- VIRUS OUTBREAK-REOPENING SCHOOLS
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's Public Education Department is outlining a path for how schools will reopen this fall amid the coronavirus pandemic. Under a plan made public Tuesday, the state is requiring schools to open at 50% capacity. Students will alternate between time in the classroom and continuing with online lessons at home. Based on regional testing data, schools could be forced to close or allowed to fully open. Regardless of infection numbers, children and staff will be required to wear masks and large gatherings like pep rallies are to be avoided. Officials say the goal is to move into a full school schedule as soon as safely possible.
- SECURITY SCUFFLE-MAN ARRESTED
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — A Las Cruces man has been arrested and accused of throwing rocks at a hospital security officer and attempting to disarm a policewoman. Authorities say 26-year-old Sergio Sotelo is jailed without bond on suspicion of battery on a peace officer plus resisting, evading or obstructing a police officer. Las Cruces police were dispatched to a home about 8 p.m. Sunday where Sotelo was reportedly acting violent and throwing items. Officers took Sotelo into protective custody and transported him to a hospital for evaluation. Hospital staff later called 911 for help, saying Sotelo was throwing rocks at security personnel. A police officer responded and Sotelo allegedly tried to disarm the officer by grabbing her stun gun before he was arrested.
- SLAIN SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — The brother of an Air Force airman charged in the death of a Sunday school teacher has pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempting to hinder prosecution. Samuel Gooch entered the plea Monday in Coconino County Superior Court. Authorities say he flew to Arizona from Wisconsin last month to pick up what he thought was the rifle used in the killing. His younger brother, Mark Gooch, has pleaded not guilty in the fatal shooting of 27-year-old Sasha Krause. She had been living in a Mennonite community in northwestern New Mexico when she disappeared in mid-January. Her body was found in the forest outside Flagstaff.
- AP-US-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BALLOON-FIESTA
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — There will be no hot air balloons lifting off this fall as part of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. This would have marked the 49th year for the annual event. It usually draws hundreds of thousands of visitors and ballooning teams from around the world for nine days in October. It also contributes millions of dollars to the economy. The fiesta's board of directors had considered numerous options for trying to make the spectacle happen but instead decided to put off this year's gathering until October 2021. They made the announcement Monday, citing the safety of the pilots, spectators, sponsors, staff and volunteers.
- SPECIAL SESSION-NEW MEXICO
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Legislature has approved a proposal to make police body cameras mandatory for nearly all state and local law enforcement officers. The Democrat-led House of Representatives voted 44-26 to send the police accountability reforms to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham for consideration. It would permanently revoke certification for police convicted of unlawful use of physical force. Republicans largely opposed the bill as hastily written and financially burdensome to law enforcement agencies. Lawmakers also sent an economic recovery bill to the governor that would offer more than $400 million in low-interest loans to small businesses and local governments in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
- RACIAL INJUSTICE-CONQUISTADOR
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A man who opened fire after a fight broke out as protesters tried to tear down a statue of a Spanish conquistador is being released from custody pending trial. The decision was made Monday during a detention hearing for Steven Ray Baca. He's facing a weapons charge and charges of battery for interactions with three unidentified women during the protest. One man was shot and injured during the June 15 confrontation in Albuquerque. Police are defending their response to the violence as the debate continues over what to do with the Juan de Oñate statue and other Spanish representations around New Mexico.
- AIRPORT-CLEANING ROBOT
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's largest airport has enlisted a robot to help with cleaning in the age of coronavirus. KOAT-TV reports the Albuquerque International Sunport is employing an autonomous robot to sanitize spaces in the airport. Airport officials say the robot, dubbed Breezy One, will be employed every night. The device came from Build with Robotics and Fetch Robotics. Fetch Robotics officials say it decontaminates spaces of mover than 100,000 square feet in under two hours. The robot uses a disinfectant developed at Sandia National Labs.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — The Navajo Department of Health reported 55 new cases of coronavirus on the Navajo Nation on Monday, but no additional deaths. That pushes the total of positive COVID-19 cases to 7,045 with the death toll remaining at 335. Tribal officials also say preliminary reports from 11 health care facilities indicate about 3,716 people have recovered from COVID-19 with one hospital report still pending. The Navajo Nation has resumed weekend lockdowns with businesses closed as the number of coronavirus cases off the reservation increases, most notably in Arizona. The tribe's vast reservation stretches into northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico and southeastern Utah.