New Mexico Reports The First Death Of The Flu Season – Associated Press
New Mexico is reporting the first death of this year's flu season.
Officials at the New Mexico Department of Health in Santa Fe said Monday that a woman from Lincoln County has died from the flu.
They described the woman as age 65 years or older.
Her death is the first for the 2018-2019 flu season.
Department Secretary Lynn Gallagher says it's a reminder of the importance of getting the flu vaccine, especially for small children and the elderly.
Health experts say the flu typically peaks between December and February.
The state reports more than 280 influenza and pneumonia-related deaths occurred during the last flu season.
Health officials recommend the flu vaccine for people as young as 6 months old.
New Mexico Priest Says He's 'Whistle-Blower' In Abuse Cases – Albuquerque Journal, Associated Press
A longtime New Mexico Catholic priest has announced he is a "whistle-blower" who has privately assisted victims of clergy sex abuse.
The Albuquerque Journal reports Father Vincent Paul Chavez told parishioners on Sunday at St. Therese of the Infant Jesus Parish and Catholic school in Albuquerque that he has been assisting two agents with the state Attorney General's office in their investigation of clergy sex abuse.
Chávez, the pastor of the church, made the announcement during his homily at Sunday Mass after learning the planned construction of a new cafeteria for his St. Therese school would have to be postponed.
The postponement came amid the Chapter 11 bankruptcy action filed by the Archdiocese of Santa Fe last month.
Archdiocese officials cited the financial burden of priest sex abuse litigation.
New Mexico Lawmakers To Be Busy This Legislative Session – Associated Press
The New Mexico Legislature is scheduled to convene for a 60-day session in less than a month and everything from education reform to health care initiatives are expected to be on the agenda.
Monday marks the first day lawmakers can file proposed legislation ahead of the session.
When the Legislature, which is led by Democrats, convenes on Jan. 15, one of the priorities will be confronting a court order to expand resources to struggling public schools — and in particular to students from low-income and minority families, including Native Americans.
Lawmakers and incoming Democrat Gov.-elect Michelle Lujan Grisham will have a major financial windfall due to the oil and gas sector as they set spending priorities. Some have warned that spending needs to remain in check given volatility in the energy market.
New Mexico Rancher Who Trapped Wolf To Appeal Loss Of Permit - Arizona Republic, Associated Press
A New Mexico rancher who trapped an endangered Mexican gray wolf and hit it with a shovel says he will appeal the loss of his grazing permit.
Craig Thiessen told The Arizona Republic that he has no livelihood without the permit.
Under the permit, the Datil rancher is allowed to graze hundreds of cattle across the Gila National Forest.
The U.S. Forest Service notified Thiessen in late November of the decision to revoke his permit.
He had 45 days to remove his cattle or appeal.
Thiessen pleaded guilty in May to knowingly taking threatened wildlife.
The 10-month-old wolf pup died in February 2015.
Thiessen has said he knew he caught a Mexican gray wolf because it had a radio tracking collar. He disputed killing it.
Child's Death Highlights Communication Barriers On Border – Associated Press
Shortly before a 7-year-old Guatemalan girl died in U.S. custody, her father signed a form stating that his daughter was in good health.
But it's unclear how much the man understood on the form, which was written in English and read to him in Spanish by Border Patrol agents.
The death of Jakelin Caal in Texas highlights the communication challenges along the U.S.-Mexico border as agents come in contact with an increasing number of migrants who speak neither English nor Spanish.
Her father's native language is the Mayan tongue known as Q'eqchi'. His second language is Spanish. It's unclear whether something was lost in translation or whether it would have made a difference in saving Jakelin. The case raises questions about the Border Patrol's use of English-only forms.
Mayor Says Albuquerque Has Cleared Half Its Rape Kit Backlog - Associated Press
Albuquerque's mayor says police have made headway into clearing the city's massive rape kit backlog.
