Police: 3 Albuquerque Officers Shot Responding To Robbery - By Susan Montoya Bryan Associated Press
Three Albuquerque police officers were shot and another was injured while responding to a robbery, authorities said Thursday.
Police Chief Harold Medina said one of the officers was hit in the chest above his bulletproof vest and was listed in critical condition. One officer was shot in the arm and another was saved when he was struck in the vest. The fourth officer was injured by shrapnel or glass.
Police said two suspects were in custody, including one who was shot and taken to the hospital. No other details were released, as authorities said they still were questioning witnesses and asking anyone with video or photos of the incident to come forward.
Authorities initially closed roads and nearby schools were put on lockdown as officers swarmed an area near a coffee shop in a commercial district on the city's northeast side. Police confirmed early on that they were responding to a "critical incident" and described the scene as active as they scoured the surrounding neighborhood for a suspect who has since been found.
Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller called it a horrible scene and asked for residents to pull together for the officers and their families.
"These officers put their lives at risk every single call and their families never want to get the calls they're getting today," he said. "We're asking all of the community to have their back."
Police vehicles also lined the road near University of New Mexico Hospital, where the injured officers were taken. Medina said two of the officers were undergoing surgery.
The city has been struggling with a record number of homicides this year, and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham just this week announced she would be reassigning more state police officers to New Mexico's largest city in an effort to ease some of the burden.
Republican lawmakers have asked for the Democratic governor to call a special legislative session to address what they have described as a public emergency, saying the state needs tougher criminal statutes and that repeat offenders need to remain behind bars.
Albuquerque officials acknowledged recent tragedies, including a school shooting last week that left a 13-year-old student dead. The police chief also noted that it was nearly 16 years ago to the day that the city lost two veteran police officers in a deadly shooting rampage committed by a man with a mental illness.
"It's a very emotional time," Medina said.
Lujan Grisham's office said the governor was horrified by the events involving the Albuquerque officers on Thursday. Spokeswoman Nora Meyers Sackett said the governor and the administration are keenly aware of the public safety issues facing the Albuquerque metro area and that the additional state police officers began working with local law enforcement Tuesday.
"The governor has committed to substantial public safety investments, including an effort to fund and support 1,000 new police officers statewide over the next decade, in the coming legislative session," Sackett said, adding that the governor looks forward to Republican support of initiatives aimed at helping local jurisdictions combat violent crime and keeping repeat violent offenders locked up.
Republicans Want Emergency Legislative Session On Crime – Associated Press
The lawmakers urged Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Wednesday to call a special legislative session to “send a strong signal that criminals will be held responsible.”
A letter from House Republicans including minority leader James Townsend of Aztec and Rebecca Dow of Truth or Consequences calls for reconsideration of 11 GOP-sponsored bills on public safety that were rejected in 2020 and 2021 by the Democrat-led Legislature.
The GOP legislators describe state bail reforms as a failure and call for a new move toward mandatory minimum sentencing.
On Monday, Lujan Grisham said she will open up the 30-day legislative session in early 2020 to consideration of criminal justice proposals that expand the number of law enforcement officers and increase penalties for crimes involving firearms.
Albuquerque has surpassed its annual homicide record already in 2021, having logged more than 80 killings with four months still go in the year. The previous record was set in 2019.
The spate of killings has moved public safety concerns to the forefront of the November election in Albuquerque, where Democratic Mayor Tim Keller is seeking a second term. Challengers include Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales.
New Mexico did away with a money-based bail system in 2017. Prosecutors who want a suspect detained while awaiting trial must present evidence showing he or she poses a public safety threat.
New Mexico Charts Transition For Unemployment Benefits – Morgan Lee, Associated Press
New Mexico has rebuilt its unemployment trust fund to pre-pandemic levels with federal relief money as enrollment tapers off in the program that gives weekly payments to people who lost their jobs.
The state Workforce Solutions Department that oversees unemployment benefits will brief a panel of state legislators on Thursday. New Mexico had the nation's highest June unemployment rate, at 7.9%, and is bracing for the expiration in September of federal payments that boosted the maximum weekly payment per worker of roughly $484 in New Mexico to $784.
Briefing materials from the state labor agency show that the number of state residents receiving unemployment benefits has declined to about 68,000, from a record high of 148,000 in June 2020.
The state has provided more than $3 billion in state and federal unemployment benefits to prop up household finances during the coronavirus pandemic and New Mexico borrowed $284 million from the federal government after depleting its unemployment trust fund.
The Workforce Solutions Department said that the debt has been erased with a $600 million infusion of federal funding — a new tranche of pandemic relief authorized in March by President Joe Biden after he won congressional approval. The state unemployment reserve has been restored to its pre-pandemic balance of $460 million, without a major payroll tax increase that many businesses had feared.
