Jury convicts failed New Mexico political candidate in drive-by shootings at officials' homes - Associated Press
A jury has convicted a failed political candidate of numerous federal charges in connection with a series of drive-by shootings at the homes of state and local lawmakers in Albuquerque in the aftermath of the 2020 election.
Former Republican candidate Solomon Peña had pleaded not guilty to 13 charges including conspiracy, weapons-related charges and interference with federally protected activities in connection with the shootings in December 2022 and January 2023 on the homes of four Democratic officials, including the current state House speaker.
The attacks took place as threats and acts of intimidation against election workers and public officials surged across the country after President Donald Trump and his allies called into question the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.
Prosecutors allege that Peña resorted to violence in the belief that a "rigged" election had robbed him of victory in his bid to serve in the state Legislature.
The shootings targeted the homes of officials including two county commissioners after their certification of the 2022 election, in which Peña lost by nearly 50 percentage points. No one was injured, but in one case bullets passed through the bedroom of a state senator's 10-year-old daughter.
Defense attorneys say Peña was not involved in the shootings and that prosecutors were relying on the testimony of two men who bear responsibility and accepted plea agreements in exchange for leniency.
Peña faces a possible sentence of life in prison. His legal team plans to appeal.
"The verdict this evening is a travesty," attorney Nicholas Hart said in a statement. "The evidence showed that Mr. Peña had nothing to do with these shootings. Solomon Pena was prosecuted because of his political beliefs, and because he advocated that the 2020 election was stolen and rigged."
Jurors listened to more than a week of testimony from elected officials who were targeted, investigators and Peña's co-conspirators. Demetrio Trujillo and son Jose Trujillo previously pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with the shootings.
Peña was arrested in January 2023 and held since then in state and then federal custody. The weapons charges included allegations that Peña fired a machine gun in relation to a crime of violence.
A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.
NM lawmakers move to protect waters that lost protection following SCOTUS ruling - By Hannah Grover, New Mexico Political Report
When the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in the Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency case in 2023, the majority of waterways in New Mexico lost their protections under the Clean Water Act.
Now state lawmakers are seeking to rectify that situation. Senate Bill 21 is headed to the governor’s desk after the House of Representatives passed it on a 43-25 vote this week.
“New Mexico has the highest percentage (95%) of surface waters in the nation no longer protected by the federal Clean Water Act,” Zoe Barker, the conservation director of Conservation Voters New Mexico, said in a statement following the passage of the legislation. “In an arid climate like ours, every surface water, whether it is ephemeral or intermittent or runs year-round is important – for wildlife, for agriculture, for recreation, for aquifer recharge and for drinking water.”
“This is a monumental moment for our water because we know our water can’t wait,” she said.
Bill sponsor Rep. Kristina Ortez, D-Taos, said the legislation does three main things.
First, the legislation would pave the way for New Mexico to take over permitting of discharge permits that are currently overseen by the EPA. New Mexico is one of only three states that does not have authority over discharge permits.
“Secondly, we amend our own state Water Quality Act to protect New Mexico’s waters that are no longer protected,” she said. “Third, we set up a program to hold polluters accountable and to clean up neglected and contaminated sites.”
Some of the details, such as the size of permitting fees, will be worked out during a rulemaking process that the New Mexico Environment Department will undertake. Ortez said most states that oversee the permitting have a hybrid structure where the program costs are paid partially through the state general fund and partially through permit fees.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham expressed a commitment following the Sackett decision to protect state waterways.
Some of the waterways that lost protections include arroyos, intermittent streams and seasonal creeks. These waterways can still play an important role in the water systems and pollutants discharged into them can impact larger waterways and groundwater.
“Our land-based communities depend on clean water in our streams, headwaters, and wetlands to irrigate our fields and care for our livestock,” Paula Garcia, executive director of the New Mexico Acequia Association, said in a news release. “A state-based permitting system will help protect our acequias and farms for the future.”
Teen accused in deadly hit-and-run deemed a danger to others, as police arrest 3rd suspect - By Susan Montoya Bryan Associated Press
A now 13-year-old boy charged with murder in an apparently deliberate hit-and-run that targeted a bicyclist on his way to work was ordered Wednesday to remain in custody, as authorities in Albuquerque announced the search was over for another teen wanted in connection with the case.
The boy ordered to remain in custody is believed to be the driver of the car involved in the May 2024 hit-and-run that killed 63-year-old physicist Scott Dwight Habermehl while he was biking to his job at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque. He was 12 years old at the time.
Authorities say there were two other boys in the car that morning — one who had just turned 11 and another who was 15 at the time.
