Drone used to aid 3D remake of Japanese internment camp
A University of Denver team is using drone images to create a 3D reconstruction of a World War II-era Japanese internment camp in southern Colorado.
Researchers last week used the drone from the Switzerland-based company senseFly as part of a mapping project to help future restoration work at Camp Amache in Granada, Colorado.
From 1942 to 1945, more than 7,000 Japanese-Americans and Japanese immigrants were forcibly relocated to Camp Amache. They were part of the 110,000 Japanese-Americans ordered to camps throughout the U.S.
The Amache effort is part of a growing movement to identify and preserve U.S. historical sites connected to people of color.
For example, a digital project headed up by Brown University professor Monica Martinez seeks to locate sites connected to racial violence along the Mexico-Texas border.
TWO NO-HITTERS-SAME DAY
New Mexico high school pitchers throw no-hitters on same day
(Information from: Carlsbad Current-Argus, http://www.currentargus.com/)
CARLSBAD, N.M. (AP) — A softball pitcher and baseball pitcher from the same New Mexico high school threw a perfect game and no-hitter, respectively, within 90 minutes of each other.
The Carlsbad Current-Argus reports Carlsbad High School softball pitcher Ashley Hernandez and baseball pitcher T.J. Ruiz tossed their gems on April 18 just a few hundred feet (roughly 100 meters) apart.
Hernandez needed 43 pitches against Roswell High School in five innings to record the perfect game as Carlsbad won 11-0 in a run-rule game.
Ruiz threw all seven innings in a 9-0 victory against Clovis High School.
Mathematicians say the odds of one New Mexico team accomplishing both goals of a no-hitter and a perfect game on the same day are 1 in 218 million.
___
CHACO CANYON-DRILLING
New Mexico halts some drilling near Chaco Canyon
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard has halted further oil and natural gas development on New Mexico trust lands near the Chaco Cultural National Historic Park that are considered sacred by many Native Americans.
Confirmed Monday, the executive order places a drilling moratorium within a buffer zone surrounding Chaco Canyon and its ancient dwelling. The moratorium does not directly affect federal and private holdings.
Garcia Richard visited the Navajo Nation to sign the moratorium. She calls it a huge step forward in safeguarding archaeological and cultural resources.
Oil industry representatives say robust protections already are in place within the national park at Chaco Canyon and surrounding areas where archaeological surveys are required.
Garcia Richard also convened a working group to devise recommendations about future development in the area.
FIRE DANGER-NEW MEXICO
Northern New Mexico sees fire risk despite winter snowfall
(Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, http://www.santafenewmexican.com)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — U.S. Forest Service officials say fire risk remains in northern New Mexico despite heavy winter snowfall.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the region largely avoided severe wildfires despite dangerously dry conditions last year. But Forest Service officials cautioned that wildfires can ignite at any time because of campfires and lightning strikes.
High risk of wildfire prompted federal officials to close public access to the Santa Fe National Forest for more than five weeks last summer.
Carson National Forest later followed suit, along with state parks and other public lands, to reduce the risk of human-caused fires.
Forest Service officials will be monitoring conditions more closely through June, which is often the hottest, driest month in the region.
___
SHOOTINGS-BERNALILLO COUNTY
Bernalillo County DA's figures show 114 shot so far in 2019
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Authorities say 114 people have been shot in Bernalillo County in the first 112 days of 2019.
Citing data from the Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office, the Albuquerque Journal reports that figure marks a 36% increase in shootings over those counted in the same period last year.
Figures from the district attorney's Crime Strategies Unit show there were 232 total shootings in 2018 in which someone was hit by a bullet. More than 60 of those shootings were fatal.
Those killed by gunfire so far this year include a 72-year-old man who authorities say killed himself, and 8-year-old Diamond Williams, who was home with two siblings when she was shot.
No arrests have been made in her death, and police say they are not looking for suspects.
ETHICS COMMISSION-NEW MEXICO
New Mexico ethics commission takes shape with 2 appointments
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's fledgling State Ethics Commission is taking shape with the appointment of two commissioners.
Democratic House Speaker Brian Egolf announced Monday his appointment of former deputy state attorney general Stuart Bluestone of Santa Fe to serve on the new seven-seat commission.
The commission will oversee the conduct of public officials, political candidates, lobbyists and government contractors.
Frances Williams also was appointed with an eye toward her past experience as an equal opportunity manager at White Sands Missile Range. Her appointment came from Democratic Senate President Mary Kay Papen of Las Cruces.
Voters approved the creation of the ethics commission by statewide ballot last year amid a string of political corruption scandals.
Further appointments are pending from Republican legislative leaders and Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
MISSING WOMAN-ARREST
Albuquerque man arrested in case of missing Los Lunas woman
LOS LUNAS, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico State Police say an Albuquerque man has been arrested in a missing persons case that has turned into a homicide investigation.
They say 59-year-old James Lovato is facing an open count of first-degree murder and three counts of tampering with evidence.
Lovato was served with the arrest warrant Monday at the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility in Grants where he is currently incarcerated on an unrelated matter.
State Police were asked last October to assist the Valencia County Sheriff's Office with a missing persons case.
Sheriff's deputies were called to a trailer house that had burned in the El Cerro Mission District of Los Lunas.
They say Rita Jaramillo lived in the home, but her family has not heard from her since last September.
DISTRICT ATTORNEY-SEX DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT
Lawsuit accuses Dona Ana County Attorney's Office of sexism
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the district attorney's office in Dona Ana County for gender discrimination and infringing on the free speech rights of three female attorneys.
The ACLU of New Mexico said Monday that the three assistant district attorneys were suspended last year after they refused to take down "No Mansplaining" signs from their doors.
Two were later fired and the third resigned.
The suit is seeking monetary damages.
Roxanne Garcia-McElmell, a spokeswoman for the Third Judicial District Attorney's Office, says the office has yet to receive a copy of the complaint.
The women say they were paid less and promoted less than male staff despite juggling a similar caseload. They claim they were told to smile more and assigned to a case because of their looks.