Roswell Daily Record
INSIDE NEWS
MATTHEW ARCO RECORD STAFF WRITER
GOP CHALLENGES OBAMA WASHINGTON (AP) — On the brink of power, House Republicans challenged President Barack Obama on Tuesday to join them in a drive to cut federal spending, ban earmarks for favored projects and overhaul the nation’s tax code. - PAGE A5
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Mayor to start search to fill seat
Vol. 120, No. 4 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
Roswell’s mayor says he is in the preliminary stages of searching for a replacement to fill the seat of former Councilor Rob McWilliams. Mayor Del Jurney announced Tuesday that he plans to make a recommendation for the position by the end of this month, following McWilliams’ resignation over secretly recorded closed-door meetings. “We’ll start the process and I hope that by sometime this month we’ll have the two necessary representatives for that ward,” he said. “I think the most likely candidate is someone who has a good knowl-
January 5, 2011
WEDNESDAY
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edge of Roswell and someone who hopefully has some good business experience that can bring to the table some good ideas.” McWilliams resigned on Dec. 27 just before a court hearing brought by the mayor in an effort to oust the embattled councilor from office. Jurney filed the petition less than a week after city officials discovered McWilliams recorded closed sessions on four separate occasions. Due to the circumstances surrounding McWilliams’ departure, Jurney said he doesn’t want to rush to fill the seat. “I think a very unfortunate situation occurred and I don’t want to turn around and minimize that by
saying a week later, ‘OK, here’s a replacement,’” he said. “We need to give it some time and try to really find an excellent replacement.” The mayor’s petition to remove McWilliams from office for malfeasance, claimed that the recordings — which were disseminated to local news media — made it impossible for officials to hold future confidential meetings on personnel matters and lawsuits against the city, for example. Jurney originally declined to say how he became aware of the recordings’ existence; however, Kevin Bonner, general manger of KBIM Roswell radio, announced over the air last week that he turned over the recordings to city
officials sometime after listening to their contents. “My concern was, especially with personnel matters, is any of that information would leak out ... that it could cost the city a lot of money in litigation in the form of lawsuits,” Bonner said. “I had pondered for awhile about giving them up,” he said. “It just got to the point where it could put the city in a bad situation and the taxpayers were going to have to end up paying for it.” McWilliams was elected to a twoyear term and the City Council will have to vote on whether to approve the mayor’s replacement for the position.
TOP 5 WEB
For The Last 24 Hours
• Duffey sworn in as Commissioner • Community Volunteer Program holds New Year’s party for kids • Hospital welcomes its first baby of 2011 • Aircraft tear down made easy
INSIDE SPORTS
Mark Wilson Photo
Michael Griffin empties plastic bottles from a front end loader at the new Roswell Recycle Center at 3100 Brasher Road on Tuesday.