The two older boys have been charged with an open count of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, leaving the scene of an accident involving great bodily harm or death and unlawful possession of a handgun by a person, police said in a statement.
The district attorney's office confirmed Wednesday that the youngest boy will also face a murder charge. A little over a week after the fatal crash, police had arrested him on an unrelated felony warrant, according to law enforcement.
Video of the crash was recorded from inside the car and circulated on social media. It was reported to authorities by people including a middle school principal after a student flagged it.
Deputy District Attorney Bridget McKenney played the video Wednesday at a children's court hearing for the 13-year-old. The video shows the car accelerating as the flashing tail light of a bicycle becomes visible. A voice believed to be the older teen says, "Just bump him, brah."
She also shared photos of the vehicle, the right side of its windshield shattered, its hood dented and the bumper damaged.
"I don't know a better word than callous behavior for what we've seen," McKenney told the court. "You can hear the impact of the victim slamming into the windshield. You can see them turn the camera as they speed off watching the victim hit the ground."
She said Habermehl was left dying on the roadside while the boys swapped vehicles and went on with their lives.
Michael Rosenfield, a publicly appointed attorney for the 13-year-old defendant, entered a denial to the charges on his behalf.
The attorney told the judge that the boy had been put on probation in December for an unrelated case and had been following the requirements and doing well. Rosenfield suggested there were conditions of supervision that would allow the teen to be released from custody.
Judge Catherine Begaye disagreed, finding that the child is a danger to others.
The Associated Press doesn't typically name people under 18 accused of a crime.
As for the now 16-year-old, authorities earlier this week urged the boy to turn himself in. Detectives conducted surveillance and arrested him without incident on Wednesday, said Gilbert Gallegos, a spokesperson with the Albuquerque Police Department.
A similar case involving teenage boys who allegedly recorded themselves deliberately hitting a bicyclist who ended up dying happened in Las Vegas in 2023. One of those teens was found unfit to stand trial.
Pentagon restores histories of Navajo Code Talkers, other Native veterans after public outcry - By Terry Tang, Associated Press
The Pentagon restored some webpages highlighting the crucial wartime contributions of Navajo Code Talkers and other Native American veterans on Wednesday, days after tribes condemned the action.
The initial removal was part of a sweep of any military content that promoted diversity, equity and inclusion, or commonly referred to as DEI. Following President Donald Trump's broader executive order ending the federal government's DEI programs, the Defense Department deleted thousands of pages honoring contributions by women and minority groups. Department officials say the Navajo Code Talker material was erroneously erased.
"In the rare cases that content is removed — either deliberately or by mistake — that is out of the clearly outlined scope of the directive, we instruct the components and they correct the content so it recognizes our heroes for their dedicated service alongside their fellow Americans, period," Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot said in a statement.
Several webpages on the Code Talkers landed on a "404 - Page not found" message Tuesday. Some were back up Wednesday — although any that also mention Native American Heritage Month remain down. Thousands of other pages deleted in the DEI purge are still offline.
White House officials informed the Navajo Nation that an artificial intelligence-powered automated review process looking for content with DEI initiatives led to the elimination of anything mentioning "Navajo," according to a statement from Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren.
Nygren, who sent a letter to the Defense Department requesting clarity on the issue, said he's pleased by the resolution.
"I want to assure the Navajo people that we remain in close communication with federal officials to ensure the legacy of our cherished Navajo Code Talkers is never erased from American and Navajo history," Nygren said.
He also pointed out the 574 federally recognized tribes across the U.S. are sovereign nations and not defined by DEI classifications, a stance broadly supported by other Native American leaders who also sent letters to the Trump administration.
The U.S. Marine Corps initially recruited 29 Navajo men to develop a code based on the unwritten Navajo language in World War II. Using Navajo words for red soil, war chief, clan, braided hair, beads, ant and hummingbird, for example, they came up with a glossary of more than 200 terms, later expanded, and an alphabet. To convey the word "send," Code Talkers would say the Navajo words for "sheep, eyes, nose and deer."
Hundreds of Navajos followed in their footsteps, sending thousands of messages without error on Japanese troop movements, battlefield tactics and other communications crucial to the war's ultimate outcome. The code stumped Japanese military cryptologists.
The Code Talkers participated in all assaults the Marines led in the Pacific from 1942 to 1945 and are credited with helping the U.S. win the war. Hundreds of Native Americans from more than 20 tribes also served as code talkers during World War I and World War II, according to the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. Among them were Choctaw, Cherokee, Osage, Chippewa and Hopi speakers.
Among those alarmed to hear of the missing Navajo Code Talker webpages was Peter MacDonald, 96. He and Thomas H. Begay are the only two Navajo Code Talkers still living today.
