Morning Word: Obama Restricts Police Militarization

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attlefield type military equipment like grenade launchers, high-caliber weapons and bayonets will no longer be loaned from the federal government to local law enforcement agencies. That, plus why is the state's largest police agency telling reporters that body camera video evidence doesn't exist when it actually does? Months after denying a public records response, the disturbing video finally surfaces.

It's Tuesday, May 19, 2015

President Barack Obama

on the type of military gear being provided to local police departments.

Santa Fe County Sheriff Robert Garcia supports the restrictions.

Law enforcement agencies around New Mexico have received more than $25 million worth of Defense Department weapons in recent years.

Steve Terrell has more.

The Albuquerque Police Department refused to release their complete weapons inventory list to the media for more than 18 months. But they’ll have to turn it over this week after State District Judge Alan Malott ordered them release it to ABQ Free Press earlier this month. Read more here.  APD has finally release video from a 2014 SWAT incident they originally told a local television state didn’t exist, and it’s raising serious questions about the way officers treated a dead body. Read it at KRQE.com.  Failure to release evidence and public records could lead to more lawsuits and a bad year for APD. Read why at the LA Times.  Two city councilors voted against a $4.2 million contract for a court-ordered police department monitor in Albuquerque. Read it at KOB.com.  One of those councilors, Rey Garduño, says he’s decided to retire. Read it at New Mexico Political Report.  Other councilors are defending their private meetings with the Department of Justice monitor and reject the idea they violated the state’s Open Meetings Act.
Andy Lyman has the story. 

Two state lawmakers plan to fight for a measure to close a loophole in the state’s child porn laws after their original bill failed to get through the Senate Public Affairs Committee earlier this year.

But not everyone supports the proposed legislation.

Read it at the Albuquerque Journal. Gov. Susana Martinez is in Dallas for political meeting with the Republican Governors Association. As vice chair of the group, she has responsibility for fundraising for the 2016 campaigns. When Martinez returns to the capital tomorrow, she might want to figure out how to boost jobs in the construction sector or call a special session to approve capital outlay funds, because New Mexico has the lowest employment figures in the country, according to a new report.

Read more at ABQ Business First.  A New Mexico State University professor says Las Cruces’ economy is still stuck in a recession. Read it at the Las Cruces Sun-News.  Overall it appears the state’s economy is growing, albeit slowly. Part of the problem: Young adults are staying at home with their parents longer. Richard Metcalf reports.  Hillary Clinton is headed to New Mexico for a breakfast fundraiser in early June. Read it here.  Media mogul Ted Turner’s New Mexico ranch is in the middle of a dispute between the state and federal wildlife officials over management of endangered Mexican gray wolves. Susan Montoya Bryan has the story.  American Airlines' decision to stop direct flights from Santa Fe to Los Angeles in September has movie crews and business people bummed out.

Read it at the Santa Fe New Mexican. 

If you’re in a rush and forget to buckle your car’s seat belt, you’ll probably be getting an expensive citation. A big “click it or ticket” campaign is under way around New Mexico this month. Read it here.  Company executive is defending the utility’s energy portfolio plan to the Gila Economic Development Alliance. Read it at the Silver City Sun-News.  Meanwhile, El Paso Electric is sharing details about its proposed rate increase for its southern New Mexico customers.

Read it at the Las Cruces Sun-News.  Officials plan to open a new $14 million solar panel project in Springer later this month. The funding provided by USDA Rural Development also includes the expansion and upgrade of 74 miles of electric line and system. A total of $3.4 million of the $14 million loan was used to construct the 1 mega-watt solar power generation facility located just north of Springer.

Read it at the Los Alamos Daily Post. 

Santa Fe Reporter