No, sir, you are not ‘just joking’

Your joke’s not funny

Police have issued an arrest warrant for a JROTC instructor at Santa Fe High who has been accused of touching and making inappropriate comments to students. Dale Mayes, age 55, contends in a letter to the district that he hugs students for moral support, but some students have very different versions of events. Students said that when they'd tell Mayes he was acting inappropriately, he'd simply say he was "joking." Santa Fe cops would not say whether Mayes has been arrested, and that Rio Rancho could be handling the warrant (since Mayes lives there); but The New Mexican reports that Rio Rancho is not aware of the warrant ($ TNM).

Krebs indicted

For those who have been following the saga of the putt heard 'round the state, the former head of athletics at the University of New Mexico has been indicted on seven felony counts for using school funds to pay for a 2015 golf jaunt to Scotland, then trying to cover up the scandal. He used tens of thousands of dollars of UNM money to pay for expenses of three individuals not affiliated with UNM.

We so fancy

Santa Fe has long punched way above its weight when it comes to our arts offerings, and now the National Center for Arts Research at Southern Methodist University has announced that Santa Fe is at the very top of its Vibrancy Index Report for medium-sized communities for the second year in a row. Not only are we on top for medium-sized cities, but we actually outscored large cities (take THAT, New York and Los Angeles!), ranking in the top 1% of communities on overall arts providers, arts dollars and government support.

Christus sued

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a lawsuit against Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center on behalf of a deaf woman who says she experienced harassment and discrimination based on her disability, then was fired when she tried to complain about it. Among other things, Asheley Coriz, who was hired in February 2018 as a histology technician, says that her reasonable requests were not accommodated, and that her supervisor once yelled, "Didn't you f—ing hear me? I'm tired of telling you the same thing."

Drumming up support in oil country

About 500 people went to check out a speech by Vice President Mike Pence in Artesia yesterday, wherein the veep pushed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and promised it would be a boon for the oil and gas industry. The agreement would also require that auto parts are made in North America in order to qualify for zero tariffs, would require those automobile workers to make at least $16 per hour, and would increase allowable dairy exports to Canada.

Charges won’t stick

A few weeks ago, 16-year-old Hunter Woods allegedly shot his mother's boyfriend during an altercation and then hid for a few days, prompting a citywide police search. He's now taken a plea deal ($ TNM) to unlawfully possessing the gun. Prosecutors threw out the most serious charges of voluntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence, saying they could not prove those charges at trial.

Why is this so difficult

This isn't really a hard news item, persay, but more like "more of the same" from the Public Regulation Commission: The body has once again kicked the can when it comes to deciding whether to consider provisions in the Energy Transition Act when talking about closing the San Juan Generating Station. The environmental group Western Resource Advocates asked the commission to clarify whether the law would apply in the San Juan case, and the PRC said it would not do so. The commission kicked it back to the public utility company, unanimously voting to require PNM to declare whether it would be willing to  give the commission more time to discuss which law should apply ($ TNM).

Of all the beats to choose

A newspaper in Gallup has pointed to New Mexico's new "ban-the-box" rule when explaining how a convicted sex offender was hired as an education reporter. New Mexico recently made it illegal for employers to ask about criminal history on job applications, and staffers at the Gallup Independent say that's how Guy Priel's prior convictions for sexually assaulting a child and possessing child pornography slipped through the cracks. However, state Senator Bill O'Neill, who co-sponsored the bill, pointed out that the law does not ban employers from doing background checks and asking about criminal history in later interviews.

Thanks for reading! The Word sure has egg on her face about the whole "little to no precipitation" forecast from yesterday morning. Sorry to anyone who perhaps left their umbrella home on account of that misguided tip.