SWAT officer switches off body cam prior to shooting
Officer Jeremy Bisagna's body camera video from the July 19 shooting of Anthony Benavidez shows the policeman playing it by the book. Bisagna displays less-lethal pepper spray rounds before loading them into a launcher. But a few minutes later, as he and other officer start discussing tactics, he switches it off. It never comes back on, and four minutes later, the 24-year-old Benavidez has been shot 17 times. Body cameras from other officers record Bisagna firing all but one of those rounds. The shooting, in which the mentally ill man stabbed a social worker and then lobbed poorly made dud bombs at police, is still under investigation.
Shooting suspect's jail rampage
Damian Herrera, suspected of killing three family members and two strangers in a Rio Arriba County shooting spree, wandered the county's jail facility and attacked at least two guards, locking one of them in his cell. The jail has cameras and the video is
.
Zinke tours Cruces national monument
Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke spent an hour and a half flying over the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument yesterday, dubbing it "beautiful ground" and later taking a run through part of the monument. He also said boundaries between federal, state and private land seemed
. Zinke is expected to make recommendations to save, shrink or shutter several newer national monuments by the end of next month. He's been invited to tour the Rio Grande Del Norte monument near Taos and Questa, too.
Police called to Española chief's house twice in 2016
Matthew Vigil lives in Taos, where
two calls to his house last year, both over concerns about domestic violence. Reports show Vigil, the Española police chief, is accused of throwing things at his wife and, in another case, drinking and getting into a possibly physical argument with her.
Tricky Taos travel
Gas pipeline work on Highway 68 through the Rio Grande Gorge is going to slow down traffic starting next week. The construction
, catching the tail end of summer tourist season but likely missing the bulk of ski season. Hello, High Road!
Where's the party?
The Railyard. Tonight. 5-8 pm. Best of Santa Fe. It's free to hang out and the weather seems set to actually get better as the
. Highs in the upper 70s with the chance of rain tapering off at 5 pm. Santa Fe seems to be sitting
of a shifting rain pattern.
Thanks for reading! The Word digs the drizzle.
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