SANTA FE – The Scientific Laboratory Division of the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) has confirmed the first case of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) this year. A man living in San Juan County was hospitalized, released, and is at home recovering. 
 
HPS, however, is often a severe, sometimes fatal, respiratory disease in humans caused by the Sin Nombre virus. In 2023, New Mexico had seven cases of HPS in residents of McKinley, San Juan and Taos counties, with two of these patients dying. 
 
In New Mexico, deer mice are the primary carriers of hantavirus. The virus is found in mice droppings and urine, and people are typically exposed to hantavirus around their homes, cabins or sheds, especially when cleaning out or exploring enclosed areas with mouse droppings.
 
“Mice tend to try to enter buildings to find shelter, so it is important to seal up homes and other structures,” said State Public Health Veterinarian Erin Phipps, DVM, MPH. “While there is no specific treatment for HPS, the chances of recovery are better when medical attention is sought early, and the healthcare provider is informed about any environmental contact with rodents.” 
 
Symptoms typically develop within one to six weeks after rodent exposure and may look and feel like the flu or a stomach bug. Individuals with HPS may experience fever and muscle aches, possibly accompanied by chills, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and cough, which can progress to respiratory distress and severe illness. 
 
Avoid exposure to rodents and their nests – and reduce the risk of contracting hantavirus – by following these important steps:

• Air out closed‐up buildings such as cabins and sheds, as well as abandoned or stored vehicles before entering. 
• Trap mice until they are all gone. 
• Seal up homes and shelters to prevent rodents from entering. 
• Soak nests and droppings with a disinfectant such as a 10% bleach solution before cleaning them up. 
• Do not sweep up rodent droppings into the air where they can be inhaled. 
• Put hay, wood, and compost piles as far as possible from your home. 
• Dispose of trash and junk piles. 
• Do not leave your pet’s food and water where mice can access it.

 
For more information about this virus, including fact sheets in English and Spanish, visit the Department of Health’s HPS webpage

 By Jake Arnold

​Defendant Shooter Ryan Martinez Remains in Jail on No-Bond Hold
 
Onate Statute Protest Shooting Victim Jacob Johns Coverage by Spokane Newspaper
 
The Spokane, Washington, Spokesman-Review newspaper in its Monday 1/8/24 edition has a comprehensive update on the medical condition of Jacob Johns, the Native American environmental/political activist and artist who was critically wounded in a shooting incident during a protest over the planned, but later aborted, installation of the Juan de Oñate statue at the Rio Arriba County complex in Española in late September, 2023.
 
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2024/jan/08/two-months-after-he-was-shot-activist-jacob-johns-/
 
(The link above is one of several in this report taking readers to news stories published by the Spokane Spokesman-Review in 2015, 2023 and 2024.  That newspaper has a semi-paywall type requirement that only allows visitors to read no more than three of its recent/past stories on any given day without a registration).
 
The Spokesman-Review story of 1/8/24 details Johns’ medical condition and the specific damages done to his body by the gun shot fired at him by Oñate statue installation proponent Ryan Martinez of Sandia Park, New Mexico.
 
As a result of that gunshot wounding, doctors had to remove Johns’s spleen.  Other internal organs were severely damaged. 
 
Between participations in climate/environmental and other Native American-oriented events/protests, Johns has been living in Spokane (where is mother, Laverne McGrath had relocated) since his release from an Arizona prison after serving a long sentence after his conviction on charges unrelated to environmental, political, or Native American issues in 2015.
 
A Spokane Spokesman-Review story regarding that conviction, his spiritual journey while incarcerated, his own relocation to Spokane to be near his mother, and her support of him while he was in prison is available at the following link:
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2015/dec/09/prison-time-helped-artist-find-clarity/
 
An excerpt from that S2015 Spokane Spokesman-Review story reads:

At 17, Jacob Johns held the lifeless body of his younger brother in his arms, trying to revive him.
 
“His brother’s suicide left Johns feeling helpless and he stepped onto a reckless path.
 
While driving drunk on his way home to the reservation, Johns, who grew up in Mesa, Arizona, ignored the police as they attempted to stop him. The high-speed chase ended when he hit a police car.
 
Charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on an officer, Johns was sentenced to a maximum security prison for eight years. “I was in ‘the hole’ a lot,” he said, “Where I had no other company but my own.”
 
For much of his time in prison, Johns conversed with himself through prayer, meditation, writing, drawing and painting and reading.
 
“In retrospect, my time in prison wasn’t so bad,” he said. “It gave me a lot of time to find clarity.” In his cell, he wrote a book called “The Good Path,” parts of which he sent to his mother who transcribed it to a website (letterstomamafromprison.blogspot.com).”
 
That transcribed blogspot posting is available at the following link:
 
https://letterstomamafromprison.blogspot.com/
 
Please note, however, that this item, posted by Johns’ mother in 2009, Laverne McGrath according to the Spokane Spokesman-Review account of 2015, identifies her imprisoned son as “Charlie” and does not identify him as” Jacob Johns.”
 
