Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Latest New Mexico news, sports, business and entertainment at 4:20 p.m. MDT

  • OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico State Police and other law enforcement agencies say they're not making traffic stops to enforce a statewide stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to combat the spread of the coronavirus. The State Police, the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department and the Las Cruces and Los Lunas police departments made announcements Friday, with several saying they were aware of rumors on social media that officers were stopping drivers to enforce the order. The governor's order includes a stay-home instruction and a ban on large gatherings and calls for residents to refrain from any unnecessary travel or congregation. 

  • VIRUS OUTBREAK-STIMULUS-TRIBES

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Tribes say their persistent efforts to be included in a massive stimulus bill to respond to the new coronavirus have paid off. Tribes have been lobbying Congress to help address shortfalls in an already underfunded health care system that serves Native Americans. They secured $10 billion in the bill that President Donald Trump signed Friday. Most of it is set aside as a relief fund that will be distributed based on need. More than $1 billion will go to the federal agency that provides primary health care for more than 2 million Native Americans. The Navajo Nation in the U.S. Southwest has been hardest hit by the virus with more than 90 confirmed cases.

  • AP-US-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-WHAT'S-ESSENTIAL

The coronavirus pandemic is defining for the globe what's essential and what things we really can't do without, even though we might not need them for survival. Attempting to slow the spread of the virus, authorities in many places are determining what shops and services can remain open. They're also restricting citizens from leaving their homes. Whether it's Asia, Europe, Africa or the United States, there's general agreement on what's essential: Health care workers, law enforcement, utility workers, food production and communications are generally exempt from lockdowns. But some activities reflect a national identity, or the efforts of lobbyists.

  • POLLINATOR LICENSE PLATE

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — For the love of bees, New Mexico is now offering motorists a chance to help the pollinators through the purchase of a special license plate. The state Transportation Department says proceeds from the new plates will help fund planting projects along state roads. The pollinator project also will create educational gardens and reduce mowing and spraying of herbicides along roadways as a way to improve habitat for bees and other pollinators. The plate features the artwork of a student from the Albuquerque Sign Language Academy. It costs $25 for the initial purchase and $15 for yearly renewal.

  • SHERIFF-DRUNK-OBSTRUCTION

ESPAÑOLA, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico sheriff is facing an obstruction charge after police say he showed up drunk to a SWAT standoff and tried to order officers away. A criminal complaint filed Thursday said Rio Arriba County Sheriff James Lujan, in plain clothes, attempted to take over the scene involving a barricaded subject in Española on Saturday. Española's police chief says officers reported Lujan smelled of alcohol and ignored commands to leave the "kill zone" in front of the house of the barricaded subject. Lujan told the Santa Fe New Mexican that the accusations in the criminal complaint are false. 

  • VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO TOURISM

RIO RANCHO, N.M (AP) — New Mexico is canceling its national tourism campaign and is halting related events as coronavirus restrictions have brought tourism in the state to a halt. New Mexico Cabinet Secretary for Tourism Jen Schroer said Friday the state's popular destinations have suffered because of the health-ordered restrictions to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Schroer warned that hotels and tourist hot spots will continue suffering until restrictions are lifted. She says hotels can only operate until to 50% capacity but can house more guests if they include health care workers. 

  • ROUTE 66 INVESTMENT

New Mexico city to promote businesses along Route 6ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's largest city will be investing a half-million dollars to promote local businesses that line its stretch of historic Route 66. The city of Albuquerque announced the effort Friday, saying it's looking for a marketing firm to develop a plan to promote the corridor as a destination. The plan will also highlight the city's rapid transit bus route as a way to access the area. City officials say the campaign would be aimed at bringing back locals to Central Avenue and attracting new visitors. Shop owners along the road had complained as years of construction related to Albuquerque Rapid Transit hampered business and forced some stores to close.

  • WRESTLER STOPS KIDNAPPING

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — Authorities say a 16-year-old wrestling champion helped stop a kidnapping and assault near Las Cruces, New Mexico, by pinning a man to the ground until deputies arrived. The Las Cruces Sun-News reported Thursday that Mayfield High School student Canaan Bower is being lauded as a hero after body-slamming and putting 22-year-old suspect Daniel Arroyo Beltran of Phoenix in a chokehold. Deputies arrested Beltran Wednesday on suspicion of battery, assault and kidnapping. Witnesses say he tried to take three children from their mother. Online court records did not list an attorney for Beltran who could comment on his behalf.