"That code became a very valuable weapon and not only saved hundreds of thousands of soldiers, but it also helped win the war in the Pacific," MacDonald said by phone from his home in Tuba City in the Arizona portion of the Navajo Nation. "And it has absolutely nothing to do with DEI."
A Republican who voted for Trump, MacDonald said he thinks the current administration needs to better walk the line between getting rid of DEI and ignoring history.
"That's why I'm very concerned that communication from the Pentagon down to the various military units should be taught or learn that this information is history, and you don't want to hide history," MacDonald said.
The Defense Department has had to issue reassurances that it is not omitting historic achievements by servicemen and women of color. Besides the Code Talkers, the agency also on Wednesday restored a webpage describing baseball and civil rights icon Jackie Robinson's military service after it was missing earlier in the day. Last week, pages honoring a Black Medal of Honor winner and Japanese American service members were also restored.
"Everyone at the Defense Department loves Jackie Robinson, as well as the Navajo Code Talkers, the Tuskegee airmen, the Marines at Iwo Jima and so many others — we salute them for their strong and in many cases heroic service to our country, full stop," Ullyot said. "We do not view or highlight them through the prism of immutable characteristics, such as race, ethnicity or sex."
Michael Smith, whose father, Samuel "Jesse" Smith Sr., was a Navajo Code Talker, questioned why these pages were removed at all.
"I don't know how taking Navajo Code Talkers off the Department of Defense website is saving the United States any money because that's not consistent with the president's order," said Smith, who helps organize annual celebrations of the Code Talkers.
Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis of the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona also expressed disappointment, claiming there was missing content relating to all Native American veterans, including Ira Hayes. Hayes was an enrolled member of the tribe and one of six Marines featured in an iconic 1945 Associated Press photograph of U.S. forces raising an American flag during the Battle of Iwo Jima.
Even with some being reposted, he remains worried web content removal is "the tip of the iceberg."
"The way it looks in the (executive) order, this language is skewed and made to sound like the diversity programs are the ones that are unethical," Smith said.
NM officials tout support for veterans - By Source New Mexico
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez on Thursday announced the state has joined 50 other attorneys general in an amicus brief before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in support of U.S. Army veteran Lieutenant Colonel Paul Yoon and U.S. Air Force veteran Colonel Toby Doran, both of whom the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs denied G.I. Bill education benefits.
New Mexico stands with our veterans — not just in gratitude, but in action,” Torrez said in a statement. “These brave men and women have earned every bit of their education benefits through sacrifice and service. The VA’s restrictive interpretation is not only unjust, but unlawful, and we’re committed to fighting for the full support our veterans and their families deserve.”
The brief argues that the VA’s interpretation of the G.I. bills contradicts a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court and the precedent it set. “Despite the clear precedent, the VA has continued to limit benefits based on an erroneous reading of the ruling, depriving veterans and their families of critical educational opportunities,” a news release from the AG’s office said.
In other veterans news, U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) this week cosponsored the Major Richard Star Act—bipartisan legislation backers say is intended to provide combat-injured veteran retirees their full benefits.
“The men and women who risked their lives for our country and were injured in combat deserve the full benefits they have earned. Too many veterans have been left behind, and it’s far past time we correct this grave injustice,” Luján said in a statement.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Thursday signed two bills aimed at veterans:
House Bill 47, which implements constitutional amendments voters approved in the 2024 general election that will raise veteran property tax exemption from $4,000 to $10,000 starting this year, with adjustments for inflation in subsequent years, among other tax relief; and House Bill 161, which provides veterans residing in New Mexico free access to state parks, including unlimited day-use passes and camping passes.
“These new laws represent our state’s deep appreciation for the service of our veterans,” Secretary Jamison Herrera, brigadier general (retired), of the Department of Veterans Services said in a statement. “The property tax relief will provide meaningful financial support to veterans and their families, while access to our state parks offers opportunities for recreation and healing in New Mexico’s beautiful outdoor spaces.”
New Mexico officials’ actions come amid concerns from veterans about proposed cuts to the VA, including in New Mexico where veterans rallied at the Roundhouse earlier in March. In a video posted on social media March 5, VA Secretary Doug Collins said the administration’s target to cut 15% of the VA’s workforce will be done without decreasing benefits and health care to veterans and other beneficiaries.
Republicans balk at Gov’s $10M request for Northern NM reproductive health care clinic - Leah Romero & Danielle Prokop, Source New Mexico
In a last minute addition to capital outlay projects, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham added a $10 million request for the construction of a reproductive health clinic in Northern New Mexico.
