- NEW MEXICO WEATHER
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Forecasters with the National Weather Service in Albuquerque say two winter storms will be bearing down on New Mexico this week. The first is expected to bring widespread precipitation through Tuesday evening. The Sacramento Mountains in southern New Mexico and the adjacent highlands will see gusts during the day before a backdoor cold front moves in and crosses the plains. Well below normal temperatures are expected in the storm's wake. The next round will hit Thursday night with some high elevation snow showers possible for northern New Mexico.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW MEXICO
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico is seeing its daily COVID-19 case totals decline. But health officials have been worried about whether the Christmas holiday could lead to another spike as it takes two to three weeks for infections to manifest. On Monday, the state reported an additional 700 confirmed cases, bringing the total to more than 138,650 since the pandemic began. The death toll stands at 2,380. Almost one-third of the latest deaths included people at long-term care facilities and one inmate at the Guadalupe County Correctional Facility. Vaccinations of health care workers as well as staff and residents at long-term care facilities is ongoing.
- PUBLIC RECORDS-MEDICAL INVESTIGATOR
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico attorney general's office says autopsy reports done by the state for a tribal entity or the federal government are subject to open record laws because the work is carried out in part using state funds and resources. The written opinion was issued earlier this month. It stemmed from a request from the Rio Grande Sun newspaper for autopsy reports done by the state Office of the Medical Investigator under contract for the Jicarilla Apache Nation. The newspaper filed a complaint with the attorney general's office in 2019 after being denied the records.
- SKI AREA EMPLOYEE DEATH
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Authorities and a friend identified a Ski Santa Fe employee who died after hitting a tree while skiing during his personal time over the weekend as a 22-year-old from Phoenix. The sister of Bryan Garcia's roommate tells the Santa Fe New Mexican that Garcia was working in equipment rentals at the ski basin. Garcia's roommate, Evan Simpson, created a GoFundMe page to benefit Garcia's family. Santa Fe County sheriff's deputies were called to the ski basin about 2 p.m. Saturday, and authorities said Garcia was pronounced dead at the scene.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-OUTDOOR RECREATION
CARLSBAD, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico officials are hoping an appetite for outdoor recreation during the coronavirus pandemic will help the state's economy recover. The Carlsbad Current-Argus reports that the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division requested more funding for outdoor programs and support initiatives to be considered during the next legislative session scheduled to begin in January. The division requested more than $3 million to fund its Great New Mexico Trails Package, which would provide funding to groups with plans to develop and maintain hiking trails statewide. The division also requested about $1 million for the Outdoor Equity Fund to give funding to youth programs that center on outdoor recreation.
- TROOPER KILLED-COLD CASE
DENVER (AP) — Denver police are asking for help solving the 1973 shooting death of a Colorado State Patrol trooper. The Denver Post reports Thomas Carpenter was shot Dec. 27, 1973, after he was apparently kidnapped by two men who had been with a stopped car along the side of U.S. 36 near Broadway. The car was stolen, and witnesses later told investigators they saw the trooper driving his patrol car with two men in the back. Carpenter was found dead in his car in the Montbello neighborhood. His gun was found in a ditch in New Mexico.
- SANTA FE-BODY FOUND
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Authorities are investigating after a body was discovered near Santa Fe's airport. The Santa Fe New Mexican reports a group traveling on all-terrain vehicles Saturday spotted the remains in an area west of the Santa Fe Regional Airport. Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office spokesman Juan Rios says the body was found in a remote location. He says it appears the body had "been out there for a while." Investigators are treating it as a suspicious death. Rios says no other details will be released at this time.
- VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — The Navajo Nation has reported 122 new coronavirus cases and 10 more deaths. The latest figures released Sunday by the Navajo Department of Health bring the total number of cases on the reservation that extends into Arizona, New Mexico and Utah to 22,277. The death toll from the pandemic now stands at 777. According to the tribe, 11,402 people have recovered from COVID-19. The Navajo Nation renewed a mandated lockdown Monday requiring all residents to stay home except for emergencies, shopping for essentials like food and medicine or traveling to an essential job. The lockdown is slated to last until Jan. 11.