07-23-2011

Page 1

Roswell Daily Record

Vol. 120, No. 176 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday

INSIDE NEWS

NEW YORK (AP) — The urban Northeast baked like a potato wrapped in foil Friday as record-breaking, 100degree temperatures and steambath humidity combined with the heat-trapping effects of asphalt and concrete to make millions of people miserable. The mercury in Newark, N.J., reached 108 ... - PAGE A3

July 23, 2011

SATURDAY

www.rdrnews.com

Bravo pleads guilty to 2nd-degree murder JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER

BAKED APPLE

THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY

After eight years of waiting, the family of murder victim Susan Amos-Bravo received resolution, Friday, when Ramon Bravo, 37, pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree murder for the slaying of his estranged wife. The incident took place on April 26, 2003. Special Prosecutor Matt Chandler said, “She returned from a

Bravo was given a chance to say something and refused.

T-ball game, went into her house and was never seen alive again.” He discussed the marriage and repeated incidents of the domestic abuse. “It was a classic case of overkill and then he (Bravo) staged the scene to humiliate and to mislead

investigators.” Chandler spoke about the history of the case, initially brought against Bravo by 5th District Court in November 2003, and the civil suit filed by the family against Bravo for wrongful death, which they won. The civil suit provided

More July fireworks

enough evidence that Chandler was brought in from the 9th Judicial District to prosecute the case. Judge Ralph D. Shamas advised Bravo of his rights, asked if understood the plea agreement he had signed and inquired if he wanted to relinquish his right to a jury trial. Bravo said he did. Shamas then asked See BRAVO, Page A7

TOP 5

EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER

WEB For The Past 24 Hours

• Senior Olympians keep on playing • City council visitors center workshop today • ‘I’m going to the movies after ...’ • Pearce to hold Facebook town hall • Council passes on film offer

INSIDE SPORTS

LA MUST BORROW MONEY FROM MLB

DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge on Friday rejected the Los Angeles Dodgers’ proposed $150 million bankruptcy financing plan, directing the team to instead negotiate a loan deal with Major League Baseball. Judge Kevin Gross said in an eight-page order that the team had failed to show the terms of its secured financing with hedge fund - PAGE B1

TODAY’S OBITUARIES

• Ann Keith • Jeanne Ann Smith • Pearl Dean • Ernest Newlin • Betty Jo Arthurs - PAGE B3

HIGH ...97˚ LOW ....63˚

TODAY’S FORECAST

CLASSIFIEDS..........B7 COMICS.................B6 FINANCIAL .............A8 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ......A10 LOTTERIES ............A2 NATION .................B3 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ............A10 WORLD .................A9

INDEX

Another move for Visitors Center? Ramon Bravo

Mark Wilson Photo

Lightning illuminates the night sky over Roswell as a series of thunderstorms pass through Thursday evening bringing much needed rain to the area.

City councilors held a workshop Friday evening to discuss potentially relocating the Roswell Visitors Center into another space inside the Roswell Convention and Civic Center on Main Street. The Building & Lands Committee allocated $20,000 of its budget for the potential relocation, which councilors are slated to vote on during a special meeting on budget adjustments, Wednesday.

Dean Baldwin paints donated 727 free for ENMU-R

Painting a 727 airplane typically costs about $80,000, but Dean Baldwin Painting Inc. is painting one free to benefit the Aviation Maintenance Technology program at Easter n New Mexico UniversityRoswell. Dean Baldwin Painting General Manager Jim Burress said that painting the Boeing 727-100, which Fed Ex donated to the school several years ago, will help ENMU-R students working toward their Federal Aviation Administration licensure receive hands-on training in their classes,

while also helping Burress train his employees how to prime and paint aircraft. “It’s a win-win,” Burress said. “It helps the college, and it helps our employees move up (in their careers).” PPG Industries, a global paint supplier company, will donate the paint, while aircraft paint service specialists Dean Baldwin, located in a hangar at the Roswell International Air Center, will donate the time and labor. Burress estimates that the job will cost his company about $40,000 to $50,000 for the cost of labor and materials.

“We’re very grateful that they’re able to do this for us,” ENMU-R College Development Director Donna Oracion said. “We’re very pleased to have a partner like them close by, and we’re very appreciative.” Oracion added that when Fed Ex donated the aircraft to the school, it was written into the contract that the Fed Ex logo should be extracted from the plane, since it no longer belonged to the company. The effort was delayed due to the steep cost of the project.

See MOVE, Page A7

Mark Wilson Photo

Workers at Dean Baldwin prepare a 727 donated by Fed Ex to Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell for painting Friday.

Norway horror: 80 die in Unemployment fund outlook improves camp shooting, 7 in blast OSLO, Norway (AP) — A homegrown terrorist set off a deadly explosion in downtown Oslo before heading to a summer camp dressed as a police officer to commit one of the deadliest shooting sprees in history, killing at least 80 people as terrified youths ran and even swam for their lives, police said Friday. Police initially said about 10 were killed at the forested camp on the island of Utoya, but some survivors said they thought the toll

was much higher. Police director Oystein Maeland told reporters early Saturday they had discovered many more victims. A suspect in the shootings, and the Oslo explosion that killed seven people, was arrested. Though police did not release his name, Norwegian national broadcaster NRK identified him as 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik and said police searched his Oslo

See 727 Page A7

SANTA FE (AP) — The finances of New Mexico’s unemployment compensation program are improving and the fund should remain in the black through early 2013, a year longer than previously projected, according to Gov. Susana Martinez’s administration. However, it remains uncertain how much in taxes businesses must pay next year to keep the program afloat. As it stands now because of a veto by the gover nor,

there’s nothing in state law that sets unemployment tax rates for businesses starting in January. “I think we are seriously in limbo,” said Rep. Mimi Stewart, an Albuquerque Democrat. She sponsored a measure passed by the Legislature in March to shore up the unemployment fund by raising taxes on employers by $128 million annually and cutting benefits. The governor vetoed the tax increase but allowed

the benefit reductions to become law, prompting a group of Democratic lawmakers to file a lawsuit asking the state Supreme Court to invalidate Martinez’s partial veto. Much to the dismay of Stewart and other lawmakers who brought the case, the court has put the case on hold and is waiting to see if the Democratic-controlled Legislature and the Republican governor can resolve their differences in a special

Juliana Halvorson: Roswell has many volunteer opportunties See NORWAY, Page A7

See FUND, Page A7

VANESSA KAHIN RECORD STAFF WRITER

Vanessa Kahin Photo

Juliana Halvorson at the Walker Air Force Base Museum.

A person who has lived in Roswell or its surrounding areas may be familiar with much of Juliana Halvorson’s work, but still not recognize her name because she is seldom credited. As a self-employed graphic design artist who is actively involved in the community, Halvorson said she is often called upon to create marketing materials such as posters, displays

and brochures aimed to promote events around town. For example, she has created posters for the Dragonfly Festival, as well as for the free summer movies at Cielo Grande Recreational Area. She has also been known to donate works of art to charitable causes.

“God’s given me a gift,” said the mostly self-taught artist. “I love what I do, and I love helping people.” She said 80 to 90 percent of her work as an artist is pro bono. Halvorson speaks highly of Roswell, the city that’s See SPOTLIGHT, Page A7


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.