Representatives on Wednesday afternoon debated House Bill 450, which outlines $1.2 billion in capital outlay projects across the state. According to the bill, the clinic funds would be allocated to the University of New Mexico as the fiscal agent.
Republican lawmakers quickly jumped on the additional line item, questioning whether the project is “shovel-ready” with a location chosen and construction ready to begin. Bill sponsor Rep. Derrick Lente (D-Sandia Pueblo) said as far as he knows, a location has yet to be chosen.
“How do we know the money is actually going to get spent?” Rep. John Block (R-Alamogordo) asked on the House floor. “We always talk about fiscal responsibility, we always talk about wanting to spend money that we’ve appropriated, so how can we ensure that this money will indeed be given out for [this] purpose.”
Rep. Rebecca Dow (R-Truth or Consequences) told the floor she has heard that Raton is a possible location, situated to serve Northern New Mexicans as well as people coming across the border from Colorado.
However, Jodi McGinnis Porter, deputy director of communications for the governor’s office, told Source NM that a location has not been identified and a project timeline is not available.
“Gov. Lujan Grisham believes access to reproductive healthcare is a fundamental human right. Ensuring access to safe reproductive healthcare prevents life-threatening risks such as untreated ectopic pregnancies,” McGinnis Porter told Source in an emailed statement. “The $10 million investment in the Center for Reproductive Health in Northern New Mexico will help meet the need following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, which has sharply increased demand for reproductive services. The clinic will provide comprehensive care including medication and procedural abortion, contraception options, miscarriage management, and preventative care services.”
The Northern New Mexico project is similar to one currently underway in Las Cruces’ East mesa, which also received $10 million in state funds for construction in 2023. Details of this project were limited more than a year following the appropriation, before organizers announced the location in Las Cruces in late summer.
State and local officials broke ground in September 2024 and, at the time, Michael Richards, interim executive vice president of UNM Health Sciences and CEO of the UNM Health System, said organizers would finalize building plans in the weeks following the groundbreaking and choose a contractor. He said construction would take about 18 months once started.
The Las Cruces project is a collaboration between UNM’s Health Sciences Center and advocacy organizations Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, Bold Futures and Strong Families New Mexico. McGinnis Porter told Source NM that she could not confirm that the same group was involved in the Northern New Mexico health center.
Christopher Ramirez, spokesperson for UNM Health Sciences Center, told Source in an emailed statement that the university does not generally comment on “funding matters” until they are signed by the governor.
“UNM is appreciative of the thoughtful work done by both the Executive and Legislature to ensure that we are able to fulfill our mission to provide exceptional health care and health outcomes for all New Mexicans,” Ramirez told Source in an email. “As with all items relating to UNM, this capital outlay funding will be thoroughly analyzed, and our teams will continue working with the Legislature and the Executive to understand UNM’s role.”
McGinnis Porter also told Source that Gina DeBlassie, secretary of the Department of Health, noted that the proposed Northern New Mexico center will also provide pregnancy loss support and management, lactation support, women’s preventative care, sexually transmitted infection screenings, cancer screenings, adoption education and resources, doula support and limited primary care, including pap smears and checkups for sexual health care.
Rep. Rod Montoya (R-Farmington) introduced a floor amendment to HB450, eliminating the $10 million request, calling it a “pill too hard to swallow.” Members of the House eventually voted to table the amendment.
Lente told Montoya that the amendment was unfriendly because it set a bad precedent to veto one specific item.
“We were able to identify projects that were important…in our respective districts. The governor had that same capability,” he said. “And if this is important to her administration, I have no place to say that I want to strike it, the same way that I expect that when this bill hopefully passes and we can get these projects funded, she would not touch any one of our projects…with her veto power.”
Speaker of the House Javier Martínez (D-Albuquerque) had to frequently ask House Republicans to keep their questions and comments on the bill, rather than the topic of abortion. The bill itself does not mention abortion.
House Republicans said their biggest objection to the clinic was for the potential for its doctors to provide abortion services, and they did not want “their state funds” going toward an abortion clinic.
“It’s not as if abortion is not available in New Mexico. It’s not as if abortion, completely unrestricted, hasn’t been available in New Mexico since the early 2000s,” Montoya said.
Rep. Christine Chandler (D-Los Alamos) called Montoya’s reading of the original bill “narrow” because reproductive health also includes pap screening, screening for sexually transmitted infections and more.
Rep. Susan Herrera (D-Embudo) added that the debate over abortion is something that comes up every session and people continue to disagree.
