Jury begins deliberations in landmark New Mexico trial over children's safety risks on Meta - By Morgan Lee, Associated Press
A jury began deliberations Monday in a landmark trial in New Mexico where social media conglomerate Meta is accused of misleading its users about how safe its platforms are for children.
Meta's attorneys dispute the claims and say the company provides built-in protections for teenagers and weeds out harmful content but that some potentially harmful gets past its safety nets for some users.
Jurors heard closing arguments after six weeks of testimony from scores of witnesses that included local teachers, psychiatric experts, state investigators, top Meta officials and whistleblowers who left the company.
The case in New Mexico state court is among the first to reach trial in a wave of litigation involving social media platforms and their impacts on children.
New Mexico prosecutors have accused Meta — which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp — of prioritizing profits over safety in violation of state consumer protection laws. They have raised concerns about the safety of complex algorithms, and a variety of messaging features and settings.
"It's clear that young people are spending too much time on Meta's products, they've lost control," prosecution attorney Linda Singer told the jury in closing statements. "Meta knew that and it didn't disclose it."
Prosecutor says trial evidence shows Meta failed to enforce its minimum user age
Singer said testimony and evidence at trial showed Meta's algorithms had been recommending sensational and harmful content to teenagers, while alleging that the company failed to truly enforce its minimum user age of 13.
"The safety issues that you've heard about in this case, weren't mistakes. .... They were a product of a corporate philosophy that chose growth and engagement over children's safety," Singer said. "And young people in this state and around the country have borne the cost."
Meta attorney Kevin Huff on Monday highlighted witness testimony about Meta's investments in the safety on its platforms, describing automated features and roles dedicated to safety.
"Meta has built innovative, automated tools to protect people," he said. "Meta has 40,000 people working to make its apps as safe as possible."
But he added that Meta's systems aren't perfect: "No one can, with billions of pieces of content every day, even the best system, cannot catch all of it."
He said the company's enforcement of minimum age limits are hamstrung by U.S. government restrictions on collecting young children's data.
Meta attorney insists the company has disclosed risks of its platforms
Huff told the jury that the company "disclosed to the world that its safeguards are not perfect, and that some bad content and bad actors get onto its service."
"Common sense also says that parents and teens know that there is bad content on the internet, and on Facebook and Instagram specifically," he added. But Huff noted the social media company has disclosed risks of its platforms in its user agreements, website, ads and on television.
"Wherever it could get its message out, Meta was disclosing risk to the public," Huff said.
Singer urged jurors to impose a civil penalty that could exceed $2 billion against Meta, based on the maximum $5,000 penalty per violation on two counts of consumer protection violations, and an estimated 208,700 monthly users of Meta platforms under the age of 18 in New Mexico. The violations include "unconscionable" trade practices.
"Over the course of a decade Meta has failed over and over again to act honestly and transparently, failed to act to protect young people in this state," Singer said. "It is up to you to finish this job."
Huff called the state's request for penalties "a shocking number" and said prosecutors failed to provide any examples of teenagers who chose to use Instagram because of a false understanding of its risks.
"Even though teens are aware of the risks, they continue to use Instagram because they enjoy Instagram," Huff said.
A second phase of the trial will follow with a judge deciding whether Meta created a public nuisance and should be on the hook financially to fund programs to address alleged harms to children.
Company's attorneys say the state has cherry-picked evidence to support its case
Attorney General Raúl Torrez filed suit in 2023, accusing Meta of creating a marketplace and "breeding ground" for predators who target children for sexual exploitation and failing to disclose what it knew about those harmful effects. State investigators created social media accounts posing as children to document online sexual solicitations and the response from Meta.
Meta attorneys accuse prosecutors of cherry-picking evidence and conducting a shoddy investigation.
Meta executives emphasized at trial that the company continuously improves safety and addresses compulsive social media use without infringing on free speech or censoring users.
But the prosecution on Monday said that public assurances about safety disclosures from Meta executives including founder Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri often didn't square with internal studies and communications at the company.
"It was included in Meta's internal research -- again this was research that didn't get disclosed by Meta -- one-in-three teens experienced problematic use," Singer said. "They knew these kids were struggling with problematic use — again, addiction."
The jury is assembled from residents of Santa Fe County, including the politically progressive state capital city.
Limits on liability for tech companies
Tech companies have been protected from liability for material posted on their social media platforms under Section 230, a 30-year-old provision of the U.S. Communications Decency Act, as well as a First Amendment shield.
Prosecutors say New Mexico is not seeking to hold Meta accountable for content on its platforms, but rather its role in pushing out that content through complex algorithms that proliferate material that can be addictive and harmful to children.
In California, a jury already is sequestered in deliberations on whether Meta and YouTube should be liable for harms caused to children using their platforms. The bellwether case could impact how thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies are likely to play out.
Las Cruces, Santa Fe mull renaming Chavez elementary schools - Algernon D’Ammassa & Dan Boyd, Albuquerque Journal
Two New Mexico elementary schools named for Cesar Chavez may soon have their names changed along with other monuments and public entities across the state.