Presuming that this posting was in fact actually submitted by Laverne McGrath and does recount her interactions with son Jacob Johns, this extensive document is rather illuminating.
This document describes the despair of “Charlie” (Johns?) over his brother’s death from alcoholism.
 
Shortly after the September, 2023, Espanola Onate stature shooting incident that same Spokane newspaper published an account of the Onate statue protest and the wounding of Johns.
 
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2023/sep/29/he-is-a-spokandian-he-is-your-family-spokane-indig/
 
The account at the link above additionally chronicles the public displays of numerous pieces of Johns’ artwork in Washington state.
 
The Other Side—Support on Behalf of Incarcerated Defendant Ryan Martinez
 
Martinez, his legal defense team, and a family member do not dispute that Martinez fired the shot wounding Johns, but say in a variety of public statements, interviews with law enforcement officers, Internet postings and court filings that Martinez did so in self-defense.
 
In October, 2023, Ryan Martinez’ mother, Adelita Martinez—also of Sandia Park briefly sponsored a “gofundme” campaign to raise money for her son’s legal defense, but shortly ended that effort, albeit after receiving a minimal amount in contributions/pledges.
 
Her withdrawn “gofundme” plea read: 
Hi, I am Ryan‘s mom, Adelita Martinez. Ryan was attacked, and now he is being attacked even harder by the media. Ryan has always been conservative young man who is outspoken about what he believes. He has worn a “Make America Great Again” hat for longer than I can remember. He was at an event at which there were no law-enforcement present, which clearly they should have been. Even one of the county commissioners has commented numerous times that law enforcement should have been there. After being attacked by multiple men and having his head hit on a wall, he defended himself. This is all shown on video, but all the media is showing as him pointing his gun, like if he was shooting into a crowd of people. As we all know, the media is taking this and running with it for the liberal agenda. We desperately need your support. We will do whatever we have to to help our son. Please keep him and us in your prayers. If you’re unable to donate, please share this as we need it to go far and wide. God bless you.
 
The details of Adelita Martinez “gofundme” effort, with a photo of the shooter wearing his “MAGA” (Make American Great Again/Donald Trump Political Campaign hat) can be reviewed at this link:  https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-ryan-he-needs-your-support
 
(Conversely A “gofundme” campaign sponsored on behalf of Jacob Johns by one of his supporters in Austin, Texas--data current as of early October, 2023—less than three weeks after the Onate stature shooting incident--raised $266,218. https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-jacob-johns-recover-from-terrorist-shooting)
 
 New Mexico First Judicial District Judge (who sits in Tierra Amarilla) determined that Martinez was a danger to society and after a series of hearings regarding a possible release on bond while awaiting trial, scheduled for May, 2024, and review of his ruling by the New Mexico Court of Appeals, Lidyard determined that the defendant should remain incarcerated at the county detention center until that time. 
 
Lidyard’s ruling denied a defense team claim that Martinez was justified in shooting Johns in an act of self-defense.
 
The next court event scheduled in this case is what would normally be a “routine” Docket Day hearing on March 18, 2024, but that hearing, usually just a procedural housekeeping event, may turn into battle between opposing counsel.
 
In a recent court filing Martinez’ attorneys reference Johns’ Arizona conviction/prison term as well as other instances of Johns’ arrests—all of them involving misdemeanor cases stemming from his environmental / Native American activism.
 
The Ryan Martinez legal defense team  -  Albuquerque attorneys Nicole W. Moss and Marhsall J. Ray - and First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altweis and her assistants have engaged in a contentious tit-for-tat exchange of court filings related to Johns’ run-ins with the law and the political dimensions of this case.
 
Moss and Marshall had filed a “Brady” discovery motion demanding that the prosecutors disclose any exculpatory (tending to exonerate the defendant) data regarding Johns‘ legal troubles over the past decades or other documents helpful to the defendant.
 
A Brady motion is a common defense tactic when the defendant’s attorneys are suspicious (or are “posturing for the court record/public consumption) that the prosecution has not been completely forthcoming - as required by law/court rules with disclosing evidence or other data known to the prosecution that could be of benefit to the defendant. 
 
In support of their Brady motion non-compliance allegations, the defense attorneys cite and recount the very Jacob Johns court and other materials cases that they allege the prosecutors have failed to disclose. 

Jacob Johns Native American Identity
Johns is of both Hopi and Akimel O’odham tribal descent.

The Hopi homeland is in northern Arizona, surrounded by the much larger Navajo Nation reservation.

The Akimel O’odham people are one of several interrelated O’odham tribes whose homelands are situated in the Salt River and Gila River watersheds in southern Arizona in and south of ‘Phoenix and southwestern New Mexico. The O’odham people are closely related culturally to the Pima Indian people inhabiting the same overall territory.

