Sanata Fe New Mexican, March 31, 2014

Page 1

UConn upsets Michigan St. 60-54, advances to Final Four Sports, B-1

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Monday, March 31, 2014

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Latinos rejecting the ballot box altogether Advocates report mounting disillusionment with both parties among Latinos. PAge A-2

6 million enrollees Officials say 6 million have signed up for health insurance. PAge A-3

Hunt for missing jet Experts say flat seabed of search zone won’t hinder efforts. PAge A-2

GOP holds advantage in fight for U.S. House

APD protest turns into ‘mayhem’ One officer injured as hundreds clash with police in demonstration over recent shootings By Russell Contreras The Associated Press

ALBUQUERQUE — The Albuquerque mayor said late Sunday that a protest over recent police shootings

has turned from peaceful into “mayhem,” as officers in riot gear clashed with protesters who blocked traffic, tried to get on freeways and shouted anti-police slogans. Richard Berry said one officer was injured, rocks were thrown, and at one point, protesters trapped police in a vehicle and tried to break the windows, the Albuquerque Journal reported. An Associated Press reporter saw gas canisters being thrown and

Albuquerque police and Bernalillo County sheriff’s deputies charging at the crowds late Sunday. Berry didn’t know of any arrests, and multiple messages left for the police department weren’t immediately returned. Video by KRQE-TV shows people being led away in ziptie restraints, but it’s unclear if those people were arrested or if any protesters were injured. “We respected their rights to protest, obviously,” Berry said, “but

By Stephen Ohlemacher

The Associated Press

Please see gOP, Page A-4

Board mulling money sources, including $7.2M allocation from state By Robert Nott The New Mexican

been a big headache for the city since they were installed in 2007. Some of them have stopped working entirely and others have started to “under-read” customers’ meters, which makes the problem even more difficult to detect. That’s what happened in the case of

Ortiz Middle School secretary Kimberly Rael said she’s often heard school personnel and administrators say, “Without the secretaries, we just couldn’t make it.” Secretaries, she said, form “the core of the school. We have the keys to the building, help coordinate transportation, buzz people in as security, and if the nurse is out and it’s bloody, we have to take care of it.” She flashed her W-2 form for 2013. She made less than $20,000. When she started in her job 11 years ago, she said, she made about $17,000 a year. Fortunately, her domestic partner, who works as a police officer, makes a good salary plus benefits. Santa Fe Public Schools continues to seek money for raises for its roughly 1,800 employees, including secretaries, beyond the 3 percent average increase for state employees approved by both the Legislature and Gov. Susana Martinez this year. The school board discussed the issue during a study session last Monday evening, laying out a number of options. Those possibilities include tapping into an increase in education funding statewide — almost 5 percent more for Santa Fe Public Schools this coming year — and a one-time state allocation of $7.2 million designed to reward effective teachers and principals. Public Education Secretary-desig-

Please see WATeR, Page A-4

Please see PAY, Page A-4

Cinthia Muñoz, 19, and her boyfriend, Alex Seabolt, 17, both of Santa Fe, walk along the flowering plum trees on South Meadows Road on Friday. LUIS SÁNCHEZ SATURNO/THE NEW MEXICAN

Water woes continue under faulty meter-reader system 3 percent of city’s customers have malfunctioning Firefly devices that can cause bills to skyrocket By Anne Constable The New Mexican

Retired city police Officer Jeff Dieringer and his wife got a bit of a shock in January when the city’s Water Division sent them a bill for $4,454. The family’s water bill was normally about $100 in the winter, Dieringer said. And even in the summer, the bill was less than $200. They have no grass at their home between Sam’s Club and the rodeo grounds, only “a few potted plants,” Dieringer said. Moreover, they’ve always paid their bill on time. Dierginger checked for leaks and found none before calling the city. He learned that he is among about 3 percent of the city’s water customers who have a malfunctioning Firefly. Fireflies are the electronic devices the city uses to remotely read customers’ water meters. They have

City crews installed Firefly devices on water meters to allow workers to read the meters remotely and to help detect leaks and promote water conservation. NEW MEXICAN FILE PHOTO

