Special Audit To Probe Backlog Of Rape Evidence Kits – Associated Press
New Mexico's state auditor is looking into practices and procedures that led to a backlog of more than 5,400 untested evidence kits from sexual assaults and rapes at law enforcement agencies and evidence vaults across the state.
State Auditor Tim Keller announced Thursday a new survey of eight police departments and sheriff offices aimed at identifying root causes of the backlog and better policies and standards that can prevent untested kits from piling up again.
The review spans the state from Hobbs to Farmington and includes the Albuquerque Police Department.
An expert in training for sexual assault examiners says the special audit is not punitive and will include some professional assistance.
State lawmakers and the governor approved additional funding in February to help clear backlogs in the untested evidence kits.
The Latest: Family Prepares For Slain Navajo Girl's Funeral – The Associated Press
The funeral for an 11-year-old Navajo girl who was kidnapped and killed on the edge of nation's largest American Indian reservation is set for Friday.
Federal authorities say Ashlynne Mike was abducted along a dirt road near her home Monday after a bus dropped her off from school. Searchers found her body Tuesday morning, about 30 miles away and south of a monolithic rock that gives the community of Shiprock, New Mexico, its name.
Tom Begaye, a 27-year-old from the area, has been charged in her death and is scheduled for a hearing Friday in federal court in Albuquerque.
Shawn Mike, a family spokesman and Ashlynne's cousin, says her funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday at the Civic Center in Farmington, a town at the edge of the Navajo Nation.
End Is In Sight For Gallup Diocese Bankruptcy Case – The Associated Press
A bankruptcy judge in New Mexico has scheduled a confirmation hearing on the Diocese of Gallup's reorganization plan, signaling the possible end of a case that has spanned more than two years.
The Gallup Independent reports that attorneys for the diocese filed amended copies of the reorganization plan and a disclosure statement Tuesday. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David T. Thuma scheduled the confirmation hearing for June 21.
Clergy sex abuse claimants will have to accept or reject the plan by June 10.
The abuse claimants have also been promised that they will be able to electronically access a read-only personnel file of their abuser. An attorney representing the claimants expressed concern that the provision will go away because the security details haven't yet been worked out.
In New Mexico, Democrats And GOP Scrutinize Trump – The Associated Press
Leading Democrats in New Mexico are taking aim at Donald Trump as the state's Republican governor withholds her full endorsement of the presumptive GOP nominee.
State Democratic lawmakers and party leaders gathered at an outdoor plaza Thursday in Albuquerque to highlight a disconnect they see between Trump's candidacy and New Mexico values. Both major parties are reaching out to constituents days before a registration deadline to vote in New Mexico's June 7 primary election.
Republican Gov. Susana Martinez won't indicate yet whether she will vote for Trump and says she first wants to hear how he plans to support national weapons laboratories and military bases in the state.
State Democratic Chairwoman Debra Haaland says Trump is unqualified and needs to be pressed on issues such as immigration and income inequality.
The Latest: Deputies Couldn't Detain Suspect In Girl's Death – Associated Press
Sheriff's deputies in northwestern New Mexico had stopped a man charged in the kidnapping and death of a Navajo girl hours before he was arrested Tuesday.
But San Juan County sheriff's Lt. Kyle Lincoln says the deputies didn't detain Tom Begaye Jr. because he didn't completely fit the description of the suspect. Authorities had said the kidnapper had a teardrop tattoo under his left eye and two earrings, but Begaye had neither.
Lincoln says Begaye's van also wasn't a true match of the description.
Lincoln says Begaye let deputies search his van at a gas station in Farmington around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, but they didn't find anything suspicious.
Begaye was arrested later Tuesday in the death of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike. He made his first appearance Wednesday before a federal magistrate in Farmington.
Woman Says Murder Suspect Active Navajo Cultural And Religious Life – Associated Press
A woman who knew an 11-year-old Navajo girl and the man accused of kidnapping and killing the child says the suspect was active in cultural and religious life on the nation's largest American Indian reservation.
Sher Brown, of Lower Fruitland, New Mexico, says one of her brothers knew Tom Begaye, and they regularly went to sweat lodges and church meetings on the Navajo Nation.
The U.S. attorney's office in New Mexico says investigators found and arrested Begaye on Tuesday night at a sweat lodge outside Shiprock. Sweat lodges are considered sacred places.
Brown says she was shocked by the allegations.
She says victim Ashlynne Mike and her siblings would play at Brown's brother's house, where Brown remembers braiding the girl's hair. She described the girl as kind and obedient.
Sheriff's Dept: Mailbox Keys, Stolen Mail In Suspect's Car – Associated Press
Homemade keys used by the U.S. Postal Service to access cluster mailboxes were found in the car of the man shot by Bernalillo County Sheriff's deputies in Albuquerque.
