Defense attorney and third Albuquerque officer take plea deals in DWI corruption case - By Matthew Reisen and Colleen Heild, Albuquerque Journal
A third Albuquerque officer and the prominent defense attorney at the center of a yearslong bribery and racketeering scheme involving DWI officers have taken plea deals in the case.
The plea agreements for Thomas Clear III, 67, and Neill Elsman, an officer who resigned last year, were filed in U.S. District Court on Wednesday.
Clear pleaded guilty to racketeering, bribery and two counts of attempted interference with commerce by extortion. Elsman pleaded to receiving a bribe and two counts of attempted interference with commerce by extortion.
The filings came one day after Clear was suspended from practicing law by the New Mexico Supreme Court over allegations that he paid officers to let his clients’ DWI cases get dropped.
Elsman, who was formerly with the DWI unit, resigned from the Albuquerque Police Department in August after returning from military leave. He is one of 12 officers placed on leave after the allegations came to light.
In the past month, Clear's former paralegal Ricardo "Rick" Mendez along with former Albuquerque officers Honorio Alba Jr. and Joshua Montaño have also taken plea deals in the case, naming Clear as an accomplice.
On Friday, the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Mexico sought to seize Clear's Northeast Heights law office, alleging it was the hub of a criminal enterprise, what federal prosecutors have called the “DWI Enterprise.”
In their separate plea agreements, Mendez, Alba and Montaño admitted Clear was a central figure in the scheme, in which officers were paid thousands, corrupted other officers and asked superiors to protect the scheme.
Officers received kickbacks in exchange for referring DWI suspects to Clear and then missed court, or failed to file evidence, allowing Clear to seek dismissals of the cases pretrial.
Up until Wednesday, Clear hadn’t been charged criminally in the case, which came to light in January 2024 when FBI agents raided the law office of Clear, Mendez’s home and the homes of several officers, including Alba and Montaño.
Santa Fe County and its sheriff’s department won’t participate in federal immigration enforcement - By Nash Jones, KUNM News
The Santa Fe County Commission unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday confirming that the county supports residents without legal status and won’t participate in federal immigration enforcement.
The resolution from Commissioner Lisa Cacari Stone states that the county jail won’t house people detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for violating immigration laws. Nor will it “honor administrative warrants or hold requests” from the agency.
It goes on to make clear that the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office does not “directly enforce immigration laws” and that county resources cannot be used to gather residents’ immigration status “unless expressly required by law.”
According to the resolution, the county will create a resource page for local immigrants, train employees on the resolution and create a team to “identify and explore potential solutions to service gaps for immigrant residents.”
The New Mexico Republican Party characterized the resolution as “instructing blatant defiance” against ICE and calling on Attorney General Raúl Torrez to challenge the county to uphold federal law.
New Mexico Supreme Court suspends attorney wrapped up in DWI corruption case - Matthew Reisen, Albuquerque Journal
A prominent defense attorney was suspended by the New Mexico Supreme Court on Tuesday over allegations that he paid officers to let his clients’ DWI cases get dropped.
Attorney Thomas Clear III “is hereby indefinitely suspended from the practice of law, effective immediately,” according to an order handed down Tuesday afternoon. With the decision, Clear is now effectively banned from practicing law in New Mexico. His attorney could not be reached Tuesday.
The suspension came amid a rough stretch for Clear.
In the last three weeks, his former paralegal and two Albuquerque officers have taken plea deals in a racketeering case, naming him as an accomplice; a federal judge demanded Clear explain why he shouldn’t be disciplined for his alleged role; and on Friday, prosecutors sought to seize his Northeast Heights law office for forfeiture, alleging it was the hub of a criminal enterprise.
After being asked to show cause of why he shouldn’t face discipline, Clear asked the federal judge to either allow him to resign as a member of the bar, be suspended for an indefinite period of time or hold off taking any disciplinary action until Clear asks to resign.