Las Cruces Public Schools will open a public discussion about renaming its Cesar Chavez Elementary School on Tuesday, and a similar discussion is likely to take place this week before the Santa Fe school board for a similarly named school site.
Reaction in New Mexico has been swift since allegations in a New York Times investigation last week claimed the revered civil rights leader and labor organizer raped and sexually assaulted underage girls.
The report prompted Dolores Huerta, the 95-year-old New Mexico icon who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association with Chavez, to come forward with her own account of coerced sex with Chavez in the 1960s that conceived two children. Huerta kept the secret for six decades, she wrote, "because building the movement and securing farmworker rights was my life's work."
Within a day, New Mexico leaders all the way up to the state’s congressional delegation began calling for Chavez’s name to be removed from streets, buildings and institutions and to consider the disposition of murals depicting him. Some statements maintained the movement Chavez helped lead was not defined by a single individual.
“His name should be removed from landmarks, institutions, and honors,” U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján stated last week. “We cannot celebrate someone who carried out such disturbing harm.”
The bombshell report landed in the middle of spring break for Las Cruces schools, but the board of education is set to discuss the revelations and the prospect of changing the elementary school’s name during Tuesday evening’s public session.
LCPS Board of Education President Pamela Cort said any name change would take place in collaboration with the community, as directed by a LCPS policy that requires public input on the decision and of potential new names.
In 2020, the district voted to change the name of Oñate High School on the east side of town to Organ Mountain High School. The school had been named for Spanish conquistador and colonizer Juan de Oñate y Salazar.
“I think that consideration of a name change is warranted given the difficult and painful truths that have recently been revealed about Cesar Chavez,” Cort wrote to the Journal. “I believe it is crucial to not tie such a significant organization with one person, and a name change would not minimize the important work that was done nor the sacrifices made by everyone who contributed to the United Farm Workers.”
In Santa Fe, where another Cesar Chavez Elementary School is located, a school district spokesman said Monday the idea of a school name change could be discussed at a board meeting later this week.
Such a change would require the school board to direct Santa Fe Public School Superintendent Christine Griffin to appoint a committee to work with her on the possibility of a new name — much like the Las Cruces policy.
"We remain committed to engaging thoughtfully with our community and ensuring that any decisions are made through the appropriate processes and with careful consideration," the Santa Fe Public Schools said in a statement last week.
Stokes bids farewell to UNM in final state of the university address - Natalie Robbins, Albuquerque Journal
University of New Mexico President Garnett Stokes delivered her final state of the university speech on campus Monday, in which she called her tenure at UNM “the greatest honor of her career.”
“While it's been the toughest job I've ever had, it has also been the most joyful,” Stokes told the audience at Keller Hall.
Stokes will retire at the end of this school year after eight years at the university. She is the first woman to lead UNM and will be its longest-serving president in nearly 30 years.
Stokes was joined onstage Monday by interim Provost Barbara Rodriguez, UNM Health System CEO Dr. Mike Richards and Executive Vice President of Finance and Administration Teresa Costantinidis. The four said they hope UNM’s future includes a position at the front of the technology industry, a refurbished, safer campus, and an overhauled and expanded athletics program and health system.
UNM Health Sciences is in the midst of a years-long expansion to increase both the number of patients served and health care workers trained, starting with a new $842 million critical care tower at UNM Hospital, which opened last fall.
The university also plans to double the size of its medical school in an attempt to produce more doctors to alleviate the state’s physician shortage.
“All of that improves the ability for us to be able to take care of patients, but really importantly for us, it also lets us train the workforce,” Richards said. “When we have a robust health care delivery system, it's easier to recruit businesses and families to our state.”
UNM is also in the midst of a “transformative time in athletics,” Costantinidis said. The university named a new athletic director, 32-year-old UNM alum Ryan Berryman, earlier this month and is expected to receive at least $20 million in state funding to renovate its football stadium.
A slew of new campus construction is also in the works, kicked off by renovations on the duck pond last September. (Campus officials say the ducks have finally made their return to the pond after they were relocated during the construction.)
UNM is planning new humanities and arts buildings in the years to come, as well as a new UNM Police Department headquarters on University Boulevard.
The new police station will help speed up response times for the north, south and central areas of campus, Costantinidis said.
Last July, 14-year-old Michael LaMotte was killed and another teen injured in a shooting at Casas del Rio student housing on the edge of campus.
“There's just so much about it that is going to make this a safer campus,” she said.
The university will continue developing its quantum technology efforts, as well as its research into the effects of microplastics, Stokes said.
Academic statistics are rising after a pandemic dip — the share of freshmen who continue on to their second semester is 91.3%, and the number of students who stay until their third semester is 76.4%, Rodriguez said.
“We have come such a long way. COVID got us a little bit off of our path, but we are right now back on track and very, very proud of the progress that we've made,” she said.
Stokes’ UNM 2040 plan — a roadmap for the university’s future — will continue in her absence, she said. The plan seeks to improve student experience, inclusion and sustainability, and to better serve the state.
“It’s something I’m really proud of,” Stokes said. “UNM 2040 reminds us that our work is never just about the present moment. It is about building a university that will serve New Mexico and the world for generations to come.”
