Teen killer in court
Nehemiah Griego, who shot and killed his parents and three siblings when he was 15, will begin a week-long hearing before a judge to determine if he's ready for release or should be bound over to prison or some other form of incarceration. Griego is 21 now.
Transparent ethics
Faced with an overwhelming majority of voters who approved the creation of an independent ethics commission, lawmakers must now decide how to create such an entity. They already tweaked the constitutional amendment to approve the commission to give themselves the final say over the commission, and now some legislators are worried that ethics complaints will be used as poltical weapons, so maybe they should be secret. Other lawmakers say that fear is a red herring, and voters deserve to see as much as possible.
Your recycling is too loud
Some people who live near Santa Fe's recycling center at Fort Marcy Park say the clattering of glass is too loud. One city councilor even implied that people were somehow breaking glass for fun in the receptacles. The city created the drop-off spot—the only one near the city's pricey downtown—after it eliminated glass from its curbside recycling program. Other options would be to put it somewhere it might not bother people or just stop recycling ($) there.
More charges for Taos County compound case?
Federal prosecutors are considering the addition of federal terrorism charges against Jany Leveille, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj and three other defendants for what's called providing material support to terrorists. It's a novel charge for New Mexico, but what started as a kidnapping and child abuse case has grown into weapons charges and perhaps terrorism-related counts.
Gun bill
A group of Santa Fe students gathered yesterday to share thoughts about gun violence in schools and ready themselves to join the push for a child access protection law. When lawmakers arrive to the Roundhouse next month, the group will join gun violence prevention advocates to lobby for a law that creates criminal liability for adults who negligently store guns in a way that allows minors to access them.
No pets
A homeless veteran in Albuquerque says he has to choose between having shelter and having a dog most nights. Shaun Clark says Albuquerque shelters for the homeless don't accept pets. Clark says his dog, Loki, helps with PTSD problems.
Sun, but …
After digging the stormy holiday mood and even catching a few flakes in places like Albuquerque and Santa Fe over the weekend, the sun will be back today. It's going to be cold, though, with highs expected to be 10 to 15 degrees below normal. That means mid-30s in Northern New Mexico and mid-40s in the central Rio Grande Valley. Maybe more storms toward the end of the week.
Thanks for reading! The Word thinks you should check out PBS' American Experience episode on George HW Bush. It's not streaming right now (hence, no link) but keep an eye out.
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