Grinding work pace for prison officers poses risks

H Milan Simonich

Ringside Seat

Index

ard labor is still part of prison life, just not the way we remember it from The Shawshank Redemption. Officers at the state prison in Los Lunas say they routinely work 72 hours a week because staffing levels are dangerously low. That is a staggering load — four 16-hour workdays in succession and then an eight-hour shift on the fifth and last day of the workweek. Overtime is not just available for the taking. It is mandatory. Officers say they are reprimanded by prison administrators if they refuse extra

Calendar A-2

Classifieds B-4

Please see PROTeST, Page A-4

School district working to raise staff pay

SANTA FE BLOSSOMS AS SPRING ARRIVES

New district boundaries boost party’s chances of winning more seats WASHINGTON — Even if Democrats recruit great candidates, raise gobs of money and run smart campaigns, they face an uphill fight to retake control of the House in this year’s congressional elections, regardless of the political climate in November. The reason? Republican strategists spent years developing a plan to take advantage of the 2010 census, first by winning key state Legislatures and then redrawing House districts to tilt the playing field in their favor. In states like Ohio, Michigan and North Carolina, Republicans were able to shape congressional maps to pack as many Democratic voters as possible into the fewest House districts. The process, called gerrymandering, left fertile ground elsewhere in each state to spread Republican voters among more districts, increasing the GOP’s chances of winning more seats. Geography helped, too, in some states. Democratic voters are more likely to live in densely populated urban areas, making it easier to pack them into fewer districts. The first payoff came in 2012, when Republicans kept control of the House despite Democratic support that swept President Barack Obama to a second term. The next payoff is likely to come this fall. Gerrymandering has a long history in the United States, pursued enthusiastically by both Democrats and Republicans. But the GOP’s success at it this decade has been historic: In 2012, Republicans achieved a 33-seat majority in the House, even though GOP candidates as a group got 1.4 million fewer votes than their Demo-

what it appears we have at this time is individuals who weren’t connected necessarily with the original protest. They’ve taken it far beyond a normal protest.” Protesters took to the streets in the early afternoon and stayed out late Sunday after authorities declared an unlawful assembly. People are angry over Albuquerque police’s involvement in 37 shootings, 23 of them fatal since 2010. Critics say that’s far too

Comics B-10

Main office: 983-3303 Late paper: 986-3010 News tips: 983-3035

shifts. Their contract allows for them to be assigned up to four double shifts every week. Most officers make $13 to $16 an hour, so they are not getting rich, even with 32 hours of overtime a week. One calculated that, after taxes, he took home $48,000 last year. Still, a fatter paycheck is a welcome reward for any employee. The problem with so much overtime for prison officers is that the grind of too many shifts and too little rest could lead to a fatal mistake. Los Lunas is home to about

Crosswords B-5, B-9

1,200 prisoners. They range from trusties allowed on roadside work details to felons in the supermaximum unit. While in the fog of fatigue, officers must secure murderers, robbers and even mentally ill inmates. One officer said he averages two and a half to four hours sleep each day before driving back to the prison for yet another 16-hour shift. Like 19th-century steelworkers, these prison employees say they work as hard as draft animals and are expected to be equally mute. Officers at the Los Lunas prison,

Please see PRISON, Page A-4

Technology A-6 Opinion A-9

Sports B-1

Time Out B-9

Pasapick www.pasatiempomagazine.com

An evening with Joyce DiDonato Mezzo-soprano, 6:30 p.m., the Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W. San Francisco St., concert only $25-$95, 505-988-1234, ticketssantafe.org; premium seats and dinner $325, tickets available through the Santa Fe Concert Association, 984-8759. More events in Calendar, A-2

Today Partly sunny and cooler. High 61, low 34. PAge A-10

Obituaries Leo Ray Lovato, March 25 PAge A-8

Life & Science A-7

BREAKING NEWS AT WWW.SANTAFENEWMEXICAN.COM

Two sections, 20 pages 165th year, No. 90 Publication No. 596-440


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Sanata Fe New Mexican, March 31, 2014 by The New Mexican - Issuu