NM AG, senator to push for bills criminalizing hazing and cyberbullying - By Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
The New Mexico Attorney General and a state senator are calling on lawmakers to create new criminal and civil penalties for those who engage in hazing and cyberbullying, the officials announced at a Thursday news conference in Albuquerque.
Attorney General Raúl Torrez and state Sen. Antonio “Moe” Maestas said prosecutors need additional legal tools to combat both forms of harm that affect young people. They cited recent hazing cases at New Mexico State University and a high school in Santa Fe, along with the scourge of suicides among young people for whom online bullying online was suspected as a contributing factor.
“It’s time to take a stand and protect our children in the digital space, just as we do in the real world,” said Maestas, a Democrat from Albuquerque.
Maestas, who said cyberbullying played a role in a childhood friend’s son’s suicide, announced he would be the primary sponsor on two separate bills at the legislative session beginning Jan. 21.
The cyberbullying bill would make it a fourth degree felony for a public or private school student, to cyberbully a peer who then dies by suicide, so long as prosecutors can prove the bully demonstrated sufficient “reckless disregard” for the peer’s well-being. The bill would also include lesser criminal penalties for cyberbullying that results in great psychological harm or interferes with a student’s academic performance.
Online bullying’s anonymous and pernicious nature requires its own set of legal tools, Torrez said. The threat of a misdemeanor or more serious penalty should deter students from reckless online abuse of a peer, he said.
“Now it’s easy enough for people to send out a text, post something on an app, post something on a platform and really start a snowball effect that amplifies the pressure on people,” Torrez said. “It’s pervasive, and that has to stop.”
The other bill makes hazing, or failure to report hazing, a misdemeanor, with stiffer criminal penalties for hazing that results in injury or death.
The one-and-a-half page definition of hazing mentions an initiation into a student organization that coerces a student into performing a sexual act, putting themselves in fear of bodily harm, or consuming food, alcohol or drugs, among other actions.
In December, Torrez’ office released a 70-page report on hazing by members of the NMSU men’s basketball team, finding that three players “engaged in a months-long scheme of sexualized hazing” against four teammates and two student-managers. The report also found a “toxic culture” and insufficient safeguards allowed the abuse to continue.
The bill would also require colleges and universities to implement codes of conduct, establish committees to prevent hazing and provide anti-hazing education.
New Mexico counts among one of just six states that lack laws criminalizing hazing, Torrez said. While some acts of hazing —such as battery or sexual abuse— can be prosecuted on their own terms, prosecutors are currently limited in their ability to charge people who coerce peers into inappropriate actions, he said.
“This is a comprehensive list,” Torrez said of the new definition of hazing. “And one that is flexible in terms of its definition, to cover all forms of inappropriate physical and psychological pressure or force that could be placed on a student under these conditions, in connection with some organization at their school or university.”
If you or someone you know is considering suicide call or text the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
U.S. Interior Department announces $5.5 M for NM’s orphaned oil and gas wells - By Source New Mexico
The U.S. Interior Department on Thursday announced New Mexico and California will receive $14.5 million to clean up orphaned oil and gas wells. New Mexico’s portion—$5.5 million—will go to “plug up to 10 orphaned wells on state-owned or privately owned lands and remove and dispose of associated surface infrastructure,” according to a news release. The state will also perform analyses and remediation at about two well sites and surface restoration at up to 50 plugged well sites. Both New Mexico and California’s awards are matching grants through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which includes funding for legacy pollution such as abandoned oil and gas wells, which can contaminate water supplies, emit methane and other harms.
“Toxic orphaned oil and gas wells have plagued American communities for generations,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement. “With this funding, California and New Mexico will continue the progress already made plugging wells and begin to turn the tide on these environmental hazards that are harming our lands, waters and air.”
The New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department announced in 2022 an initial $25 million federal grant to work on orphaned oil and gas wells, and began its first plugging operation that year in October in Lea County; according to a EMNRD, the state at the time had approximately 1,700 orphaned wells. The state received an additional $25 million last year.
BernCo’s newest chair looks to balance focus on ‘both sides of the mountain’ - By Rodd Cayton, City Desk ABQ
Newly elected Bernalillo County Commission Chair Eric Olivas says his priorities will largely lie in what the entire county is looking at.
Olivas, elected in 2022, served as vice chair last year. He represents District 5, which includes Uptown Albuquerque and the East Mountains.
“The commission has been very clear with our legislative priorities,” he told City Desk ABQ. “Housing, public safety and behavioral health. We really have to double down and carry these to the finish line.”
Within his own district, Olivas said he wants to make sure “both sides of the mountain” are fairly represented.
His list of projects he’s focused on bears that out, including items such as the Hahn Arroyo Linear Park in Albuquerque and the Los Vecinos Community Center in Tijeras.
Olivas noted Los Vecinos has been around for decades.
“It’s so old and dilapidated,” he said. “The residents there, especially the kids, deserve a world-class facility.”
