Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
What’s more Roswell than trees?
Vol. 121, No. 91 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
April 15, 2012
SUNDAY
www.rdrnews.com
NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
RMS TITANIC 100 YEARS ON
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Two Titanic survivors who later became tennis pros are being honored at Rhode Island’s International Tennis Hall of Fame and Museum. Nearby on Cape Cod, a wreath will be laid for a radio operator who relayed Morse code messages as the illfated ship went down. ... - PAGE C6
TOP 5 WEB For The Past 24 Hours
• Will horses rescue failing abattoir? • Vanguard elm graces Center grounds • Northern NM captured acclaimed artist ... • Bulldogs take two from Roswell • NMMI wins Hobbs ...
INSIDE SPORTS
Arbor Day brought hundreds of people to Spring River Park and Zoo, Saturday, where residents celebrated Roswell’s continued efforts and success in tree growth, and lined up for seedlings that will soon add even more green to the community. Keep Roswell Beautiful and zoo staff distributed about 1,500 seedlings to attendees, who chose from 11 tree and shrub species suited to Roswell’s arid climate, soils, elevation and sunshine. Elaine Mayfield, zoo director, said KRB, the Parks Department and the zoo have collaborated on Arbor Day activities for many years. “We talk to people all the time who did this 10 years ago, and now have beautiful trees in their yards,” Mayfield said. “This is a beautiful city with all the trees, and it makes such a difference. ... “To me, the trees are just a part of our planet that we
Mark Wilson Photo
Openness brings mixed results ACLU sues city See TREES, Page A3
Brothers Noah, foreground, and Taran Estrada examine tree seedlings during the Arbor Day celebration at the Spring River Zoo, Saturday.
AP Photo
NMMI DROPS 2
The NMMI college baseball team fell to 9-35 with a pair of losses to New Mexico JC on Saturday. NMMI fell 10-3 in Game 1 and dropped the nightcap, 17-2. In the first game, the Thunderbirds scored five runs on six hits and two Bronco errors in the top of the first and never let NMMI back in the game. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• Loyd Green • Helen Dale Eldred • Norman Ard • Alma Nance • Ruth Ullery • Brande Renay Otero • E. Leamon Metcalf • Charles Lee Bennett • Margie Richardson - PAGE B6
HIGH .....--˚ LOW .....--˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........D1 COMICS.................C4 ENTERTAINMENT.....D2 FEATURE ...............C5 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........D2 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
President Barack Obama at the CEO Summit of the Americas in Cartagena, Colombia, Saturday.
CARTAGENA, Colombia (AP) — President Barack Obama’s willingness to engage with America’s adversaries comes with promise and peril, a reality hammered
home by signs of progress in nuclear talks with Iran and a setback in North Korea’s provocative rocket launch. In Colombia, where Obama is
attending a summit with Latin American leaders, the president has been confronted by the stubbornly stalled U.S.-Cuba relationship, despite his offer of a “new beginning” with the communist nation. The convergence of events focused fresh attention on a foreign policy strategy that puts a premium on keeping the door open for diplomacy, even with countries the U.S. considers “bad actors.” Obama administration officials say the strategy has improved the U.S. standing in the world by showing that America is more willing to look outward, 10 years since President George W. Bush branded Iran, Iraq and North Korea as members of an “axis of evil.” White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes credited U.S. engagement with Iran and North Korea with allowing the U.S. to rally international support for stronger penalties when those
NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico filed a lawsuit against the city of Roswell on Thursday, alleging city police officers violated the First Amendment free speech rights of Joshua and Jeremy De Los Santos, members of Old Paths Baptist Church. According to the ACLU, Jeremy De Los Santos has been arrested five times in the past two years, and Joshua De Los Santos, the pastor at Old Paths, has been arrested twice during the same period. The lawsuit states the brothers were arrested “as a result of their efforts to preach the Gospel,” and that charges against both plaintiffs were
Sheriff Coon recalls carnage of 1980 prison riot NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
Chaves County Sherrif f Rob Coon spoke at the Roswell Public Library, Saturday, sharing stories of his time as a state policeman during the February 1980 New Mexico State Penitentiary riot, which resulted in 33 prisoners dead and more than 200 injured. In what remains one of the largest, most monetarily destructive prison riots in American history, Coon discussed what led up to the historic event in Santa Fe, the violence that ensued during the 36 hours inmates controlled the facility and the many lessons learned.
Coon said he was fortunate to have been trained for such an event, unlike the majority of the prison’s 167 correctional officers, of whom Coon says only about 30 percent had undergone for mal training. Coon was on the SWAT team with 21 other officers, the first to enter the prison during the riot. He says that more than 30 years later, what stands out most from his 18 days in Santa Fe is the chilling visual experience of the prison’s interior. “The carnage — just the destruction, the fire, the smoke,” Coon said. “It was pretty hair -raising. But I was with a bunch of guys I
See OBAMA, Page A3
See ACLU, Page A3
trusted, and we went in and got the situation fixed, cleaned up and went about our business.” Coon said the majority of the inmates did not want any part of the violence, and attributes the carnage to a small faction of prisoners, a “murder squad” made up of lifers with an axe to grind, or who simply had nothing to lose. “(I walked) in flooded cell blocks in ankle-deep water that was red from blood,” Coon said. “Back then we didn’t worry about AIDS or Hepatitis C or B. You just dusted your boots off when you got out
Mark Wilson Photo
Sheriff Rob Coon speaks at the Roswell Public Library, Saturday.
Wind whips NM; twisters take aim on Great Plains ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Fierce winds kicked up dust across much of southwestern New Mexico and triggered highway closures and health warnings Saturday. The health department in Albuquerque warned people with bronchitis, asthma or other respiratory problems to stay indoors because dust can make their illnesses worse. A tornado north of Solomon, Kan., Saturday.
AP Photo
Dust clouds kicked up by winds above 50 mph forced the state transportation department to issue warn-
See SHERIFF, Page A3
ings for drivers on Interstate 10 between Deming and Lordsburg. The agency’s website showed New Mexico 9 from Animas to Columbus closed due to low visibility caused by blowing dust, as were NM 26 from Deming to Hatch and US 180 from Deming to Hurley. The high winds were expected to last through Saturday evening.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — More than a dozen possible tornadoes were reported Saturday as forecasters
warned residents across the nation’s midsection to brace for “life-threatening” weather. An apparent tor nado took down barns, outbuildings and large trees in southeast Nebraska, and Johnson County emergency director Clint Strayhorn said he was still trying to deter mine how long the twister was on the ground and how much damage it did. “I’m on a 2-mile stretch See WEATHER, Page A3