Mayor Tim Keller said Sunday that forensic investigators have tested roughly half of the 5,552 evidence kits this year. Of the nearly 2,900 tested, about one-fifth led to matches of identified and unidentified suspects in a national database.
That database — the FBI's Combined DNA Index System — helps authorities develop investigative leads.
A 2015 audit of New Mexico law enforcement agencies found, at the time, the state had 5,300 untested rape kits. Three-quarters of them were in Albuquerque police's crime lab.
A spokesman for Keller says that the city had tested only 170 kits by 2017, the year Keller took office.
Rector Of Santa Fe Cathedral Announces Leave Of Absence - Santa Fe New Mexican, Associated Press
The rector of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi in Santa Fe is taking a leave of absence citing "personal challenges."
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the Rev. Adam Ortega y Ortiz announced the decision at the end of Mass on Sunday morning following a nearly three-month absence from the church.
He said time at the church was a "richly rewarding experience" full of "countless graces."
Ortega y Ortiz has been in Santa Fe for 18 years, serving as pastor of the Santa María de La Paz Catholic Community and the Cristo Rey Catholic Church.
He said the Rev. John Cannon will oversee St. Francis for the time being.
The Archdiocese of Santa Fe plans to choose his successor early next year.
Jury Rules For Former Lab Official In Lawsuit Over Ouster - Santa Fe New Mexican, Associated Press
A former Los Alamos National Laboratory official pushed out of his job amid controversy over his service on an electric co-op's board has won a jury verdict against the lab's former management company.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that jurors on Friday awarded approximately $735,000 to John J. Tapia in his 2016 breach of contract suit against Los Alamos National Security LLC over his forced resignation.
Lab officials contended Tapia improperly used his work computer to do work for the Jemez Mountains Electric Co-op on company time and directed a subordinate to do the same.
Tapia’s attorney Aaron Wolf said lab officials pushed out Tapia because they feared that the management company's chances of retaining a federal contract would be hurt by fraud allegations involving the co-op board.
Italian Scientist Eyes Plant Growth At Nuclear Repository - Carlsbad Current-Argus, Associated Press
The unique geology at the United States' only underground nuclear waste repository recently drew a researcher from across the Atlantic Ocean.
The Carlsbad Current-Argus reports Scientist Maurizo Tomasi of Rome, Italy, journeyed to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad, New Mexico, to conduct research last week due to the salt mines' low levels of background radiation.
For six days per week, researchers used unbleached, damp paper towels to germinate seeds.
High-grade potash was used from a nearby mine to separate incubator-containing seeds, to minimize the effects of background radiation.
Germination rates were observed to be different when seeds were pulled from the vault, both between varieties and growing conditions.
George Basabilvazo is the chief scientist at the U.S. Energy Department's Carlsbad field office. He says the repository provides a unique arena for research experiments for scientists from around the globe.
Collection Of Fish Species Grows At Western New Mexico - Silver City Sun-News, Associated Press
The collection of preserved deep-sea fish at Western New Mexico University has expanded to include ones with long teeth and glowing organs.
The Silver City Sun-News reports the school's Department of Natural Sciences recently received 18 jars of rare specimens. The donation came from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
The institution's curator of fishes, Philip Hastings, has a home in Silver City.
The school says he offered to donate the deep-sea oddities to the university and help the school further expand the collection.
Manda Jost teaches fish science at Western New Mexico and says some of the donated specimens rarely are seen by humans.
Tuition Rises For Some Students At Military Junior College – Roswell Daily Record, Associated Press
Tuition is going up for international students at a military junior college in Roswell.
The Roswell Daily Record reports that the New Mexico Military Institute's Board of Regents approved the 3 percent tuition hike last week. The $367 increase applies to all international students, except those from Canada and Mexico, for the next academic year.
Fees are going up for all students by 4.3 percent. Students from North America will pay $553 more. International students will pay $930 more.
The school's chief financial officer, Col. Judy Scharmer, says the school remains one of the least expensive of its kind despite the tuition and fee increases.