The water from those two rivers flow into the Colorado River near Yuma, Arizona.

The “O’odham” homeland also includes portions of Mexico adjacent to the USA and “O’odham” people have the legal right cross the border between those bi-national homelands without regulation/interference on the part of U.S. Homeland Security (Border Protection/Immigration/Customs) authorities.

At one time the common term for the O’odham people used by non-Native Americans (including the Bureau of Indian Affairs) was “Papago,” a label many Indian people found offensive.

By Jake Arnold
 
The Office of 13th Judicial District Attorney Barbara Romo Tuesday (12/19/23) filed "nolle prosequi" (decline to prosecute) notices in the perjury indictments handed up earlier this year by a special grand jury against sitting Rio Arriba County Commissioner Alex Naranjo and former County Manager Tomás Campos.
 
After a tortuous and convoluted series of legal maneuvers beginning 2019 with a petition drive (organized by Antonio "Ike" DeVargas) to convene a special grand jury to examine allegations/suspicions of corruption, malfeasance and misfeasance within the North Central Solid Waste Authority (NCSWA), the special jury did convene over the strenuous and repeated objections of First District Attorney May Carmack-Altweis, who had previously requested First District Judge Matthew to appoint a special prosecutor due to multiple issues in the history of this matter that Carmack-Altweis identified as conflicts of interest for her office. 
 
At a joint hearing in these cases in November, Carmack-Altweis strongly advised the judge that he bore responsibility for appointing a special in these cases.  Carmack-Altweis had filed a voluminous brief setting out the history of her office in opposing the  NCSWA special grand investigation Wilson seemed then to agree with the district attorney. Counsel for at that November hearing both defendants endorsed the proposition that Wilson should make such a special prosecutor appointment.  Carmack-Altweis and  and counsel representing Naranjo and Campos all agreed that the best choice for Wilson's appointment of a special prosecutor would be District Attorney Romo of the 13th District, which includes Sandoval,  Valencia and Cibola Counties.  In the past, former First District it Attorney Henry Valdez (under whom Romo once worked as a top prosecutor) referred cases in which he had a conflict to the13th District Attorney's Office
 
But several days later Wilson rejected the Carmack-Altweis motion for him to make the appointment and stated in this ruling that the Carmack-Altweis was herself completely capable of  appointing a special prosecutor for both perjury cases.
 
Acquiescing to the judges admonition , Carmack-Altweis did then in early December issue a succinct, one-page appointment documents naming Romo as the special prosecutor in both cases.  Romo quickly accepted the appointments and she, along with one of her and one of her prosecutors, completed paperwork establishing themselves  as (special prosecutor) assistant district attorneys in the First District.  A procedural hearing in both cases was initially sent for 12/21.23, but now the matter is effectively moot as Romo's team's office had dismissed the cases.
 
Doing so in short order, Romo's justification for dismissing the cases was a single sentence:
 
"The indictment(s) returned by the specially convened grand jury exceeded their lawful authority."
 
One analysis of this development suggests that, in theory, a special grand just convened pursuant to a citizen petition is authorized to investigate and recommend action, but that that authorization does not include handing up indictments with the endorsement and agreement of the district attorney (in this case the First District District Attorney) technically overseeing those proceedings even if that district attorney's office had sought to scuttle the special grand just process at every step along the way (going back to 2029 in this instance).

Read Earlier Article NCSWA Indictments and Special Grand Jury Report

By Jake Arnold
 
The odd-number year "local elections" (some city councils, school boards, and conservation districts statewide) are scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023, but early voting for those contests is now underway at two Rio Arriba County locations--the Rio Arriba county clerk's "warehouse" facility on Calle Don Diego in downtown Española (near the Plaza, Convento and Bond House Museum) and the county clerk's office in Tierra Amarilla. 
 
Several other early voting locations will be open for those wishing to cast ballots before the actual election beginning October 21 and October 24, depending on the location:
 
Hernandez Community Center (10/21)
 
Jicarilla Apache Tribal Building in Dulce (10/24)
 
Ohkay Owingeh Senior Center (10/24)
 
Santa Clara Pueblo Senior Citizens Building (10/21)
 
The last day for early voting at all these locations is Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023.
 
The Mesa Vista school district covers portions of Rio Arriba and Taos Counties.
 
The Espanola school district covers portions of Rio Arriba and Santa Fe Counties.
 
Information regarding early-voting locations for voters residing in those counties is available from the respective county clerks of those counties.
 
Two candidates are vying for an Española Board (members elected according to a specific geographic district) seat for the Abiquiu/Medanales/Hernandez area:
 
Incumbent Jeremy Maestas and challenger Dale T. Salazar.
 
Maestas is the Rio Arriba County manager and has previously held a variety of appointive, administrative positions in county and City of Española governments. The county commissioners appointed Maestas county manager after they dismissed former county manager Lucia Sanchez, a political ally of Rio Arriba Sheriff Billy Merrifield, earlier this year.
 