New city recycling center to open EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
ROCKETS TAME TIGERS In basketball it pays off to be multi-dimensional. Sure, it is great to be dominant in one area, but if a team has a great post player and doesn’t have anyone who can shoot the ball, defenses will sag and take away that strength. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • • • • •
Luis L. “Shorty” Flores Shirley Sweeten-Avey Mickie A. Finlay Leslie Sterling Payne Glenda Mitchell - PAGE A6
HIGH ...65˚ LOW ....25˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....B6 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........B6 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
A new recycling center will be unveiled and open to the public next week as part of the city’s resolve to go green in the new year. The 12,000-square-foot facility is situated west of the Roswell Municipal Landfill at 3006 W. Brasher Road. Although the center will perform the same functions as the old facility on East Second Street, city officials hope all the new bells and
whistles — including a covered “drive-thru” recycling station — will encourage more citizens to reduce, reuse and recycle. This is in light of last year’s state reports on solid waste that found that only 14 percent of Roswell residents recycle compared to the national average of 32.5 percent. “Now they don’t even have to get (out of) their vehicles,” City Sanitation Superintendent Tom Rico said. “It’s convenient if it’s raining or snowing.” The relocation project began two
Viewing allows burglary victims to claim property JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Officers of the Roswell Police Department confiscated some $33,000 in stolen goods since Dec. 30. Many items came from the burglaries of two full units at Storage Nest, 1202 W. Hobbs St. “Two detectives were serving an arrest warrant when they smelled marijuana, “ said Officer Travis Holley, spokesman for the Roswell Police Department. “This got them into the house and they recognized some of the items from burglaries they were investigating.” A total of three search warrants have been served, netting eight truck-and-trailer loads of stolen items. “According to our officers, the subjects fully furnished their home and the only thing left after the warrants was their clothes,” he said. Police suspect the confiscated goods come from a number of different burglaries. “They don’t even know how many burglaries are represented,” Holley said. RPD will hold a viewing of these items where victims of burglaries can come and claim their property on Jan. 17 and 18 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at their warehouse in the Unity Center, 1500 W. College Boulevard in Cielo Grande Park. “Some victims have already claimed their property,” Holley said. “This is what we have left.” Victims who have made a report should bring a copy to the viewing. However, the viewing is open to anyone who has lost property as the result of a bur-
See VIEWING, Page A3
School boards up for vote in election
mattarco@roswell-record.com
years ago when the city put the construction project out for a bid to six general contractors. Vantage, a local company, submitted the winning bid at $555,358. The project is being funded by a $3.2 million bond that was earmarked for the new recycling facility and solid waste disposal. The City Council voted to pass the bond in November 2008. “Our hope is that we convert much more waste from the landfill and involve more citizens in recy-
Roswell Independent School District voters will be the only county residents deciding between multiple candidates when they go to the polls Feb. 1 for the upcoming school board elections. Eleven candidates are running unopposed for 12 positions in Dexter, Hagerman, Lake Arthur and Eastern New Mexico University-Roswell school board elections. ENMU-R’s District 5 seat will be vacant — the deadline for candidate filing passed. Both RISD School Board incumbents James Waldrip, District 2, and George Peterson, District 4, are being opposed. G.A. Rottman is running for the District 2 seat and Pauline Ponce and Barry Foster are running for District 4. A general obligation bond question for $1.2 million and a two mill levy question will appear on the Lake Arthur ballot. The money would be used for school building maintenance, repairs and materials to be used within the facilities. The two mill levy would impose a property tax of $2 per each $1,000 of net tax-
Navy firing raises doubts on timing
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Navy brusquely fired the captain of the USS Enterprise on Tuesday, more than three years after he made lewd videos to boost morale for his crew, timing that put the military under pressure to explain why it acted only after the videos became public. Senior military officials said they were trying to determine who among Navy leaders knew about the videos when they were shown repeatedly in 2006 and 2007 to thousands of crew members aboard the nuclear -powered aircraft carrier. An investigation by U.S. Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk, Va., also is seeking to determine whether Capt. Owen Honors was reprimanded at the time. The episode has raised serious questions about whether military leaders can behave badly so long as the public doesn’t find out. “He showed bad judgment and he embarrassed the Navy. Those are things that are going to be hard for the Navy to ignore or to forgive,” said Stephen
See RECYCLING, Page A3
See VOTE, Page A3
AP Photo
Members of the media record as U.S. Navy Admiral John C. Harvey Jr. , Commander U.S Fleet Forces, reads a statement concerning the removal of USS Enterprise commanding officer Capt. Owen Honors, in his office at the base in Norfolk, Va., Tuesday.
Saltzburg, the general counsel of the National Institute of Military Justice and a law professor at George Washington University.
Just two days after the videos were shown repeatedly on television, the Navy called a news conference Tuesday in Nor folk to announce that Honors was
stepping down as ship commander and being reassigned to administrative duties ashore.
“After personally reviewing the videos created while serving as executive officer, I have lost confidence in Capt. Honors’ ability to lead effectively,” said Adm. See FIRING, Page A3