Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 124, No. 32 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
February 6, 2015
FRIDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Hagerman’s zero voter turnout causes uncertainty
By Jeff Tucker Record Staff Writer
Hagerman’s school board elections on Tuesday demonstrate you should never believe your vote doesn’t matter, particularly if you’re a candidate. Zero voter turnout Tuesday for three Hagerman school board races had local officials scratching their heads and consulting with attorneys Thursday about how to resolve the races. The candidates ran unopposed Tuesday for positions on the Hagerman school board. Since they had no challengers, many assumed Lois Wilson Stephens, Heidi Gray and Destry Moss had won the District 1, District 2 and District 3 positions, respectively, on the five-member school board. However, the Chaves
County Clerk’s Office has said not so fast. “The Hagerman candidates were not automatically elected,” Cindy Fuller, bureau of elections chief for the Chaves County Clerks Office, said Thursday morning. “We are discussing what will happen with that situation. The current board in Hagerman may be able to appoint them, but at this point it is still in discussion.” Not a single vote was cast in early, absentee or Election Day voting in the Hagerman school board elections. Chaves County Clerk Dave Kunko said Thursday afternoon the three candidates needed at least one vote each to win their races. “It’s our understanding that because none of them See ELECTION, Page A3
ENMU-R welcomes new board members
Staff Report Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell welcomes new Community College Board member, Dawn Tschabrun, who was elected to the position by Chaves County voters on Feb. 3. She joins Mireya Trujillo and Ralph Fresquez who were reelected to the board by voters during the recent election. The newly elected members will serve fouryear terms. Tschabrun represents District 5, Trujillo represents District 1, and Fresquez represents District 4. Continuing board members are Eloise Blake and Chad Hamill. Blake represents District 3 and Hamill represents
Tschabrun
Trujillo
Fresquez
District 2. The newly elected board members will be sworn into office in March. Tschabrun has served as the chief executive officer at Lovelace Regional Hospital-Roswell since 2012. She has also served as an adviso-
ry board member for the Health Department on campus for the past three years. Tschabrun said ENMU-Roswell needs to address access, technology, funding and curriculum to remain competitive in meeting the demands of
the local business workforce. “As a board member of ENMU-R, it is important to advocate for both our community and ENMU-R,” she said. Fresquez has served on See ENMU-R, Page A3
Committee OKs funding for events
The friendly skies of Roswell
By Randal Seyler Record City Editor
Max Scally Photo
The cold weather didn’t chill the spirits of the U.S. Navy pilots and student pilots of Training Squadron Two from Milton, Florida. Their commander is Joe McGilley, executive officer. A barbecue served by Peppers Grill & Bar was held for the pilots in the Avflight hangar at the Roswell International Air Center. Navy pilot training positively impacts the local economy.
The city Finance Committee approved three Lodgers’ Tax requests on the City Council for final approval on Thursday morning. Requests from the 31st annual Milkman Triathlon, the Roswell Road Race Series, and the 2015 Senior Olympics state games were approved by the committee, which consists of City Councilors Caleb Grant, Jason Perry and Art Sandoval. Representatives from the events were on hand to discuss their events, including Sean Davis and Cecilia Acosta, who were there to speak on behalf of the Senior Olympics.“The state games were held in Roswell in 2013 and 2014,” Davis said, “and that was the first time since 1988.” Davis said that the city was also awarded the contract to host the state games for the next four
years, and that the senior games bring hundreds of visitors, athletes and volunteers to Roswell during the month of June. The Senior Olympics is requesting $78,750 from the Lodgers’ Tax for advertising and promotion of the games. The Lodgers’ Tax request was approved on Jan. 27 by the city Occupancy Tax Board. “We want to concentrate on advertising up north to get people down for the games,” Dean said. “The state office for the Senior Olympics is in Roswell,” said Acosta, “and our board chairman is a local resident, Vernon Dyer. Our goal is to build the Senior Olympic games and draw more people each year.” Acosta said the volunteers survey athletes and visitors to see how many days they are staying in Roswell and how many meals they will be eating at See FUNDING, Page A2