Salazar’s previous run for elective office was opposing Alex Naranjo for a seat on the Rio Arriba Board of County Commissioners in 2022.  In that election Salazar received a remarkable number of votes as a write-in candidate, but lost to Naranjo 1,127 (31%) to 2,507 (69%) in the general election.  Salazar was the campaign manager for Merrifield in his successful race to fill a vacancy in that office in 2022.  
 
In compliance with recent changes in state statues regulating these add-year local elections, the Mesa Vista School Baird ballot has a new format never utilized previously.
All Mesa Vista School Board seats are now “at large” districtwide and candidates do not run for a specific at-large “position” as in the past.  Three at-large seats are up for election this year and five candidates are seeking those seats.   
 
The ballot for those seats allows a voter to cast votes for three candidates (or just one or two if that should be the voter’s preference—no “ranked choice” order of preference selection is included on this ballot).  The top three candidates receiving votes are then elected.
 
Some incumbent Mesa Vista board members, whose terms are expiring, are not seeking reelection.
 
The five candidates seeking those three Mesa Vista eats are:
 
Anthony Xavier Vigil of El Rito (incumbent Mesa Vista School Board president)
 
Edwin J. Gurule of Tres Piedras (longtime Mesa Vista school bus driver)
 
John Garcia of Ojo Caliente (former board member defeated for reelection a few years back)
 
Juan J. Manzanares of La Madera
 
Daniella Irene Gallegos of El Rito
 
Both the Espanola and Mesa Vista ballots also include questions asking voters to approve or reject proposed the issuance of general obligation property tax bonds.
 
Also on the ballot are Chama Valley and Dulce school board seats as well as seats on two soil & water conservation districts covering portions of Rio Arriba County.
 
A complete list of all statewide local offices up for election this November is available at one of NM Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver’s official website pages.
 

By Brian Bondy
 
I don’t know, but I thought robots and AI would be just a perfect combination. What could go wrong?

Robots have been around for a long time. A really long time. You should look at the history of robots CLICK HERE. 

It’s a great review of some of the inventions through the ages considered to be part of the robot’s making.

I like the Automatons the best. Very mechanical, clockwork mechanisms, especially the one’s that write and look a bit human. Check out Wikipedia’s story of them CLICK HERE. 
​
Okay, so the reason I’m writing this article is because a reader of the AI article mentioned the replacement of human jobs by AI. Since it’s already happening, and since robotics have been replacing humans for decades, I thought I’d poke around for some interesting things that have happened and I found one, in particular. One of my favorite YouTube science people had a video purported to be of an Elon Musk related robot. This particular beast was doing some things new to the humanoid robot world, and I thought I’d put that video..

So what are some real world applications for robots taking away human jobs? Certainly the car industry has been using robotics for decades to help build automobiles. The mining industry has been using robotics as well, arguably, that one is a great, but there are thousands of jobs lost to robots for people who may not readily be able to be retrained to do something else, and where would they do that something else anyway? It’s not like every mining town has a whole another industry for folks to work at.
​
Robots are entering the food production market. Watch this short Pizza video Here. ​

While Abiquiu does not currently employ any robots, per se, there are plenty of examples of robotics taking over the food production world, though generally, we are talking about fast food products like pizza and burgers. Still, I remember seeing a bar that didn’t have a bar tender, but a robot that made and served drinks. Or maybe that was in The Shining remake.
While this may seem cutting edge, there are plenty of companies making these robots, and more and more companies buying into them.  Amazon is heavily using robotics, and they pretty much own the world. Like AI, for good and for bad, robotics are here and they aren’t going away, they are just getting started.

Here’s an interesting 20 minute video on 10 restaurants already using robots.
​

By Jake Arnold
 
First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies this week renewed her request to District Judge Matthew Wilson for appointment of a special prosecutor in the perjury cases against current Rio Arriba County Board of Commissioners Chair Alex Naranjo and former County Manager Tomás Campos.
 
Both defendants are facing indictments handed up in May by a special grand jury that investigated allegations of corruption/criminal conduct on the part of employees and board members of the beleaguered North Central Solid Waster Authority, (NCSWA) a joint-powers governmental entity created by the county, the City of Española and other units of local government.  Both Naranjo and Campos served on the NCSWA during Naranjo's previous tenue as a county commissioner and Campos' service as county manager.
 
The indictments do not recount any such criminal activity as NCSWA officials, but rather charge both defendants with lying in their respective testimonies related to their knowledge of possible wrongdoing within the NCSWA when they were board members.  The special investigative grand jury was convened pursuit to a citizen petition circulated by Antonio (Ike) DeVargas, a former county official, a longtime critic of Naranjo and numerous other county officials.  DeVargas began his petition-gathering efforts in 2019, when Marco Serna was DA.
 
