Latest news with #JuanSanchez
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Juan Sanchez announces public land commissioner candidacy
Former Democratic Party of New Mexico vice chair Juan Sanchez is the first candidate to announce a bid to become the next Commissioner of Public Lands. (Courtesy photo) While Belen resident Juan Sanchez only decided to run in the 2026 Democratic primary for New Mexico Land Commissioner in the last few months, he's been thinking about it for longer, he says. 'I've been traveling the state for the last 10 years, working in natural resources, conservation and public engagement, and some of the things I've realized while doing that is, we are a state that is so rich in our lands and our culture and all the things around us, and it feels like it came to me over the last few months that this is something I think I could do,' Sanchez told Source NM. Sanchez so far is the only candidate for land commissioner in the 2026 election. Voters twice sent current Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard to the State Land Office, and so the state constitution term-limits her from running again. She is instead seeking the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor, the Los Alamos Daily Post reports. A former natural resource specialist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and consultant for the New Mexico Acequia Commission, Sanchez also is a former vice chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico, and worked as political director for U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), who endorsed his candidacy. 'I'm a 13th-generation New Mexican,' Sanchez said. 'I learned to start caring for the land at a very young age, from my grandfather, who was a rancher, and just like his father and his father before them, all on the same piece of property in northern Socorro County. I'm really proud of the experience I've accumulated, and the people I've met because I learned so much from our elders, and want to continue a legacy of managing land in New Mexico for generations to come.' The following interview has been edited for clarity and concision. Source NM: Can you talk about equitable access to state lands? What does that mean to you, and why is it a priority for your campaign? Juan Sanchez: We live in a place where the State Land Office manages over 9 million acres of public lands, and the other 13 million acres of mineral rights as well. But of those 9 million acres, there's 1 million of them that are landlocked and are not accessible to the public. As someone who takes a lot of pride in accessibility to the outdoors and making sure folks in communities around the state can go and enjoy those areas, it's something I plan to make a priority. We live in a beautiful place to go out, explore and learn about the land and our culture. But also, there's opportunities with the outdoor economy, as well: teaching our young students and our young children in our schools about these lands and creating equitable access, and being able to open up these lands to all these different folks is definitely a priority. Your campaign website talks about ensuring rural and Indigenous communities have a voice in land use decisions. What does that mean for people who don't understand what land use is, and how will you ensure it ? That's something I'd like to build on from Land Commissioner [Garcia Richard], who I think has done a great job in creating the Cultural Resources Office. They're going into these communities and finding out what makes them special or sacred. Some of these areas definitely do need some protection. A great example of this is the Caja Del Rio up in Santa Fe County, which the current land commissioner has protected from mineral exploration, oil and gas, as well as large transmission. She was in consultation with tribal communities, with traditional Hispanic communities that have been there for centuries, and learning about how sacred and important that land is to the way of life. Looking at Garcia Richard's time in office, is there anything else you would continue? The Cultural Resources office is absolutely one of those; the other one is the Office of Renewable Energy, she created that, and then it was put into statute a couple years later by the Legislature. The Cultural Resources Office has not been put into statute yet, so the next commissioner can decide whether or not to keep that or no longer have that. With the Office of Renewable Energy, continuing to try to expand and diversify some of the money we make off our state lands is something that will be important to me. It's important to maintain a relationship with the oil and gas industries. They are the revenue that comes from our state lands, predominantly. I appreciate the most recent work that was done this last legislative session, the royalty rate increase; that's something I support. I think it'll be great for New Mexicans and for our public institutions. Is there anything you would do differently? A lot of the work at the Surface Resource Division is something I'd really like to expand upon, make my own and try to find ways to diversify our economy through outdoor recreation and accessibility to lands, whether that be hiking, hunting or fishing. We have communities like our tribal and historical land use Hispanic communities that have been collecting wood in these areas for keeping their homes warm. What does the phrase 'water is life' mean to you, both as a new Mexican and as a candidate for this role? I'm a content creator and I have about 100,000 followers on my social media. Just this morning, I posted about how, when I was on a run yesterday, I was running along one of our acequias, and the water just started coming through for the first time in the year. You could actually watch the water pouring in. Look, I spent about five years as a consultant with the New Mexico Acequia Commission, working with leaders across the state, predominantly in Northern New Mexico, maintaining water access and traditional way of lives. Whenever we talk about our acequias, our water, we're talking about the life blood to our lands and to our life. As the waters start pouring through our acequias, they start to grow in our fields, they start to feed our plants, they start to give water to the animals we end up eating later on. It's a balance. Our communities cannot survive without clean water, and I'm really adamant about the idea of protecting that and protecting the ways of life, learning from our tribal and our historical communities on how they've survived with scarcity of water, and finding ways to continue to protect it, for us and for future generations. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Yahoo
