Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Adair seeking to create victim fund
Vol. 120, No. 28 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
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NEW YORK (AP) — Two years ago, the stock market was roadkill along the financial highway. Now one of the greatest bull markets in history is rolling along — maybe ... - PAGE A6
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A Roswell state senator’s proposed legislation that would support a statewide victim notification fund is making gains in the upper House. Sen. Rod Adair, R-Roswell, is seeking to create a victim notification fund that would support the state’s Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) system. The bill, which has the support of the New Mexico District Attorneys Association, cleared its first hurdle in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Jan. 26. “It’s state of the art technology,” Adair said. “It notifies not only the victim, but victims’ families, attorneys (and the) media.”
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Even though Clay Matthews ended up in the family business, he’s determined to outplay the expectations that come along with having a Hall of Fame last name. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Pamela Catherine Harvey • Waynon G. Lyles • Felicita Reyes • Sharnene Jay Brooks • Letha Pearl Gonzales - PAGE A6
It’s the first time the lawmaker introduced the legislation that supports the program that automatically notifies interested parties on the current status of people charged with crimes. An inmate’s hearing schedules, any kind of judicial proceeding and release date are just some of the examples of when the VINE system is used to contact individuals. The bill would include a victim notification fee charged to inmates of no more than three cents per minute or 35 cents per telephone call. The legislation has the overwhelming support of state district attorneys, who say the program eliminates the need to manually notify victims. “Victim advocates can
then work on their other core responsibilities,” said Kelly Kuenstler, director of the New Mexico District Attorneys Association. “Currently, victim advocates spend between 33 and 50 percent of their time manually notifying victims.” Janetta Hicks, Chaves County’s district attorney, says, “VINE is a tremendous tool to keep everyone involved in the criminal justice system informed of upcoming hearings and to notify victims when offenders are released from custody,” she said. The bill’s next stop is the Senate Finance Committee. Similar legislation is being sponsored in the House by Rep. Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque. mattarco@roswell-record.com
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — A winter storm blasted New Mexico with snowfall and freezing temperatures Tuesday, causing icy roads and littering streets with fender-benders. The morning commute in Albuquerque was lengthy and treacherous as cautious motorists slowed to negotiate ice-covered roadways. Schools were closed in Albuquerque, Los Lunas and Rio Rancho and placed on a two-hour delay in Santa Fe. On the state’s east side, schools closed in Melrose, Tucumcari and San Jon. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning through 11 a.m. Wednesday. Forecasts called for up to 2 inches of snow in Albuquerque and accumulations of 9 to 15 inches in the Sangre de Cristo and Jemez mountains in the north. Forecasters said an Arc-
SANTA FE (AP) — Republican Gov. Susana Martinez has drawn bipartisan support in the Legislature for a proposal to require DNA testing of anyone arrested for a felony in New Mexico. Martinez said Tuesday more than half of the state’s Senate and House members have agreed to sponsor measures expanding what’s called “Katie’s Law” in memory of Kathryn Sepich, a New Mexico State University student who was raped and murdered in 2003. Sepich’s killer was identified more than three years later with DNA evidence after he was convicted of another crime. Martinez was district attorney when the murder happened. The case led to enactment of a law in 2006 to require DNA for those arrested of certain felonies, such as murder, kidnapping, burglary and sex offenses.
EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Mubarak won’t seek new term
CAIRO (AP) — President Hosni Mubarak defied a quarter-million protesters demanding he step down immediately, announcing Tuesday he would serve out the last months of his term and “die on Egyptian soil.” He promised not to seek reelection, but that did not calm public fury as clashes erupted between his opponents and supporters. The protesters, whose numbers multiplied more than tenfold in a single day Tuesday for their biggest rally yet, have insisted they will not end their unprecedented week-old wave of unrest until their ruler for nearly three decades goes. Mubarak’s halfway concession — an end to his rule seven months down the road — threatened to
See DNA, Page A3
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Mark Wilson Photo
A bird eats fresh snow while perched atop shopping carts at Walmart, Tuesday morning. Sporadic snowfall dusted the area overnight and into the morning hours.
inflame frustration and anger among protesters, who have been peaceful in recent days. In the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, clashes erupted between several hundred protesters and gover nment supporters soon afterward, according to footage by Al-Jazeera television. The protesters threw stones at their rivals, who wielded knives and sticks, until soldiers fired in the air and stepped in between them, said a local jour nalist, Hossam elWakil. The speech was immediately derided by protesters in Cairo’s Tahrir Square. Watching on a giant TV, protesters booed and waved their shoes over their heads at his image in a sign of
contempt. “Go, go, go! We are not leaving until he leaves,” they chanted. One man screamed, “He doesn’t want to say it, he doesn’t want to say it.” In the 10-minute address, the 82-year -old Mubarak appeared somber but spoke firmly and without an air of defeat. He insisted that even if the protests had never happened, he would not have sought a sixth term in September. He said he would serve out the rest of his ter m working “to accomplish the necessary steps for the peaceful transfer of power.” He said he will carry out amendments to rules on presidential elections. See TERM, Page A3
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TODAY’S FORECAST
INDEX
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....A8 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8 WORLD .................A1
DNA test bill by governor draws bipartisan support
Traffic slows as winter storm hits Ponce
See SLOWS, Page A3
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MATTHEW ARCO RECORD STAFF WRITER
DOW OVER 12,000
February 2, 2011
AP Photo
In this image from Egyptian state television aired Tuesday, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak makes what has been billed as an important speech. Mubarak has faced a week of public and international pressure to step down from the role he has held for 30 years, culminating in a day when a quartermillion people turned in the largest protest yet to demand his ouster.
School teacher Pauline J. Ponce won a seat on the Roswell Independent School District school board for District 4, according to unofficial election r esults, while Jim Waldrip retained his seat representing District 2. Ponce, a former legislator in the state House of Representatives, bested incumbent school boar d vice president George Peterson by 38 votes and City Councilor Barry Foster by 55
See BOARD, Page A3
Local man arrested for exploitation JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Chaves County Internet Crimes Against Children task force arrested Joshua Rivas, 20, on seven counts of criminal sexual exploitation of a child on Jan. 27. “The investigation started on October 24 of 2010,” Chaves County Sheriff Rob Coon said. Rivas was also charged with resisting arrest and obstructing an officer. Coon said that Rivas fought back. “He did not want to come with us.” According to the criminal complaint, detectives traced Rivas through an IP internet peer-to-peer network that had known child exploitation materials available. On Oct. 24, detectives received an alert that the local Roswell IP address was connected to the network and was sharing a file known to contain sexual exploitation materials. The criminal complaint further states that, “Using a browse host feature to examine files in the shared folder of the suspect’s computer,” detectives were able to obtain six files. A search warrant was obtained on Dec. 2 that enabled officials to search the IP address. On Dec. 8, a second search warrant allowed officials to search the residence and confiscate a
Joshua Rivas
Dell laptop, an HP desktop, and a flash drive hidden under the suspect’s bed. During the interview conducted in the residence, Rivas admitted to seeing child pornography. Rivas said he “accidently downloaded some files.” In addition, Rivas stated that he had downloaded files because he was curious, and when an officer asked how curious, he said, “a lot.” Officials then asked if officers would find child pornography on his computer. He answered in the affirmative. “Criminal sexual exploitation of a child is a fourth-degree felony. He could serve 18 months per count,” Coon explained. Rivas was taken to Chaves County Detention Center and held on a $50,000 cash surety bond for the sexual exploitation charges and $15,000 cash surety for resisting arrest. j.palmer@roswell-record.com