high school players being ordered this school year not to speaking Spanish. Arellanes says LULAC will begin an aggressive effort to monitor future cases, and if necessary, will file lawsuits.

  Thousands of people in New Mexico are still looking for work or at least better jobs even as the state's unemployment rate is down.

The Department of Workforce Solutions reports that New Mexico's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.7 percent in April, down from 6.9 percent in March and 7 percent in April 2012.

The department says New Mexico gained about 7,900 jobs during the past 12 months, for a 1 percent growth rate.

The New Mexico Arts Commission says seven artists and supporters of the arts are recipients of this year's Governor's Awards for Excellence in the Arts.

An awards ceremony is scheduled Sept. 27 in Santa Fe at the New Mexico Museum of Arts and there will be a reception in the state Capitol.

The recipients are Rio Rancho painter and printmaker Edward Gonzales, Santa Fe painter Darren Vigil Gray, Taos musician Jenny Vincent, Taos painter and furniture maker Jim Wagner and Santa Fe potter Frank Willett.

Albuquerque's Board of Ethics will hold a preliminary hearing over a complaint filed by Pete Dinelli's mayoral campaign against incumbent Richard Berry.

The Albuquerque Journal reports that Dinelli's campaign has alleged Berry violated the city's ban on accepting campaign donations from city contractors.

The Berry campaign contends it's in full compliance with campaign laws.

The U.S. Forest Service expects to close its public comment period in mid-June on a draft environmental impact statement for the proposed Roca Honda uranium mine near Mount Taylor.

Strathmore Minerals Corp. and Sumitomo Corp. of Japan propose to sink one or two shafts to depths of 2,000 feet or more below three sections of Forest Service and state lands about 22 miles northeast of Grants.

The proposal has plenty of support from the local business community, but faces strong opposition from environmental and Native American groups.

The Navajo Nation Police Department has gone five years having without a permanent leader.

The police chief's position has been vacant since April 2008 when Police Chief Jim Benally was put on paid leave.

Officials haven't given an explanation as to why Benally was placed on leave.

The Farmington Daily Times reports that the police department has had district commanders take turns filling in as police chief.

Gila National Forest officials say another portion of the popular Catwalk National Recreation Trail is expected to open soon.

Forest employees are replacing an additional quarter mile of the trail and hope to have the work done by Memorial Day.

Glenwood District Ranger Pat Morrison says the U.S. Forest Service recognizes the importance of the trail to local residents and tourists.