Morning Word
Report: Cerrillos Road suspect attempted car jack
The state police yesterday released its report on Wednesday’s officer-involved shooting by the Santa Fe Police. According to its preliminary investigation, the situation began April 24 at Café Castro at 2811 Cerrillos Road, when a suspect who would later be identified as Jermaine Garcia, 37, entered the restaurant, asked to use the restroom and was denied. “Subsequently, Garcia entered the kitchen area, armed himself with a large butcher-style knife and engaged in an altercation with the manager. Garcia then left the café while armed with the knife and attempted to carjack a vehicle in the parking lot, but was unsuccessful which prompted Garcia to head north toward another business on Cerrillos Road.” State police say multiple 911 calls were placed in response to Garcia and two SFPD offices responded to the scene at approximately 2:38 pm. One tried to engage with Garcia, but Garcia “aggressively approached the officer’s vehicle, striking the officer’s driver’s side window with the knife, causing the window to break. At one point several citizens were within feet of Garcia as he continued to display the knife in an aggressive fashion.” Officers attempts at subduing Garcia with their tasers failed and he continued to ignore orders to drop the knife, instead charging the SFPD officers. At that point, an officer discharged his firearm twice (a graphic video of the shooting and the events preceding the shooting appeared shortly thereafter on social media). Garcia received medical assistance at the scene, the report says, before being taken to the hospital. SFPD Deputy Chief Ben Valdez told SFR via email that as of yesterday morning, Garcia was in critical condition at a local hospital and expected to have surgery. State police say no officers were injured during the incident; the district attorney is responsible for reviewing the shooting.
CDC details dangers of NM vampire facials
A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention documenting the potential risks of HIV from cosmetic injection services focuses on New Mexico, following the discovery of a woman who contracted HIV following a “vampire facial” at VIP Beauty Salon and Spa in Albuquerque—the first known transmission of HIV through “nonsterile cosmetic injection services.” The spa owner ultimately pled guilty on multiple counts of practicing medicine without a license and was sentenced to three and a half years in prison, plus probation. The Washington Post picks up on the new study, and details the events that led to the discovery of the women—three, ultimately—who contracted HIV as a result of the spa’s unsanitary practices. The story also explains the so-called vampire facial, made popular by Kim Kardashian (trigger warning: The story includes a photo Kardashian posted of herself post-vampire facial), which “involves drawing a patient’s blood, separating out the platelets and injecting them into the face through tiny needles that barely pierce the skin. Proponents of the procedure claim it beautifies the skin and can reduce wrinkles and acne scars because platelet-rich plasma encourages the growth of new skin cells and collagen, which provides structure to the skin.” Investigators identified numerous unsafe practices at the spa, including unwrapped syringes. The most likely culprits for the HIV the clients contracted: “The needles themselves or the blood vials, which showed signs of being reused.”
Santa Fe County seeks health commission members
Santa Fe County’s Community Services Department is looking for volunteer members to fill four vacancies on its Health Policy and Planning Commission, which has nine members in all. The openings include one volunteer each from Districts 2 and 4 and two at-large members. According to a news release, committee members provide guidance and recommendation to both the Community Service Department and Board of County Commissioners and also: research issues as assigned; propose updates to the county’s health action plan; stay up to date on health care issues and the like. Interested applicants should submit a resume and letter of interest; all appointments will be confirmed by the county commission, with applicants subject to background checks. The 2020 resolution creating the commission requires its members be “of diverse background and representative of varied health care services experiences.” The commission is required to meet no less frequently than quarterly, with each member serving three years for no more than two consecutive terms. Applications must be received by 5 pm, Wednesday, May 15 to: Jennifer N. Romero; PO Box 267 Santa Fe, NM 87501. Email jnromero@santafecountynm.gov.
ABQ High School principal fired over drag show
New Mexico is in the national news following the termination of Albuquerque’s Atrisco High School principal, Irene Cisneros, in response to a drag performance at the school’s prom last weekend. The Albuquerque Journal reports APS has not yet announced whether Cisneros will return to her job, but the district has named an acting principal while it investigates. What is known is that parents were upset in response to a video of the performance that emerged on social media in which a drag performer named Mythics danced for the students and bantered with them. According to the Journal, Chief of Schools Channell Segura and Mark Garcia, associate superintendent of leadership, learning and equity, sent a letter to parents “regarding a performance by a non-APS individual that occurred at last week’s prom. Please know that the district is aware of the performance and has begun an investigation to determine what occurred and how students were impacted.” The Journal reports that in addition to Cisneros, multiple other staff members at the school also were put on leave.
