Editor’s note: This is the fourth installment in a series titled Downtown Albuquerque Reboot, about the city’s center, its challenges and the plans to address them. Read about why the area matters here, about vacant buildings here, peruse a photo essay about lowriders here, and end with what the area has to offer here. On […]
Courts, Justice & Safety
New Mexico state police officer shot, killed near Tucumcari
TUCUMCARI, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico state police officer was shot and killed Friday on Interstate 40 in eastern New Mexico near Tucumcari and multiple law enforcement agencies were searching for the suspect. The suspect was last seen wearing a brown hoodie and jacket, the state department of public safety said in an email […]
Fourth APD officer resigns while under investigation in DWI corruption case
A fourth Albuquerque Police Department officer has resigned rather than be interviewed as part of an internal investigation into allegations of misconduct by DWI officers. Nelson Ortiz resigned Thursday, according to a news release. “Investigators were attempting to schedule an interview with Ortiz, but he decided to resign,” the release states. Ortiz, who joined APD […]
NM daycare workers’ convictions reversed in 2017 death of toddler inside hot car
The New Mexico Supreme Court on Thursday granted a new trial for two daycare workers in the 2017 death of a 1-year-old girl left in a hot car and the serious injury of another toddler. The high court said in a news release that it reversed the child abuse convictions of Mary Taylor and her adult daughter Sandi Taylor […]
Third APD officer under investigation in DWI corruption probe resigns
A third officer under investigation for corruption within the Albuquerque Police Department’s DWI unit has resigned before being interviewed by internal investigators. Harvey Johnson resigned on Wednesday. Gilbert Gallegos, an APD spokesperson, said he was scheduled to be interviewed for the internal investigation today. Johnson is one of six APD officers who were put on […]
Death of adult film star in Albuquerque gets national, international attention
Twelve days ago, local homicide detectives were called to a Northeast Albuquerque apartment complex to investigate a woman’s death after she was found “unresponsive” by her family. Now it’s been more than a week and her death has been reported by national — and even international — outlets, including the New York Post, The Daily […]
Muslim community reflects as first trial in spate of killings begins
As Muslims began their Ramadan fasts on Monday, Muhammad Syed — an Afghan refugee who came to Albuquerque in 2016 — prepared to face a jury on one count of murder in the 2022 slaying of a fellow Muslim, Aftab Hussein. It is the first of three trials in a case that shook Albuquerque’s Muslim […]
Bernalillo County Sheriff launches animal cruelty reporting portal
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office has a new Animal Cruelty Report Form on its website to help notify the county’s Animal Cruelty Task Force of suspected animal abuse. Anyone who has witnessed animal cruelty can fill out the request form and remain anonymous if they choose. The form has a space to report the address […]
Roswell police have new patches that are out of this world, with flying saucers and alien faces
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press Famous for being the spot where a spacecraft purportedly crashed in 1947, Roswell, New Mexico, has become a mecca for people fascinated by extraterrestrial phenomena. So it’s only fitting that the city’s police force has uniform patches that are out of this world. Unveiled on Friday, the new patches […]
What should happen after the city has completed the police reform effort?
As the federally mandated reform of the Albuquerque Police Department closes in on 10 years — and the end is in sight — community policing groups have begun thinking about what comes next. With that in mind, a policing expert who has worked on consent decrees in Ferguson, Mo., and Baltimore, Md., visited the Southwest […]