Democratic governor declares state of emergency in crime-ridden county
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced the sweeping emergency declaration in crime-ridden Rio Arriba County, which includes two Native American pueblo communities. The county, which stretches from the city of Española to the Colorado state line, has long struggled with some of the nation's highest opioid overdose death rates.
Grisham said that local leaders had pleaded for assistance in tackling the crises and that public safety threats have "overwhelmed local resources."
"When our local leaders called for help to protect their communities, we responded immediately with decisive action," Grisham said in a statement. "We are making every resource available to support our local partners on the ground and restore public safety and stability to these areas that have been hardest hit by this crisis."
The emergency declaration makes $750,000 available the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management to coordinate response efforts and provide resources to the communities impacted.
Grisham said that a surge in criminal activity has contributed to increased homelessness, family instability and fatal drug overdoses, placing extraordinary strain on local governments and police departments that have requested immediate state assistance.
She said that police calls in Española and surrounding areas have more than doubled in the past two years. Police dispatches to businesses in the area have quadrupled in the same period.
Rio Arriba County currently has the highest overdose death rate in the state, with residents struggling with addiction to fentanyl and other illicit substances.
There were no immediate calls for troop deployments in the county, though the new emergency declaration allows for authorities to call up the National Guard. Emergency funds will help local law enforcement agencies spend on overtime, equipment and coordinated police responses, a Grisham spokesperson said.
The tribal governor of Santa Clara Pueblo on the edge of Española urged the state to address a growing public safety crisis stemming from the use and abuse of fentanyl and alcohol in the community at large.
"The pueblo has expended thousands of dollars trying to address this crisis ... and to protect pueblo children who are directly and negatively affected by a parent's or guardian's addiction," said Santa Clara Gov. James Naranjo in a July letter to Lujan Grisham. "But we are not an isolated community and the causes and effects of fentanyl/alcohol abuse, increased crime and increased homelessness extend to the wider community."
Grisham's emergency declaration comes after she sent the National Guard to Albuquerque in April to address a spike in juvenile crime and fentanyl. The National Guard were tasked with scene security and traffic control, prisoner transport assistance and other roles that don't involve arrests in order to free up Albuquerque Police Department resources.
Wednesday's state of emergency was welcomed by New Mexico Republicans, including Española City Councilor Sam LeDoux.
"I am pleased that the governor is addressing the out-of-control crime in our community," LeDoux said. It has long been overrun and not addressed. Fentanyl has overwhelmed our law enforcement, and this seems to be a step in the right direction to protecting our citizens."
New Mexico Republican Party Chairwoman Amy Barela also welcomed the announcement but urged the governor to ensure the deployment results in real change.
Republican Party of New Mexico Chairwoman Amy Barela also welcomed the announcement but urged the Governor to ensure the deployment results in real change.
"This community is long overdue in receiving help to combat the out-of-control crime caused by the failed policies of our state leadership," Barela said in a statement.
"While I hope the deployment of the National Guard will provide real assistance, the people of Española deserve more than just street counselors — they deserve action that addresses the root of the problem."
"Thanks to President Trump's America First policies and his decisive action to secure the border, we have already begun to see crime rates decrease nationally. Now, it's time to put New Mexicans first by ensuring those who commit crimes are caught and held accountable."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
This MAGA "Biggest Loser" Star Had A Huge Meltdown Defending White People During A Talk About Slavery On CNN
Biggest Loser coach and Donald Trump supporter Jillian Michaels had a stunning meltdown Wednesday night while defending white people during a fiery debate about the president's efforts to rewrite US history. Michaels appeared on a CNN NewsNight panel with conservative commentator Scott Jennings, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), Democratic strategist Julie Roginsky, and legal analyst Elie Honig to discuss Trump's pick for Kennedy Center honoree. The conversation took a sharp turn when Roginsky, discussing changes Trump has spearheaded at the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian Institution, accused the president of 'trying to change culture' and revise history so it does not offend his MAGA base. Related: 'Can you address some of those things in there? Because have you looked at some of the things in there?' Michaels asked, referring to historical displays at the Smithsonian Institution. 'Yeah. Yes, slavery was a bad thing we should talk about,' Roginsky said before Michaels interrupted. 'He's not whitewashing slavery,' the fitness guru argued. 'And you cannot tie imperialism and racism and slavery to just one race, which is pretty much what every single exhibit does.' @Acyn/ CNN / Via Related: The CNN panel erupted in cross-talk, and Michaels turned to Torres and asked, 'Do you realize that only less than 2% of white Americans owned slaves?' citing a contested figure. 'But it was a system of white supremacy,' Torres responded. As people continued to talk over each other, Michaels added that slavery is thousands of years old, but was interrupted by a stunned Phillip, who said she was 'surprised' that her guest was 'trying to litigate who was the beneficiary of slavery.' 'In the context of American history, what are you saying is incorrect by saying it was white people oppressing Black people?' Phillip asked. 