Roswell Daily Record
Speaker Ben Lujan dead at 77
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INSIDE NEWS
BORK DEAD AT 85
MCLEAN, Va. (AP) — Robert H. Bork, who stepped in to fire the Watergate prosecutor at Richard Nixon’s behest and whose failed 1987 nomination to the Supreme Court helped draw the modern boundaries of cultural fights over abortion, civil rights and other issues, has died. He was 85. - PAGE A6
SANTA FE (AP) — House Speaker Ben Lujan, one of the most power ful and longest-serving state legislators in New Mexico history and the father of U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, died late Tuesday at age 77 after a long battle with lung cancer, a spokesman for his son said. He died at about 10:45 p.m. Tuesday after a brief stay at Christus St. Vincent’s hospital in Santa Fe, Andrew Stoddard, a spokesman for Congressman Lujan, said early
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
December 20, 2012
THURSDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Wednesday. Ben Lujan, a Democrat from Nambe, announced his battle with the illness and his planned retirement at the opening of the 2012 legislative session. He spent half of his life as a state lawmaker, winning his first election to the House in 1974. Only one other House member, Democrat Nick Salazar, served longer than Lujan, according to the Legislative Council Service. Lujan said he was diagnosed with advanced stage
cancer in late 2009 and had undergone radiation and chemotherapy treatment. As news spread of Lujan’s passing, both Democrats and Republicans began to praise Lujan for his work as a lawmaker and as a speaker. “He fought for causes near and dear to New Mexicans from all walks of life and guided the House of Representatives through some of the most important debates in our state’s history,” said Gov. Susana Mar-
tinez. “Speaker Lujan’s story was one that embodied the New Mexican dream and the American dream.”
In a statement, former Gov. Bill Richardson called Lujan a “giant” in New Mexico politics. “He will go down in history as (New Mexico’s) greatest speaker,” Richardson said. “His legislative contributions were far reaching as he authored major legislation on health care, education, roads and
NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
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INSIDE SPORTS Mark Wilson Photos
Above: Extremely high winds severely reduce visibility along East Crossroads near U.S. 285, Wednesday. Left: An Xcel Energy crew retrieves a downed utility pole felled by high winds at the corner of 11th and Kentucky, Wednesday morning.
LAS CRUCES (AP) — Kendall Williams tied a career high with 24 points, including nine during a firsthalf run that brought New Mexico back from a doubledigit deficit, and the No. 16 Lobos beat rival New Mexico State for the second time in a week with a 68-63 win Wednesday night. Tony Snell added 11 points for New Mexico (120), which matched the second-best start in school history. The Aggies (5-6) went on a 16-4 run that included four 3-pointers to build a 25-14 lead, but then ... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• Robert Allan Nurmi • Modesto Castellon - PAGE A6
HIGH ...50˚ LOW ....16˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 ENTERTAINMENT.....B8 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
New Mexico House Speaker Ben Lujan, D-Santa Fe, Feb. 18, 2010.
High winds cause wrecks, power outage See LUJAN, Page A3
TOP 5
LOBOS OUTLAST AGGIES
AP Photo
Heavy winds Wednesday took a toll on Chaves County. speeds Wind approached 60 mph in some areas, which impacted driving conditions throughout the day. State Road 2 was closed for several hours starting at 11:30 a.m. after dust storms caused four accidents, and police had to slow traffic on the Relief Route after poor visibility led to an accident. New Mexico State Police Capt. Dina Orozco said she believed all five accidents were without injury and were within about a one-hour time period. “Any time you get that much dust blowing across the highway, that can be pretty bad,” said Lt. Britt Snyder of Chaves County Sherif f’s Of fice, which assisted State Police with traffic control. “Given that many wrecks, this would definitely be one of our worst dust days, absolutely. ... And things are just so dry out there.” Xcel Energy spokesman Wes Reeves said about 300 customers were without power Wednesday due to wind. He said all but four customers had power restored by 6:30 p.m.
Perez person of interest RPD name persons of interest in Herrera homicide JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The Roswell Police Department has named a person of interest in the Xavyr Herrera homicide that occurred early in the morning of Dec. 13 in the 800 block of North Orchard Avenue. The 19-year-old’s body was located lying in the street near the intersection of North Orchard Avenue and East Cherry Street. He had been shot.
The Roswell Police Department has released the names of two persons of interest in the slaying of Saul Sanchez, of Denver City, Texas, during the interrupted burglary of a residence in the 1500 block of West Third Street, Dec. 11. The persons of interest, Luis Jimenez, 22, and Joseph Barnhill, 25, had
RPD is seeking the public’s assistance in locating See HERRERA, Page A3
Joshua Perez
See SANCHEZ, Page A3
After 35 years, Rhoda retires from county NOAH VERNAU RECORD STAFF WRITER
Co-workers, family and friends of Rhoda Coakley filed into the Chaves County Clerk’s Office on Wednesday to attend the retirement reception for the longtime county clerk, who moves on to bigger and better things on Dec. 31. Coakley spent 35 years as a county employee and 24 years as county clerk. “I’m looking forward to Mark Wilson Photo retiring, but it’s bittersweet,” Coakley said, “all Chaves County Clerk Rhoda Coakley kisses her grandof these people I’ve daughter Karli Cavin as Karli’s mother and Coakley’s stepworked with for so long. daughter, Sarah Cavin, looks on, during Coakley’s retirement party at the Chaves County Administrative Center, See COAKLEY, Page A3 Wednesday.
Luis Jimenez
Joseph Barnhill
Obama to send Congress gun proposals in January
WASHINGTON (AP) — Declaring the time for action overdue, President Barack Obama promised on Wednesday to send Congress broad proposals in January for tightening gun laws and curbing violence after last week’s schoolhouse massacre in Connecticut.
Even before those proposals are drafted, Obama pressed lawmakers to reinstate a ban on militarystyle assault weapons, close loopholes that allow gun buyers to skirt background checks and restrict high-capacity ammunition clips. “The fact that this prob-
lem is complex can no longer be an excuse for doing nothing,” Obama said in his most detailed comments on guns since Friday’s killing of 20 schoolchildren and six adults in Newtown, Conn. “The fact that we can’t prevent every act of violence doesn’t mean we can’t steadily reduce the violence.”
Gun control measures have faced fierce resistance in Congress for years but that may be changing now because of last week’s violence. Since then, Obama has signaled for the first See OBAMA, Page A2