- EDUCATION LAWSUIT-NEW MEXICO
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The leader of one of the largest Native American tribes in the U.S. has called on New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to end efforts against a court ruling ordering education improvements members of his tribe and other vulnerable groups. Wednesday's comments from Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez come ahead of a court hearing next week in which Lujan Grisham will ask a state judge to dismiss a consolidated lawsuit representing Native American and Hispanic plaintiffs. Her administration argues that the state has increased funding for education, that future changes will take years, and that the administration should not be micromanaged by court orders.
- WASTE DOCUMENTATION FINE
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Energy has been fined $304,000 over missed deadlines in documenting waste shipments at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The Santa Fe New Mexican reported that the New Mexico Environment Department cited the federal agency, the lab and the lab's contracted operator Triad National Security LLC for eight violations dating back to 2017. The violations involved documentation deadlines missed by a year or more. All occurred under previous lab operator Los Alamos National Security LLC. Triad took over lab management in November 2018. It isn't known whether the nuclear security administration plans to challenge the fine.
- NEW MEXICO ENERGY FUTURE
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Solar panels with the capacity to produce hundreds of megawatts of electricity and back-up battery storage systems would be installed in northwestern New Mexico to replace the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station under one alternative that will be considered by state regulators. Hearing examiners with the Public Regulation Commission issued the recommendations Wednesday in a case that has been fraught with protests, political power struggles and legal battles. The document states that New Mexico's new energy transition law puts more weight on environmental effects than on cost. so some of the options that include more renewable energy could end up costing ratepayers more.
- FORT DEFIANCE MURDER-SENTENCING
PHOENIX (AP) — A Fort Defiance man accused of a fatal stabbing has been sentenced to 17 ½ years in federal prison. Prosecutors say 25-year-old Lodi Gene Bitsie II was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Phoenix. He previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the April 2019 stabbing on the Navajo Nation reservation. Prosecutors say Bitsie argued with the victim before punching him and then stabbing him in chest with a large knife. Authorities say the victim died from the stab wounds. The FBI investigated the case because it was on tribal land.
- FALLEN POLICE OFFICER HONORED
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — All flags on the Navajo Nation will be flown at half-staff through Thursday to honor the first officer on the tribal police force to die from the coronavirus in the line of duty. Officer Michael Lee died June 19 at a Phoenix hospital. The 50-year-old Lee served 29 years with the tribal police department, beginning his law enforcement career as a recruit with the Navajo Police Academy in October 1990. He worked his first seven years in Window Rock and the rest of his career in Chinle. Tribal officials say Lee is survived by a wife and children. Lee's funeral is scheduled for Thursday at the Potter's House Christian Center in Chinle.
- COLORADO DROUGHT
DENVER (AP) — Gov. Jared Polis has ordered a task force to assess initial damage and to recommend mitigation measures for severe drought conditions that are affecting 40 of Colorado's 64 counties. Polis' order follows dwindling mountain snowpack, a warmer-than-average spring and far less precipitation than normal. It also comes as the U.S. Drought Monitor reported this week that extreme drought expanded in northern New Mexico and eastern Colorado. Polis also directed an state agricultural task force to determine the drought's potential crop and cattle damage impact and the possible economic fallout for the state's $8 billion farming industry. A climatologist says the summer promises higher temperatures and low rainfall.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NATIVE AMERICAN MOMS
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — State officials say the findings of a recent survey at a women's hospital in New Mexico are in the process of being referred to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights after allegations of racial profiling were raised. The survey at Lovelace Women's Hospital in Albuquerque was completed last week. While the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has yet to finalize the report, state health officials say initial findings identified noncompliance. The hospital denies that extra scrutiny was given to pregnant Native American patients amid the coronavirus pandemic. Some tribal communities in the Southwest have been hit hard by the virus.
- 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.