David Hickey was wounded Tuesday while deputies were investigating a possible theft at a laundromat.
When deputies arrived, one of the men fled. Authorities say the 30-year-old Hickey got into the driver's seat of the car and struggled with officers.
Sheriff's officials say two deputies were dragged when a passenger in the vehicle put the car in reverse and that's when Hickey was shot.
Deputies also found stolen credit cards, checks, passports, driver's licenses and tax documents from more than 50 victims inside the vehicle.
They're working with the U.S. Postal Inspector to notify the victims of the mail fraud.
EPA Offers $600,000 For Monitoring After Mine Waste Spill – Associated Press, Albuquerque Journal
The Environmental Protection Agency says it will provide $600,000 for three states and two Indian tribes to monitor river conditions in the aftermath of a massive spill from a Colorado mine.
State and tribal health officials requested EPA funding for a network of sensors in the Animas and San Juan rivers to provide instantaneous data on a public website. The plan also calls for periodic water sampling.
The EPA said Tuesday it would fund the plan.
Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, the Navajo Nation and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe would participate.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that two Republican senators have asked the U.S. Justice Department to start a criminal investigation into the spill.
Senators John McCain of Arizona and John Barasso of Wyoming wrote in a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch that EPA employees or contractors may have committed crimes including criminal negligence and obstruction. The EPA has defended its actions.
An EPA-led crew inadvertently triggered the release of 3 million gallons of tainted wastewater from the inactive Gold King Mine in August. The spill polluted the Animas and San Juan rivers in the three states and two reservations.
Death At Kmart Under Investigation As Homicide – Albuquerque Journal
Albuquerque Police are investigating a man’s death as a homicide after he collapsed during a struggle with store staff at a Kmart.
The Albuquerque Journal reports the unidentified man tried to flee after loss prevention workers detained him Tuesday afternoon on the suspicion he was shoplifting.
Workers restrained him as they waited for police and he passed away from some kind of medical distress, according to the Albuquerque Police Department, but a cause of death has not yet been determined.
A spokesman for APD said police are gathering witness testimony and surveillance video and will consult with the District Attorney about next steps.
Gathering Of Nations Will No Longer Be Held At The Pit – Associated Press
The University of New Mexico says the Gathering of Nations will no longer be held at its basketball arena.
UNM Executive Vice President David Harris sent a letter Wednesday to the event's organizer about the school's decision, which he says is financial and operational.
This year's 33rd Gathering of Nations wrapped up last Saturday at The Pit.
More than 100,000 spectators, artists and Native American dancers converged on Albuquerque as part of North America's largest powwow.
Some 700 Native American tribes in the United States and First Nations in Canada were represented at the annual Gathering.
The terms of the agreement between UNM and the Gathering allows for it to be nullified with a 120-day notice before the event.
Harris says Expo NM has expressed interest in hosting the Gathering.
Historic Black Fraternity Forms New Mexico Undergrad Chapter – Associated Press
A historically black fraternity is expanding in New Mexico, joining other black fraternities and sororities that have formed in the state in recent years.
Seven University of New Mexico students chartered this week an undergraduate chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi — one the nation's oldest Greek-letter fraternities established by African-American male students.
Kappa Alpha Psi, founded at Indiana University Bloomington in 1911, has boast thousands of members in its 105 years of existence. Civil rights leader Ralph Abernathy and the late tennis legend Arthur Ashe are among the fraternity's most notable members.
Greg Davis, a graduate member who helped organized the undergraduate charter, says it took nearly six years to bring the organization to campus. He says the formation shows how diverse Albuquerque is becoming.
NMSU Eyes Teaching Northern New Mexico Men How To Cook – Associated Press
New Mexico State University wants to teach some men in northern New Mexico to cook something more than grilled cheese sandwiches.
The college's Cooperative Extension Service in Rio Arriba County and the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo is working with men in a four-week cooking program to expand their diet.
Desaree Jimenez with NMSU's Rio Arriba County office says the men are learning basic cooking skills, including nutrition label-reading and meal-planning using the USDA My Plate serving requirements.
Officials say several participants previously had limited knowledge of recipes. Each is learning, for example, how to cut shortening into the flour to make fluffy pie crusts.
The men in the class are required to prepare three recipes of northern New Mexico cuisine.
Federal Agency Eyes Lender Rule Changes On Lawsuits – Associated Press
A federal agency tasked with protecting consumers from predatory lenders is set to unveil details on proposed rule changes to allow consumers to file class action lawsuits.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is scheduled Thursday to release details about proposed rules that would ban lenders from using "free pass" arbitration clauses to block consumers from filing lawsuits as a group.
The bureau is meeting in Albuquerque and will take public comment before deciding on final rule changes at a later date.
Buried in many contracts for consumer financial products like credit cards and bank accounts, most arbitration clauses deny consumers the right to participate in group lawsuits against companies.
