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Latest New Mexico news, sports, business and entertainment at 6:20 a.m. MDT

  • OPIOIDS-NEW MEXICO

New Mexico requires co-prescription of opioid reversal drugSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico is requiring that many opioid prescriptions for pain relief come with a second prescription that can reverse possible overdoses.
A law that went into effect this month requires co-prescriptions of opioid overdose-reversal medication such as naloxone to accompany any opioid prescription that last five days or more.
Lindsay LaSalle of the Drug Policy Alliance said Tuesday the law may save lives by increasing distribution of overdose-reversal medications that are unfamiliar to many people.
New Mexico already makes naloxone available at pharmacies without prescriptions. The new law takes a more aggressive approach by requiring safety briefings to first-time opioid patients about overdose risks.
Thom Duddy of Emergent BioSolutions that produces a naloxone nasal spray called Narcan says opioid prescriptions are likely to decrease in New Mexico as a result.

  • OIL ALLIANCE-NEW MEXICO

Nonprofit oil alliance spends on grant writer for New MexicoSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A nonprofit alliance of energy companies has spent $80,000 on a grant writer to help New Mexico's Transportation Department pursue federal grants.
The state's Legislative Finance Committee announced in a newsletter Tuesday the support from the Permian Strategic Partnership.
The partnership is an alliance of energy companies that operate in the Permian Basin that straddles the Texas-New Mexico state line. It has pledged to invest in community development projects Texas and New Mexico.
Surging oil and natural gas production in the Permian Basin has produced a windfall of income for New Mexico state government. Lawmakers are attempting to diversify the state economy with financial incentives for film production, outdoor recreation and renewable energy.

  • SWATTING HOAXES-INDICTMENT

Documents: 'Swatting' suspect engaged in cross-country feudWILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Court documents say the Delaware man indicted by a federal court for "swatting" incidents had engaged in a cross-country feud with a man he'd met on the phone and who had called in hoaxes about him before.
The Delaware News Journal reports the unsealed documents say 29-year-old Rodney Phipps met 29-year-old Stephen Landes of New Mexico in a phone chat room in 2013. Their relationship reportedly turned hostile and investigators say Landes made emergency calls pretending to be Phipps in incidents that locked down a Georgetown, Delaware, elementary school and a Walmart in 2018.
Phipps was recently arrested for making similar calls between 2015 and 2017, causing police and SWAT teams to respond to locations across the U.S.
Landes has been in federal custody since last year. Phipps faces false threat charges.

  • NAVAJO NATION-ELECTRICITY

Power project on Navajo Nation connects 233 homes to gridFORT DEFIANCE, Ariz. (AP) — More than 230 homes on the Navajo Nation have been connected to the electric grid as part of a pilot project.
The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority worked with volunteer utility crews from across the country on the project that wrapped up last month.
The goal had been to connect 300 homes on the reservation where 15,000 homes don't have power.
Tribal utility spokeswoman Deenise Becenti said Tuesday the final tally was 233 homes.
The volunteer crews from 13 states also ran more than 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) of electric line from April through May.
The tribal utility worked with the American Public Power Association to design the project that both are hoping can be used as a model in the future.

  • SANTA FE-SUPERINTENDENT

Santa Fe school board extends superintendent's contractSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The Santa Fe school board has extended the contract for its superintendent and gave the former New Mexico secretary of education a pay hike.
The board voted Monday to extended Superintendent Veronica García's contract by a year to June 2021 and approved a 6% raise.
According to state numbers, test scores from the 2018 school year showed that district results in math and reading were below statewide averages.
The 67-year-old García dismissed the importance of scores from the state's standardized test, which the Public Education Department is revamping.
García served as the public education secretary under former Gov. Bill Richardson.

  • LAS VEGAS OPTIC-EDITOR

Las Vegas Optic names new editor(Information from: Las Vegas Optic, http://www.lasvegasoptic.com)
LAS VEGAS, N.M. (AP) — The Las Vegas Optic has named former Los Alamos Monitor sports editor as the newspaper's new editor.
The Las Vegas Optic announced Sunday that Phil Scherer has been chosen to lead the 140-year-old newspapers. He replaces Jason W. Brooks, who has taken a position in Arizona.
The Missouri native takes over this week as editor of the Optic.
In Los Alamos, Scherer covered the high school sports, worked doing color commentary on radio sports broadcasts, and helped with many other duties at the paper.
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  • LAS CRUCES-FATAL SHOOTOUT

Las Cruces police ID man killed in shootout with authoritiesLAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — Police in Las Cruces say they've identified a man who was killed in an exchange of gunfire with law enforcement officers.
Police say 35-year-old Francisco "Paco" Tarin was pronounced dead at the scene of Monday's incident.
Tarin, who lived in Las Cruces and Roswell, allegedly shot at a marked Las Cruces police unit.
He then allegedly shot at several officers who were attempting to take him into custody.
Officers from four law enforcement agencies returned fire at Tarin, who was hit multiple times.
Authorities say two Las Cruces police officers and a Dona Ana County Sheriff's deputy suffered minor injuries in the shootout.
They say the handgun Tarin allegedly used was recovered by police.

  • ENDANGERED WOLVES-PUPS

Pup fostering gives genetic boost to wild Mexican wolvesALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A dozen Mexican gray wolf pups are being raised by wild packs in Arizona and New Mexico as biologists mark another season of playing matchmaker to bolster the genetics of the endangered species.
The foster program involves placing captive-born wolves into the dens of established packs as part of an ongoing effort to return the wolves to their historic range in the American Southwest.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Maggie Dwire says this marks the most pups to be fostered in a single season since the technique was first used in 2014.
A zoo in Kansas and breeding programs operated by conservation centers in Missouri and New York helped this year.
For fostering to work, the timing has to be just right. The pups are usually less than two weeks old when they're placed with a surrogate pack.