- ALBUQUERQUE-CHILD SHOT-INVESTIGATION
Police: Albuquerque girl remains in critical after shooting(Information from: Albuquerque Journal, http://www.abqjournal.com)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Police say an 8-year-old girl who was shot and wounded inside a northeast Albuquerque home remains in critical condition as detectives try to determine what happened.
They say no arrests have been made and no suspects are being sought in the case.
A police spokesman told the Albuquerque Journal that detectives have scheduled safe house interviews with the girl's two siblings, who are under the age of 18 and not considered perpetrators of the shooting Sunday evening.
The children were placed in the custody of the state's Children, Youth and Families Department for a 48-hour hold Sunday night.
Police say the girl's parents arrived at the scene as well and told detectives who was responsible for the children at the house at the time.
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- CHACO CANYON-DRILLING
US lawmakers seek to protect national park in New MexicoALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Members of New Mexico's congressional delegation are renewing a call for the creation of a formal buffer around a national park held sacred by Native Americans.
A measure reintroduced Tuesday would prevent future leasing or development of minerals on federally-owned land within a 10-mile (16-kilometer) radius of Chaco Culture National Historical Park.
A world heritage site, supporters say they want to protect the sense of remoteness that comes with making the journey to the park. They're also concerned about the preservation of ancient stone structures and other features outside the park's boundaries.
The lawmakers and tribal officials are worried about the potential of expanded drilling despite repeated decisions over the years by federal land managers to defer oil and gas interest in parcels that fall within the buffer.
- IMMIGRATION-DETAINEE DIES
Autopsy: Transgender migrant died from AIDS complicationsALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — An autopsy has concluded a Honduran transgender migrant who died while in the custody of U.S. federal immigration officials died of complications from AIDS.
The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator released Tuesday its findings on the death of 33-year-old Roxsana Hernandez whose mysterious 2018 death in Albuquerque sparked protests.
According to the autopsy, the cause of death was multicentric Castleman disease due to AIDS.
Multicentric Castleman disease is a rare disorder of the immune system.
The autopsy also found Hernandez suffered from broken ribs after medical staff performed CPR in response to at least 10 heart attacks.
Hernandez had traveled with a caravan of Central American asylum seekers and was taken into custody in San Diego.
She was later transferred to El Paso, Texas, before being taken to the Cibola County Detention Center in western New Mexico.
- BORDER BOTTLENECK
Border chaos forces truckers to wait hours, sometimes daysCIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) — The Trump administration has reassigned so many inspectors from Mexico border crossings that truckers are waiting in line for hours and sometimes days to get shipments to the United States.
Hundreds of Customs and Border Protection officers have been temporarily assigned to deal with a surge of families arriving at the border. The result is that truckers have been sleeping in their vehicles to hold spots in line. The wait times in El Paso, Texas, were so long that the city brought in portable toilets for drivers.
President Donald Trump backed off his threat to close the border, but the long waits have created significant impediments for truckers and travelers. Business leaders are losing patience too as they struggle to get products to grocery stores, manufacturers and construction sites.
- BICYCLIST KILLED
Australian man on bike fatally struck by truck in New MexicoPORTALES, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico State Police say an Australian man on a roadway north of Portales has been fatally struck by a pickup truck.
The name and hometown of the 44-year-old man weren't immediately available Tuesday.
State Police say the bicyclist was on U.S. 70 partially in the right lane of the roadway.
They say a pickup truck driven by a 43-year-old Clovis woman struck the bicyclist from behind about 8:40 a.m. Monday.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
State Police say driver inattention appears to be a contributing factor in the crash, but alcohol does not appear to be involved.
They say the case remains under investigation and the woman could face charges. Her name hasn't been released.
- CLERGY ABUSE-NEW MEXICO
Attorneys prepare closing arguments in ex-priest trialSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Attorneys are scheduled to deliver closing arguments in the trial of a former New Mexico priest charged with sex abuse that authorities say occurred in the early 1990s.
Closings arguments in the trial of 81-year-old Arthur Perrault, a former Albuquerque pastor who was arrested in Morocco and returned to the United States last year, are scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
Authorities say Perrault had multiple victims in New Mexico but that the charges against him stemmed only from the abuse of one boy while at Santa Fe National Cemetery and Kirtland Air Force Base.
Perrault has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The case has marked a rare federal criminal prosecution of a priest in a state where abuse victims have won more than $50 million in settlements from the Santa Fe Archdiocese.
- CHILD DEATH-ALBUQUERQUE
Albuquerque police investigating drowning of child at motelALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Police say young child has drowned at an Albuquerque motel.
Officer Simon Drobik says detectives are questioning a male family member as part of their investigation into the child's death Tuesday morning.
The child's age and gender haven't been released but police say the child was under 5 years of age.
- DEADLY SHOOTING-FARMINGTON
New Mexico man accused in deadly shooting released from jail(Information from: The Daily Times, http://www.daily-times.com)
FARMINGTON, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico judge has ordered a man who is charged in a deadly shooting to be released from jail after finding that prosecutors did not meet the burden of proof to hold him without bond.
The Farmington Daily Times reports 18-year-old Isiah Ontiveros has been charged with first-degree murder and tampering with evidence in the death of 31-year-old Nathaniel Tracy.
Court documents on the case were recently unsealed following Ontiveros' release late last month.
According to the documents, a detective says Ontiveros shot Tracy during a fight in Farmington on March 5.
His public defender, Shellie Patscheck, says the only evidence against her client is a witness statement, which the judge determined not to be credible.
Ontiveros' preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 29.
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