Olivas said one challenge is advocating for road projects in the East Mountains when roads elsewhere in the county carry much higher numbers of vehicles.
“A lot of the rural roads might have 10 or 20 cars a day,” he said. “But to the people who live there, it’s a lifeline. “
In addition to leading board meetings, the chair is responsible for making appointments to joint county and city committees, which include the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority and the Hispano Chamber of Commerce.
Commissioner Barbara Baca, who was chair for the past two years, nominated Olivas at the start of Tuesday’s meeting.
Commissioner Walt Benson nominated the board’s newest member, Frank Baca, who respectfully declined to seek the position, saying he felt it premature.
Olivas said he thought his experience as vice chair helped prepare him to head the commission.
“I was born and raised and schooled in Bernalillo County,” he said. “I’m honored to represent the commission and the citizens of the county.”
Adriann Barboa was elected vice chair. Both expressed appreciation for Baca’s leadership.
“Over the last two years, we’ve been through a lot,” Olivas said. ”We’ve had a lot of issues and important discussions and challenges that this commission has confronted under your leadership. And I think that we are all better off for having you and your wisdom and your expertise and your steady hand here to guide us.”
New data tool allows journalists and the public to track ‘wandering cops’ in New Mexico — Austin Fisher, Source New Mexico
A new database launched Wednesday gives the public, journalists and policymakers greater insight into police officers in New Mexico who lose their jobs with one agency, sometimes for serious misconduct, and then find work at another.
The New Mexico Department of Public Safety in July 2024 launched its own disciplinary database lookup tool, but it only covers officers who have been sanctioned by the state.
The National Police Index complements that database, and provides more data.
A coalition of journalistic, legal and human rights organizations led by Chicago-based nonprofit Invisible Institute created the database, using officer employment history records from 26 states, including New Mexico.
The NPI’s data on New Mexico cops go back as far as the 1960s, according to information released by Invisible Institute Director of Technology Maheen Khan.
The data include 5,185 currently active officers in New Mexico. Of those, 811 have had three or more employers, 150 have had five or more employers and 252 were previously terminated, Khan said in a statement.
The number of previously terminated officers is only as accurate as local police departments reports turned into DPS, so it’s almost certainly an undercount, according to Khan.
The first systematic investigation of “wandering officers” was published in 2020. Since then, New Mexico lawmakers and law enforcement officials have twice called for DPS to “track” problem officers.
While the NPI does not contain reports of misconduct, it does track officers over their careers and shows the reported reasons for their separation from an agency.
New Mexico’s database followed the creation of the New Mexico Law Enforcement Certification Board in 2023, which oversees the agency responsible for investigating police misconduct, called the Law Enforcement Certification Office.
The LECB replaced an agency heavily criticized for allowing officers to jump around to different jobs with little transparency.
New Mexico’s decertification process relies on local agencies fully and adequately investigating and reporting misconduct up to the LECB.
But journalists from around the state have shown this is often not the case, and a court ruling three years ago blocked public and press access to even more misconduct records.
If a case reaches the LECB, then its members can control whether an officer can hop to another department, said Bobbie Green, the longest-serving citizen-at-large on the board.
Green, who is also president of the Doña Ana County NAACP and second vice president of the New Mexico NAACP, said as a person of color, she tries to limit her interactions with police.
“Most of my family members — most Black people that I know — we are afraid of interactions with the police for obvious reasons. So from that perspective, I’m happy that there is going to be such a database,” she said.
However, Green said it’s difficult because while the public is at risk, officers also have rights, as well. The LECB must follow the rules and regulations, or risk being taken to court. They can’t act on a case that doesn’t get in front of them, she said.
“If the case never reaches us, that is, in my opinion, the loophole,” she said. “If they retire or leave before we get the case, then there’s nothing we can do about officers hopping from one place to another.”
Joshua Calder, the LECB’s first-ever CEO, said in an interview that officers who resign in lieu of termination could be trying to escape accountability; however, state regulation is clear that’s not a way to circumvent the misconduct reporting process. Since Source’s interview with Calder for this story, an email documenting his concerns about the LECB’s independence became public.
“I know that in reality, that may not be the case, and certain administrators may be leveraging — ‘Hey, we won’t file,’ or something — but they’re still required to provide that information to us if it violates New Mexico administrative code or statute,” Calder said.
Daniel Williams, a policing policy advocate at the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, which helped craft the legislation that led to the LECB’s creation, said in an interview the ACLU advocated for a much more expansive state database when the legislation was up for debate.
“Having this database is better than nothing by a long shot,” Williams said. “This is one of the conversations we look forward to continuing to have with lawmakers about the need for transparency, in terms of law enforcement misconduct.”
All New Mexicans want to live in safe communities, and most see police as part of that, Williams said.
“They want to be able to trust in the cops who are going to pull them over when they’ve done something wrong, or going to come help them when something has been done to them,” he said. “Transparency is an essential part of that. We think everyone, including law enforcement, acknowledges that that trust has really broken down over the years.”