Carmack-Altweis had filed a notice with the court requesting that either the AG take over prosecution of the perjury cases or that a special prosecutor be assigned to the case.  The DA stated in her initial request of early August (and reiterated in her filing this week) that the relations between her office, DeVargas, and the special grand jury members was so contentious  that the DA could not continue to prosecute these cases. 
 
Carmack-Altweis also identifies a conflict prohibiting her continued involvement in these cases since one of her prosecutors, Douglas Woods, is likely to be a to be a witness in these perjury cases both scheduled for trial in early May, 2024, just a month before next year's primary elections.

In her renewed request, the DA revealed that AG Raul Torrez had declined to take over the case.  Consequently, the DA is asking Judge Wilson to appoint a special prosecutor and recommends that her predecessor, former DA Marco Serna receive that appointment. 
 
The special grand jury, in their report to the court, recommended that additional investigation into what they perceived likely to be internal NCSWA criminal conduct continue since they could not complete such a task before their statutory term of authority to do so ended.   It is unclear if an appointed special prosecutor in the Naranjo/Campos perjury cases would also pursue the perceived internal criminal NCSWA conduct suggest in in the special grand jury report.
 
Serna returned to private practice after choosing not to seek re-election as DA  in 2020 and losing a bid for a congressional seat in the Democratic primary that same year. Later, Serna accepted a position with the statewide NM District Attorney's Association (NMDDA), which is effectively an adjunct agency affiliated with the AODA.  In that role, Serna serves as an auxiliary prosecutor/special prosecutor on behalf of local DAs who may need specialized assistance provided by those agencies. 

Carmack-Altwies has indicated if she will seek reelection as DA next year.
 
Serna recently hinted that he might run for First District Attorney (the position his successor, Carmack-Altweis now holds) again in 2024.  The First District includes Rio Arriba, Santa Fe and Los Alamos Counties.   

A story earlier this month by courts reporter Phaedra Haywood of the Santa Fe New Mexican stated:
 
"... (Serna) said in a phone interview supporters have approached him about again seeking the post.  “It’s humbling,” Serna said. “I have not made any decisions, but if people want to continue to speak to me about it, I’m not going to deny them that. I’m considering all opportunities at this point. ... It’s a big decision, one I won’t take lightly.”

In her letter to Judge Wilson, Carmack-Altweis identifies Serna as a special prosecutor (in his role with the AODA/NMDDA, with a relatively light case load, thereby allowing him to prosecute the perjury cases. Carmack-Altweis also proposes that Serna is familiar with the continuing efforts by DeVargas to have a special grand just convened since Serna was DA in 2019 when DeVargas initiated his petition-gathering.  

Carmack-Altwies asked Judge Wilson to hold a hearing re: her request. The judge has not yet set a hearing date.

District Judge Yet to Rule on Critical Procedural Motions
By Jake Arnold

Both the current Rio Arriba County Commission Chair, Alex Naranjo and former Rio Arriba County Manger, Tomás Campos have their respective trials set for May, 2024. They were indicted in July by a special grand jury on single counts of giving false testimony before that body. The special grand jury was investigating allegations of corruption and associated criminal conduct within the operations of the North Central Solid Waste Authority. As a county commissioner and county manager, both Naranjo and Campos served on the NCSWA governing body in past years. The indictments handed up against them do not address any NCSWA corruption or illegal activity, and only involve allegations of lying to the grand jury

Currently, the cases are on hold as their defense attorneys await action on motions by First Judicial District Matthew Wilson and/or the New Mexico Attorney General to deal with roadblocks impeding progress in adjudicating the cases.

Naranjo’s defense attorney, Justin Pennington, and Campos’ defense attorney, Tom Clark, in late August filed a joint motion in both cases claiming that district court staff have improperly blocked them from receiving transcripts of the grand jury proceedings leading up to the indictments. The motion seeks to have Wilson order production of the transcript so that the defense attorneys can proceed with preparing their defense on behalf of their clients. 
 
Additionally, a motion filed in late August by Clark, on behalf of Campos, seeks to have the First Judicial District Attorney removed from any continued involvement in prosecuting these cases.  District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altweis in early August filed a notice stating her office had a conflict of interest and could no longer continue as prosecutors in these cases. 
 
The conflict outlined by Carmack-Altweis involves her office's contentious relationship with the organizer of the successful petition effort to convene the special NCSWA  grand jury, Antonio (Ike) DeVargas.  The Carmack-Altweis notice requested that the NM Attorney General take over the cases or that a special prosecutor be appointed to handle these cases.
 
The toxic relationship involving DeVargas, the special grand jury, and the D.A.'s Office required the intervention of the district judge then-overseeing that special grand jury, Jason Lidyard, who later recused himself from the Naranjo/Campos perjury cases. 

