New Mexico bars commissioner from office for insurrection - By Morgan Lee Associated Press
A New Mexico state district court judge has disqualified county commissioner and Cowboys for Trump cofounder Couy Griffin from holding public office for engaging in insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
State District Court Judge Francis Mathew issued a ruling Tuesday that permanently prohibits Griffin from holding or seeking local or federal office.
Griffin was previously convicted in federal court of a misdemeanor for entering Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, without going inside the building. He was sentenced to 14 days and given credit for time served.
The new ruling immediately removes Griffin from his position as a commissioner in Otero County in southern New Mexico. He also is barred from serving as a presidential elector.
"Mr. Griffin aided the insurrection even though he did not personally engage in violence," Mathew wrote. "By joining the mob and trespassing on restricted Capitol grounds, Mr. Griffin contributed to delaying Congress's election-certification proceedings."
Griffin said he was notified of his removal from office by Otero County staff, who prevented him from accessing his work computer and office space at a county building in Alamogordo.
Griffin, who served as his own legal counsel at a two-day bench trial in August, called the ruling a "total disgrace" that disenfranchises his constituents in Otero County.
"The actions that are being taken are, I believe, perfect evidence of the tyranny that we're right now living under," Griffin said. "The left continues to speak about democracy being under attack, but is this democracy? Whenever you're removed from office by the civil courts by the opinion of a liberal judge."
The ruling arrives amid a flurry of similar lawsuits around the country seeking to punish politicians who took part in Jan. 6 under provisions of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which holds that anyone who has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution can be barred from office for engaging in insurrection or rebellion.
Ratified shortly after the Civil War, the provisions were meant in part to keep representatives who had fought for the Confederacy from returning to Congress.
At trial, Griffin invoked free speech guarantees in his defense and argued that removing him from office would cut against the will of the people and set a "dangerous precedent." Elected in 2018, Griffin withstood a recall vote last year but isn't running for reelection or other office in November.
Mathews wrote that Griffin's arguments "disregard that the Constitution itself reflects the will of the people."
Griffin "overlooks that his own insurrectionary conduct on January 6 sought to subvert the results of a free and fair election, which would have disenfranchised millions of voters."
The lawsuit against Griffin was brought by three plaintiffs in New Mexico with assistance from the Washington-based Citizens force Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Supportive briefs were filed by the NAACP and progressive watchdog group Common Cause. A federal court declined a recent request to take up the case.
Tuesday's judgement is "a historic win for accountability for the January 6th insurrection and the efforts to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power in the United States," Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics President Noah Bookbinder said in a statement.
Griffin, a Republican, forged a group of rodeo acquaintances in 2019 into the promotional group called Cowboys for Trump that staged horseback parades to spread President Donald Trump's conservative message about gun rights, immigration controls and abortion restrictions.
This year, Griffin voted twice as a county commissioner against certifying New Mexico's June 7 primary election, in a standoff over election integrity fueled by conspiracy theories about the security of voting equipment in the Republican-dominated county.
Two other commissioners eventually agreed to certify, but Griffin cast the loan dissenting vote while acknowledging that he had no specific basis for questioning the results of the election — attributing his decision to "my gut feeling and my own intuition."
Griffin is among a dozen people charged in the Jan. 6 riot that had either held public office or ran for a government leadership post in the two and a half years before the attack. Of those, seven have been convicted of crimes for their participation.
Unlike Griffin, the members of Congress targeted for disqualified were neither charged nor convicted of crimes associated with the Capitol riot.
In Georgia, a federal judge allowed a 14th Amendment challenge against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green to advance, but a state administrative law judge found there wasn't sufficient evidence to back voters' claims that she had engaged in insurrection, and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Greene was qualified to run.
Greene won her primary, and the Georgia Supreme Court upheld that decision last week. The federal appeal is pending.
In North Carolina, a federal judge blocked the state elections board from formally examining whether U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn, who spoke at the rally that preceded the riot, should remain on the state's May 17 primary ballot.
Cawthorn narrowly lost that election, and later in May a federal appeals court reversed the lower court decision. The panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the trial judge got it wrong when he ruled that an 1872 law that removed office-holding disqualifications from most ex-Confederates also exempted current members of Congress like Cawthorn. The lawsuit was ultimately dismissed as moot because Cawthorn isn't on the November ballot.
Arizona state courts have kept U.S. Reps. Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs and a state legislator on the ballot amid efforts to disqualify them. A judge agreed in April with the lawmakers that Congress created no enforcement mechanism for the 14th Amendment, barring a criminal conviction.
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Gary D. Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Mark Sherman in Washington contributed to this report.
FEMA assistance application deadline extended for another month – By Megan Gleason, Source New Mexico
Victims with damaged property or homes caused by the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire and flooding-related disasters now have until Oct. 7 to apply for Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance.
FEMA extended the deadline for another month, spokesperson Angela Byrd said Tuesday. It was previously set to end on Tuesday, Sept. 6.
In addition to damage caused by the fire, property harm from flooding, mudflows and debris flows are applicable. The help is aimed at those who are underinsured or without insurance.
FEMA has so far approved 1,240 applicants and allocated more than $4.7 million in funding as of Aug. 31, Byrd said. She declined to say how many applicants have been denied. FEMA won’t offer aid if insurance already covers the damage. “We don’t duplicate efforts,” she said.
But there are other reasons applications are denied, including missing documentation. People can appeal those and other denials.
Applicants have 60 days to appeal a decision after the date of the determination letter, even after the deadline passes. This can be in the case of a denial or if the applicant doesn’t believe they’re getting enough assistance. Financial aid is capped at just under $40,000.
