Eric Garcia sworn in as new Santa Fe Police Department chief Local News, A-7
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Locally owned and independent
www.santafenewmexican.com 75¢
Estrada pleads guilty in email scandal
Jamie Estrada
Railyard hosts World Cup viewing Soccer fans brave the afternoon heat to watch the U.S. defeat Ghana in the World Cup opener. SPORTS, B-1
Militants kill dozens in Kenya Somali extremists attack a police station and two hotels, killing at least 48 people. PAge A-4
Ex-campaign manager for governor says he intercepted messages, lied
By Steve Terrell The New Mexican
Jamie Estrada, a former campaign manager for Gov. Susana Martinez, pleaded guilty Monday to stealing email intended for the governor and lying about it to the FBI. Estrada, 41, faces up to a year and a day in federal prison under the terms of his
plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He agreed to plead guilty to two of the felony counts in a 16-count indictment and admitted to the version of events spelled out in FBI affidavits. “This case is important because we, as members of the community, have an
Please see PLeADS, Page A-6
Bicyclist killed by train
City panel endorses security bid Santa Fe security company owner Peso Chavez failed in his effort to overturn a recommendation that another company be awarded a two-year security contract with the city. LOcAL NeWS, A-7
Hundreds attend heated hearing on medical pot rules Many speak out against changes proposed by state By Phaedra Haywood The New Mexican
Nearly 200 people spoke at a public hearing Monday on proposed changes to the state’s medical marijuana rules, almost all of them opposed to measures they contend would punish the sick and the poor while raising revenue for the state Department of Health and enriching drug cartels. Many of the speakers also questioned the transparency of the process
and the political motives of whoever wrote the proposed rules. More than one person called for the Health Department to scrap the current proposals and start over. The auditorium at the Harold Runnels Building was filled to its 240-person capacity almost as soon as the doors opened Monday, and dozens of would-beattendees were told they’d have to wait for someone else to leave before they could enter. Those who did speak were limited to two minutes, which some speakers said wasn’t long enough to allow meaningful input.
A Santa Fe Police Department crime scene investigator photographs the bicycle of a cyclist who was hit by a Rail Runner train at about 11:30 a.m. Monday. The cyclist was taken to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. LUKE E. MONTAVON/THE NEW MEXICAN
Unknown man becomes city’s second Rail Runner fatality this year By Chris Quintana The New Mexican
S
anta Fe police say a bicyclist riding along a St. Michael’s Drive sidewalk was hit and killed Monday morning by a New Mexico Rail Runner Express train, the second time in two months that a bicyclist in the city was fatally struck by a passenger train at a railroad crossing. The man, who has not yet been identified, was pronounced dead at Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. Police department spokeswoman Celina Espinoza said the man wasn’t carrying any identification, so investigators likely would have to use fingerprints and dental imprints in an effort to identify him. She also said it’s unclear if he was wearing a helmet. The bicyclist was pedaling west along the north side of St. Michael’s Drive prior to the collision a little before 11:30 a.m. Safety bars had lowered across the road to block vehicular traffic, signal lights were flashing, and warning bells were ringing at time of the incident, Espinoza said. However, as with other such railroad crossings, no safety
Please see POT, Page A-6
A crowd of patients and advocates attended a public hearing on the state Health Department’s proposed changes to the medical cannabis rules at the Harold Runnels Building on Monday. JANE PHILLIPS/THE NEW MEXICAN