'Every single thing is like, oh, no, no, no, this is all because 'white people bad,' and that's just not the truth,' Michaels said. Related: Michaels then characterized a Smithsonian exhibit as claiming that people 'migrated from Cuba because 'white people bad,'' before accusing Roginsky of not knowing what's in the museum. But the exhibit Michaels called out didn't actually appear to make that argument. Later that night, she posted a photo of an exhibit that names US foreign policy as a contributor to political instability in Cuba and the Dominican Republic. The pictured exhibit did not expressly mention white people at all, except to note that some of the first Cubans to immigrate to the US were 'wealthy White Cubans.' @jillianmichaels / Via During her appearance on CNN, the fitness influencer also griped about other elements of the Smithsonian.'Do you know that when you walk in the front door, the first thing you see is the gay flag?' asked Michaels, who is married to a woman. She then started to criticize an exhibit that touches on gender testing in sports before Phillip interjected, 'We don't have time to litigate all of this.' Related: 'Of course we don't, because then you're going to lose the argument, and if everything is racialized, just like you're trying to do to me now,' Michaels told Phillip. 'Excuse me? Jillian, you brought up race,' Phillip said. 'This was a conversation about the arts, and you brought up race.' @Acyn/ CNN / Via This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in In the News: Also in In the News: Also in In the News:
Chicago Tribune
13 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
California pushes partisan plan for new Democratic districts to counter Texas in fight for US House
LOS ANGELES — California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday his state will hold a Nov. 4 special election to seek approval of redrawn districts intended to give Democrats five more U.S. House seats in the fight for control of Congress. The move is a direct response to a similar Republican-led effort in Texas, pushed by President Donald Trump as his party seeks to maintain its slim House majority in the midterm elections. The nation's two most populous states have emerged as the center of a partisan turf war in the House that could spiral into other states — as well as the courts — in what amounts to a proxy war ahead of the 2026 elections. Texas lawmakers are considering a new map that could help them send five more Republicans to Washington. Democrats who so far have halted a vote by leaving the state announced Thursday that they will return home if Texas Republicans end their current special session and California releases its own recast map proposal. Both were expected to happen Friday. However, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to call another special session to push through new maps. Texas House Democrats planning their departure from Illinois and back to AustinIn Los Angeles, Newsom staged what amounted to a campaign kickoff rally for the as-yet unreleased new maps with the state's Democratic leadership in a downtown auditorium packed with union members, legislators and abortion rights supporters. Newsom and other speakers veered from discussing the technical grist of reshaping districts — known as redistricting — and instead depicted the looming battle as a conflict with all things Trump, tying it explicitly to the fate of American democracy. 'We can't stand back and watch this democracy disappear district by district all across the country,' Newsom said. 'We are not bystanders in this world. We can shape the future.' An overarching theme was the willingness to stand up to Trump, a cheer-inducing line for Democrats as the party looks to regroup from its 2024 losses. 'Donald Trump, you have poked the bear and we will punch back,' said Newsom, a possible 2028 presidential contender. Thursday's announcement marks the first time any state beyond Texas has officially waded into the mid-decade redistricting fight. The Texas plan was stalled when minority Democrats fled to Illinois, New York and Massachusetts on Aug. 3 to stop the Legislature from passing any bills. Elsewhere, leaders from red Florida to blue New York are threatening to write new maps. In Missouri, a document obtained by The Associated Press shows the state Senate received a $46,000 invoice to activate six redistricting software licenses and provide training for up to 10 staff members. In California, lawmakers must officially declare the special election, which they plan to do next week after voting on the new maps. Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers — enough to act without any Republican votes — and Newsom said he's not worried about winning the required support from two-thirds of lawmakers to advance the maps. Newsom encouraged other Democratic-led states to get involved. 'We need to stand up — not just California. Other blue states need to stand up,' Newsom said. Republicans hold a 219-212 majority in the U.S. House, with four vacancies. New maps are typically drawn once a decade after the census is conducted. Many states, including Texas, give legislators the power to draw maps. California is among states that rely on an independent commission that is supposed to be nonpartisan. The California map would take effect only if a Republican state moves forward, and it would remain through the 2030 elections. After that, Democrats say they would return mapmaking power to the independent commission approved by voters more than a decade ago. Some people already have said they would sue to block the effort, and influential voices including former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger may campaign against it. 'Gavin Newsom's latest stunt has nothing to do with Californians and everything to do with consolidating radical Democrat power, silencing California voters, and propping up his pathetic 2028 presidential pipe dream,' National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Christian Martinez said in a statement. 'Newsom's made it clear: he'll shred California's Constitution and trample over democracy — running a cynical, self-serving playbook where Californians are an afterthought and power is the only priority.' California Democrats hold 43 of the state's 52 House seats, and the state has some of the most competitive House seats. Outside Newsom's news conference Thursday, U.S. Border Patrol agents conducted patrols, drawing condemnation from the governor and others. 'We're here making Los Angeles a safer place since we don't have politicians that will do that,' Gregory Bovino, chief of the patrol's El Centro, California, sector, told a reporter with KTTV in Los Angeles. He said he didn't know Newsom was inside nearby.
