By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — When Burqueños look at local and federal crime reports, they might be surprised to find that Washington and City Hall disagree on exactly how many people were murdered in Albuquerque last year. We wanted to know why that is and we found that even APD isn’t entirely sure why […]
Local Government
Posted inCorrales
Corrales to examine confusing street address system
By Rodd Cayton Several organizations rank Corrales among the safest places to live in New Mexico and village leaders are seeking to increase that status by making sure emergency responders can get to residents as quickly as possible. In his weekly message to the community, Mayor Fred Hashimoto wrote that the Village Council will be […]
Posted inNM.news
Burque sues big tobacco to clean up its butts from city parks, drains
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Albuquerque is suing some of the biggest names in tobacco to make them pay for the cleanup of cigarette butts that clog city storm drains, litter public parks and reach the Rio Grande. The city alleges the companies have known for decades that their plastic filters create pollution and […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Debate over privacy concerns continues as council backs new police tech deal
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Rio Rancho police will roll out 25 new body-worn cameras, automatic evidence tagging and virtual reality training after the Governing Body voted Aug. 27 to consolidate three separate Axon contracts into one 90-month agreement. Lt. Brandon McKinney told the council the deal bundles existing TASER, body-worn camera and Fusus real-time […]
Posted inBernalillo County
A final tribute: Bernalillo County to honor indigent and unclaimed residents
By Rodd Cayton Community members who may have been forgotten in life will be remembered Sept. 3 with a special ceremony at Fairview Memorial Park. Bernalillo County each year invites the public to honor those who recently died. “This program is important because it ensures that every unclaimed or indigent resident receives a dignified memorial, […]
Posted inCity Desk ABQ
Parents raised concerns about APS recording children’s voices using AI. The district responded.
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Parents across the Duke City pushed back against Albuquerque Public Schools’ use of artificial intelligence to record, analyze and store elementary students’ voices without explicit parental consent. The district listened and is now changing how it handles those recordings. At the center of the debate is Amira AI, an […]
Posted inSandoval County
Billions in growth: Sandoval County faces staffing shortfall amid property boom
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County property values keep climbing — up nearly $1 billion on residential improvements alone in the past year — but the office pricing them out says staffing hasn’t kept pace with growth. New Assessor Ed Olona, appointed by commissioners in July after his predecessor resigned amid a dual-paycheck scandal, […]
Posted inPlacitas
Residents protest, commissioners approve: The battle over the Placitas tower
By Rodd Cayton On the advice of an attorney — and against the wishes of dozens of residents who packed their chamber — Sandoval County Commissioners approved an application from parties seeking to erect a communications tower in Placitas. The planning and zoning commission in May denied the conditional use permit that would have allowed […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Big investments ahead: Council reviews police tech, well rehab, townhomes
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Rio Rancho’s Governing Body will decide Thursday whether to expand its Axon technology contract to nearly $4.4 million over 90 months, adding 25 more body cameras, AI-assisted translation and virtual reality use-of-force training to the police department’s toolkit. The council meets at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Council Chambers, with […]
Posted inRio Rancho
District 2 déjà vu: Wymer opens search for new council seat
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. District 2 has a vacancy on the horizon. Councilor Jeremy Lenentine announced Aug. 19 he’s resigning for family considerations, with his last day in office set for Nov. 12 — handing Mayor Paul Wymer the job of finding a replacement under the same fast-track process that seated Councilor David Mann […]