As of today, however, court records continue to state that the D.A.'s Office remains the prosecutorial agency in these cases. The defense motion re: the Carmack-Altweis notice, seeks compliance with her interpretation of court rules requiring her office to hand the case over to another prosecutorial entity. In this instance, the defense and the prosecution appear to be in agreement: the D.A.'s office is ineligible to continue prosecuting these cases and some other prosecutorial agency (the A.G.) or a special prosecutor must take over.

These defense motions do not request a hearing on the merits of these motions and Judge Wilson has not scheduled such hearings on his own.  Consequently the cases are in limbo and cannot proceed with the normal series procedural pre-trial actions by either side that often transpire over the course of several months during the run-up to actual jury selection and trial. 

Meanwhile, it is unclear if any transfer of these perjury cases to the A.G. or a special prosecutor would concurrently result in continued investigation by one or the other of those entities into alleged corruption/criminal conduct within the NCSWA. In their report at the conclusion of the special grand jury's term, the jurors suggested that such an investigation should be conducted, as many allegations could not be fully considered by that grand jury before the required termination of that that body's term. 

​By Jake Arnold
 
(Fair disclosure/transparency disclaimer: Jake Arnold served on the Harold Ulibarri defense team as a paid investigator on behalf of the defendant. He assisted/advised Ulibarri's then-defense attorney on jury-selection, as well as strategic & evidentiary matters during the 2006 trial.)  
 
Both the prosecutor from the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Rebecca A. Ralph, and the defense attorney for convicted murderer Harold Ulibarri, Nick Sitterly, have submitted their final briefings to First Judicial District Judge T. Glenn Ellington.
 
The Rebecca Ralph prosecution briefing of just under five pages opposes the reversal of Ulibarri's murder conviction, and request for a new trial. The briefing relied solely on case precedents that the prosecutor stated should require the judge to deny the defense request..
 
Nick Sitterly's 11-page briefing centers on the matter of comprehensive DNA analysis conducted long after the trial, pursuant to a court order for such analysis, that was not conducted by the state police after Ulibarri's arrest. The Sitterly briefing also recounts the DNA-related statements at trial on the part of then-prosecutor David Foster.  
 
At trial Foster had argued that the state police laboratory DNA analysis, which only concluded that DNA material found under the victim's fingernails was "male" DNA, must belong to Ulibarri. The identity of the DNA donor, at the time, could not be determined. Foster's argument was that since the DNA was "male," Ulibarri was surely the donor since Ulibarri discovered Gutierrez' body at the home they had been sharing, no other individual could have been the donor. 
 
Sitterly's briefing centers on a new and comprehensive DNA analysis, which suggests Gutierrez' romantic partner at that time, Kenny Duran, as a possible donor. Duran had been with her the evening and early morning prior to her death.
 
(Clarification: a  previous account of this case, the DNA controversy, and the 2006 Ulibarri trial courtroom drama--written by this correspondent and appearing in this space on 8/11/23 suggested that a sample of Ulibarri's DNA was the "male" DNA obtained from under the victim's fingernails, but that another male DNA donor could just as likely be a suspect.  However, no such DNA sample from Ulibarri was ever obtained or analyzed by the state police.) 
 
Sitterly's arguments during an evidentiary hearing before Ellington on 8/2/23, and reiterated in his final briefing, argued that the identification of Duran (or a closely related male family member) as a likely donor to a statistically significant degree of certainty justifies reversal of Ulibarri's conviction and an order by Ellington for a new trial.
 
Ellington told Ulibarri defense attorney Sitterly and current prosecutor Ralph he would render a decision after reviewing their final briefings.  Ellington indicated he would announce his decision this month (September).  As of deadline time for this week's edition of the Abiquiu News, the judge has not yet announced that decision.   

By Jake Arnold
 
taxes over the past three years since the assessments were approved in a 2019 ballot referendum, Northern New Mexico College administrators released documents addressing, in part, those matters at a Board of Regents (BOR) meeting in El Rito 8/25/23.  According to law, the disposition of all mill levy funds should be dedicated solely to the operations of the NNMC Branch Community College, which is linked to the "parent" NNMC, but is a separate educational institution "district" and unit of state government created by the boards of education of five contiguous public-school districts authorized to do so by special enabling legislation in 2019.  Those five public school districts are Chama Valley, Española Valley, Mesa Vista, Pojoaque and Jemez Mountains. 

The geographic footprint of the NNMC Branch Community College covers the majority of Rio Arriba County, the northern part of Santa Fe County and a small sliver of Taos County.  Property owners in that NNMC Branch Community College district (the boundaries of which coincide with those of the five public school districts) pay the mill levy at a rate of two one-thousandths of assessed evaluation.  The mill levy assessments are collected by the treasurers of the three counties. This mill levy fund is effectively the sole source of financial support for the NNMC Branch Community College, which is administered by the "parent" NNMC, but the annual budget of which must, by law, be approved by an advisory board consisting of representatives from each of the five "enabling" public school district boards of education.