FEMA representatives are reaching out to people daily to help them in the appeal process, Byrd said. The agency has been criticized for automated denial letters sent to applicants or rejections based on incorrect information gathered by FEMA.
“If we are reaching out, if you can, please respond, and that will help,” she said. “That would absolutely help.”
Attorney General looks into gas prices in northwest NM - KOB-TV, KUNM News
While gas prices are starting to drop after hitting a record high of over $5 per gallon nationally in June, drivers in northwest New Mexico aren’t seeing the same relief as the rest of the state.
KOB-TV reports the average cost of fuel in New Mexico is now $3.63 per gallon, with the price at the pump even a bit lower in the Albuquerque area. But in Farmington, drivers are still paying $4.07 for each gallon of gas.
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas said Farmington Mayor Nathan Duckett reached out about the disparity last month. The AG said his office has now begun a consumer protection investigation into the matter.
Balderas said his office will be looking for justification for the prices area retailers have set for the product, as well as any potential manipulations of the market.
He told KOB that the public can anticipate an update on the investigation’s next steps sometime in the next few days.
Las Vegas Jewish community looks to buy first NM synagogue back from Archdiocese - Santa Fe New Mexican, KUNM News
As the Archdiocese of Santa Fe liquidates its assets to pay for a settlement agreement with survivors of clergy sexual abuse, the Jewish community in Las Vegas have an opportunity to buy back a historic house of worship.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports Temple Montefiore dates back to 1886, and was the first synagogue in the New Mexico territory.
The Catholic Church purchased the property in 1950 and it now serves as the Newman Center ministry on the campus of New Mexico Highlands University.
The opportunity for the Jewish community to once again own the historic temple is not a sure thing. Community member Nancy Terr told the New Mexican that the Archdiocese shortened the timeline of the purchase from 60 to 30 days.
The community has a $200,000 fundraising goal on GoFundMe. The New Mexican reported Sunday that – combined with check contributions – the campaign had about half of that left to raise, but the online campaign has since raised nearly $53,000 more, as of Tuesday afternoon.
Las Vegas Mayor Louie Trujillo, who supports the change of hands, said it was unclear if the city could help fund it, but promised city support in facilitating the purchase.
New research utilizes ‘magic mushrooms’ to curb alcohol abuse - Albuquerque Journal, KUNM News
Known to cause hallucinations, researchers at the University of New Mexico and New York University are utilizing the compound psilocybin commonly found in “magic mushrooms” or “shrooms” to stomp down alcohol abuse.
As the Albuquerque Journal reports, researchers found when the hallucinogenic compound is combined with psychotherapy practices, heavy alcohol drinkers saw a dramatic change in their substance consumption.
Lead researcher Dr. Snehal Bhatt, chief of addiction psychiatry at UNM’s Health Sciences Center told the Journal the result of the study saw a reduction in the frequency of drinking and the number of drinks consumed––with an average from 7 drinks in a day, to about one.
Not only was the study successful, but the research also showed how powerful psychotherapy is to treat addiction.
Bhatt explained that the study was separated into two groups. Half were given psilocybin. and the other half were given antihistamines as a placebo. Both received psychotherapy.
In the two groups, researchers found a significant reduction of drinking, with a more “pronounced” reduction in the individuals given psilocybin.
Ruidoso police: human skull found at a construction site - Associated Press, KOB-TV
A human skull has been found at a construction site in Ruidoso, according to police.
Albuquerque TV station KOB reported that construction crews discovered the skull on Monday while completing excavation work.
Police and the Office of the Medical Investigator will continue investigating the discovery of the skull.
Pilot dies in crash of a paraglider west of Albuquerque - Associated Press
A man has died after the crash of a paraglider west of Albuquerque, New Mexico State Police said Tuesday.
Police were called Saturday about a downed aircraft in an open field north of the Route 66 Casino on Interstate 40.
They said 67-year-old Carl Apodaca of Albuquerque was piloting his paraglider when it crashed for unknown reasons.
Police said Apodaca was pronounced deceased at the scene from his injuries.
Forest officials lift some Pecos Wilderness closures after historic fire - Santa Fe New Mexican, KUNM News
Hundreds of square miles in the Pecos Wilderness are once again accessible to the public following closures amid a historically disastrous fire season.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the Santa Fe National Forest revised the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fireclosure order just ahead of the Labor Day weekend, reopening over 334 square miles of forest lands.
The revised order makes additional campgrounds and trails available to recreators, but also several game management units to hunters as bow season kicks off.
Some areas remain closed to the public, including Forest Service land in the Gallinas, Tecolote, and Barillas areas, along with the wilderness east of Skyline Trail 251.
Forest officials say additional land will be reopened once it’s safer for the public to be in those areas.
Santa Fe woman accused of embezzling nearly $600K from firm- Associated Press
A Santa Fe woman has been accused of embezzling nearly $600,000 from a landscape architecture firm where she once worked.
A Sept. 19 arraignment has been scheduled for 43-year-old Heather Barna.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Santa Fe County Magistrate Court, Barna is facing felony charges of embezzlement and unlawful use or theft of an ATM or debit card.
It was unclear Sunday if Barna had a lawyer who could speak on her behalf.
Barna worked as an office manager for the landscape architecture firm from October 2020 to January of this year and oversaw payroll for the business.
The company's owner told police that she learned of the alleged crime after another worker noticed a $9,000 charge in the company's bank records that couldn't be explained.
Barna allegedly made 430 unauthorized transfers from the company's account to her personal account totaling more than $490,000 plus 1,419 personal purchases on the company's Amazon account totaling more than $77,000.
Police obtained a search warrant for Barna's bank records and confirmed the unauthorized transactions, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
The newspaper said Barna admitted to taking money to cover surgery costs and repaid only $300,000 of the embezzled funds.