Roswell Daily Record
State engineer blocks pipeline
Vol. 120, No. 35 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
MATTHEW ARCO RECORD STAFF WRITER
LAWSUITS IN FLORIDA, UK
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Elvis Presley Enterprises said it’s suing men in Florida and England on claims of copyright infringement and illegal sale of a DVD and CD box set of recordings and footage of the singer’s performances. Meanwhile a third person, Europe-based DJ Spankox, is disputing a British court ruling against him in .... - PAGE C1
A Roswell businessman’s proposal that would transfer southeastern New Mexico water to northern areas of the state was derailed by the state engineer Tuesday afternoon. New Mexico’s Office of the State Engineer issued a denial for Berrendo LLC’s applications that sought to build a pipeline from the Fort Sumner area to Santa Fe County. The proposal sparked controversy and resulted in dozens of
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
February 10, 2011
THURSDAY
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protests from southeastern New Mexico governments, lawmakers and water management groups. The decision comes after the Pecos Valley Artesian Conservancy District asked the state engineer to dismiss the applications on the basis that they failed to comply with the rules of the application process. Berrendo LLC argued that the rules were followed in its attempt to transfer 6,600 acre-feet in water rights annually. “While I appreciate the applicant’s vision to aug-
The decision was praised by the PVACD, which feared the transfer would create a drain on the aquifer and nearby rivers and result in the beginning of the end for agriculture in the Pecos River Basin.
ment water supplies to the fastest growing area of the state, this application lacked specificity in a number of key areas making it difficult to evaluate impairment or whether granting it would be contrary to conservation or detrimental to the public welfare,” stated
State Engineer John D’Antonio. “Because the application was vague and over broad, I was compelled to deny the application.” The decision was praised by the PVACD, which feared the transfer would create a drain on the aquifer and nearby rivers
‘I hope I don’t fall in’
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INSIDE SPORTS
A duck walks gingerly on the frozen lake at Bitter Lake Wildlife Refuge, Wednesday morning.
CC! HONORS ATHLETES
Character Counts! of Chaves County released the second installment of its Winter Athletes of Recognition program on Wednesday and this week’s honorees are from the sports of wrestling and dance. This week’s winners are Goddard’s Bryan Corn, Goddard’s Jennifer Garcia, Roswell’s Kelsey Kelly and Roswell’s Chris Snyder. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • • • •
John Henry Gibson Jane L. Taylor Mary Ann Hoskins Frances Horton - PAGE B3
HIGH ...46˚ LOW ....16˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........C1 COMICS.................B5 ENTERTAINMENT.....C2 FINANCIAL .............B6 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........C1 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8 WORLD .................B4
INDEX
Mark Wilson Photo
and result in the beginning of the end for agriculture in the Pecos River Basin. “We’re just glad it’s over with,” said Bill Netherlin, PVACD chairman. “We’re relieved that we can stop spending all the taxpayer dollars in defending (the issue).” Other frequently vocal opponents to the proposal expressed their delight in the decision. “That goes to prove that common sense and the upholding of laws is alive
Egypt workers strike
See PIPELINE, Page A7
CAIRO (AP) — Thousands of workers went on strike Wednesday across Egypt, adding a new dimension to the uprising as public rage turned to the vast wealth President Hosni Mubarak’s family reportedly amassed while close to half the country struggled near the poverty line. Protests calling for Mubarak’s ouster have been spreading since Tuesday outside of Cairo’s Tahrir Square, where demonstrators have been concentrated for the past two weeks. On Wednesday, protesters also gathered at parliament, the Cabinet and the Health Ministry buildings, all a few blocks from the square, and blocked Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq from his
AG: Some of Bill’s Chief holds town hall meeting records public
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — The New Mexico attorney general’s office said a state law limiting access to the records of former governors covers only personal files, and the State Records Center and Archives must release public records from former Gov. Bill Richardson’s administration. The center immediately said it will honor requests to look at those documents under the state’s public records law. Richardson, a Democrat who left office Dec. 31, had given records to the center on the condition that only he and three members of his staff would have access to them for eight years. Chief Deputy Attorney General Albert Lama said in an opinion Tuesday that public records are not transformed into personal
records simply by being placed in the archives under a law that allows restrictions, moratoriums and limitations on a governor’s personal records. That law does not create an exception to the public records law, he said. The records center must allow anyone to see documents the Richardson administration transferred to it unless those records fall under an exception to the state Inspection of Public Records Act, Lama said. “While per mitting an elected or former elected state of ficial to restrict access to his or her personal, private records makes sense,” nothing in the law allowing those restrictions “suggests that the LegislaSee RECORDS, Page A7
See EGYPT, Page A7
JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Bobby Villegas, who coordinated the Wednesday night meeting, introduced Police Chief Alfonso Solis. The town hall meeting at S.O.Y. Mariachi is the first in what will become a monthly event. Between 30 and 40 people attended, including the mayor, city manager and city councillors. The purpose was to lay the groundwork for a crime prevention program and to open lines of communication between citiMark Wilson Photo zens and RPD. Solis and Villegas pro- Roswell Police Chief Al Solis, left, and Art Sandoval share vided much of the infor- a laugh Wednesday evening during a town hall meeting at mation both in English S.O.Y. Mariachi. and in Spanish. Police Department,” said However, he added a “What I plan to do with Solis. “I want a kinder cautionary note. “We’re these town hall meetings and gentler Police Departto get people to underment.” stand that we’re your See CHIEF, Page A7
Madsen has pre-trial hearing School board eyeballs a JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
A pre-trial hearing was held telephonically in Magistrate Court on Wednesday morning for Detective Jeannie Madsen, who was arrested and charged with battery of a household member on Jan. 9. Defense attor ney S. Douglas Jones Witt stated that he believed the case merits a jury trial. Both defense counsel and special prosecutor Matt Chandler estimated the
trial would probably take no longer than a day. Madsen, an 11-year veteran of the Roswell Police Department, was arrested in connection with a domestic violence incident which occurred on Jan. 8. Madsen’s husband, Sgt. Eric Madsen, arrived at the RPD the following morning to report the incident. According to the criminal complaint filed in Magistrate Court, Eric Madsen stated he and his wife got into a verbal argument, and “she
kicked him and struck him, causing bruises and scrapes.” The of ficer who took the report said he saw bruises and scrapes on Eric Madsen’s legs. During a press conference, then-interim Police Chief Dennis Kintigh was unwilling to discuss the cause of the altercation. Eric Madsen was placed on paid administrative leave and Jeannie Madsen was placed on paid leave. See MADSEN, Page A7
potentially vacant seat EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Roswell School Board is already thinking of replacements for newly elected board member Pauline Ponce, should she choose to vacate her seat due to a conflict of interest. Board member Eloy Ortega told the board during its monthly meeting Tuesday that he will recommend sitting vice president George Peterson, who lost to Ponce in the Feb. 1 election for
District 4, keep his seat if Ponce remains undecided or declines her duties. “She’s probably not going to come on the school board,” Ortega said. “So I think that at our next meeting, I’m going to recommend to the board that Mr. Peterson continues to stay on the board.” Ponce, a school teacher at Sunset Elementary, has remained mum on whether she will decline her elected See SCHOOL, Page A7