Western Governors Want Nuclear Testing Compensation Expanded – Associated Press
Western governors say atmospheric nuclear weapons testing exposed more states and more people to radiation fallout and resulting cancers and other diseases than the federal government recognizes.
The Western Governors' Association on Friday sent letters to the U.S. Senate and U.S. House urging passage of proposed changes to a law involving "downwinders."
The changes would add all of Nevada, Arizona and Utah, and include for the first time downwinders in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico and the island territory of Guam.
The changes to the 1990 Radiation Exposure Compensation Act would also include increasing the maximum payment to $150,000 for someone filing a claim.
The U.S. between 1945 and 1992 conducted more than 1,000 nuclear weapons tests, nearly 200 in the atmosphere.
Attorneys Argue Man Who Killed Family Can Be Reformed – Associated Press
The defense for a New Mexico man convicted of killing his family when he was a teenager contends he can be reformed.
Defense attorney Stephen Taylor says there are several factors that the court should consider in sentencing Nehemiah Griego, not just the heinousness of the crime.
Griego, now 22, pleaded guilty to killing his parents and three young siblings in the family home south of Albuquerque in 2013. He was 15 at the time of the shootings. A judge earlier this year determined he should be sentenced as an adult.
Prosecutors and some relatives say Griego is dangerous and should remain locked up.
Taylor told Judge Alisa Hart during Tuesday's sentencing hearing that mental health services are lacking for young people within the prison system. He wants to find a creative solution that would allow Griego to continue with his rehabilitation.
A child psychologist testified on Griego's behalf. An uncle and aunt also were expected to address the court.
Prosecutors are asking that Griego spend the rest of his life in prison. They described his acts as horrendous, callous and intentional.
Griego faces up to 120 years in prison.
During Tuesday's sentencing hearing, two of Griego's elder sisters made tearful pleas to the judge, saying their brother is a danger to society and has shown no remorse.
Griego sat in an orange jumpsuit, his head hung low as they testified.
New Mexico Man Who Killed Family To Be Sentenced - Associated Press
A New Mexico man who shot and killed his parents and three young siblings when he was a teenager is scheduled to be sentenced.
Nehemiah Griego will appear Tuesday in state district court in Albuquerque. Now 22, Griego faces up to 120 years in prison or as little as probation and treatment.
Griego pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death in the January 2013 shootings of his family. Prosecutors say he had methodically plotted the killings when he was 15.
A judge decided in August that Griego would be sentenced as an adult after finding he wasn't amenable for treatment as a juvenile.
Griego's lawyers say he had an abusive home life. They also have said he was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.
University Of New Mexico Faculty To Vote On Unionizing - Associated Press
Professors at the University of New Mexico are scheduled to vote this week on whether to unionize.
Two days of voting are slated to begin Wednesday around two separate possible bargaining units.
Faculty in these two groups will vote in one of two secret ballot elections. The two elections are separate and independent, but they are being carried out at the same time.
For each of the two elections, at least 40 percent of the eligible voters in that proposed bargaining unit must vote for it, or the effort to form a union fails.
The move comes after a faculty union petition was filed in February.
Faculty members have complained that University of New Mexico professors are among the lowest paid in the country.
Albuquerque Police Fatally Shoot Suspect In Domestic Dispute - Albuquerque Journal, Associated Press
Albuquerque police say a SWAT team shot and killed an armed suspect in a domestic dispute who was holed up in his apartment.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that authorities confirmed the shooting at the scene Monday morning.
Police spokesman John Ross says officers received reports of a dispute around 2 a.m.
They found an armed man and called for a SWAT team.
Ross says investigators later served a search warrant and an arrest warrant on the apartment. He says the other person involved in the dispute was inside.
SWAT officers ended up firing on the suspect, who was pronounced dead.
His identity was not released.
The incident marks the third officer-involved shooting with Albuquerque police in two months.
New Mexico Legislative Caucuses Stockpile Money For 2020 - Associated Press
Money is being stockpiled by leading state legislators under specialized political committees that can collect five-times as much cash per donor as standard campaigns and committees.
Six-month campaign finance disclosure reports are due by Tuesday evening as Democrats defend their majority in the state House and Senate.
Newly designated legislative caucus committees can collect five times as much cash per donor as other campaigns and committees, under reforms enacted this year by Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and the Democratic-led Legislature.
The House Republican caucus committee received $120,100 in contributions over the past six months. Donors included prominent oil-sector leaders and companies.
Candidates for the Legislature or statewide offices such as governor can collect up to $5,000 per donor toward the 2020 primary election and again for the general election.
New Mexico Candidates For Congress Highlight Cashflow - Associated Press
New Mexico candidates in open races for the U.S. House and Senate are collecting campaign cash at a rapid pace even as many Democratic contenders forgo contributions from corporate political committees.
Former CIA operative Valerie Plame said Monday in a statement that her campaign raised about $447,000 in contributions from July through September as she runs for a northern New Mexico congressional seat. Rival primary election candidate Teresa Leger Fernandez says her campaign raised $205,000.
They are among candidates forgoing corporate PAC money in quests to replace U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján as he campaigns for Senate. Sen. Tom Udall is retiring.
Luján says he raised more than $1 million since July. In May, he swore off corporate PAC money.
Full financial disclosures are due Tuesday at the Federal Election Commission.
New Mexico Forecast To Lead US In Pecan Production In 2019 – Associated Press
New Mexico is expected to lead the U.S. in pecan production this year as growers prepare for the upcoming harvest.
The U.S. Agriculture Department's statistics service says production in the Southwest state is forecast at a record high 97 million pounds. That would mark a 6% increase over 2018.
Production in Georgia is expected to hit about 76 million pounds, followed by Texas at 47 million pounds.
Pecan production in the United States overall is expected to increase this year by more than 20%, with growers harvesting an estimated 281 million pounds.
New Mexico agricultural officials say they've been working to build relationships with pecan buyers in other countries amid a tariff war with China.
CEO: Allsup's To Retain Presence Despite Planned Merger - Carlsbad Current-Argus, Associated Press
Allsup's and its legendary burritos and chimichangas aren't going anywhere despite the recent sale of the convenience store chain to Iowa-based Yesway.
Officials with Yesway say Allsup's will retain its presence in New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma. Yesway doesn't plan to close any of the 304 stores across the three states.
While no layoffs are expected, Yesway CEO Thomas Trkla tells the Carlsbad Current-Argus that some of Allsup's roughly 5,000 employees might be relocated to new stores the company plans to purchase in the future.
Yesway expects the integration of Allsup's into the Yesway fold to take up to 18 months.
Trkla also is hopeful about growing the customer base in parts of New Mexico and West Texas, pointing to the oil boom happening across the Permian Basin.
Navajo Voters Elect New Delegate To Tribal Council - Associated Press
The Navajo Nation Council has a new delegate.
Carl Roessel Slater won a special election for a seat representing five Navajo communities in the Arizona portion of the reservation. He took office Thursday.
Slater had served as a spokesman for the tribe's legislative branch before stepping down to run for the council seat. He beat out four others to replace longtime lawmaker Nelson BeGaye, who retired for health reasons.
Slater is the grandson of the late Ruth and Robert Roessel of Round Rock, Arizona, who helped found the nation's first tribal college on the Navajo Nation.
The 24-member Tribal Council meets next week in the tribal capital of Window Rock for the start of its weeklong fall session.