The handout of mill levy accounting documents at the 8/25/23 NNMV BOR, as well as in response to widespread dissatisfaction over the NNMC-sponsored "El Rito Grito" (question & answer) event conducted by NNMC President Hector Balderas, was immediately following the monthly NNMC BOR meeting in El Rito this past July.  At that event, numerous citizen attendees expressed frustration and disappointment over the lack of specific data related to mill levy matters as well as what they generally considered to be murky "progress reports" regarding the long-awaited and promised complete reopening of the campus in El Rito and what repairs. renovations and capital improvements are required to achieve that end.

While the campus in El Rito may host NNMC Branch Community College operations (and does so on a limited basis at the present for two union-affiliated "trades" programs for electricians and plumbers/pipefitters), this campus can also be the site for other instructional programs of the parent NNMC apart from NNMC Branch Community College programs, which by law must be "trades," "vo-tech" or "career education" in nature leading to two-year "associate" degrees or certificates.  The 2019 enabling legislation allowing the creation of the NNBMC Branch Community College expressly prohibits this institution from offering instruction leading to four-year "baccalaureate" degrees.

One program authorized for the NNMC Branch  Community College is "dual credit" instruction for area high school seniors (from the five "constituent" public school districts).  Promotional, ballot-question flyers distributed by proponents of the 2019 mill levy election, and pronouncements by then-NNMC President Ricky Bailey in addition to politicking by other citizen supporters of the mill levy proposal promised that the "dual credit" programs would be one function of the NNMC Branch Community College if the mill was to be approved by the voters.  Lack of such approval would have left the NNMC Branch Community College as an "empty shell" district with no funding as the 2019 enabling legislation prohibited any legislative appropriations for this institution.

But the operation of the "dual credit" program by the NNMC Branch Community College since 2019 has become a point of contention for those citizens who believe that any "dual credit" classes attended by the high school seniors must be 1.) held at one or the other of the two NNMC campuses and 2.) must be classes oriented towards the statutory "trades," vo-tech. "career education" mandate.  In other words, the NNMC Branch Community College dual-credit program classes must be held at NNMC facilities in Espanola or El Rito and cannot be held at the high schools. 

At the 8/25/23 BOR meeting college administrators confirmed what was suggested (revealed) re: the dual-credit classes are now being conducted at the high schools, not at the Espanola or El Rito NNMC campuses.

However, the NNMC administrators responding to citizen queries at the 8/25/23 meeting could not pinpoint how many dual credit NNMC Branch Community College students are enrolled and whether those students are taking classes consistent with the "trades," vo-tech," or "career education" mandate.

One of the hand-out documents distributed at the 8/25/23 BOR meeting was a fiscal year 2022 (ending 6/30/22, but the figures included only cover transactions/usage through March 10, 2022) report on mill levy monies received by the college and how the "parent" NNMC administrations used them for supposed NNMC Branch Community College purposes.
The other BOR 8/25/23 meeting hand-out document is a somewhat more detailed account of all mill levy monies received from the county treasurers by NNMC on behalf of the NNMC Branch Community College since 2019 and through the end of fiscal year 2023 (ending June 30, 2023) and the utilization of those funds.  Noteworthy re: the "mill levy" fund administered by the parent NNMC (and subject usage in accordance with the statute-required budget approval by the advisory board) is that past NNMC administrators never opened a separate bank account for mill levy funds and instead deposited all of those funds in the "parent" NNMC's own bank account.  The advisory board has not posted any public notices of any past meetings since 2019 and (as the parent NNMC BOR is required to do) and apparently no minutes of any such meetings exist.

What the second 8/25/23 BOR handout does reveal, in part, as concerned citizens (friends/supporters of the college) have been requesting these past three years, is that NNMC (on behalf of the NNMC Branch Community College) has received $10,499,000.90 in mill levy funding since 2019 and that over the course of the same period, total expenditures in support of the NNMC Branch Community College by three different "parent" NNMC administrations through 6/30/23 are in the amount of $5,409,582.46.

Within the various graphs and line-item entries presented in this handout is an unexplained and curious set of listings for mill levy "revenues” accruing to the "parent" NNMC as generated by four different counties collecting those assessed taxes. The curious aspect of this section of the handout is that Bernalillo County (Albuquerque) is included, but this county does not assess or collect any mill levy taxes for any NNMC-related institution.

Overall, this handout is at best, a limited synopsis of the NNMC Branch Community College mill levy situation.  

Responding to "public comment" citizen presentations re: the mill levy and other NNMC Branch Community College/El Rito campus issues. Balderas suggested that prior use of the mill levy funds by prior administrations may, in retrospect, not have occurred in accordance with statutory requirements or the presumptions held by legislators when the enabling 2019 special legislation authorizing creation of the NNMC Branch Community College was debated at the Roundhouse (this legislation did pass both houses unanimously). 

