Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 124, No. 134 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
June 5, 2015
Friday
www.rdrnews.com
Body found northeast of Roswell By Jared Tucker MulTiMedia JournalisT
The Chaves County SheriffÕ s Office is investigating a dead body that was found on a rural property northeast of Roswell Thursday morning. CCSO said the body was been there for some time. According to Sheriff Britt Snyder, deputies responded to the 6600 block of Old Clovis Highway around 11 a.m. in reference to a body that was discovered down a dirt road. Investigators believe the person was
murdered at the location the body was found. Ò It wo u ld a p p e a r th e body has been here several days, maybe even a week,Ó Snyder said. Snyder said the body was discovered a short distance from a mobile home, in a hilly area that the owners of the home donÕ t frequently visit. The owners hadnÕ t reported seeing or hearing anything out of the ordinary, Snyder said. Ò ItÕ s possible at night that somebody wouldnÕ t realize thereÕ s a home at the top of the hill,Ó Snyder said.
Snyder said investigators cannot yet determine if the body is male or female. Evidence at the scene suggests murder, Snyder said, but he wouldnÕ t say by what means. George Reese said he discovered the body on his property while making a round in his pickup truck. When he found the body, he called his wife at work who called authorities. Ò I saw a pair of white sneakers facing me ... I didnÕ t even get out of the See BODY, Page A2
Jared Tucker Photo
Staff from Ballard Funeral Home drive past the Chaves County Sheriff’s Office mobile command post after removing a body that was discovered on George Reese’s property Thursday morning in the 6600 block of Old Clovis Highway. CCSO said the Office of the Medical Investigator could not positively identify the body at the scene, and an autopsy will be performed Friday.
Strange life and death of explorer detailed in film By TiMoThy P. howsare record ediTor
Timothy P. Howsare Photo
From left, Ben Chaffins, editor; Michael Crisp, writer and director; Scot Hall, producer; Wade Smith, executive producer, and Dianne Joop, education director at the National Cave and Karst Research Institute in Carlsbad.
two-week ordeal set off a worldwide media circus, as nearly every newspaper and radio station in the country carried updates of his struggle to survive trapped 150 feet underground along with reports on the failed rescue attempts. Even the U.S. Congress would take daily breaks to hear the latest news on CollinsÕ predicament. To serious cave scientists and fun-seeking spe-
The name Floyd Collins probably doesnÕ t ring a bell, unless you are a cave explorer from Kentucky. But if one or both of the above applies to you, then Floyd Collins likely stands out in your mind as legendary figure. Collins, a cave explorer driven to turn his passion into a successful business, died in 1925 after he became trapped in a narrow cave. His
See FILM, Page A5
Governor to call Sales taxes increasing in Chaves County a special session By Jeff Tucker record sTaff wriTer
SANTA FE (AP) Ñ Gov. Susana Martinez and top House and Senate leaders announced late Wednesday that they have reached an agreement on a $295 million public works package and other legislation, and a special session is imminent. Martinez is expected to issue the call for lawmakers to return to Santa Fe in the coming days. The session will likely begin Monday. State Rep. Candy Spence Ezzell said the special session should last one or possibly two days. Ò I hope that itÕ s not more than two,Ó said Ezzell, R-Roswell. Ò I just hope weÕ re not up there for more than two days max. I hope it is truly one day, but I donÕ t see it as one day.Ó The announcement of a special session comes after months of political posturing and repeated requests from business groups and mayors from around the state who wanted lawmakers to forge a compromise on a bill that funds roads, parks and other public projects. Ezzell said itÕ s most important to pass the public works package, known as the capital outlay bill. Ó I do feel itÕ s a good thing, mainly because it helps to create more jobs for each one of our counties,Ó Ezzell said. Ò It will finish up projects that
were started that absolutely could not be taken care of in one year. They need to be finished. I donÕ t like people calling it pork because itÕ s not. ItÕ s their tax dollars that are coming home to benefit the taxpayers of those counties. A lot of these projects are road projects.Ó The governorÕ s office said the agreement will increase funding for senior centers and higher education institutions around the state. The deal also calls for highway projects to be financed through a combination of state general funds and severance tax bonds. Lawmakers also agreed to tax incentives, including a measure to restore a medical expense tax deduction thatÕ s claimed by hundreds of thousands of New Mexicans each year. Lawmakers failed to agree on the capital outlay projects during the regular session that ended in March. The Democratic-controlled Senate had passed one version of the bill, but the Republican-controlled House amended it and shifted millions of dollars from some projects to roads. Ò I think a lot of these senators went home and they were getting a lot of flak,Ó said Ezzell, chair of the House Agriculture, See SESSION, Page A2
Sales taxes in Chaves County will increase slightly in July due to increases in gross receipt taxes approved by the Chaves County commissioners last year. GRT rates in Chaves County and its incorporated municipalities will increase by 0.375 percent on July 1, equivalent to 3 cents more for every $8 spent on goods and services subject to GRTs. The new GRT rate in Chaves County will be 6.4375 percent, which ranks right in the middle of the pack of the stateÕ s 33 counties. Sixteen counties in New Mexico will have higher base GRT rates as of July 1, 15 counties will have lower GRT base rates, while Guadalupe County will have the same base rate as Chaves CountyÕ s 6.4375 percent. The Chaves County commissioners approved raising the GRT rates in December, while also voting to cut the property tax rate by 1 mill. Faced with the possibility of cutting county jobs, the commissioners voted in favor of three proposed ordinances, each of which raises GRTs on businesses by oneeighth of a percent, or 0.125 percent each, effective July 1. The net effect of all three GRT increases is 0.375 percent, or 0.375 cents for every dollar spent on goods and services that are subject to gross receipts taxes.
One of the GRT increases will expire on June 30, 2020, if not repealed by the county commissioners before that time. The second GRT increase will expire on June 30, 2023, if not sooner.
NM below average iN graduatioN rates
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) Ñ New Mexico ranks well below the national average in graduating students with disabilities with a regular high school diploma, according to a new study. The annual Ò Diploma CountÓ report by Education Week released Thursday showed that New Mexico graduated around
42 percent of students with disabilities with a regular diploma in 2013 compared with the national average of 65 percent. In addition, the report said close to 25 percent of the stateÕ s students with disabilities dropped out of high school that year. Nationally, around 17 percent of students with disabilities dropped out of high school.
Today’s ForecasT
Today’s obiTuaries Page a6
HIGH 92 LOW 64
• Vernon Lynn Hopper • Josie H. Medina
The third GRT increase has no expiration date. Proceeds from all three GRT increases See TAXES, Page A2
The study, entitled Ò Next Steps: Life After Special Education,Ó explores the experiences of students with disabilities, who are coming of age at a time when all high school students are facing new testing requirements. It analyzed data from 2005 to 2013 based on U.S. Department of Education numbers.
Ò Despite the significant progress witnessed during the past generation, students with disabilities continue to face significant hurdles as they follow their paths through school and beyond,Ó said Christopher Swanson, vice president of editorial projects in education, the nonprofit organization that publishes Education Week.
index cLASSifiedS ..........B6 cOmicS .................B5 finAnciAL .............B4 GenerAL...............A2
hOrOScOpeS.........A3
OpiniOn ................A4
LOtterieS .............A2
SpOrtS .................B1
nAtiOn..................A6
WeAther ..............A8