Hobbs gun shop owner CIC discusses possible new entry signs gets prison sentence
Staff Report
The owner of a gun shop in Hobbs has been sentenced to 12 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for violating federal firearms laws. Carlos Jonathan Cruz, 32, the owner of Hobbs Satellite Company Pawn Guns & Ammo, was also ordered Wednesday in federal court in Las Cruces to forfeit more than a hundred firearms, thousands of rounds of ammunition and gun silencers. Cruz and his parents, who assisted in operating the gun shop at 2702 W. Marland St., were indicted in June 2013 and charged with violating federal firearms laws by making false statements in connection with the acquisition of firearms by an individual who was acting as a “straw purchaser” and buying firearms on behalf of others. Carlos Jonathan Cruz was also charged with unlawfully selling thousands of rounds of ammunition to an alien illegally in the United States, unlaw-
fully possessing an unregistered sawed-off shotgun and unlawfully possessing firearms with obliterated serial numbers. On Jan. 7, 2014, Cruz pleaded guilty to making false statements in connection with the acquisition of firearms by an individual who was acting as a straw purchaser and unlawfully possessing firearms with obliterated serial numbers. In his guilty plea, Cruz admitted on April 23, 2013, he knowingly aided and abetted the making of a false statement by a straw purchaser who bought two firearms at his gun shop for a person who was working as a confidential informant for the office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Cruz also admitted possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number on May 29, 2013. C r u z ’ s p a r e n t s , C a rlos Carlon Cruz, 61, and Norma M. Cruz, 57, each pleaded guilty to felony making false statements in connection with the acquiSee CRUZ, Page A2
Today’s Forecast
HIGH 70 LOW 35
By Randal Seyler Record City Editor
New welcome signs for Roswell’s roadsides were the topic of discussion by the Community Improvement Commission, which met Thursday at Roswell City Hall. Elizabeth StarkRankins, support services administrator, shared with the commissioners designs for new city entry signs which have been submitted by EFG Creative and Structural Designs. “The finance committee is very receptive to this project, and they made a preliminary selection,” Stark-Rankins said. The signs, which would replace the signs at all of the city’s main roadway entrances, would each have a unique theme tied in with Roswell history. Themes range from UFOs to Robert Goddard to agriculture, and the concept is that each sign would celebrate a different aspect of life in the Roswell community. “The Finance Committee
Courtesy Photo discussed these and they were leaning toward the one-legged signs,” StarkRankins said. “The ties to outer space in Roswell, New Mexico, reach back to the 1930s, when Robert Goddard, the ‘father of modern rocketry,’ brought his research to the state,” the promotional material by EFG states. “While veiled in
Today’s Obituaries Page B4 • Michel Lea “Mike” Hare Randle • Robbie Benzinger
• Barney Clay Jobe
the privacy of the Roswell landscape, Goddard launched a total of 56 liquid fuel rockets, 17 of which reached an altitude of 1,000 feet, launching America into the space age with New Mexico at the forefront.” The designers came up with the slogan, “From the Western Frontier to the Final Frontier,” to
Classifieds...........B6 Comics..................B5 Entertainment. ....B6 Financial..............B3
pay homage to Goddard and “the turning point in American history when his revolutionary discoveries ushered in technology that would allow humans to visit space.” The design for the UFO sign features a cow being siphoned into a flying saucer. “It’s impossible to think about Roswell without UFOs coming to mind,” the sign designers write. “Whether extra terrestrial or government experiment, the 1947 incident is imbedded in the human imagination and has taken on a life of its own in the 68 years that have passed since the scandal broke on a quiet ranch outside of town.” The price range estimated for the new signs ranges from $180,000 to $220,000, according to the proposal from EFG. The design creates a photo-op for visitors, according to the EFG description. City Engineer Louis Najar agrees, noting that the city wants to dis-
See SIGNS, Page A3
Index
General...............A2
Opinion.................A4
Horoscopes.........A8
Sports. ................B1
Lotteries. ............A2
Weather...............A8