Roswell Daily Record
Obama offers birth form THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 120, No. 102 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
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THURSDAY
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WATER MAIN BREAK Workers try to locate a broken water line at the corner of 19th St. and Kentucky Avenue, Wednesday morning.
April 28, 2011
AP Photo
This handout image, provided by the White House, shows a copy of President Barack Obama's birth certificate.
Evans to the rescue
issue was distraction from the important matters of the day: budget deficits and soaring gasoline prices. “We do not have time for this kind of silliness,” Obama said in a hurriedly announced appearance in the White House briefing room. “We’ve got better stuff to do.” He portrayed himself as the voice of reason in a loud, lingering debate, essentially saying that the nation was above all this. The president also sought to push to the national fringe anyone who refused to accept the facts about his birth, taking an indirect
Until now, the White House had deflected demands for Obama to produce his long-form birth certificate, apparently content that voters would see the issue as frivolous, perhaps even to the president’s benefit. The White House calculation Wednesday was that it was necessary to step in and try to deflate the issue, even though doing so meant Obama ended up swamping the news with the very topic he said he wanted to quash. Donald Trump, weighing a campaign against Obama, crowed that he had forced the president’s hand. On TV, Obama said the
WASHINGTON (AP) — Confronting growing doubts that could undermine his re-election bid, President Barack Obama on Wednesday delivered an extraordinary rebuttal to those questioning whether he was born in the United States and eligible to hold office, producing a detailed birth certificate and pleading for a long “sideshow” to end. Obama’s surprising intervention came as the White House saw that doubts about his birth in Hawaii — and therefore his legitimacy to be president — were growing, consuming more of the political debate and the mainstream media’s attention.
Memorial for fallen soldier May 5
See OBAMA, Page A2
WEB For The Past 24 Hours
• Gomez on trial for Perez murder • Museum move now on hold • Brown signs at USW • Bryan wins award • Yucca Rec Center morphs into Mars
Roswell residents say they are rallying behind the family of a Roswell native who was killed in action in Iraq on April 22. Pfc. Antonio Stiggins, 25, was one of two Army soldiers who died from an IED attack in Numaniyah, Iraq. Stiggens’ parents, Luke Stiggens and Angel Mayes, are both Roswell residents and Mayes says her son was born in the city. Members of the Adopt-ASoldier say they are asking for food donations for a memorial for the family slated for May 5 at the Roswell Convention and Civic Center, 912 N. Main St.. Nicole Vargas, of AdoptA-Soldier, said they plan to hold the memorial at 4 p.m. and that arrangements have been made with the Roswell Police Department to give Antonio Stiggins a police escort during the funeral.
INSIDE SPORTS
Duane Evans ‘Saves the Mo Ave Murals’
Former Missouri Avenue Elementary principal Duane Evans and The Lion King mural at the school.
MONTOYA NAMED NMMI HS FOOTBALL COACH
Home is where the heart is and while Randy Montoya had made a nice “home” as the football coach at Hagerman the past four years, his heart was with his family in Roswell. So when NMMI had an opening for a high school football coach, Montoya threw his hat into the ring and on Wednesday, he was introduced as the new coach for the Colts. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• Brandon Lucero • Mickie Finlay • Audrey Corn Fletcher • Maxine Wilson • Clara Talbert • Exer Jordan • Frances Leatherman • Antonio Stiggins • Robert Thompson - PAGE A6, A8
EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Childhood memories come and go, but the
murals on the walls of Missouri Avenue Elementary are forever. A for mer principal is ensuring the decades-old
Ward 4 seat still vacant Roswell’s mayor says there has been a delay in the hunt for a new city councilor to fill the seat of embattled Councilor Rob McWilliams. Mayor Del Jurney said Wednesday because of personal matters, city business and his regular full-time job, he has not
been able to nail down a replacement for the former councilor. McWilliams resigned from the council in December. “Making that replacement is certainly not something that I take lightly, but because of cirSee VACANT, Page A3
murals are not demolished with the building as the school is razed and rebuilt in a new facility across the street.
Duane Evans, who served as principal from 1981 to 2002, says he See MURALS, Page A3
See SOLDIER, Page A3
Police, science experts testify in Gomez trial JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
The state continued to present its case on day two of the James Gomez murder trial. The 20-yearold is charged with firstdegree murder in the stabbing death of Zachary Perez, 16, on Feb. 13, 2010. Perez’s body was found around 3 a.m., in a
vacant lot between Mulberry Avenue and Fifth Street. Assistant District Attorney Debra Hutchins called Artesia Police Of ficer Chantel Longway to report her observations of Gomez when she went in to interview him at Artesia General Hospital around 4 a.m., as he was being treated for stab wounds.
Longway listed four separate injuries — “a cut on the shoulder, a scratch on the bicep, a nick on the lower forear m and a scratch on the back of the arm.” She relayed Gomez’s report of the events of the night that led to his injuries. According to See GOMEZ, Page A3
Domestic disturbance call ends with arrest for aggravated DWI, other charges
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TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............A2 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
Mark Wilson Photo
INDEX
JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Arturo Madrid, 26, was arrested and charged with
aggravated assault on a police officer and aggravated DWI. Around 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, the Roswell Police
Mark Wilson Photo
Department responded to a domestic disturbance in the 1300 block of East Alameda. Madrid had been
arrested earlier this week for battery. Following his release, he continued to harass his girlfriend on the phone. After repeatedly calling her, Madrid stated he was coming to her house. She notified the RPD. Officers were called in to intercept Madrid Arturo Madrid before he arrived at her residence. When officers attempted to stop him, Madrid sped away. Officers pursued him to the area around Wildy Drive and Forest Place, where he struck two parked vehicles.
Madrid then tried to complete a U-turn in the front yard of a residence. Officer S. Napier pulled her patrol unit into position to block the vehicle. M a d r i d rammed the front of the patrol car and knocked it out of his path. “Luckily, she was pulled up a short distance away, so he could never build up enough speed to do any real damage,” said RPD Public Information Officer Travis Holley. Madrid’s vehicle then struck a light pole and See DWI, Page A2