Federal judge sends case alleging NM probation officers colluded with ICE back to state court - Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
A federal judge on Monday ordered back to state court a New Mexico Ethics Commission lawsuit that alleges state probation officers coordinated with federal immigration agents to arrest and deport New Mexico probationers.
In September, the New Mexico Ethics Commission filed suit against New Mexico Corrections Department Secretary Alisha Tafoya Lucero, alleging the department’s employees had violated a law the Legislature enacted in 2025 that prohibits state employees from disseminating sensitive personal information, including citizenship status, to anyone outside of the agency except in limited circumstances.
The commission received a whistleblower complaint, which it then investigated, that alleged state probation officers referred information about at least three probationers’ immigration status to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency after July 1, when the law went into effect.
The Ethics Commission alleges probation officers lured the probationers to meetings “under false pretenses” at their local probation offices, where ICE agents were waiting to detain them.
Two of the probationers were held in ICE custody at the time of the lawsuit; a third was deported to his unspecified home country,” causing “hardships to their New Mexican and American family members,” according to the lawsuit. The other two probationers’ statuses remained unclear as of Monday.
While the new state law prohibiting disclosure of private information empowers the New Mexico Ethics Commission to sue alleged violators, the agency asked a First Judicial District judge in Santa Fe to weigh in on whether it conflicts with a pair of federal laws.
Those 1996 federal statutes say local and state governments can’t “be prohibited, or in any way restricted, from sending to or receiving from the Immigration and Naturalization Service,” which became ICE in 2003.
The case has been held up since November over the issue of jurisdiction, with the Corrections Department arguing that a federal judge would be better suited to consider the commission’s question.
During a one-hour hearing Monday before U.S. District Judge David Herrera Urias, Ethics Commission Executive Director Jeremy Farris argued against a federal court taking over the case, and noted that Congress has not provided a legal basis for the federal government to completely preempt state laws such as the one New Mexico has enacted.
Attorney Eric Loman, who is representing the state Corrections Department, contended that the case belongs in federal court because it ultimately involves immigration law at the federal level.
Urias ultimately ruled in the Ethics Commission’s favor and said a federal court would be overstepping if it were to intervene on the matter.
Following the hearing’s conclusion, Farris told Source NM the case will now return to the First Judicial District in Santa Fe.
NM State Fair board agrees to spend $114M on housing, stadium - Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
The long-term future of the New Mexico State Fairgrounds remains A board the New Mexico Legislature created in 2025 to transform the 236-acre State Fair property in the center of Albuquerque voted Monday to move forward with the first phase of that project, with the help of more than $100 million the Legislature approved in the session earlier this year.
Under the new master plan the board adopted Monday, the southwest corner of the fairgrounds property will make way for new housing, a multi-use stadium and a public park, as well as pedestrian safety improvements at two nearby intersections.
Senate Bill 481 in 2025 created a new tax district board, composed of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and other local and state elected officials, and entrusted it with up to $500 million in bonding capacity to transform the fairgrounds. The Legislature approved $92 million in bonds and added an additional $100 million from the state budget in the 30-day session in November.
Marty Chavez, a former Albuquerque mayor who is spearheading the project for the governor’s office, told Source NM on Monday after the meeting that the board’s vote obligates $114 million for the project, including both the $100 million the Legislature approved this year and $14 million from last year’s session that was allocated to the State Fair but never spent.
Designers with Stantec, a firm charged with developing a master plan for the site, revealed its recommendations for “phase one” of the project Monday, following a series of public meetings. The firm estimated that “phase one” will cost $240 million in total.
The firm did not make a recommendation on one possibility that has loomed over the process since it began last summer: relocating the annual State Fair from its home of nearly a century.
According to Stantec’s presentation, the new construction the board approved Monday will enable the fair to stay at its current location for the foreseeable future. Under a timeline the firm presented, the earliest a decision could be made regarding the fair’s future is 2031.
In the meantime, the firm described the project’s first phase as a series of “early wins” that will provide more than 430 units of new housing amid a statewide shortage, as well as a new stadium and pedestrian safety improvements at two of the state’s most dangerous intersections.
The board ultimately voted 6-1 to accept the master plan. The lone “no” vote came from Bernalillo County Commissioner Adriann Barboa, who tried unsuccessfully to postpone the vote until the board received information about the new housing.
“I am not against a stadium. I want due process. I want community and I want things that are binding. So I would have voted yes on this in a month when we had those things,” she said.
The board’s next meeting, scheduled for May 7, will feature more-detailed presentations on new housing and the new stadium, as well as a broader framework for how nearby neighborhoods.
While the plan is approved and the funding obligated, it’s not clear when construction will begin. The state’s General Services Department first needs to acquire a handful of privately owned parcels on the southwest corner of the fairgrounds, which officials said Monday was still in process.
After the vote, Lujan Grisham congratulated board members for what she described as a necessary investment in a long-neglected area.
“Even if we don’t always agree on the nuances, we agree that this is an area [that] for decades has been promised that we would do something here, and nothing has happened,” she said.