Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 120, No. 167 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
BETTY FORD REMEMBERED PALM DESERT, Calif. (AP) — First ladies, past and present, and others who called the White House home remembered Betty Ford on Tuesday, not just for her decades-long work against substance abuse but for her contributions to a political era... - PAGE A6
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• Crash kills one • 95% contained; $5.5M to fight • 4 local girls take top prizes in Pageant • Job Corps demolishes vacant buildings • Authorities seek help in deer shooting
INSIDE SPORTS
NM soldier awarded Medal of Honor
WASHINGTON (AP) — The soldier in unifor m extended his prosthetic hand after losing his own in battle. And the commander in chief reached out to clasp it. It was a sobering moment toward the end of a moving ceremony at the White House Tuesday, as President Barack Obama awarded the nation’s highest military honor to Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Arthur Petry for his brave actions to protect his comrades in the firefight that cost him his right hand.
“This is the stuff of which heroes are made,” the president declared, before reaching out and shaking Petry’s gray, robotic hand, which helped the soldier to remain active in the military and even redeploy to Afghanistan despite his serious injury. Later, Petry, a Santa Fe, N.M., native who now serves with the 75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Benning, Ga., sought to turn attention away from himself and toward other service members and military families.
“To be singled out is very humbling. I consider every one of our men and women in uniform serving here, abroad, to be our heroes,” Petry told reporters outside the White House. “They sacrifice every day and deserve your continued support and recognition.” Tuesday was just the second time that a living, active-duty service member from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan has received a Medal of Honor. Petry looked on from a stage in the East Room with his wife and children in the
VANESSA KAHIN RECORD STAFF WRITER
Gov. Susana Martinez made several visits throughout Roswell to praise the city’s economic development and educational resources, Tuesday. Martinez began her Roswell tour at AerSale, a company that sells aftermarket aircraft and aircraft parts. She toured the rapidly growing business and chatted with employees. When AerSale first opened in 2009 it had three employees. It currently counts with over 100 workers. “She was glad to see that (AerSale) has brought (economic growth) to Roswell,” said Michael Vasquez, warehouse supervisor for AerSale, of Martinez’s visit. In a press release from
Mark Wilson Photo
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez visits with employees of AerSale Tuesday during a trip to the southeastern portion of the state.
PHOENIX (AP) — Pitching, speed and a little bit of power. The National League is back on top in the All-Star game, using the same formula that worked during its dominating run in the 1970s and ’80s... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....A8 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
him, this husband and father of four, did something extraordinary,” Obama said. “He lunged forward, toward the live grenade. He picked it up. He cocked his arm to throw it back.” But before Petry could release the grenade it exploded. Petry’s right hand was blown off. But two of his fellow soldiers were saved. Still Petry kept going, applying his own tourniquet and issuing orders to
Board approves changes
See MEDAL, Page A3
The Roswell Independent School District school board voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve changes to graduation requirements which may help boost graduation rates, members say. Seniors graduating in 2012 are required to earn a total of 24 credits (16 + 8 electives) in order to graduate, whereas the 2011 seniors who recently graduated were only required to earn 23 credits (16 + 7 electives). Likewise, under the new policy change, the class of 2013 will have to earn a total of 26 units (17 + 9 electives); the class of 2014 and 2015 will have to earn a total of 28 credits (17 + 11 electives) in order to graduate. School board president See BOARD, Page A3
GOP leader wants Obama to have power
PRINCE’S HOMER LEADS TO WIN
HIGH ...94˚ LOW ....73˚
audience as the president described his heroics that day. It unfolded on May 26, 2008, in the remote east of Afghanistan, as Petry — then a staff sergeant — and other Rangers choppered toward an insurgent compound, the president said. As soon as they landed they came under automatic weapon fire, and Petry was hit in his legs. He fell, but as grenades came flying toward him and his comrades he picked one up. “This 28-year -old man with his whole life ahead of
Gov. Martinez visits and praises Roswell
Motorhome catches fire
TODAY’S FORECAST
WEDNESDAY
www.rdrnews.com
See MARTINEZ, Page A3
• Colleen Nicole Doyle • Lawrence J. Ferns • Dr. John Richard Kennedy • Master Sgt. Louis Wayne Hyatt • Patricia Ann Penn - PAGE A6
July 13, 2011
Emily Russo Miller Photo
A 2005 Lexington motorhome exploded around 4:30 p.m., Tuesday afternoon, on Judy Avenue in northwest Roswell near the relief route, just moments after the owner drove the camper from his driveway to the street, fire officials said. Berrendo and Sierra Volunteer Fire Department crews said the homeowner knew something was wrong with the motorhome when it began smoking in his driveway, so he drove it away from his house and pecan orchard to the street. Minutes later, it burst into flames. Sierra Fire Chief Don Ford said the cause of the explosion is unknown and is under investigation. No injuries were reported, though the owner of the motorhome was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With compromise talks at a vituperative standstill, Senate Republicans unexpectedly of fered Tuesday to hand President Barack Obama new powers to avert a firstever government default threatened for Aug. 2. Under a proposal outlined by Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Obama could request increases of up to $2.5 trillion in the government’s borrowing authority in three separate installments over the next year, as long as he simultaneously proposed spending cuts of greater size. The debt limit increases would take ef fect unless blocked by Congress under special rules that would require speedy action — and
even then Obama could exercise his authority to veto such legislation. Significantly, the president’s spending cuts would be debated under normal procedures, with no guarantee they ever come to a final vote. In essence, McConnell’s proposal would greatly enhance Obama’s authority to avoid a default, while also virtually absolving Republicans of responsibility if one occurred. At the same time, it would allow Republican lawmakers to avoid having to support an increase in the debt limit, something many of them find odious. “Republicans will choose a path that actually reflects the will of the people, which is to do the
Gov. Martinez Cabinet secretary store questioned SANTA FE, (AP) — A store owned by one of Gov. Susana Martinez’s Cabinet secretaries on the Navajo Nation is selling cigarettes prohibited in New Mexico and untaxed by the state for sales to non-Indians, the attorney general’s office says. Attorney General Gary King has told the governor’s office that the cigarette sales at Indian Affairs Secretary Arthur Allison’s Star Ranch Store near Farmington violate state law and that Allison “is aiding and abetting the sale of
contraband.” An Associated Press reporter went to the store late last month and was able to buy cigarettes, including Seneca brand, without a state tax stamp. The Canadian-based manufacturer of the Seneca brand, Grand River Enterprises, is not certified to sell its products in New Mexico, according to King’s office. Allison told the AP that he turned over operation of his store to his son more than a year ago, hasn’t received any compensation
from it since he was appointed to the Cabinet and plans to relinquish ownership of the family business to his son. Scott Darnell, a governor’s spokesman, said Martinez has asked Allison to refrain from selling cigarettes without a tax stamp. The cigarette sales are part of a complex legal relationship between states and sovereign tribal governments. The potential for unregulated sales by tribal venSee STORE, Page A3
See GOP, Page A3
AP Photo
This photo shows the Star Ranch Store on the Navajo Nation near Farmington, which is owned by New Mexico’s Indian Affairs Secretary Arthur Allison.