“I’ve told families in my district: It’s not about my decision, it’s not about my beliefs. It’s about really families being able to make their own healthcare decisions, and I think that’s the most important thing,” she said.
At about 5:30 p.m., Rep. Randall Pettigrew (R-Lovington) introduced another amendment to HB450 to remove the appropriation for the reproductive health center. Lente said the amendment was trying to accomplish the same thing, and was therefore unfriendly. As of press time, lawmakers were still debating the amendment.
Daniel Chavez enters ABQ mayoral race - By Rodd Cayton, City Desk ABQ
The field of candidates hoping to be the next mayor of Albuquerque continues to swell.
The latest entrant, according to reports, is Daniel Chavez, the president of a parking lot company in Albuquerque. City records show that as of Wednesday afternoon Chavez has not yet filed the paperwork to run.
Chavez, the president of Parking Company of America, is the fifth declared candidate, joining incumbent Mayor Tim Keller, retired Albuquerque Fire Chief Eddie Varela, former Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White, 2024 New Mexico House of Representatives candidate Patrick Sais and former deputy manager for Sandoval County Mayling Armijo.
City Councilor Louie Sanchez hasn’t declared his candidacy, but told CityDesk ABQ he’s considering a run for mayor.
The deadline for candidates to file is June 21. Early voting for the Nov. 4 election begins Oct. 18.
If necessary, a runoff election will take place Dec. 7, which would take place if no candidate receives a majority of the votes in the general election. A runoff is possible, as a higher number of candidates lessens the likeliness of a candidate receiving a majority of votes in the first round.
Keller in July vetoed a proposal to eliminate the majority requirement. The City Council decided not to attempt to override the veto.
The large number of candidates has already caused one potential candidate to forgo the race. Conservative radio personality Eddy Aragon, who challenged Keller in 2021, said Wednesday he’s not running again.
Aragon said a growing field improves Keller’s chance of election to a third term. He also expressed concern about the city’s ability to provide more than $750,000 to each candidate who opts for public financing. So far, Keller, Varela, Sais and White have announced they’ll take public financing.
Chavez did not respond to phone calls seeking comment.
Albuquerque voters will also choose five city councilors.
Bill targeting sales of parts to convert firearms into automatic weapons clears Senate - By Hannah Grover, New Mexico Political Report
Sen. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, said it is not difficult for people to go online and find parts intended to convert firearms into automatic weapons, which are illegal in the United States. While on the Senate floor, he listed a few of the websites that offer these products.
Now he is pushing legislation that could create penalties for such sales.
Senate Bill 18 would allow New Mexico to regulate firearms and destructive devices under the Unfair Practices Act. Under SB 318, these websites could face civil penalties, such as fines.
SB 318 passed the Senate on a 21-18 vote Tuesday and now must move through the House of Representatives with only days left in the session.
“The goal of this bill is straightforward: making sure that those who manufacture, distribute, market, and sell weapon conversion devices are held liable for the consequences of doing so,” Cervantes said in a statement. “Near to my district, we all remember the Walmart El Paso mass shooting, a man driving hundreds of miles specifically to El Paso to kill Mexicans and relying on one of these so-called ‘Glock switches.’ You shouldn’t be able to take a Glock and convert a handgun to shoot 40 rounds a second. And it’s not just mass carnage these weapons can inflict; I think back to our law enforcement – there’s no reason why our law enforcement should be out in the streets out-gunned by their adversaries.”
Republicans including Sen. Ant Thornton, R-Sandia Park, and Senate Minority Floor Leader William Sharer, R-Farmington, argued that SB 318 is too broad and could impact e-commerce outside of the firearms sector.
“We’re talking about a gun bill that doesn’t have anything to do with guns, really, it has to do everything to do with suing anybody for any reason, if we can find the smallest reason that it might have possibly been unfair to somebody, somewhere,” Sharer said.
Sen. Jay Block, R-Rio Rancho, argued that SB 318 will enrich lawyers at the expense of New Mexicans.
“These lawyers…are not making our lives safer,” he said. “Common sense does that. This is nothing but a money grab bill and everybody knows it.”
Sen. Nicole Tobiassen, R-Albuquerque, argued that SB 318 will raise insurance premiums on small business owners that rely on online commerce.
“We’re not open for business in New Mexico, we’re closed. This bill is the nail in the coffin for every single one of us, and I’m absolutely outraged,” she said.
Cervantes addressed claims that the New Mexico Trial Lawyers Association brought SB 318 to him.
“They had nothing to do with writing it, they had nothing to do with the idea,” he said. “This is entirely my effort to try and address gun violence in New Mexico by recognizing that our law enforcement officers are on the streets against people that are armed with automatic weapons.”