New Mexico’s Zorro Ranch sits at the heart of a Senate showdown over who’s protecting Jeffrey Epstein’s paper trail — and whether Trump’s pick to run U.S. intelligence will keep stonewalling the state’s own investigation. At Wednesday’s confirmation hearing for Director of National Intelligence, Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., pressed nominee Jay Clayton on why the […]
Kevin Hendricks
Kevin Hendricks is an editor with nm.news where he oversees Sandoval County newsrooms. A native of Southeast ABQ, he reported for the ABQ Journal and Rio Rancho Observer before joining nm.news in 2024.
Posted inCourts, Justice & Safety
The battle for the ballot: New Mexico Forward Party challenges state law
The New Mexico Forward Party sued the state Tuesday, arguing New Mexico’s ballot access law punishes a newly qualified minor party by forcing its candidates to gather far more signatures than Democrats or Republicans ever have to touch. Party Chairman Bob Perls filed the federal suit in Albuquerque after the Secretary of State’s office disqualified […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Goatheads land their first-ever player and he’s got hockey in his blood
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Before the Goatheads have played a single shift, they’ve already made history: forward Grant Ahcan is officially the O.G. (Original Goathead) and the first player ever signed by the new franchise, inking an ECHL deal for the 2026-27 season. “Grant Ahcan embodies everything we want the New Mexico Goatheads to […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Rio Rancho’s tap water meets all federal safety standards, new report shows
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Rio Rancho residents can keep drinking straight from the tap — the city’s water met every federal and state safety standard in 2025 — but a paperwork slip means one well is still waiting on a minor fix that was due back in March, according to the city’s newly released […]
Posted inRio Rancho
DEA, grieving mom bring fentanyl awareness walk to Rio Rancho
By Kevin Hendricks and Julian Paras, The Paper. Rio Rancho families who’ve lost someone to fentanyl got a chance to walk, grieve and organize together Saturday, as the second annual Walk for Lives came to Haynes Community Center and Park. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s El Paso Field Division and the Rio Rancho chapter of […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Safety upgrades underway at dangerous NM 528 and Pasilla intersection
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Drivers on NM 528 will see new lane markers, not new headlines, this week as crews are installing delineators, signage and striping at the Pasilla Road intersection through July 15 — the long-promised interim fix at one of Rio Rancho’s most dangerous stretches of road. Work runs 9 a.m. to […]
Posted inCongress & Federal Gov.
Heinrich wants more NM workers on the path to hardhats
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. New Mexicans eyeing a career with a hardhat instead of a diploma just got a boost in Washington, as U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) reintroduced legislation aimed at funding the training programs that feed skilled trades apprenticeships. Heinrich’s Pre-Apprenticeships To Hardhats (PATH) Act would direct the U.S. Department of Labor […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Daring rope rescue saves six after ravine crash
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper.Six people are recovering after a side-by-side rolled down a steep ravine near Southern Blvd. and 60th St. NW early Saturday, triggering a technical rope rescue that pulled them from terrain crews couldn’t reach on foot. Rio Rancho Fire Rescue crews responded to reports of the rollover with multiple injured occupants, […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Rio Rancho woman charged with felony after vehicle title dispute turns violent
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. A 48-year-old Rio Rancho woman is facing a third-degree felony charge after police say a dispute over signing over a vehicle title turned violent Friday, leaving her ex-wife with a puncture wound from a writing pen. Rio Rancho police responded to the 3000 block of Southern Boulevard SE around 5:48 […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Come party with The Paper. to celebrate our Rio Rancho expansion
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Rio Rancho readers get a reason to celebrate — and a reason to party as The Paper. throws open the doors Thursday for a free Summer BLOCK Party marking its expansion into the City of Vision. The open house runs 7-9 p.m. Thursday, July 16, at The BLOCK. DJ Hump […]