Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 120, No. 247 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
ATLANTA (AP) — Reveling in the national spotlight, Herman Cain is pledging to bolster his fledgling White House campaign. He’ll need to — and quickly — if he has any hope of winning the Republican nomination. The unlikely presidential contender has little campaign... - PAGE A7
October 14, 2011
FRIDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Showdown; Wall Street protesters and cops NEW YORK (AP) — New York City officials ordered Wall Street protesters to clear their sleeping bags and tarps from the park where they started a movement that has spread around the globe and forced CEOs and presidential candidates to take notice. Demonstrators said they wouldn’t be going anywhere Friday morning, setting the stage for a showdown with police.
CAIN’S NONTRADITIONAL STRATEGY
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
The owner of the private
park where the demonstrators have camped out for nearly a month said it has become trashed and unsanitary. Brookfield Office Properties planned to begin a section-by-section power-washing of Zuccotti Park at 7 a.m. “They’re going to use the cleanup to get us out of here,” said Justin Wedes, a 25-year-old part-time public high school science teacher from Brooklyn. “It’s a de facto eviction notice.”
You can’t see me!
The demand that protesters clear out sets up a turning point in a movement that began Sept. 17 with a small group of activists and has swelled to include several thousand people at times, from many walks of life. Occupy Wall Street has inspired similar demonstrations across the country and become an issue in the Republican presidential primary race.
The protesters’ demands are amorphous, but they
are united in blaming Wall Street and corporate interests for the economic pain they say all but the wealthiest Americans have endured since the financial meltdown.
There was a frantic scramble of activity in the park Thursday. Hundreds of demonstrators scrubbed benches and mopped the park’s stone flooring in an attempt to get Brookfield to abandon its plan. A lastditch protest was planned
at midnight. Protesters would be allowed to return after the cleaning, which was expected to take 12 hours, but Brookfield said it plans to start enforcing regulations that have been ignored. No more tarps, no more sleeping bags, no more storing personal property on the ground. In other words, no more camping
City council announces proclamation
See SHOWDOWN, Page A6
JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
TOP 5 WEB
For The Past 24 Hours
• High above Roswell • Event raises sex trafficking awareness • Stabbing suspect Thomas is headed to trial • Couple hopes to buy Unity Center for teens • Broncos down Odessa in three
INSIDE SPORTS Mark Wilson Photo
A rattlesnake tries to camouflage itself on a rocky road at Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge Thursday morning before making a quick retreat into the surrounding brush.
At the city council meeting Thursday evening, Mayor Del Jurney issued a proclamation announcing Oct. 13, 2011, as AB Gwinn Day, in honor of Gwinn’s role as the founding father of the Roswell Parks and Recreation Department. The Parks and Recreation Department presented several awards from the New Mexico Recreation and Park Association at the meeting including a lifetime achievement award to Mr. Gwinn for his 37 years of service as director of the Roswell Parks and Recreation Department. Gwinn was also a leader in the development of the Spring River Park and Zoo. He authored a book entitled “100 Years of Dreams and Realities,”about the history of the Roswell Parks and Recreation Department. Bob Donnell, executive director of the Roswell-Chaves County Economic Development Corp., delivered updates
Feral Cat Day is just Lost iguana has been found around the corner BRONCOS LOOK TO BOUNCE BACK
As a coach, preparing your team for its next game after a loss is always difficult. It’s even more difficult when that loss was a 62-20 setback to a conference foe. That is exactly the situation that NMMI Bronco... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Guadalupe Lucero • Gary Moseley - PAGE A7
HIGH ...87˚ LOW ....49˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........C1 COMICS.................B6 ENTERTAINMENT.....C1 FINANCIAL .............B7 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
October 16 is National Feral Cat Day, a day created to raise awareness about the plight of stray cats and to promote TrapNeuter -Return programs. Many people do not understand the benefits of TNR. They believe if the cat is returned to the wild, the problem remains. However, studies indicate that cats who have been neutered tend to live longer and healthier lives. They gain weight. Although in the shortterm the cat population remains static, in the long run the population decreases. In one study done at Texas A&M, over 100 cats
were trapped the first year. The figure was reduced to 35 the following year. An 11-year study was conducted by the University of Florida where it was discovered the cat population had decreased by 66 percent following TNR. Elsewhere, the decrease was not as notable, but still significant, with a decrease of nearly a third. Nuisance is another factor. Neutered or altered cats tend to be less competitive, therefore less aggressive. Mating behaviors cease. Thus, many of the activities that call attention to their presence, the fighting and yowling, stop. As a result, fewer See FERAL CATS, Page A6
See COUNCIL, Page A6
Izzy, the escape artist, has made his way back home. The 5-foot iguana was reported missing on Sept. 26. He has been at large for nearly three weeks, but he did not get far. He was located, Tuesday, next door to his residence on the 100 block of South Pennsylvania Avenue. “My neighbor’s dog kept barking. He was there the entire time, happily munching on leaves,” said Melissa Atkinson, his adoptive mother. Roswell Animal Services was called in to help with the capture. “They had to climb a tree and Jessica Palmer Photo they have special equipment. I could never have Stalking the wild iguana - Izzy has been on the lam for neardone it alone,” Atkinson ly three weeks. He was found in the trees next door to his home. See IGUANA, Page A6
Prosecutor appeals misconduct case RISD enrollment numbers are down JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
Roswell Independent School District’s enrollment for the 2011-2012 school year is down from last year’s numbers. Superintendent Michael Gottlieb said total enrollment for the district this year is 10,136, which is down 27 students from last year. The school district records enrollment numbers after the first, fifth, and 40th school days, respectively. This year student enrollment after the first day of school was 9,627 and 10,083
after the fifth.
At the forty-day mark, both the elementary and middle schools saw an increase from last year, according to Gottlieb. At the elementary level, enrollment increased by 22 students, and an 11 student increase was reported for the middle schools. Gottlieb said high schools decreased in enrollment from last year by 100 students. Attributing the decrease to students who belong to the Federal Law Enforcement T raining Center program, Gottlieb
See RISD, Page A6
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — The prosecutor who accused a Las Cruces judge of funneling bribes for judicial appointments to former Gov. Bill Richardson has leveled a new round of accusations, this time calling into question the actions of the state’s top jurist.
Special prosecutor Matt Chandler has asked that state Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Daniels be disqualified from hearing anything related to the prosecution of state District Judge Michael Murphy, arguing that Daniels was among those whose names were mentioned in the payto-play scheme. He also raised questions about Daniels’ connection to the defense, saying he had questionable conversations
with people close to the case, appointed a judge favorable to the defense to oversee the grand jury process, and publicly disparaged Chandler’s case. Daniels said Thursday that “any response I can provide will necessarily be made in a manner and time as provided by the proper procedures of the law.” Chandler made the allegations against Daniels on Wednesday in appealing a Las Cruces judges’ dismissal of a misdemeanor ethics charges against Murphy. The same judge, Leslie Smith, also threw out the indictment that accused Murphy of soliciting bribes from a potential judicial candidate in 2007. Those charges were dismissed without prejudice, meaning
they could be refiled.
Murphy still faces one felony bribery charge that was filed after the indictment, accusing him of offering to help a colleague facing a judicial standards complaint in return for a favorable vote for another judge in the chief judge’s election.
Murphy was indicted on four felony charges after being accused of telling Beverly Singleman that she needed to make payments to Democratic activist Edgar Lopez if she wanted to be considered for a seat on the bench in 2007. Allegations in a report released by Chandler after Murphy’s indictment implied the practice was common in the district and that the See CASE, Page A6