But employers could still face tax increases to sustain the replenished trust balance.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, offered incentive payments of between $400 and $1,000 over the summer for people who return to work before the expiration of the extra federal unemployment payment.
The $300 weekly federal bonus on top of state unemployment benefits is set to expire on Sept. 4.
About 22 states, mostly led by Republican governors, already have stopped accepting the $300 weekly federal supplemental over concerns that it may discourage people from returning to work when jobs are available.
Burning Of Zozobra To Be Hybrid Event Amid Pandemic - Associated Press
The ritual burning of a giant, ghostly marionette in Santa Fe will be a hybrid event this year.
Organizers of the Zozobra burning are planning to limit in-person attendance to 10,000 while also broadcasting the event on television and online, they announced Thursday.
The nighttime spectacle that's been transformed by modern pyrotechnics is in its 97th year. A team of a dozen puppeteers heaves on cords to flex the groaning marionette's arms, head and jaw.
Will Shuster, a painter from Philadelphia who migrated to the Southwest, created Zozobra, a name derived from a Spanish word for "anguish."
Donations from energy companies ensured the event could move forward on Sept. 3. It typically happens around Santa Fe's weeklong community fiestas that include historic and religious processions.
Anyone attending in person must prove they have been vaccinated against the coronavirus or tested negative within 72 hours of the event. Face masks will be required for anyone who is not vaccinated.
The Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe uses the event to raise money for youth charities. Organizers said they'll tweak the event as needed to comply with federal and state public health orders.
Albuquerque Police ID Suspect In Decades-Old Cold Case - Associated Press
Albuquerque police have identified a suspect in the death of a University of New Mexico student who was stabbed near campus more than 30 years ago.
The parents of Althea Oakeley established a scholarship in her name after she was killed while walking home from a fraternity party on June 22, 1988. She was stabbed four times and collapsed on a neighbor's doorstep, later dying at the hospital, police said.
The suspect remained a mystery for decades until police recently interviewed a man in another matter who confessed to killing a young woman in the 1980s near the university in Albuquerque, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
Albuquerque police Chief Harold Media was among those who delivered the news to Oakeley's parents in Taos. The meeting was emotional and bittersweet, he said.
Oakeley once was in the running for Taos Fiesta queen, and Medina's mother was fashioning the girl's elaborate dress. Medina remembered the girl with the bubbly personality who always said "Hi" to him.
The police chief also was the first recipient of the scholarship named for Oakeley after he graduated from Taos High School in 1990.
"It's tough because it's reopening old wounds," Medina said. "But at the same time, there's also that fear like, 'God, we got to get a conviction on this.'"
Police were scheduled to provide more details on the case and the suspect on what would have been Oakeley's 55th birthday Thursday. But authorities postponed a news conference after three Albuquerque officers were shot and another was injured while responding to a robbery.
Medina told the Journal that Oakeley didn't know her attacker, but he lived and worked in the area. He's in custody in an unrelated matter.
Oakeley's parents didn't respond to messages left by the Albuquerque Journal.
Navajo Nation Reports 60 New Virus Cases, 2 More Deaths - Associated Press
Navajo Nation officials are asking residents who live on the vast reservation to do their part in helping to curb the spread of the coronavirus as cases rise.
The tribe reported 60 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday and two more deaths. Those figures bring the total number of cases to 32,068 and deaths to 1,392.
Tribal President Jonathan Nez urged residents to wear masks, get vaccinated and limit in-person gatherings with friends and family until the cases decline consistently.
"We are in this together and we must work together to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and the Delta variant," he said in a statement.
Health care facilities across the Navajo Nation, which stretches into New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah, are offering vaccines during drive-thru events or by appointment.
Top US Energy Official 'All Ears' As Experts Outline Needs – Susan Montoya Bryan, Associated Press
Granholm took notes during a roundtable discussion on her two-day swing through the Western state, saying she was “all ears” and planned to take what she learned back to the White House.
Developers and policy experts said without more transmission infrastructure and a cohesive grid, renewable energy will be stranded in remote spots like rural New Mexico and that opportunities for economic development will be hampered as a result.
“This stuff is as important as building highways. It's as important as building hospitals and schools,” said Fernando Martinez, executive director of the New Mexico Renewable Energy Transmission Authority. “The only way we're going to accomplish this ... is that we really do need a predictable regulatory landscape.”
He and others told Granholm about permitting bottlenecks that have slowed the development of major transmission projects in New Mexico. They said if the Biden administration wants to reach its climate and clean energy goals, the U.S. can't afford to take decades to site and build transmission lines.
The New Mexico transmission authority has been working with developer Pattern Energy to build a major line to connect wind farms in the eastern part of the state to the grid. It's almost complete, but officials said it required the approval of more than 430 easements from ranchers and other landowners to cross about 165 miles.
The experts also told Granholm that while there are some helpful provisions in the multibillion-dollar infrastructure bill pending in Congress, tax incentives are a key driver for more development. Without more credits, Pattern Energy officials said developers won't be able to double or triple capacity to meet the administration's goals.