Washington Post
13 minutes ago
- Washington Post
In Washington police takeover, federal agents and National Guard take on new tasks
They typically investigate drug lords, weapons traffickers or cyber criminals. This week, though, federal agents are fanning out across the nation's capital as part of President Donald Trump's efforts to clamp down on crime in the city. The sometimes-masked agents joined members of the National Guard as well as the United States Park Police, whose responsibilities include protecting the country's monuments and managing crowds during demonstrations. Soldiers in fatigues kept watch near Union Station, while officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration patrolled along the National Mall. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives helped question a couple in northwest Washington who were parked illegally and eating McDonald's takeout. Trump said Monday that he's taking over Washington's police department in hopes of reducing crime, even as city officials stressed that crime is already falling. The District of Columbia's status as a congressionally established federal district allows the president to take control, although he's limited to 30 days under statute unless he gets approval from Congress. Amid the takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department, or MPD, here's a list of some of the federal agencies involved and what they typically do: THIS WEEK: The Pentagon said that 800 Guard members have been activated for missions in Washington that include monument security, community safety patrols and beautification efforts. Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said the troops won't be armed and declined to give more details on what the safety patrols or beautification efforts would entail. The White House said Thursday that Guard members aren't making arrests but are 'protecting federal assets, providing a safe environment for law enforcement officers to make arrests, and deterring violent crime with a visible law enforcement presence.' THE BACKSTORY: The National Guard serves as the primary combat reserve of the Army and Air Force, according to its website. But it also responds when 'disaster strikes in the homeland' to protect life and property in communities. THIS WEEK: DEA agents have also fanned out across Washington, working with police on traffic stops and other enforcement efforts. The agency has touted this week that its agents have helped to recover guns and drugs. THE BACKSTORY: The agency typically enforces the nation's controlled substances laws and regulations, while going after drug cartels, gangs and traffickers in the U.S. and abroad. For example, a DEA-led investigation scored a record seizure of fentanyl in May, 'dismantling one of the largest and most dangerous drug trafficking organizations in U.S. history,' the agency said in a news release. The DEA also operates a little-known research lab in northern Virginia that's working to analyze seized narcotics to find ways to stop the supply. Its chemists identify the ever-evolving tactics employed by cartels to manufacture drugs flowing into the U.S. THIS WEEK: Agents with Homeland Security Investigations, the investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, could be seen on Wednesday alongside MPD officers as they conducted traffic checks at a checkpoint along 14th Street in northwest Washington. THE BACKSTORY: HSI investigates a wide variety of crimes on a global scale – at home, abroad and online – with hundreds of offices across the country and abroad. Those crimes include 'illegal movement of people, goods, money, contraband, weapons and sensitive technology into, out of and through the United States,' the agency says on its website. In the last few months, as the Trump administration has ramped up its immigration enforcement efforts across the U.S., HSI agents have been out on raids and involved in immigration arrests at courthouses and other sites around the country. HSI agents also investigate a vast array of crime, including cyber and financial crimes and intellectual property offenses. THIS WEEK: United States Park Police have been seen helping with traffic stops this week in the district and are a regular presence in Washington. D.C. The federal agency is actually one of the nation's oldest, being founded in 1791 by George Washington. THE BACKSTORY: The police are part of the National Park Service and has jurisdiction in all federal parks, with offices in Washington, New York and San Francisco, according to the agency's website. Before this week's takeover, it already had the authority to make an arrest in the District of Columbia. THIS WEEK: ATF agents have been helping out with traffic stops. THE BACKSTORY: The agency primarily focuses on the illegal use of guns and explosives , bombings and acts of terrorism, and the trafficking of illicit liquor or contraband tobacco.
