Month: May 2017

Las Cruces Police arrested a couple after the woman’s 7-year-old son allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine. 32-year-old Melanie A. Merlot and 37-year-old Skip H. Valenzuela, both of 2775 Roadrunner Parkway, are charged with one count each of Child Abuse, Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Use or Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.Investigators learned from Child Protective

El Paso Police are investigating a stabbing in Central on the 3800 block of Harrison. Police say a man was rushed to University Medical Center for treatment of stab wounds. The fire department told ABC-7 the victim was transported “code 3,” meaning he suffered serious injuries. The stabbing was reported shortly after 3pm Tuesday. ABC-7

A U.S. citizen and environmental activist has been killed in the Gulf coast state of Veracruz, a hotbed of violence and extortion and by drug gangs, authorities and Mexican media said. The U.S. Embassy confirmed on Tuesday the death of Gordon Strom and declined to comment further out of respect for his family. The Veracruz

A New Jersey high school student who hopes to become a funeral director has surprised her classmates by arriving at her prom in an open prop coffin. Megan Flaherty says she mainly wanted to have fun while attending Pennsauken High School’s junior prom Saturday. The 17-year-old says she checked with her date to make sure

The American Civil Liberties Union has issued a warning about traveling to Texas because of the state’s new law banning so-called sanctuary cities. The ACLU said Tuesday that Texas travelers should anticipate “the possible violation of their constitutional rights” if stopped by police. The new law allows officers to ask people about their immigration status

Arrests of people caught trying to enter the United States from Mexico without authorization declined again last month, a likely sign that fewer would-be immigrants are trying to cross the border illegally. President Donald Trump has highlighted the falling numbers as a sign that his tough approach on immigration is working. Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric and

A judge in San Antonio has declared a mistrial in a murder case after a juror admitted under oath that he was intoxicated while listening to testimony. Court records show state District Judge Lori Valenzuela ended the trial Monday after the juror acknowledged “chronic alcohol consumption.” The San Antonio Express-News reports the same juror came

An errant firecracker landed on a cache of fireworks and touched off a powerful explosion at a home in central Mexico, killing at least 12 people and injuring 30 more, authorities said Tuesday. The Puebla state government reported that five children were among the fatal victims of Monday night’s blast in the town of San

The district attorney said a former sheriff’s deputy killed his unarmed partner in cold blood while the defense attorney argue the killing was self defense. Opening arguments wrapped up Tuesday morning in the retrial of Tai Chan, the former Santa Fe County Deputy accused of killing his partner, Jeremy Martin. Jurors will have to decide

There are more questions than answers following two people being run over by the driver of a sport utility vehicle in Las Cruces. At around 4 a.m. Sunday, police were called to the intersection of Valley View Avenue and Winters Street on a report of a crash involving a vehicle and two pedestrians. When officers

Detectives with the Crimes Against Persons (CAP) unit arrested and charged a third suspect in connection with the murder of 21-year old Erik Deshaun Bertrand. On Monday, May 8, 2017, 34-year-old Michael Huerta was arrested and charged with Capital Murder. He was booked into the El Paso County Detention Facility on a $1 million bond.

State Rep. Cesar Blanco, from El Paso, is pushing to require school districts to do more for middle and high school dropouts. Last week, Blanco’s amendment passed in the House of Representatives as part of House Bill 22, a school accountability bill. HB 22 is now headed to the Senate, where Blanco is hopeful it

A man was found dead in El Paso’s Upper Valley Tuesday morning. ABC-7 confirmed with El Paso police on the scene at Montoya Drive and Lindbergh Avenue that the man — described as being in his 30s to 40s based on his clothing — was found facedown in a canal. Police said they’re still investigating

A police chase involving a stolen ambulance came to an end late Monday night in East El Paso. El Paso police said around 9:45 p.m. a man took an ambulance from Providence Hospital ER, and fled to Northeast El Paso driving in and out of New Mexico. The pursuit stopped near Bob Hope and Pellicano

I-10 East road closed at Executive I-10 West Mesa exit I-10 East Sunland Park ramp closed I-10 East two right lanes from Executive to Schuster I-10 East at Raynor. Day Time Closures: 9am-3pm I-10 right lane closed from Sunland Park to Buena vista I-10 West Sunland Park exit ramp reduced to one lane. Mesa:long term

