Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 123, No. 164 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
July 9, 2014
Sheriff candidates raised more than 71K BY JEFF TUCKER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The four Republican candidates for Chaves County sheriff collectively raised $71,765 in the GOP primary, equating to about $16.50 per vote. Sheriff-elect Britt Snyder, who defeated Pat Barncastle by just 12 votes, raised 73 percent of the funds raised by Bar ncastle, according to fourth and final primary campaign finance reports that were
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due July 3 with the New Mexico secretary of state office. The reporting period covers May 28 through June 28. The primary elections were June 3. Snyder, who is unopposed in November’s general election, raised $19,880 in his bid to succeed Sheriff Rob Coon. Bar ncastle raised $27,464. Broken down per vote, Snyder raised $11.89 for each of the 1,672 votes he
received, while Barncastle raised $16.54 for each of the 1,660 votes he received. Both of the top-tier candidates have nearly emptied their campaign war chests. Snyder reported a balance of $96 as of June 28, while Barncastle reported $355 cash on hand at the close of the most recent reporting period. Arthur Fleming and Gary Graves, who came in third and fourth, respectively, each topped $10,000 in
their fundraising. Fleming reported raising $13,690. Graves reported raising $10,731. Both Fleming and Graves closed the most recent reporting period with zero remaining funds. Broken down per vote, Fleming raised $23.76 for each of the 576 votes he received, while Graves raised $24.17 for each of his 444 votes. In total, 4,352 ballots were cast in the sheriff’s
race. There were no contenders in the Democrat primary. Barncastle led the pack in fundraising throughout the sheriff’s race. As of May 27, the end of the third primary reporting period, Bar ncastle had raised $26,211. Snyder at that point had contributions of $19,380, while Fleming had raised $13,690, and Graves had raised $9,897. The four candidates had collectively raised $69,178
through May 27. As of May 5, the last day of the second primary reporting period, Barncastle had raised $21,556, while Snyder had raised $17,160. Fleming was a close third at that point, having raised $13,540. Graves had raised $7,458 as of May 5. The four candidates had collectively raised $59,714 through May 5. In the fourth and final
Gumball machines still deliver goods Obama urgently BY RANDAL SEYLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
A penny doesn’t buy much these days, but George Harris has a few places where that copper coin still has purchasing power — the classic gumball machine. Harris, of House, N.M., was at the Roswell Kiwanis Club on Tuesday discussing his more than 40 years in the vending machine business that, at its peak, featured 1,500 vending machines spread out across southeastern New Mexico. “I have machines all over,” Harris said. “Tucumcari, Clovis, Roswell, Lovington, Hobbs, Carlsbad, Pecos and House.” Harris, who retired from the fire department in the 1990s, had begun his vending career as a hobby and a stream of part-time income. “Back then, there was this deal where you could
See GUMBALLS, Page A3
See CANDIDATES, Page A3
asks $3.7 billion for border crisis
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama appealed to Congress on Tuesday for $3.7 billion in emergency spending to deal with the immigration crisis on the nation’s southern border, where unaccompanied children have been showing up by the thousands in a human drama that’s causing a political storm in Washington and beyond.
Obama himself was flying to Texas today, a trip designed mostly for political fundraising for Democrats but now including a meeting on immigration with religious and local leaders in Dallas. He rejected pressure from Republican Gov. Rick Perry to visit the border for a firsthand look.
Randal Seyler Photo
Gumball vendor George Harris gives some gumball to Joann Kreutzberg, an employee of K-Bob’s Steakhouse, on Tuesday in Roswell.
In Washington, Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill seemed open to approving the emergency money, which would go toward hiring more immigra-
Obama
tion judges and asylum officers, building more detention facilities, boosting deterrence and enforcement and increasing surveillance along the border with Mexico. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the Senate would act on it this
State agency, lawyers Conservancy district approves $10M loan differ on aid backlog
SANTA FE (AP) — The New Mexico Department of Human Services and lawyers for low-income people are at odds on whether the state is complying with a judge’s order to quickly process applications for food and medical benefits.