Charts in the second 8/25/23 BOR meeting handout compare Balderas' role in the mill levy expenditures, since he took over as NNMC President in January, 2023, in comparison to the roles of former NNMC President Bailey and former interim NNMC President Barbara Medina.  By the inclusion of this comparison, Balderas is distancing himself from responsibility for any past mill levy expenditure problems and in his comments at the July "El Rito Grito" event and at the 8/25/23 BOR meeting he proposed that the task before him now is for him to ensure that all future mill levy expenditure issues moving forward will be resolved in accordance with statutory mandates.

A continuing issue of some importance is whether any mill levy funds may be dedicated to capital improvements at either NNMC campus if those facilities are occupied by or used for NNMC Branch Community College purposes.  This issue dovetails with the status of any plans or intentions of NNMC administrations since the campus in El Rito was effectively shuttered over 10 years ago.  Statutory requirements would allow mill levy funds to be used for maintenance of any NNMC facilities dedicated to the NNMC Branch Community College, but not for the construction of any significant capital facilities or major improvements (such as new climate-control systems. Such construction must be financed by monies other than those generated by the mill levy taxes.

In June 2022, a consultant submitted a comprehensive "strategic plan" for NNMC El Rito that incorporated detailed proposals for the "resurrection" of the campus in El Rito and the use of that campus by the NNMC Branch Community College.  During the public comment period at the 8/25/23 BOR meeting a former NNMC faculty member and longtime friend/supporter of NNMC El Rito, Bruce Smith observed that apparently neither the BOR nor NNMC administrations have taken any substantial steps to implement this voluminous strategic plan.

The strategic plan document is contained as one of several items in a BOR "packet" prepared for the BOR and submitted to them by the administration prior to each regular BOR meeting.  This “packet” with the strategic plan is available for public inspection at a page within the NNMC website (nnmc.edu) that gives a visitor access to past NNMC BOR minutes and BOR packets.  This packet in question for the June 2022, BR meeting is over 100 pages long, but that strategic plan document is included and can be viewed by patiently scrolling down and down and down.
Click for documentchrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://nnmc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/6-23-22-NNMC-Board-Packet-2.pdf


 
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By Jake Arnold
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The Northern New Mexico College Board (NNMC) of Regents (BOR) are holding their monthly meeting today in El Rito beginning at 9:00 am.  This is the second monthly BOR meeting in a row for the historic "home" campus of the college for El Rito.  This meeting will be at the old Boardroom upstairs in Delgado Hall, the main administration building and oldest structure on the campus, rather than in Alumni Hall (North Dorm building), the site for most other NNMC events in El Rito over the past several years.
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One agenda item for this BOR meeting, in particular, is an "informational" staff report regarding the financial affairs of the NNMC Branch Community College and, specifically, disposition of the mill levy property tax receipts, collected since 2019, that provide virtually the sole funding for the NNMC Branch Community College, which is legally a separate  governmental/educational entity distinct from NNMC, but closely associated with, and managed by, the "parent" NNMC.  The geographic footprint of the NNMC Branch Community College "district," includes all territory within the boundaries of five area public school districts, Espanola Valley, Chama Valley, Jemez Mountains, Mesa Vista and Pojoaque.  Voters residing in that geographic footprint approved the mill levy property tax assessments via a general election ballot "referendum" question put before them in 2019.

By law, the president of NNMC (position currently held by Hector Balderas) is concurrently the president of the NNMC Branch Community College.  A NNMC Branch Community College advisory board (mandated by he enabling 2019 legislation) is required to  approve the annual budget (funded by the mill levy taxes) for that educational entity.   Decisions regarding the instructional curriculum for the NNMC Branch Community College are the responsibility of the NNMC president and the NNMC BOR.

Early on in the agenda for today's BOR is the customary "public comment" period. 

Several citizens, who have been closely following the affairs of both NNMC and the NNMC Branch Community College, intend to address the BOR during this public comment time period.  One of the primary concerns of these friends of the college is the disposition of those mill levy funds since 2019 and the operations of the NNMC Branch Community College, which include "dual credit" technical/vocational instruction for high school senior from area high schools.  Another concern to be articulated during the public comment period is the status of long-awaited completion of the promised "resurrection" of the campus in El Rito, restoring that campus to full use (classroom/laboratory space, dorms, restaurant, etc.).

The 2019 legislation allowing the creation of the NNMC Branch Community College established the site of operations of that institution as either/or the two NNMC campuses in El Rito and Espanola.  But the campus in El Rito may also be utilized for other NNMC educational programs as well as a site for education-related conferences and other El Rito community events such as those sponsored by the El Rito Arts Association.

Others who may have an interest in these NNMC/NNMC Branch Community College/El Rito campus-related matters are encouraged to participate in the public comment period set forth in the 8/25/23 BOR agenda.
Agenda Attached