Dr. Diana Natalicio is the longest serving president of a public research university in the United States: 29 years at the University of Texas at El Paso and counting. The iconic UTEP president likes to use “access” and “excellence” in the same sentence to describe a passionate tenure that has brought her and UTEP national

Former Eastwood quarterback Evan Aguilar started last season as a linebacker before having to fill in at quarterback early in the season. He’s now on his way to becoming a college linebacker. Aguilar filled in admirably for Seth Ochoa when he went down with an injury, and his overall skill set caught the attention of

ABC-7’s New Mexico Mobile Newsroom has learned jurors in the Tai Chan retrial will be bused to the crime scene after opening arguments but before any testimony. Monday, a jury was selected in the retrial of Chan, a former Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputy accused in the 2014 shooting death of a fellow deputy during

Jury selection is underway for a trial meant to decide who will control the estate of late El Paso car dealer Dick Poe, who died in 2015. Richard Poe II has been fighting the past two years for control of three Dick Poe dealerships and other properties. Poe II claims his ownership and control of

A day after Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 4 into law, county leaders are condemning the anti-sanctuary cities bill. El Paso County Sheriff Richard Wiles said the bill was pointless. “It’s a terrible law. It certainly was a solution to no problem,” Wiles said. “Many of the issues in there were things

A pastor at a Dallas-area megachurch says Texas Gov. Greg Abbott contacted him and leaders at nine other churches, urging them to drum up support for a hotly debated “bathroom bill” currently bottled up in the Legislature. Robert Morris, of Gateway Church in Southlake, instructed his congregation over the weekend to pressure state lawmakers to

Texas lawmakers are trying to get tougher on street gangs. A gang member who makes a threat could be charged with a felony and imprisoned for 10 years, under legislation that advanced Monday in the Texas House. The proposal creates a new crime, intimidation by a gang member, which could include threats to inflict injuries,

The man suspected in Saturday’s shooting in the parking lot of an Albertson’s grocery store has been arrested and charged with multiple felonies, Las Cruces police said. 31-year-old Adam “Miklo” Alvarez, is charged with one count of Shooting at or from a Motor Vehicle, one count of Child Abuse and two counts of Aggravated Assault

Police arrested and charged a young woman accused of filing a false police report that resulted in officers responding to the Burglary of Habitation call. It happened at about 2:00 am on April 15, 2017 at a residence on the 1700 block of Shawna Laurie. 18-year-old Gina Nicole Torrijos was charged with “False Report to

A serial killing suspect accused of fatally shooting seven people last year and wounding two others in attacks that terrorized a largely Latino Phoenix neighborhood was arrested Monday, authorities said. Aaron Juan Saucedo, 23, was charged with the deaths of the people and numerous other felony charges, said Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams. All but

Two El Paso Police officers riding motorcycles collided with each other the day Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Chief John Kelly visited El Paso. The crash happened shortly after 3 pm April 20, 2017 at Franklin and Campbell in Downtown El Paso. While the police report states the officers were part of a

The Texas Senate has approved allowing concealed carry permit holders to have guns in their locked cars parked outside schools. Sen. Bryan Hughes’ bill was approved Monday 25-6. A similar, bipartisan measure has cleared a committee in the state House but not yet reached a floor vote in that chamber. It is aimed at teachers

Court documents obtained by ABC-7 state the man stabbed and killed in Northeast El Paso last week was selling marijuana to the men accused of murdering him. Police arrested and charged two men with Capital Murder for the killing of 21-year-old Erik Deshaun Bertrand. Gang unit officers arrested 27-year-old Cesar Rogelio Gonzalez the morning of

Police are trying to identify two women suspected of shoplifting more than $900 worth of merchandise from a Mesilla Valley Mall store. The alleged theft happened at around 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 29, police said. The two women were seen filling a bag with merchandise at the Ulta Beauty and later seen leaving the

A New Mexico man arrested for breaking into his mom’s house to steal her traditional New Mexican stew won’t face charges after all. Last week, a state district judge dismissed charges against Jonathan Carlos Ray, who was charged in 2015 for the theft of his mother’s posole. The judge says the only witnesses to the