The developments all revolve around what federal prosecutors have called the “DWI Enterprise” — a group of officers taking bribes to let cases get dismissed since 2008 at the behest of Ricardo “Rick” Mendez, the paralegal, and Clear.
Former Albuquerque Police Department officers Honorio Alba Jr. and Joshua Montaño, in plea agreements signed last week, admitted that they took thousands in cash and gifts from Mendez and Clear, corrupted other officers and asked superiors to protect the scheme.
Clear hasn’t been charged criminally in the case, which came to light in January 2024 when FBI agents raided the law office of Clear, Mendez’s home and the homes of several officers, including Alba and Montaño.
APD launched its own internal probe after the raids and placed 12 officers on leave, 10 of whom have since resigned, retired or been fired. The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office has placed one deputy on leave in connection with the FBI’s case.
Because the involved officers’ credibility potentially could be questioned, 2nd Judicial District Attorney Sam Bregman’s office dismissed more than 200 DWI cases that were pending.
10 new cases of measles reported in West Texas county and New Mexico - Associated Press
Public health authorities said Tuesday that an outbreak of measles in western Texas has expanded, while a new case was confirmed nearby across state lines in New Mexico.
The Texas Department of State Health Services has identified 24 measles cases in connection with the onset of symptoms within the last two weeks. Gaines County, a small county in West Texas, has one of the highest rates of vaccine exemptions in the state.
In neighboring Lea County, New Mexico, residents were alerted Tuesday to the measles infection of an unvaccinated teenager, as well as the possible exposure of more people in Lovington at a hospital emergency room and sixth grade school gymnasium.
"The New Mexico youth had no recent travel or exposure to known cases from the Texas outbreak," the New Mexico Department of Health said in a news release.
Nine of the measles patients in Texas have been hospitalized. All of the confirmed cases in Gaines County involve unvaccinated residents.
Measles is a highly contagious virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Before the vaccine was introduced in 1963, the U.S. saw some 3 million to 4 million cases per year. Now, it's usually fewer than 200 in a normal year.
Local health officials in Gaines County set up a drive-through vaccination clinic last week and are offering screening services to residents. The New Mexico Department of Health announced a no-appointment vaccination clinics in Hobbs, starting next week.
The U.S. saw a rise in measles cases in 2024, including an outbreak in Chicago that sickened more than 60.
Texas law allows children to get an exemption from school vaccines for reasons of conscience, including religious beliefs. The percentage of kids with exemptions has risen over the last decade from 0.76% in 2014 to 2.32% last year, according to Texas Department of State Health Services data.
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New Mexico House panel signs off on press shield bill - Austin Fisher, Source New Mexico
The House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee voted in a 4-2 party line vote on Tuesday afternoon to pass an amended version of a proposal to strengthen and update New Mexico’s press shield law.
House Bill 153’s purpose is to lay down the rules by which the executive and legislative branches can compel confidential sources and documents from journalists, Charles Purcell, an attorney and expert on New Mexico’s press shield law and court rule, told the committee.
The committee’s members unanimously agreed to adopt amendments to include New Mexico’s legislative branch among the state entities that would be prohibited from compelling a journalist from disclosing confidential sources or information. The bill already included the executive branch and “administrative” state agencies.
The amendments also clarify that the law puts limitations on subpoenas. It previously placed limits on “the content of any testimony.”
Rep. Sarah Silva (D-Las Cruces) said there are more than 54 state agencies, boards, commissions and cabinet secretaries who have subpoena power in New Mexico.
Purcell said the bill intentionally adopts a broad definition of who is a journalist to include social media influencers and bloggers who regularly publish newsworthy information. Existing law only includes people who are employed by a news organization, he said.
Supporters in committee on Tuesday included representatives of the Albuquerque Journal, the New Mexico Press Association and the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico.
There were no opponents in the committee audience or online but Reps. John Block (R-Alamogordo) and Stefani Lord (R-Sandia Park) tried to table the bill. They were outvoted by the rest of the committee.
