Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Sorted by date Results 151 - 175 of 759
District Attorney Brett Carter, left, and Matthew Chandler debate during the 2004 District Attorney Candidate Forum Tuesday at the Clovis Community College Town Hall. Rick Cornelison, center, monitored the debate. CNJ staff photo: Eric Kluth. In a 90-minute debate of Republicans seeking the position of 9th Judicial District Attorney, incumbent Brett Carter promoted his experience while challenger Matt Chandler spoke of an aggressive new vision for fighting crime. Although both presented different ideas about the future of...
Prosecutors began their first full day of presenting witnesses on Tuesday in the case of Fernando Garcia, who is charged with murdering Moises Ortiz during a February 2003 dogfight at Ortiz’s home in south Clovis. The defense attempted to discredit a witness of the alleged crime during questioning, claiming the witness lied under oath to officers the day of the incident. Defense attorney James W. Klipstine Jr. reminded the Curry County District Court jury that witnesses originally denied knowing what happened. Prosecution wit... Full story
Difficulties seating an impartial jury delayed the homicide trial of Fernando Garcia, 20, until late Monday afternoon. But prosecutors and defense attorneys were still able to present brief testimony from two law enforcement officers before adjourning for the evening. Garcia faces charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder and dogfighting. Clovis police Det. Keith Bessette said the first-degree murder charge requires prosecutors to prove that Garcia killed Moises Ortiz while committing a felony, which is one reason... Full story
While Curry County has seen more and more homicides over the last few years, Sheriff Roger Hatcher said one sticks in his mind — that of J.C. Tucker, who was shot to death at his business on Sept. 4. “In the last 12 years we have only one unsolved homicide and we’re going to work on that until we find out who did it,” Hatcher said. “I’ve got a deputy who makes some calls every single day on it,” Hatcher said. “We do have some people we are looking at and hopefully we’ll be able to put something together.” Tucker, 60, was the...
Ninth Judicial District Attorney Brett Carter says the only recent unsolved homicide in Curry County is that of J.C. Tucker, who was shot to death at his business near Cannon Air Force Base on Sept. 4, 2003. The following cases are still working their way through the court system. When degrees are specified, “first degree murder” means the defendant is accused of willfully and intentionally causing the death of another person, or in certain cases, causing the death of another person while committing a felony. Second deg...
High school security staff called police about 8 a.m. Monday to report the apparent theft of one money bag from a school office. The school cashier said she had gone to the school vault to get four money bags, placed them in her desk drawer, and left her office for about five minutes without securing the door. When she returned, she found one of the four money bags with $327 missing. Police interviewed staff members working in adjacent offices to determine if anyone saw someone entering the office during the period the money...
Cops & Courts A man attempting to steal beer Wednesday night from a Clovis gas station picked the wrong time to run out the door, according to Clovis police who said he fled right into an officer filling up his gas tank. “I was pumping gas at First and Ross; while I was sitting there, I saw a young male run across First Street with a pack of beer under his arm,” said Officer B. Phillips. “The kid ran right into my car. When he got to where I was at, I said, ‘Hey man, stop a second!’” The man didn’t stop, but instead ran north...
A junior high assistant principal called police about 1 p.m. Friday regarding a fight in the locker room between two male students. A teacher had ordered them to stop fighting and saw blood on one of the boy’s mouths before taking them to the principal’s office and turning them over to their parents. Police reported they would issue juvenile citations to both boys following their return to school. • • • Clovis High School staff called police about 2 p.m. Friday to report that a 15-year-old female and 18-year-old male had been...
The Rev. Sotero Sena of Our Lady of Guadalupe church arranges Easter lilies around the statue of the Virgin Mary on Wednesday at the church. (Photo by Eric Kluth) Food, fun, games and a special Catholic Mass and procession through the streets will highlight next weekend for many in Clovis’ Hispanic community. “Last year we got 3,900 to 4,200 people, just for one day on Saturday,” said Mario Martinez, coordinator of Fiesta 2004 for Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. “We are open to everyone, all are welcome.” Built in...
Dalton Bequette, 12, playing a Christian rock star, left, reacts as he notices Michael Proctor, 10, playing a businessman, laying on the ground after being beaten up by a gang in the play “The Secret of my Success, Building on the Rock” on Tuesday. As a well-dressed young woman walked on stage at First Church of the Nazarene, she sang about her convictions. “My wisdom is from Wall Street, where we always get the leads!” she sang to the audience while pivoting on her high-heeled shoes. “I want to know about the dough, wh...
A Clovis man led police on a 26-minute chase through city streets early Saturday morning after shoplifting under $20 worth of food from a gas station, according to Clovis police. According to reports, the 38-year-old Clovis man took a number of food items into the bathroom of an Allsup’s at the 700 block of 21st Street about 2:20 a.m., at which time the clerk called police to report a possible shoplifting in progress. The man left the gas station and said he hadn’t stolen anything, but the clerk saw the red label of a bac...