U.S. District Judge Kenneth Gonzales on May 15 ordered the department to process the backlogged applications immediately.
The New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty has filed documents in court indicating that the number of unprocessed applications for food and Medicaid benefits grew to 12,805 from 9,511 between the end of May and mid-June, the
Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
“We still see long lines at Income Support Division offices, not being able to be seen on the day you come in,” said Sovereign Hager, a lawyer with the center. “People still aren’t getting interviews as scheduled. They can’t get through on the phone. People are still having tremendous difficulty, and the department is still terminating people’s food benefits because of processing delays.”
However, department spokesman Matt Kennicott said the backlog actually has been cut nearly in half.
BY JERRY HECK RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Pecos Valley Artesian Conservancy District (PVACD) board of directors approved a $10 million loan to purchase land and water rights Tuesday. First American Bank is providing the loan for the PVACD. There will be a 2mill increase within the district, which includes Roswell, to pay of f the loan. The loan is amortized for 10 years with a variable interest rate. The PVACD has property tax levy authority and has an elected five-member board of directors. Other agenda items discussed were the sale of
Thom Reed at the UFO Museum during this year’s festival.
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TODAY’S FORECAST
cussed. TriWest Fencing was awarded a contract of approximately $17,000 for fencing and gate installation.
radio show on which Reed presented his story. Warner realized that he was among the dozens of others who observed the same event. The radio station WSBS was flooded with calls during the broadcast. War ner and Reed lived just 5 miles apart. Reed disagrees with the ter m “abduction” and prefers a more accurate description of his experiences as “confirmation” — the confirmation that others are “out there.” The Reed family’s UFO encounters date back to
the 1960s in the town of Sheffield, Mass. The Reed family case made local news in 1969 when it aired on WSBS Radio in Great Barrington, Mass. The case has since made Fox News, Canada’s Morning Show and the Los Angeles Times. It was also the premiere episode of Discovery Channel’s new series, “Alien Mysteries,” and has been featured in Syfy Channel’s “Uncovering Aliens.” Reed is neither a scientist nor a full-time UFO hunter. When not traveling,
Submitted
Floyd Truetken of the Bitter Lakes National Wildlife Refuge stated that
See PVACD, Page A2
Reed family abduction case: Mystery, danger remain
BY JERRY HECK RECORD STAFF WRITER
Jerry Heck Photo
used equipment a dump and four pickup trucks which drew a sum of just under $32,000. A report on the status and progress of telemetry equipment and meter preventive maintenance was given. A list of future meetings and conferences with other agency around the state and nation was discussed, as well as which board members would attend. In new business, K&B Tech Services submitted a proposal. Superintendent Aron Balok recommended that the work is undertaken at an hourly rate as it is difficult to determine the scope of work until it is begun. Specifics of the project were not dis-
See BORDER, Page A3
Thom Reed was among the presenters at UFO Festival last weekend, standing next to a painting on the Abduction Wall in the Roswell UFO Museum. The painting depicts Reed’s experience as a child. Although they have spoken on the telephone, Reed has never met the artist in person. In a telephone interview with the artist, Tom Warner, Warner explained that he made the painting after hearing a
TODAY’S OBITUARIES PAGE A8 • JOSEPH ANDREW MADRID • CELIA LUCERO • MARGARET ROSE MCLAREN • CONCEPCION “CONCHA” GARCIA • HAROLD WAYNE ANDERSON • MANUEL L. SILVA • MARTHA LEE BARRINGER
he lives in Florida and operates a talent agency called Miami Models. With some irritation, he states that some people attend the festival to be entertained, while others feel affronted by the possibility of extraterrestrial life. During the festival, a woman slammed a Bible on his table and walked away, he said. Reed said that it is unusual to be in a parade waving to the people and realizing he is there because of a traumatic and
CLASSIFIEDS ..........B8
INDEX GENERAL ...............A2
FINANCIAL ..............B5
LOTTERIES .............A2
COMICS .................B7
HOROSCOPES .......A10
See REED, Page A2 OPINION .................A4
SPORTS .................B1
WEATHER ............A10