arms block the adjacent walkways. Rail Runner spokeswoman Augusta Meyers said the train was traveling about 25 mph when it struck the cyclist. Meyers said the engineer activated the train’s horn and brakes, to no avail. At that speed, Meyers previously has said, it takes the train between a quarter of a mile and half a mile to stop. The New Mexico Department of Transportation and Santa Fe fatality investigation teams were on scene throughout the day, and crime technicians snapped photos of the crumpled mountain bike in the middle of the train tracks. Police closed the Santa Fe Rail Trail on the northern side of St. Michael’s Drive and detoured bicyclists and pedestrians to alternative routes. Meyers said the train was carrying about 225 passengers, who had to be bused to the Santa Fe Depot and South Capitol train stations. According to passengers on board, the same train previously had hit a horse near Santo Domingo Pueblo, also known as Kewa Pueblo. Meyers confirmed that the train had struck an animal, which discon-
Charities see disparate increases in giving Report: Donors favored higher ed, hospitals, arts groups over churches, social services By David Crary
The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Wealthy donors are lavishing money on their favored charities, including universities, hospitals and arts institutions, while giving is flat to social service and church groups more dependent on financially squeezed middle-class donors, according to the latest comprehensive report on how Americans give away their money. The Giving USA report,
Index
Calendar A-2
being released Tuesday, said Americans gave an estimated $335.17 billion to charity in 2013, up 3 percent from 2012 after adjustment for inflation. Reflecting the nation’s widening wealth gap, some sectors fared far better than others. Adjusted for inflation, giving was up 7.4 percent for education, 6.3 percent for the arts and humanities, and 4.5 percent for health organizations, while giving to religious groups declined by 1.6 percent and giving to
Classifieds B-5
Comics B-12
Main office: 983-3303 Late paper: 986-3010 News tips: 983-3035
social service groups rose by only 0.7 percent. Experts with the Giving USA Foundation and its research partner, the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, said it was the fourth straight year of increased overall giving, and predicted that within two more years the total could match the pre-recession peak of $347.5 billion. During and immediately after the recession, some wealthy donors shifted their giving to social service groups working to combat hunger and homelessness, according to Patrick Rooney, associate dean of the
Crosswords B-6, B-11
Lotteries A-2
school of philanthropy. Now, many of those donors — including some making multimilliondollar gifts — are refocusing their attention on higher education, the arts and other sectors long patronized by the affluent, he said. The trend is readily apparent in the listings of recent major charitable gifts compiled by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, which provides news coverage of the nonprofit world. Among the 100 largest recent gifts, which range from $7.5 million to $275 million, the
Please see gIVINg, Page A-5
Opinions A-10
Sports B-1
Time Out B-11
nected one of the air hoses on the train’s undercarriage. Passenger Tony Martinez said it felt “like an axle fell off” in that incident. But he said he hardly noticed when the train hit the bicyclist. “It felt like someone threw a rock at the train,” Martinez said. Passenger Jeremiah Valdez said following the collision that train operators wouldn’t tell the passengers what had happened. “It just stopped all of sudden,” Valdez said. He estimated he was stuck on the train for about 90 minutes. Valdez said he didn’t see or hear the collision. Other passengers echoed his remarks, saying they didn’t see the collision and didn’t learn what happened until much later. Passengers trying to catch the afternoon southbound train were bused to the train station on N.M. 599 and transported south from that location. Local bicycling safety expert Tim Rogers said most cycling groups tell bicyclists to avoid riding on a sidewalk if possible. “Sidewalks have a lot more conflicts
Please see BIcYcLIST, Page A-5
Pasapick www.pasatiempomagazine.com
‘Wicked Taos’ Author Ellen Dornan discusses Wicked Taos, 6 p.m., Collected Works Bookstore, 202 Galisteo St., 988-4226.
Today Mostly sunny. High 87, low 51. PAge A-12
Obituaries Carmen Chavez, 93, June 14 Roberto “Bobby” Ortiz, Santa Fe, June 15 Alfonso Trujillo, 92, Santa Fe, June 11
Local Business A-9
BREAKING NEWS AT WWW.SANTAFENEWMEXICAN.COM
Elizabeth Potter Ulrich, 55, April 30 Alfonso R. Ulibarri, 75, Santa Fe, June 12 David Ulibarri, June 10 PAge A-8
Two sections, 24 pages 165th year, No. 168 Publication No. 596-440