Bernalillo Sheriff's deputies shoot and kill person in Albuquerque
—Albuquerque Journal
Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office deputies shot and killed a person Tuesday evening during a federal crime-fighting operation in Albuquerque’s International District.
The Albuquerque Journal reporIt marked the second time deputies have shot someone since Operation Triple Beam kicked off in early November. It is the first time the person they shot didn't survive.
BSCO Spokesperson Jayme Gonzales said deputies on Tuesday around 6p.m. stopped a motorcycle in the 300 block of Virginia, just southwest of Wyoming and Copper, while working an Auto Theft Operation. According to Gonzales, the motorcyclist fled on foot.
Sometime later, deputies “reengaged the individual” and "during the encounter" at least one deputy fired at the person, killing them.
Gonzales said in the release that no additional details, including the person’s identity, would be released until the deputies who shot were interviewed and the person’s family was notified.
Sen. Heinrich reintroduces act to strengthen tribal buffalo herds
—Source NM
U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) announced Tuesday he is reintroducing legislation to improve federal support for tribal buffalo herds, an effort he said he hopes will return the buffalo within his lifetime “to the prominent place they once occupied as the keystone species on American shortgrass prairies.”
Co-sponsored with U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.,), the Indian Buffalo Management Act directs the federal Interior Department to work with tribes to develop, protect and grow buffalo herds across the country, authorizing up to $14 million annually. The bill seeks to spur more coordination and consistent investment at the Interior Department, which has provided only “nominal” funds over the last 20 years to tribes that want to start or expand buffalo herds, according to a news release from Heinrich’s office.
The InterTribal Buffalo Council, which has been pushing to return buffalo to tribal land for more than 30 years, endorsed the legislation. The council has 89 tribal members in 22 states, including at least 10 New Mexico tribes and pueblos, according to a recent membership list.
“Helping Tribes reestablish herds of buffalo on our reservations is a righteous thing for the Congress to do and will be thoroughly welcomed by Tribes and Indian people across the county,” council leaders, including Delbert Chisholm of Taos Pueblo, said in a statement.
At least 60 million buffalo once roamed throughout much of the United States before European settlers and the United States military destroyed all but a few hundred by the end of the 18th century. Indigenous people relied on the buffalo — “culturally and nutritionally” — for thousands of years, according to the council leaders’ statement.
Versions of the legislation have passed either the House of Representatives or the Senate, but not both, in recent years. Heinrich and Mullin (R-Okla.) also cosponsored the bill last year, and it passed the Senate in December but never received a hearing in the House.
“I’m proud to reintroduce this bipartisan legislation to strengthen federal support for Tribal buffalo programs and continue the growth of Tribal buffalo herds,” Heinrich said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing to work with Senator Mullin to strengthen this federal partnership and secure future funding for this initiative.”
ABQ City Council votes to rezone portion of UNM Campus
—Nob Hill News
Albuquerque’s City Council unanimously approved a proposal to rezone approximately 35 acres on UNM’s south campus on Monday, Dec. 15. According to reporting by the Nob Hill News, the area, slated to be developed into the Lobo Crossing retail center, was changed from a Residential–Multi-family High Density zoning designation to Non-Residential–Commercial.
The change means that the land—which is located within the South Campus Tax Increment Development District (TIDD) —cannot have housing built on it. This conflicts with the original TIDD plan, which specified including 50,000 square feet of residential development.
The purpose of the change is to enable UNM to sell the land to a private owner for the development of the Lobo Crossing retail center. Jim Strozier, principal of the Consensus Planning architectural firm and the agent representing UNM on the request, spoke in favor of the change. He said the amendment would allow large retailers to build in the area, helping address what he described as a “food and retail services desert.”