Warren Lee Nuckols Jr. waited nearly a year for his day in court to fight a citation for selling tobacco to minors. But on Friday he entered an Alford plea and received a suspended sentence with no fine or prison time and 364 days unsupervised probation. In an Alford plea, according to officials, the defendant admits sufficient evidence exists to convict but maintains his innocence. Judge Teddy Hartley reminded Nuckols that he could receive up to 364 days in county jail and a $1,000 fine for the June 11 incident. Assistant... Full story
The city commissions of Clovis and Portales and county commissions of Roosevelt and Curry counties have all issued proclamations recognizing April 18-24 as National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, and the district attorney for the 9th Judicial District covering those two counties is sponsoring two special meetings on Monday to address crime issues. The Roosevelt County meeting will be at 10 a.m. and the Curry County meeting will be at noon. Both meetings will be on the south side lawns of their respective county courthouses. A... Full story
A resident of the 300 block of Merriwether called police about 6 p.m. on April 5 to report that his vehicle had been vandalized. The resident said an induction hood and air breather had been taken from his 1969 Chevy El Camino. He told officers that a person had been seen “messing with” his vehicle several days earlier. The vehicle owner said a person had tried to buy the vehicle hood but he had refused to sell it. • • • About 1 a.m. April 8, police saw a car make a wide turn out of a Clovis bar driveway, nearly colliding... Full story
Steven Hall files his tax returns late Thursday night at the Clovis downtown Post Office. CNJ staff photo: Darrell Todd Maurina It was nearly 10 p.m. on April 15 — tax day — when Howard Loflin walked into the downtown post office in Clovis to mail his tax forms. Why didn’t Loflin get his taxes in earlier? “Because I didn’t get them done and I hate turning loose anything to the government until I have to,” said Loflin, wiping his brow and pushing up his cowboy hat a notch. “Most of the time I do it before now,” Loflin said. An...
Susie Aramijo, kitchen manager, left, and employee Michelle Sandoval, serve spaghetti for lunch Thursday at the Lighthouse Mission. CNJ staff photo: Eric Kluth As a homeless shelter and soup kitchen in Clovis struggle to raise money to meet an end-of-the-year deadline for kitchen upgrades, some members of the Clovis Christian Ministerial Alliance fear a plan to convert the old Memorial Hospital into a ministry center will cut into funds needed by the Lighthouse Mission. The plan is referred to as the Matt. 25 project....
A student group at Clovis High School is bringing a U.S. Congressman to Clovis to help raise money for the Matt. 25 ministry center. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, led by organizational president Jordan Strebeck, is selling $25 tickets to an April 23 dinner at which Rep. Steve Pearce, a Republican from Hobbs, will be the keynote speaker. The event will begin at 7 p.m. at the Hartley Barn. Pearce’s district doesn’t include Clovis, but Strebeck said he has advocated supporting faith-based charities for many years and... Full story
Police responded about 8:20 a.m. Thursday to a downtown office where an employee reported a man had exposed himself the previous night at the 1000 block of Wallace, then returned to his home, stood in the window, and mimicked various sex acts. Officers reported they would seek an arrest warrant for indecent exposure. • • • About 10 a.m. Thursday officers saw a white Lincoln driving about 65 mph in a 35 mph zone on Grand Street near Thornton and stopped the car. The driver told officers he was on his way to the animal shelt...
Senior church member Ken Bartley washes the feet of Rector John Rollinson at Thursday’s service at St. James Episcopal on Main Street. The foot washing is a symbol of Jesus washing Peter’s feet at the Last Supper. CNJ staff photo: Mike Linn. While most churches in Clovis are celebrating Easter in some form, the celebrations differ significantly from congregation to congregation. For Father John Rollinson, rector of St. James Episcopal Church, maintaining liturgical traditions passed down for centuries is important. “Je...
A detention center inmates shirt hangs from the door as other inmates play basketballFriday at the jail. CNJ staff photo: Eric Kluth. When it comes to jail standards, state law allows New Mexico’s 33 counties to do pretty much whatever they want as long as jail practices don’t offend a judge. That’s a mixed blessing, according to Curry County Adult Detention Center Administrator Don Burdine. Burdine said a state committee tried to establish statewide jail standards in 1992 but those efforts were vetoed by the governor who b...
Darrell Todd Maurina: CNJ staff writer While many area churches are sponsoring their own Good Friday or Easter Sunday services, three events are jointly sponsored by groups of churches. At 7 p.m. today, four Clovis churches will jointly host a Good Friday service at First Church of the Nazarene in Clovis under the auspices of the Clovis Christian Ministerial Alliance. Also today, seven area United Methodist congregations will hold a joint “Seven Last Words of Christ” service from noon to 1 p.m. (CDT) at Hamlin Memorial United...
New Mexico State Police Officer Abel Mireles investigates the scene where two trucks collided near Tolar Wednesday on U.S. Highway 60/84 killing William Edward Paul of Scottsboro, Ala. CNJ staff photo: Eric Kluth. A fatal truck crash west of Melrose shut down the BNSF railroad and Highway 60/84 for hours on Wednesday while hazardous materials crews worked to remove pressurized gas cylinders containing flammable gases. During the cleanup, officers narrowly averted a second crash when a Ford F-150 pickup truck containing 18...
Col. John D. Posner took over as commander at Cannon Air Force Base on Friday, and hopes to maintain the success outgoing base commander Col. Robert “Rowdy” Yates helped establish. Last week CNJ Staff Writer Darrell Todd Maurina spoke with Posner for about 20 minutes on his future goals for Cannon and his family. Until recently, the Langley AFB Web site said that you were the vice-commander of a unit at Langley that “coordinates air expeditionary force operations by assisting in the planning and scheduling of AEF asset...
Three local law enforcement agencies have worked together to sponsor a citizens’ police academy for the last four years, graduating nearly 100 people from a program that focuses on teaching civilians how the police do their jobs. On Saturday night, a group of those graduates gathered to host a police appreciation dinner at the Holiday Inn. “They hold the class for the community; they don’t have to do it,” said Holly Glenn, coordinator of marketing and events for Freedom Newspapers of New Mexico, which includes the Clovis...
Cannon Air Force Base personnel will mark a transition between commanders with a change of command ceremony at 3 p.m. today. The incoming commander, Col. John Posner, was most recently stationed at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. The next assignment for the outgoing commander, Col. Robert Yates, will be to a different position at Langley where he is set to be promoted to brigadier general. The ceremony will take place in Hangar 208 on base. Attendance is limited to Cannon personnel, invited guests, and others such as...
