Albuquerque Hires NAACP Leader On Police Reform – The Associated Press
The city of Albuquerque has hired a local NAACP leader to help with upcoming changes into the city's troubled police.
But some advocates are criticizing the move.
The city announced this week NAACP Albuquerque president Harold Bailey will be paid $20,000 as a consultant for a team that will oversee changes. Bailey says he will help the team with community engagement.
However, Jewel Hall, president of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Center and a police critic, says Bailey sold his soul since others have been asking to be more engaged with reform efforts.
She and other critics have complained that they were not involved in negotiations over a U.S. Justice Department agreement to reform the city's police agency.
Bernalillo County Appoints Stewart To Senate Seat – The Associated Press
An Albuquerque Democrat has been appointed to former state Sen. Tim Keller's seat.
Bernalillo County commissioners voted to name state Rep. Mimi Stewart to fill the remainder of term to the District 17 spot after Keller resigned. Keller, also a Democrat, won election as state auditor last month.
The district covers an area of Albuquerque's Southeast Height.
Bernalillo County Deputy Attorney Peter Auh says since Senate District 17 is wholly within Bernalillo County, commissioners can appoint a replacement.
He says it's only in those cases in which the district covers more than one county that commissioners from each county would send recommendations to the governor.
Stewart's appointment creates another vacancy for her former state House seat.
BLM Considers New Mexico Oil Pipeline Proposal – The Associated Press
A Colorado company plans to build a 140-mile pipeline across northwestern New Mexico that would be capable of carrying 50,000 barrels of crude oil a day.
The Bureau of Land Management is considering whether to permit the project by Saddle Butte Pipeline LLC. A public meeting was set for Thursday evening in Lybrook, but it could be early next year before the agency makes a final decision.
Industry experts say the San Juan Basin — an area along the New Mexico-Colorado border known for its natural gas deposits — is on the verge of a shale-oil boom. They say a new pipeline would ensure the oil gets to market.
Environmental groups are accusing federal regulators of fast-tracking the pipeline without considering how best to manage the impending boom.
Auditor, Department At Odds On School Oversight – The Associated Press
Two state agencies are at odds over oversight of New Mexico charter schools.
The State Auditor's Office says the Public Education Department failed to properly address reports of conflicts of interest and financial mismanagement at Albuquerque-based Southwest Learning Center.
The charter school operator has been under FBI investigation for several months.
State Auditor Hector Balderas says the department hasn't been responsive to requests that it sign a contract for a forensic audit of the operator.
Department spokesman Larry Behrens says the auditor's stance is puzzling because officials from the Auditor's Office and the department met and agreed to a timeline for addressing the forensic audit.
He says a contract for the forensic audit was in place as of last week.
NM Lawmakers Eye Forced Mental Illness Treatment - The Associated Press
Some New Mexico residents with severe mental illness could receive court-ordered outpatient treatment under a new proposal.
Senate President Pro Tem Mary Kay Papen is scheduled Thursday to discuss the proposed bill to the Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee.
The bill would allow judges to order patients to take medication and undergo treatment if they are deemed a danger to themselves and their community. Papen says it's a version of New York's Kendra's law.
That measure was named after Kendra Webdale, a 32-year-old woman who was pushed in front of an oncoming subway train in 1999 by a man battling untreated schizophrenia.
According to the Arlington, Va.,-based Treatment Advocacy Center, New Mexico is one of five states without a law allowing court orders to make mental health outpatients take medications.
Appeal Filed In Case Challenging Navajo Candidate - The Associated Press
A former Navajo presidential hopeful who lost a bid to remove a candidate from the race is appealing the ruling.
An attorney for Myron McLaughlin filed the appeal yesterday with the Navajo Supreme Court.
He's hoping to overturn a decision from the tribe's Office of Hearings and Appeals that kept Russell Begaye in the race.
McLaughlin says he disagrees with hearing officer Richie Nez's legal analysis and questions whether Nez had the right to preside over the case.
Repeated calls to the Office of Hearings and Appeals on Wednesday went unanswered.
Begaye is set to face former Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr. for the tribe's top elected post. The presidential contest was separated from the Nov. 4 general election after one candidate was disqualified for not meeting a Navajo fluency requirement.
New Mexico Struggles Despite Federal Largess - The Associated Press
New Mexico has an unusual wealth gap: Unlike other states, New Mexico's richest residents work mainly in the public sector, while almost everyone else is employed in the private sector.
Federal dollars, along with the energy industry in southeastern New Mexico, have fueled the state's economy for decades. Besides Los Alamos, where the atomic bomb was developed, the state is home to Sandia National Laboratories, three Air Force bases, the Army's White Sands Missile Range and several national forests and parks.