The bill heads next to the House Judiciary Committee.
Deb Haaland announces run for NM governor - By Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
Former Interior Secretary and New Mexico congresswoman Deb Haaland made a long-rumored run for governor official early Tuesday morning, posting a two-minute video announcing her intent to be the first Indigenous woman governor of the state.
Haaland, a Democrat and member of the Laguna Pueblo, said in the video posted on social media Tuesday morning that she would soon begin a listening tour across the state.
“The problems we face now are bigger than ever, and we must be fierce to solve them,” Haaland said. “That’s why I am running for governor of the great state of New Mexico. New Mexico is rich in tradition and spirit, rich in natural resources. So why can’t our families pay our bills?”
She cited rising costs as major problems facing New Mexicans, along with crime, poverty, homelessness and addiction. She also touted her successes in Congress and the Interior Department, where she said she helped small businesses, boosted solar power use in the state, plugged old oil wells and partnered with rural communities to protect their water.
Haaland introduced herself in the video as the child of military parents who moved around a lot, and as a single mother with 35 years of sobriety who worked at a bakery and sold homemade salsa before getting into politics.
As the Interior Secretary under former president Joe Biden, she was the first Indigenous cabinet member in United States history.
The government’s role, she said in the video Tuesday morning, is to make success easier for small businesses, lower costs, prevent crime, strengthen schools and make rent and housing affordable. “The solutions are there if we are fierce enough to choose them,” she said.
Speculation had built for months that Haaland would run for governor and potentially face off against U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, also a Democrat, in a primary. But Heinrich late last month announced he would stay in the Senate.
Haaland is the only declared candidate for the election, which takes place Nov. 3, 2026.
New Mexico celebrates hydraulics and heritage with lowrider car holiday - By Morgan Lee, Associated Press
State lawmakers are embracing New Mexico's time-honored culture of transforming customized lowrider cars into rolling canvases of artistic expression and a source of community pride.
House and Senate lawmakers designated Tuesday as Lowrider Day at the state Capitol, marked by celebrations of Latino tradition and history. Proposed legislation would go farther by creating specialty license plates in tribute to lowriders.
Legislators including state Sen. Leo Jaramillo also are drafting a bill this year that would enshrine the lowrider as New Mexico's state vehicle — alongside the roadrunner as state bird and the spikey yucca state flower. Lawmakers also envision a future lowrider museum in the car-crazed city Española, 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Santa Fe.
Jaramillo says the Upper Rio Grande Valley emerged as the cradle of lowrider car culture in the 1960s as Vietnam War mechanics brought their skills to bear on customized cars. Decades later, an MTV crew documented New Mexico lowrider traditions and labeled the Española valley as the "lowrider capital of the world."
Lowrider enthusiasts on Tuesday parked vehicles near a statehouse entrance, including a vintage Pontiac Grand Prix in sparkling-fuchsia paint and an eyepopping, orange Cadillac with golden wire-rim wheels.
"It's more than just a moving piece of art. It's also STEM in motion, the science of hydraulics, the mixing of paint," said Jaramillo said. "When I speak to kids in Española about lowriding, I always remind them about the science behind it."
Democratic state Rep. Cynthia Borrego said lowriders are intertwined with memories of growing up in small-town New Mexico and cruising in cars on weekends during the 1970s and '80s. In recent years, New Mexico cities including Albuquerque have rolled back ordinances that restricted "cruising," by labeling it as a nuisance. Today, Borrego said, entire families embrace lowrider traditions.
"People bring up their kids, knowing how to work on cars, how to show them," she said. "It does sort of became a family thing."
On the House floor on Tuesday, state Rep. Art De La Cruz of Albuquerque reminisced about his first car — a 1964 Chevrolet Impala and makeshift lowrider.
"We couldn't afford these fancy hydraulics. ... All we could do was put weights in the back of the car" to lower the suspension, he said. "I put cement sacks in there. It worked. It didn't hop."