Roswell Daily Record
INSIDE NEWS
MATTHEW ARCO RECORD STAFF WRITER
CONGRESS TONES DOWN RHETORIC WASHINGTON (AP) — Born of bloodshed, a selfproclaimed Age of Civility dawned in Congress on Tuesday. Republicans and Democrats of the House spoke without angry shouts and ... - PAGE A6
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Marinez delivers first State of the State
Vol. 120, No. 16 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
SANTA FE — New Mexico’s first female governor addressed a joint legislative session, Tuesday, echoing many of her campaign promises to cut the size of government and veto any proposals for increased taxes, during her first State of the State address. Gov. Susana Martinez told lawmakers of her plans to scale back on government programs such as the film subsidy and strip the state of regulations like the pit rule, which she says
helped drive business away from New Mexico. In the speech, the new governor called for a bipartisan approach in balancing the state’s up to $400 million budget shortfall. “Our financial house is a mess and it’s time that we clean it up,” she said during the nearly 40 minute address. “The challenges that confront us cannot be overcome by simply replacing one party with another. They can only be overcome when Republicans and Democrats, (and) the governor and the Legislature, come together.”
She proposed reducing the state’s film subsidy by 10 percent and cutting school administrations by 1.5 percent, to avoid making cuts to classrooms. In addition, she addressed her plans to make New Mexico more business friendly by cutting red tape and helping small businesses with permits and licensing. The new governor promised to slash her own office spending, by repeating her plans to sell the state’s jet and mentioning the elimination of the governor’s two See FIRST, Page A3
Put one foot in front of the other....
For The Last 24 Hours
• City’s land lease temporarily halted • RPD is looking to hire officers • Stolen items placed on view • Burglary reported • Free flu shots available
INSIDE SPORTS
Mark Wilson Photo
New Mexico Military Institute cadets Nick Vogel, left, and Alex Howard scale skyward during a belay and rappelling class, Tuesday morning at the Yates Leadership Challenge Ropes Course on the NMMI campus.
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Virginia Molina • Wanda Jo Curry • Dorothy E. Felio • Sandra Nicole Thompson • Johnny Ortega • Clorinda Durran • Bess Langenegger - PAGE A6
Same-sex marriage debate may heat up in Sante Fe JONATHAN ENTZMINGER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Santa Fe may experience some political humidity in the coming weeks, as legislators introduce new bills to the floor of the New Mexico State House. State Sen. William Sharer’s marriage bill, which was “read-in” with many other bills for consideration, Tuesday, will surely rattle the political structure of the state over the next few months. “What my bill says, is that marriage is between
New DDA, jackof-all-trades, trout See DEBATE, Page A3
BY JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
WEB
HOBBS — Deyton DeLaCerda converted a 3point play with 20 seconds left and Jonathan Ervin hit two clutch free throws down the stretch as the Coyotes rallied to beat Hobbs, 73-72, on Tuesday ... - PAGE B1
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COYOTES EDGE HOBBS
January 19, 2011
The new deputy district attor ney, Alan Grif fin, gr ew up in Utah near Cash Valley. Grif fin is not new to either the post of DDA or the 5th District. He has worked in the DA’s office before, but he took a long sabbatical to go fishing. His two favorite fishing spots are in New Zealand and Yellowstone, and he prefers fresh-water fishing to deep sea. Griffin claims that the trout in New Zealand are bigger and smarter than the trout here. Before moving to New Mexico, Grif fin went to college in Utah to receive not one, but three degrees in history, English, and classical Greek and Latin. He farmed for 10 years befor e r etur ning to the University of Utah to get his law degree. “I’m glad I did,” he said. “It gave me the time to find out what people want from the criminal justice system.” This lear ning process has provided him with a
grassroots approach to his job. “People want the criminal justice system to work … they want a safe society, without being victims of crimes,” Grif fin said. “People don’t want someone to steal from them. They don’t like theft crimes. They feel violated.” He admits to having doubts about his career choice when he completed his law internship with a judge in Utah. The judge saw his dilemma and recommended Griffin become a prosecutor. T ired of the cold winters, Grif fin applied to every prosecutors’ office in Arizona and New Mexico before he even took his bar exam. “Tom Rutledge, of Carlsbad, said if I passed the New Mexico bar exam, I could have a job.” Griffin started working in New Mexico in 1991. Grif fin likes his job, “The people I work with are terrific — the judges, the judges’ assistants, the court personnel and law
RCC Redcoats welcome Solis The future of JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Roswell Chamber of Commerce Redcoats lined up to greet the Roswell Police Department’s Chief Alfonso Solis at a reception held at Roswell Regional Hospital, Tuesday evening. City Councilors Jimmy Craig, Jason Perry and Bob Maples, and County Commissioner Gregory J. Nibert, were among the dignitaries attending the event. Mayor Del Jurney was caught by surprise when asked to speak. “This is another opportunity to welcome the new
chief,” he said. Jur ney spoke of the chief’s calming effect, “I’m sure he’ll continue to strengthen the community.” Solis apologized as he stepped to the podium since the many different occasions for public speaking in the last few days had caused him to lose his voice, but he said, “I’ll do what I can to listen.” He was one of Roswell Regional’s first customers. “I’m still around, so they must have done a good job,” he joked. Solis repeated that he had developed an affection for the community. “I’ve been here five
years. Roswell grows on you.” The Roswell Regional Hospital’s chief executive director, Rod Schumacher, also extended his welcome, and then he quipped, “You are welcome here any time. It’s a good place to stay away from.” Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Dorrie Faubus-McCarthy said graciously, “I think the most important thing is to let Al sit down.” “I’ve not had the opportunity to get to know him, but I’ve heard nothing but nice things about him,” said City Clerk Dave Kunko. j.palmer@roswell-record.com
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TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....B6 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........B6 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8 WORLD .................A3
INDEX
Mark Wilson Photo
Roswell Police Chief Al Solis and his wife Rosie arrive at Roswell Regional Hospital, Tuesday evening for a reception held in their honor.
See DDA, Page A3
downtown Roswell takes shape EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
MainStreet Roswell hosted a public brainstorming meeting, Tuesday evening, to begin the process of re-thinking Roswell’s downtown area. The city is developing a master plan to renovate from Eigth to Alameda streets and Pennsylvania to Railroad avenues, with the help of a $75,000 grant from the state Economic Development Department. “This is the first of many more meetings to follow,” City Planner Michael Vickers said. Two associates from Consensus Planning, Inc., who were brought in from Albuquerque to help with the planning services, asked the 30-strong crowd to envision what they wanted downtown Roswell to look like in the future. City officials, business owners and members of the arts community jumped at the opportunity to voice an opinion. City Councilor Jason Perry said he would like to see more people actually living downtown like they do in Chattanooga, Tenn., where he’s from originally. Then, busi-
nesses would follow. “We can’t just focus on bringing business in,” Perry said. “You have to bring in people.” Mayor Del Jurney added that there should be a motel near Third or Fourth Streets to generate more foot traffic. “When I go through any town in America ... those areas that have a successful downtown have a motel,” he said. Former Roswell Mayor Tom Jennings advocated for removing the old railroad track on the east side of town to make downtown more accessible, while Director of the Roswell-Artist-in-Residence Program Stephen Fleming suggested picking a late 1940s to early ’50s motif for downtown, complete with vintage cars, a soda pop fountain shop and neon signs. “Most people know Roswell, like it or not, from the 1947 incident,” he said. “Why not revisit the happy days of that period?” Most everyone agreed that there needs to be more restaurants, shops and entertainment, all the while reducing traffic on Main Street. Ideas ranged
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