Listen up
The state Department of Workforce Solutions this week launched a new podcast titled Good Job New Mexico that will focus on—yes—labor, employment and work, across the spectrum of careers. “By sharing the career journeys of fellow New Mexicans from across the state we aim to empower and inspire listeners to envision their own career path,” NMDWS Cabinet Secretary Sarita Nair says in a statement. “If someone is unsure of where to start exploring a new career or how to pursue a career path that they hear about on the podcast, our career consultants at New Mexico Workforce Connection Centers are there to help from start to finish.” In the first episode, hosts Stacy Johnston and Karla Meléndez talk with Sade Smith about her experience as DWS’ first pre-apprentice and, yes, will explain the pre-apprenticeship concept.
Have art, will travel
This year’s Coachella festival has concluded, with coverage by Southern California News Group publications such as The Press Enterprise of not just the music, but the art as well. “Coachella never misses with their art pieces,” New Mexico resident Aidan Martinez tells The Press Enterprise. “They’re functional, they’re beautiful, there’s lots of shade and they look cool.” The story looks specifically at three new art pieces that join stalwart installations, including New Mexico-based sculptor Don Kennel’s “monumental horse sculpture.” Also on the New Mexico-art-in-other-locales beat, Las Vegas Weekly (a newspaper in the other Las Vegas) covers a new show at the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, Contemporary Ex-votos: Devotion Beyond Medium, which originated at New Mexico State University in 2022, before heading to Chicago and continuing on tour in the West. The show, the Weekly reports, “combines contemporary expressions of 15 Latinx artists with a collection of 19th to 20th-century ex-votos” from NMSU’s archives. “This is something that I’m very proud of—this is a Latinx art show without having to be very Latinx,” curator Dr. Emmanuel Ortega, Marilynn Thoma Scholar and Assistant Professor in Art of the Spanish Americas at the University of Illinois at Chicago, tells the Weekly. “Here, the art is very specific and nuanced.” For this iteration of the exhibition, Ortega expanded from the original New Mexico-based curation to include Las Vegas artists, among others.
Hungry in Santa Fe
We’re taking this Mashed story on the best cities for “walking tacos” with a grain of Maldon salt for several reasons. First, a Frito pie is not a taco and second, the story spells Santa Fe incorrectly at least once. That being said, Santa Fe and Albuquerque land on the list of 10, with special shout-outs here for the Five & Dime General Store and the Plaza Café, along with El Parasol in Española (although its Frito pie is available at its Santa Fe location as well). But you don’t need to look to national publications for lists of places to find Frito pies or tacos or any type of local cuisine. ICYMI, SFR’s annual Restaurant Guide hit the streets and the interwebs this week and includes an extensive neighborhood-focused guide to eating and drinking your way through Santa Fe. So whether you plan to eat downtown this weekend, set your sights northward or head to the Southside, we’ve got you covered. Please keep us posted if you try someplace new you love or if we missed your favorite spot. This week’s edition also includes interviews with five chefs bringing their own style of cuisine to Santa Fe, including Cafecito chef Jordan Isaacson, who appears on the cover carrying some very tasty-looking empanadas. Lastly, we feature the winners of our local Food Foto contest and we at least plan this weekend to partake of Baked & Brew’s butterscotch cruffin as a result of first-place winner Allison Ramirez’s photo. Baked & Brew co-owner Kate Holland also appears in the chef story, and makes a compelling argument for the restaurant’s breakfast sandwich too. Hungry yet?
Earth, wind and...snow, maybe?
The National Weather Service has a red flag warning in effect today, starting at 1 pm, due to expected winds and low humidity. NWS forecasts a sunny day, with high temperatures in the mid to high 60s. We may see some rain and even perhaps some snow this weekend, with a 60% chance for precipitation on Saturday, dropping to 20% on Sunday, with high temperatures in the 50s and 60s, respectively.
Thanks for reading! The Word is perusing (and learning about) AI spam; shrimp Jesus is super weird. This newsletter returns Tuesday, April 30.
