- VIRUS OUTBREAK-OMICRON VARIANT
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Department of Health on Monday announced the state's first identified case of the COVID-19 omicron variant. Health officials say the case was identified Sunday and involves a Bernalillo County woman. They say the unidentified woman reported recent domestic travel to a state with reported cases of omicron. Authorities say the woman was seen in a local emergency room and then discharged. The state health department is currently conducting a thorough case investigation. The omicron variant has been confirmed in at least 30 states and the District of Columbia as well as more than 60 countries. Arizona reported its first confirmed case of the omicron variant on Dec. 8 in Yavapai County.
- REDISTRICTING-NEW MEXICO
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A state Senate redistricting plan is in limbo amid a standoff over Native American political priorities and efforts by lawmakers to avoid competitive pairing of incumbents in the next election. The Senate canceled a floor session Monday amid negotiations. States must redraw their congressional and legislative districts every 10 years to reflect new population numbers. A broad coalition of Native American communities is backing a plan to shore up Indigenous voting majorities in three Senate districts in northwestern New Mexico and reinforce voting blocs elsewhere. Left intact, that proposal would leave Republican state Sen. Joseph Sanchez of Bosque outside the boundaries of his current district.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — The Navajo Nation on Monday reported 19 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, but no additional deaths. The latest numbers pushed the tribe's total to 40,519 cases since the pandemic began. The known death toll remains at 1,562. Tribal health officials reported 23 cases Sunday plus one death. Based on cases from Nov. 26-Dec. 9, the Navajo Department of Health issued an advisory for 58 communities due to uncontrolled spread of COVID-19. Tribal President Jonathan Nez has issued a reminder to get the vaccine or the booster as the Christmas holiday approaches.
- HIT-AND-RUN-BOY KILLED
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Albuquerque police are searching for the driver who struck and killed a 7-year-old boy as he was crossing the street with his family. Authorities say the hit-and-run occurred Sunday around 8:30 p.m. at Central Ave and Tingley Drive. A family of four had just left the River of Lights, a series of holiday light displays at ABQ BioPark Botanic Garden. According to traffic camera footage, a car ran a red light. The family was in the crosswalk and the traffic signal gave them the right of way. The boy's father was also injured. He was taken to a hospital in stable condition. Police say the off-highway vehicle fled the scene.
- FATAL STRUCTURE FIRE
RIO RANCHO, N.W. (AP) — Authorities say two people have been found dead after a structure fire in the Rio Rancho area. Several fire crews from Sandoval County were called out around 3 a.m. Sunday. Rio Rancho police and county sheriff's officials also went to the scene. Authorities say one person was found dead as firefighters tried to stop the flames from spreading. They say a second person was found dead at the scene shortly afterward. The names, ages and genders of the two dead persons weren't immediately known. Authorities say the cause of the fire is under investigation and it's not yet known how the two people died. The county sheriff's office and the New Mexico State Fire Marshal's Office are in charge of the fire investigation.
- ALBUQUERQUE-FENTANYL SEIZURES
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Authorities say fentanyl is the No. 1 drug driving crime and violence in Albuquerque. Drug Enforcement Administration say agents seized 242 pounds of fentanyl in the past fiscal year in New Mexico. That's a 900% increase over the prior fiscal year and well over the amount captured around the state in the previous five fiscal years combined, according to DEA officials. Authorities say fentanyl seizure amounts have surpassed heroin, which dropped to some of its lowest levels since 2016. The Albuquerque Journal reports that despite the seizures, the amount of fentanyl that has slipped through the fingers of law enforcement has furthered an epidemic of overdoses in the New Mexico.
- PROP FIREARM-SHOOTING
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A judge has decided that the assistant director who handed Alec Baldwin a prop gun that killed a cinematographer on a New Mexico film set must make himself available for an interview with state workplace safety regulators. Local news outlets reported that a district judge on Friday granted the state officials' request to issue a subpoena to Dave Halls, assistant director for the movie "Rust." Halls' attorney did not immediately respond to a request by The Associated Press for comment. Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed and director Joel Souza was wounded in the Oct. 21 shooting on the Bonanza Creek Ranch film set near Santa Fe.