AP-US-NUCLEAR-REPOSITORY-EVACUATION
- ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — An area at the U.S. government's nuclear waste repository in southeastern New Mexico was evacuated over the weekend after workers handling a shipping container discovered a small amount of radioactive liquid inside it. Officials say there was no indication of airborne contamination and that testing of workers' hands and feet turned up no contamination. It wasn't immediately clear where the liquid came from and which government facility had packed and shipped the waste. The repository receives shipments from national laboratories and defense-related sites around the country. The waste typically consists of lab coats, gloves, tools and debris contaminated with plutonium and other radioactive elements.
LEGISLATOR SUING LEGISLATOR
- SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico state Sen. Jacob Candelaria is suing fellow Sen. Mimi Stewart, accusing her of retaliation over his criticism of her leadership. The Santa Fe New Mexican reports Candelaria, an independent, believes stem Stewart, a Democrat, used her authority as president pro tem of the Senate to move his Capitol office and change his seat on the Senate floor. The 35-year-old Candelaria says he is suing out of principle because "any form of reprisal is unlawful." A spokesman for Senate Democrats said Stewart, 75, would not comment on the lawsuit. Candelaria has publicly slammed Stewart for not being open about an investigation of a state administrator accused of making racist remarks.
ALBUQUERQUE PRIDE-NO POLICE
- ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Organizers of this year's Albuquerque gay Pride festivities have decided not to let the city's police department participate. KOB-TV reports all but one member of the ABQ Pride Board approved a motion Sunday to prohibit police from having a parade float or a booth at Pride Fest. Some cited the history of tensions between police. But other members were unsure about ruling police out completely. Board members also noted that the police did not send any representative to their meeting. Chase Jewell, a police department community ambassador, was not able to attend but he says the department respects the board's decision.
BC-NM-FATAL SHOOTING-TEEN ARRESTED
- ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Police say a 15-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with a fatal shooting at a southwest Albuquerque park two months ago. Police say the teen is facing a murder charge in the Feb. 26 fatal shooting of 19-year-old Vincent Phuc Loc Le at Westgate Community Park. The suspect was taken into custody Friday and booked into the Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center. The boy's name isn't being released by The Associated Press because he's a juvenile. Police say the teen is accused of setting up a fight with another person at the park following a high school basketball game. As a vehicle with four people inside approached the park, police say the teen allegedly fired 17 shots _ killing Le and injuring three other people inside the car.
PLANE CRASH-NEW MEXICO
- OJO ENCINO, N.M,. (AP) — Authorities say one person was killed and a second injured when a plane crashed Saturday in a rural area of northern New Mexico. The State Police said the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation SAfety Board will investigate the crash that occurred near Ojo Encino about 8 miles south of Counselor. Officer Dusty Francisco said Francisco said a 19-year-old injured man was transported to a hospital but that no information was available on his condition. Francisco said authorities were working to identity the person killed in the crash. Ojo Caliente is 72 miles northwest of Albuquerque and along the boundary between Sandoval and McKinley counties.
WILDFIRES-NEW MEXICO
- ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Warnings that strong winds and hot and dry weather could produce wildfires blanketed most of New Mexico on Saturday as crews continued to battle at least two blazes that started as prescribed burns and got out of hand. The National Weather Service issued warnings and watches that extended into Monday evening for the entire state except for snow-covered areas in higher elevations. Air tankers assisted crews battling a fire that burned 3 square miles of mostly grassland southeast of Roswell. Elsewhere, crews battled a wildfire declared after winds caused spot fires outside a prescribed burn area northwest of Las Vegas.
JUVENILE JUSTICE REFORM
- FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Attorneys for an Arizona man who was sentenced to life in federal prison for crimes he committed as a juvenile are pushing for his time to be cut short. The U.S. Supreme Court made that possible in a 2012 ruling that said only the rare, irredeemable juvenile offender should spend life in prison. Riley Briones Jr. was convicted of murder and other gang-related crimes on the Salt River-Pima Maricopa Indian Community in the 1990s. His attorneys say he got his GED, ministers to other inmates and has a spotless disciplinary record. Federal prosecutors have said he should remain imprisoned, arguing he's minimized his role in crimes that terrorized the reservation.
INFLATION REBATES-NEW MEXICO
- SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has signed legislation to provide payments of $500 to individual adults or $1,000 to households to offset increased prices for fuel and other consumer goods. Signed Friday, the bill provides two installments in June and August. The payments will arrive on top separate tax rebates in July that exclude upper-income residents. Income limits don't apply to the newly approved payments, which will cost the state about $700 million. The New Mexico state government is experiencing a financial windfall linked to record-setting oil production in the Permian Basin. Lujan Grisham said the rebates are meaningful to families but won't necessarily be repeated in future years.