Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 121, No. 39 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
Senate votes to approve budget proposal
Making minor changes to its original form, the Senate voted 34-6 to approve the $5.6 billion state budget proposal which passed the House last week. Sen. Rod Adair, RRoswell, was the only Senate member to suggest any amendments to the bill. Adair proposed four
WELLESLEY, Mass. (AP) — “I love your verses with all my heart, dear Miss Barrett ...” So begins the first love letter to 19th-century poet Elizabeth Barrett from her future husband, fellow poet Robert Browning. Their 573 love letters, which capture... - PAGE A6
TOP 5 WEB For The Past 24 Hours
• Have a heart • Single car roll over • Sen. Ron Adair visits with Leadership... • Harvest Ministries holds special event... • Goddard vs. Roswell.. Chapter III of 2011-12
INSIDE SPORTS
amendments, all of which failed. The amendment that came the closest to passing dealt with appropriating $3,900,000 from the general fund to fund early reading inititatives for kindergartners through thirdgraders. This money would be in addition to the funds already allocated for public education through the 2012 general appropriation act. The amendment was voted down 18-22.
US, Europe look at penalty on Iran
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and Europe are considering unprecedented punishment against Iran that could immediately cripple the country’s financial lifeline. But it’s an extreme option in the banking world that would come with its own costs. The Obama administration wants Iran evicted from SWIFT, an independent financial clearinghouse that is crucial to the country’s overseas oil sales. That would leapfrog the current slow-pressure campaign of sanctions aimed at persuading Iran to drop what the U.S. and its allies contend is a drive toward developing and building nuclear weapons. It also perhaps would buy time for the U.S. to persuade Israel not to launch a pre-emptive military strike on Iran this spring. The last-resort financial effort suggests the U.S. and Europe are grasping for ways to show immediate results because economic sanctions have so far failed to force Iran back to nuclear talks But such a penalty could send oil prices soaring when many of the world’s economies are still frail. It also could hurt ordinary Iranians and undercut the reputation of SWIFT, a banking hub used by virtually every nation and corporation around the world. The organization’s full name is the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Most people weighing in on a sports blackout rule are urging the Federal Communications Commission to scrap it. Monday was the deadline for public comments on a petition by the Sports... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Eugene Zimmerman • Dr. Curtis Ray Foster - PAGE A6
HIGH ...64˚ LOW ....31˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
The trial of Terry Haley originally set for April has been postponed until July after the District Attor ney’s Of fice filed an amendment to the criminal information. The Roswell Police Department arrested the Roswell man on Feb. 17, 2010. Haley, 57, is accused in the rape of a 12-year -old girl whom, according to prosecutors, he met while attending services at Christ’s Church. Haley is charged with criminal sexual penetration of a child under 13 and one count of entice-
See BUDGET, Page A3
LICENSE BILL PASSES SENATE JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER A bill, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Tim Jennings, D-Roswell, that is said to impose tougher requirements for foreign nationals wishing to obtain a New Mexico driver’s license, passed the Senate 27-15 Monday evening. The bill is being
dubbed a compromise by Senate Democrats. The tougher requirements for foreign nationals include license renewal every year. Current law requires renewal every four to eight years, fingerprints that would be put into a database and made See LICENSE, Page A3
Mark Wilson Photo
Vow renewals take place at Villa Del Rey NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
Five senior couples renewed their wedding vows Tuesday at the Villa del Rey assisted living community, a special Valentine’s Day celebration that featured ceremonies, cake, wedding toasts and plenty of pictures. Connie Santillan, executive director at Villa del Rey, said
Haley trial postponed JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Adair was one of the six senators who voted against the budget bill. “The budget does not prioritize our spending in the way that it should. We’re still spending too much money on things we don’t need. We’re not putting enough money in areas where we need to concentrate,” he said. “We have over 5,000 people on
Karen and Thor Stangebye, who have been married 60 years this coming June, renew their wedding vows with the help of Chaplain Garth Hyde at Villa Del Rey, Tuesday, during a Valentine's Day celebration.
See IRAN, Page A3
FCC URGED TO END BLACKOUT RULE
WEDNESDAY
www.rdrnews.com
JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
DEVOTION GOES DIGITAL
February 15, 2012
ment of a child. According to the criminal complaint, the victim’s family recently moved to Roswell from Albuquerque. The victim purportedly met Haley at Christ’s Church in December and he began taking her and several other neighborhood kids to church services and movies.
According to the original court records, Haley arrived at the girl’s grandmother’s house around 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 11, 2010, and picked up the victim to go see a movie. Around midnight, the victim’s
See HALEY, Page A3
couples residing in both Emeritus Senior Living communities, Villa del Rey and La Villa, participated in the event. She said management and employees of Emeritus had been preparing the event for many weeks, sending out hundreds of flyers in Roswell, as well as in Artesia, Hobbs and Carlsbad. “We spend so much of our time at work that they really become
our family, this becomes our home,” said Santillan. “It’s a really special day, it’s absolutely a day that we’re all celebrating their lives together. Our mission here in our Emeritus communities is that our family is committed to yours. We really embrace that family with our residents. We’ve become so close that, to See VOW, Page A3
Santorum revels in sudden support
BOISE, Idaho. (AP) — The latest Republican to surge in polls, Rick Santorum is trying to turn his newfound strength into something lasting. Curious Republicans now pack his rallies. Supporters have funneled nearly $4 million to his formerly empty campaign account over the past seven days. And his staff is plotting an aggressive strategy to challenge Mitt Romney in Romney’s native Michigan and beyond. But things don’t look so strong just beneath the surface. Santorum is underfunded and outmanned. He’s still lacking in organization, a month and a half into the primary season. And, after he won three contests in a
Bouquets of love
single day last week, his opponents — on the right and the left — have begun their own efforts to tear him down. An upbeat Santorum declared “We’re building” in a brief interview in Tacoma, Wash., on Tuesday before heading to Idaho for campaign events. “We’ve got a great volunteer base. In some states we’re going to have staff. Other states we aren’t. We’re going to use volunteers.” His challenges were on display this week in Tacoma, where hundreds of supporters waited on cold, wet cement stairs in the dark to see the Republican presidential candidate with whom they’re barely familiar. The former Pennsylvania
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....A8 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8 Mark Wilson Photo
Louise Lewis arranges Valentine's Day goodies at the House of Flowers, Tuesday.
Santorum had 30 percent support to 28 percent for Romney in a national poll released this week by the Pew Research Center. But the same poll said 31 percent of all adults had never heard of or couldn’t rate him. That’s a significantly See SANTORUM, Page A3
Candidates line up for US Senate and House seats SANTA FE (AP) — Two candidates have dropped out of the race for New Mexico’s open U.S. Senate seat, but candidates on both sides of the aisle will still face competitive primaries in June.
INDEX
senator has surged to a virtual tie with Romney in nationwide polling following his surprising sweep in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri last week. But, as Franklin suggests, his popularity may have less to do with who he is than who he isn’t. Santorum is not Romney. And with Newt Gingrich’s recent decline, that’s enough for some conservatives — at least for now.
For mer U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson of Albuquerque and Las Cruces Tea Party candidate and local businessman Greg Sowards filed their petitions Tuesday to run in the Republican primary for the Senate seat being vacated by the retirement of Democrat Sen.
Jeff Bingaman.
On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep. Martin Heinrich of Albuquerque and state Auditor Hector Balderas made their candidacies official. A third announced candidate for the Democratic nomination, Albuquerque political activist Andres Valdez, said he decided to bow out because of “the outrageous amount of money needed to run.” He threw his support behind Balderas.
See SEATS, Page A2