Granholm noted that the bill includes what the administration has described as a historic investment in transmission of about $60 billion. It also calls for more than $7.5 billion for infrastructure that would boost the use of electric vehicles and another $25 billion for clean energy demonstration projects.
Granholm earlier Wednesday toured businesses that are working on new energy technologies, from mobile hydrogen generators to cooling systems for nuclear reactors. She also visited a neighborhood on Albuquerque's southeast side where homes are being upgraded to make them more energy efficient.
Granholm will be in the Farmington area Thursday, where communities are bracing for the eventual closure of two coal-fired power plants and the mines that feed them. The economic effects of lost revenue and jobs are expected to ripple throughout the region.
Labor leaders told Granholm on Wednesday that the transition away from fossil fuels has not been without its challenges for workers. They talked about the need for expanded training and partnerships with renewable energy companies.
New Mexico Reaches Vaccine Milestone As It Sees Over 800 New COVID Cases – KUNM News, Santa Fe New Mexican
The New Mexico Department of Health Wednesday reported 878 new COVID-19 cases. That’s up from nearly 750 Tuesday.
Bernalillo County continues to see the highest case counts by far, with 271 new cases confirmed within the county Wednesday. The only other county with triple digit numbers was Lea with 123.
Hospitalizations are also on the rise, with 353 individuals receiving care for COVID-19 as of Wednesday. The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the state saw a 12 percent rise in hospitalizations between Monday and Tuesday this week.
Meanwhile, the state also announced that 75% of adults in the state have now received at least their first COVID-19 vaccine shot. About two-thirds of those over 18 are fully vaccinated.
Residents who receive a shot before August 31st are eligible for a $100 incentive payment.
The state announced Monday that immunocompromised residents can begin receiving a third dose of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, though these patients are not eligible for the incentive.
Health Secretary Dr. David Scrase encouraged New Mexicans with immune-related conditions to discuss the option of a third shot with their primary care provider.
New Mexico School Shooting Suspect To Remain In Custody – Associated Press
A Children’s Court judge agreed with prosecutors during a virtual hearing Tuesday and ordered the boy to remain at the Bernalillo County Youth Services Center.
The boy is charged with an open count of murder and unlawful carrying of a deadly weapon on school premises. The Associated Press does not generally identify juvenile crime suspects.
The shooting happened during the lunch hour Friday at Washington Middle School in front of numerous students, who had returned for the fall semester just two days earlier. Police have said the victim — 13-year-old Bennie Hargrove — was trying to protect another boy who was being bullied.
The suspect’s court-appointed attorney, Dennica Torres, raised issues of the boy’s competency during his initial appearance, saying the teen needs counseling and treatment for mental health issues.
Judge Catherine Begaye ruled that the boy poses a danger to others and noted the allegations against him.
Students returned to school Tuesday to find a bolstered police presence and crisis counselors.
Court records, police reports and witnesses detail the history of the suspect's family with Albuquerque Public Schools and the criminal history of the boy's father, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
In November 2015, an elementary school teacher said she was in a classroom with a parent and her daughter when, without warning, the suspect's mother came into the room and attacked the mother.
In 2018, a fight between parents that started with words and a fist escalated to poles, bats and gunfire in the student pickup lane outside Highland High School. The suspect’s father had shot and wounded another parent, but police never filed any charges after finding that both men had defense claims.
In 2013, the suspect's father was arrested on drug trafficking charges after police found a methamphetamine pipe and several bags of the drug on him. The man told police he was selling meth to get extra money for his daughter’s 15th birthday, according to a police report. The case was later dismissed.
New Mexico State Fair Vaccine Mandate Spurs Concern – Associated Press
The mandate was announced Tuesday by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham as part of a new public health order that also requires health care workers and others to get vaccinated within a certain period of time or risk losing their jobs. A statewide mask mandate for all public indoor spaces also was reinstated.
An official with the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association said the vaccine requirement for the state fair comes with short notice and may cost some juniors a year of work if they can’t get vaccinated in time and aren’t allowed to exhibit and sell their animals.
Cliff Copeland, the association's northeast regional vice president, said the governor’s office had given no indication through the summer months that a COVID-19 vaccination would be required to participate at the fair, which begins Sept. 9.
“These exhibitors may not be able to financially afford livestock projects next year if not allowed to show and sell these animals at the current state fair,” he said. “There is hardly enough time to become vaccinated and meet the requirements because of the late announcement.”
He said the requirement also potentially affects the buyers at the junior livestock sale and even the judges already under contract if they are not vaccinated.
Under the order, nearly everyone eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine must show proof of being fully vaccinated to enter the fairgrounds. There are limited exemptions — for medical, disability or religious reasons — to the state’s policy.
State officials contend the policy will help to protect children under 12 who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated.