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Latest New Mexico news, sports, business and entertainment at 5:20 p.m. MST

  • VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Nearly one quarter of New Mexico's population has registered to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. But officials with some of the state's largest health care providers said Monday that inconsistencies with the supply chain are among the barriers to getting more shots in arms. They say they have been planning and are ready to set up more clinics to administer vaccines when more doses arrive. More than 507,000 residents have registered on the state's vaccine website. Health officials say the focus right now remains on those who are 75 and older. More than 203,800 doses have been administered. 

  • NAVAJO COUNCIL SPEAKER

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — Lawmakers on the Navajo Nation have chosen Seth Damon to serve another two-year term as speaker. The lawmakers are meeting this week for their winter session in Window Rock, Arizona. The first item on their agenda was to select a speaker to oversee the tribe's legislative branch. Seth Damon received the only nomination. Damon has served on the 24-member council for six years, representing a handful of communities around Gallup, New Mexico. As speaker, he presides over quarterly Navajo Nation Council sessions. The position also is second in line to succeed the Navajo Nation president. 

  • COCHISE COUNTY-HUMAN REMAINS FOUND

DOUGLAS, Ariz. (AP) — Cochise County Sheriff's officials say human remains have been found in the Peloncillo Mountains east of Douglas and about a mile from the New Mexico border. They say hunters were in the area when they found the remains Sunday and notified authorities. Sheriff's deputies and the U.S. Border Patrol responded to the scene.   The remains were carried out and turned over to a mortuary for transport to the medical examiner's office. Sheriff's officials say they're continuing to investigate the case and working with the medical examiner to identify the remains and determine the cause of death.

  • SOUTHWEST WEATHER

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — A series of winter storms have dropped more precipitation in Flagstaff than the city had during last summer's monsoon season. The recent snow measured as water topped the amount of rain that fell from mid-June through September, the driest monsoon season on record. Arizona and New Mexico have been parched lately in the worst categories of drought. The storms brought some relief through much of Arizona and to a lesser degree in New Mexico. Forecasters say the mountainous areas of Arizona could get around 3 feet of snow before the latest storm moves out Tuesday. 

  • ABORTION-NEW MEXICO

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Democratic legislators are redoubling efforts to repeal New Mexico's dormant, 50-year-old ban on most abortion procedures that could go into effect if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion ruling. A bill that would shore up abortion rights statewide was scheduled for its first legislative committee hearing on Monday in videoconference format as a precaution against the coronavirus. Twenty-five senators have signed on as co-sponsors of the bill. That's an indication of strong support in the 42-member, Democrat-led state Senate. Several anti-abortion Democrats were ousted from the state Senate in the 2020 elections.

  • VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — Navajo Nation health officials are reporting 133 new COVID-19 cases and seven more deaths as a revised public health order is set to take effect. The latest figures released Sunday bring the total reported coronavirus cases on the reservation to 27,484 with 973 known deaths. Beginning Monday, the tribe is extending its stay-at-home order with a revised nightly curfew to limit the spread of COVID-19. The Navajo Nation is also lifting weekend lockdowns to allow more vaccination events. The actions in the latest public health emergency order will run through at least Feb. 15. The daily curfew will run daily from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO
New Mexico reports 635 new COVID-19 cases and 30 more deaths
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Health officials in New Mexico on Sunday reported 635 new COVID-19 cases and 30 more deaths. The latest figures pushed the state's totals to 169,205 cases and 3,145 known deaths since the start of the pandemic. On Saturday, health officials had reported 859 additional cases and 38 deaths. Bernalillo County had the most additional cases reported Sunday with 146. Most of the additional deaths involved older New Mexicans, but they also included several people in their 30s. The number of infections is thought to be far higher than reported because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick.  

  • SWATTING HOAX-APPEAL

DOVER, Del. (AP) — A New Mexico man has lost his appeal after pleading guilty to making bomb threats against a school and a Walmart in southern Delaware. A federal appeals court last week affirmed the 27-month sentence Stephen Scott Landes received for engaging in several instances of "swatting" in an online feud with a Delaware man. Swatting refers to schemes that cause police and SWAT teams to respond to fake emergencies. Landes had argued that the judge failed to properly consider his mental health history. But the judge said other factors held sway, including that thousands of children and other innocents were traumatized.