But critics say an inability to diversify the economy has exacerbated income disparities. They say that at a time of tight federal budgets, the state can no longer afford to stake its economic future on government spending.
Police Identify Officer In Fatal Shooting - The Associated Press
New Mexico State Police have identified the officer involved in a fatal shooting in San Juan County last week.
Sgt. James Rempe fatally shot 27-year-old Myles Roughsurface after he pointed his gun at police, according to news release.
The incident on Friday began when San Juan County Sheriff's deputies were investigating reports of a person who was threatening people around the town of Spencerville with a gun. Spencerville is northeast of Farmington.
State police assisted in the investigation. Rempe, a 12-year veteran, spotted Roughsurface and fired because he felt an immediate threat to officers.
Police say Roughsurface had a rifle and pistol on him.
An investigation is ongoing.
DOE Details Cleanup Changes At Los Alamos Lab - The Associated Press
Federal officials plan to issue a temporary contract for nuclear waste cleanup operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory while those responsibilities are shifted away from the National Nuclear Security Administration.
Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz announced earlier this year he would pull cleanup operations from the contractor that runs the lab after a barrel of waste packed at Los Alamos leaked and forced the closure of the government's underground nuclear waste repository in southern New Mexico.
Agency officials say they believe it's appropriate to award the short-term contract to lab manager Los Alamos National Security to avoid any disruption during the interim.
The Energy Department's Office of Environmental Management will oversee the contract.
Officials say it could be two years before the agency issues long-term contracts for the work.
Public Land Measures Squeezed Into Defense Bill - The Associated Press
Wilderness in New Mexico and other western states and a program for streamlining oil and gas permitting would be expanded as part of a $585 million defense bill crafted by House and Senate negotiators.
Lawmakers managed to squeeze the energy and public land proposals into the bill following weeks of negotiation. Final action is expected before the end of the year.
A bipartisan contingent of lawmakers is touting the legislation, but critics say the bill shouldn't be used as a bargaining chip to get the land packages through Congress.
The must-pass measure also calls for transferring management of a 140-square-mile national preserve in northern New Mexico to the National Park Service and for a land swap in Arizona that would clear the way for North America's largest copper mine.
Bengal Tiger Dies At Albuquerque Zoo - The Associated Press
An Albuquerque zoo Bengal tiger has been euthanized.
ABQ BioPark staff said they euthanized Lucy when she did not recover from sedation she was put under to treat bleeding in her mammary glands. An X-ray also revealed a mass in her lungs.
The tiger was 16 years old.
Lucy began living in the zoo shortly after she was born. The zoo has another Bengal tiger, a male who is also 16 years old.
Bengal tigers are endangered in the wild. There are about 2,500 living in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh.
Santa Fe New Mexican Publisher Steps Down - The Associated Press
The Santa Fe New Mexican has announced that publisher Ginny Sohn has stepped down.
The 165-year-old newspaper reports that New Mexican owner Robin Martin informed staff of the move yesterday. She then announced that Tom Cross, the company's former controller, would take over the position Monday.
The 59-year-old Sohn has worked at the Santa Fe daily newspaper for 30 years. She was a longtime advertising director and associate publisher before taking the top leadership position at the paper in April 2012.
Cross has held an array of key management, financial, public relations and nonprofit positions during that time in both the private and public sector.
Bar Owner Accused Of Evading Taxes - The Associated Press
Federal authorities say the owner of Sneakerz Sports Bar in Albuquerque evaded taxes for several years.
James Coleman, Jr., was arrested Tuesday on charges of tax evasion and filing false tax returns. He appeared in federal court yesterday.
Coleman, 57, is accused of failing to pay over $166,000 in federal taxes owed by his corporation, Sneakerz, Inc., in 2008 and 2009 by filing false tax returns that underrepresented the business' income.
According to a news release, Coleman remains in custody pending his arraignment.
Coleman faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison on two of the four counts against him. He faces three years for the other two counts.
An attorney for Coleman did not return a call seeking comment.
Auditor, Department At Odds On School Oversight - The Associated Press
Two state agencies are at odds over oversight of New Mexico charter schools.
The State Auditor's Office says the Public Education Department failed to properly address reports of conflicts of interest and financial mismanagement at Albuquerque-based Southwest Learning Center.
The charter school operator has been under FBI investigation for several months.
State Auditor Hector Balderas says the department hasn't been responsive to requests that it sign a contract for a forensic audit of the operator.
Department spokesman Larry Behrens says the auditor's stance is puzzling because officials from the Auditor's Office and the department met and agreed to a timeline for addressing the forensic audit.
He says a contract for the forensic audit was in place as of last week.