ABQ city councilor’s family starts fund to advance research for rare disease — Elizabeth McCall, City Desk ABQ
After her grandson was diagnosed with a rare genetic disease, Albuquerque City Councilor Renée Grout and her family were stunned to find the lack of research on the condition. Now they have created a $3 million fund in hopes of advancing research and treatments.
“We’re trying to not just fund this research, but bring awareness to this disease,” Grout said.
Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), is a genetic condition that can prevent the body from breaking down long chain fatty acids. The acids building up over time can cause damage to nerve cells in the brain which could lead to mobility issues and even paralysis over time.
Grout’s grandson William was diagnosed with ALD when he was a month old. This was the first time William’s parents, Taylor and Tyler Hall, heard of ALD. Taylor was diagnosed as a carrier of ALD shortly after the discovery.
“This was something we didn’t even know what the word was,” Taylor said.
Grout said all the “worst things” come up when researching the condition, such as fatal issues that can happen if it is not flagged early on. Taylor and Tyler noted they were fortunate to be in Texas, where screening newborns for ALD is mandatory.
In 2016, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommended states add ALD to its neonatal screening programs. While most states added ALD screening, some have not. Texas made it mandatory to screen all newborns for ALD in 2019 and New Mexico did the same in 2023.
“New Mexico has the newborn screening, which is great,” Grout said. “Otherwise, I’d be going up to Santa Fe advocating for it.”
After about six months of processing the news, Tyler said there was “a little bit of frustration on just a lack of total funding going towards (ALD)” and he and Taylor decided they wanted to make a difference for their son and others diagnosed with the disease.
“Nearly every single state has [screening], except for, I think, two or three at this point,” Tyler said. “We hope we just kind of raise awareness to it, and that drives those legislators to approve adopting testing for ALD. But our core focus is: Let’s kind of have more solutions for those families that when they get the diagnosis, they don’t see what we see, which is fatal without a cure and leads to lasting impacts under certain scenarios. Our goal is kind of to address the problem and have that diagnosis not be as daunting as it was to us.”
The Hall’s started the “Will to Cure ALD” fund by contacting ALD Connect, then they got the Massachusetts General Hospital — where William’s doctor is — and the University of Utah Health on board. Their goal is to raise $3 million for the organizations and within a month, they have already raised almost $2 million.
“My parents put forth a million-dollar commitment and are also matching every donation until we hit the goal,” Tyler said. “About 150 people have donated. We’ve had pledges ranging from $25 to $100,000 and I think we’ve been blown away by every single one…We’ve tried to keep up with just making sure everyone feels our gratitude towards them.”
Grout said she’s grateful for her grandson’s team of doctors, but also of his parents.
“I’m very proud of them,” Grout said. “I’m grateful that William has a good team of doctors in place and he has great parents that are advocating for him.”
Read more about the Hall’s story and their initiative here.
ABQ man arrested for threatening posts toward Trump, Musk, others - By Nicole Maxwell, New Mexico Political Report
An Albuquerque man was arrested Tuesday for allegedly threatening President-elect Donald Trump, Elon Musk and others on social media.
As first reported by Court Watch, federal court records show Tyler Miles Leveque, 37, is accused of threatening to kill Trump, Musk and other unnamed CEOs.
The posts included references to Trump’s rally scheduled for Jan. 19, the day before Trump’s inauguration, according to a criminal complaint.
The posts began Jan. 3 and a federal case was filed Jan. 8, according to court documents.
The criminal complaint states Leveque was interviewed by U.S. Secret Service on Jan. 6, where he admitted to buying a firearm from an unnamed Albuquerque business.
Leveque posted to Facebook, under the handle tycodancer, that he had just bought his first gun and wrote, “Hey world hey America hey trump hey ceos get rich we are hunting you down! Hahaha I’m getting ready myself! Here we come it ends now,” court records show.
Leveque has not been officially charged with a crime yet and no hearings have been scheduled.
Court records show the criminal complaint against him was for his alleged threats against someone from across state lines.
Leveque has a minimal criminal record with the most recent charge being a traffic citation in 2019.
County casitas restrictions loosened - By Rodd Cayton, City Desk ABQ
More Bernalillo County residents can now build casitas on their properties, after county commissioners Tuesday approved zoning changes.
Zoning administrator Maggie Gould said the measure will simplify the approval process for owners of one-acre or larger lots, and allow owners of smaller lots to seek special permits to erect casitas.
She said the new rules include relaxed requirements for some property owners, including those in the East Mountains whose land is limited by topography — changes in elevation around the property.
“Maybe the primary house is here on a flat spot, and the secondary house is going to be over here on another flat spot, but they are farther apart [than previous code allowed],” Gould explained.
Gould said the new rules will not permit manufactured homes as casitas.
“The idea is that you’re building kind of a long-term quality residential unit,” Gould said. “They have to be a conventional stick-built home or a modular home.”