Inglewood police seek suspects in death of man who tried to stop catalytic converter theft
Inglewood police said Saturday they are searching for two suspects in the shooting death of a man who intervened in an attempted catalytic converter theft last week. Early Tuesday morning, police said, the victim tried to stop two men from stealing a neighbor's catalytic converter in the 1000 block of North Chester Avenue in Inglewood. One of the men fatally shot the victim in the chest, police said. In a GoFundMe post, family members identified the man as Juan Sanchez, 48, and described him as a "a devoted husband, a loving father" and a "proud grandfather." "He was the kind of person who always put others before himself, offering a helping hand, a listening ear, or a smile that could brighten even the darkest days. His strength, wisdom, and generosity were the foundation of his family, and his loss leaves a void that can never be filled," the post said. As of Saturday, more than $36,000 had been raised support Sanchez's family, which the fundraiser said includes a wife, two children and a grandchild. Inglewood police said the suspects were driving a gold Toyota Camry with tinted windows and a sunroof. The model year is thought to be between 2002 and 2006. Police released a flier with surveillance video images and additional information on the suspects. Over the years, thieves in Southern California have made catalytic converters a popular target because they can be sold for their high concentration of precious metals. In the most notorious incident, "General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor was fatally shot in downtown Los Angeles last May as he approached several men trying to remove a catalytic converter from his car, police said. Three months later, prosecutors charged four men in connection with the crime. In 2023, the Los Angeles City Council voted to make it illegal to possess an unattached catalytic converter without proof of ownership. Through the first half of 2024, 2,113 catalytic converters were stolen in Los Angeles, according to data the LAPD released last year. The figure does not include Inglewood or unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
02-03-2025
- Los Angeles Times
Inglewood police seek suspects in death of man who tried to stop catalytic converter theft
Inglewood police said Saturday they are searching for two suspects in the shooting death of a man who intervened in an attempted catalytic converter theft last week. Early Tuesday morning, police said, the victim tried to stop two men from stealing a neighbor's catalytic converter in the 1000 block of North Chester Avenue in Inglewood. One of the men fatally shot the victim in the chest, police said. In a GoFundMe post, family members identified the man as Juan Sanchez, 48, and described him as a 'a devoted husband, a loving father' and a 'proud grandfather.' 'He was the kind of person who always put others before himself, offering a helping hand, a listening ear, or a smile that could brighten even the darkest days. His strength, wisdom, and generosity were the foundation of his family, and his loss leaves a void that can never be filled,' the post said. As of Saturday, more than $36,000 had been raised support Sanchez's family, which the fundraiser said includes a wife, two children and a grandchild. Inglewood police said the suspects were driving a gold Toyota Camry with tinted windows and a sunroof. The model year is thought to be between 2002 and 2006. Police released a flier with surveillance video images and additional information on the suspects. Over the years, thieves in Southern California have made catalytic converters a popular target because they can be sold for their high concentration of precious metals. In the most notorious incident, 'General Hospital' actor Johnny Wactor was fatally shot in downtown Los Angeles last May as he approached several men trying to remove a catalytic converter from his car, police said. Three months later, prosecutors charged four men in connection with the crime. In 2023, the Los Angeles City Council voted to make it illegal to possess an unattached catalytic converter without proof of ownership. Through the first half of 2024, 2,113 catalytic converters were stolen in Los Angeles, according to data the LAPD released last year. The figure does not include Inglewood or unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Yahoo
Man shot, killed while trying to stop Inglewood catalytic converter theft
Authorities are searching for two suspects who allegedly shot a man dead during an attempted catalytic converter theft. According to the Inglewood Police Department, the shooting occurred at about 3:22 a.m. Tuesday on the 1000 block of North Chester Avenue in Inglewood. Police said the victim was attempting to stop the suspects from stealing the catalytic converter off of a neighbor's car. At least one of the suspects opened fire on the man, shooting him in the chest. The man later died from his injuries. According to a GoFundMe fundraiser, he was identified as Juan Sanchez, better known to friends and family as Johnny. The fundraiser, raising money for his funeral, called Sanchez a 'devoted husband, a loving father, a proud grandfather, and a cherished friend to so many.' His family told KTLA's Omar Lewis that he'd recently received a promotion at work after helping out Los Angeles fire victims. As of Thursday morning, more than $10,000 had been raised of its $30,000 goal. Meanwhile, authorities remain on the lookout for the suspect. Inglewood PD released images of a gold Toyota Camry sedan that is believed to be the suspect vehicle. The Camry is believed to be a model from between 2002 and 2006 and has tinted windows, a sunroof and a missing right fog light. Police released photos of the vehicle alongside an image of one of the suspects. That suspect was described as a heavy-set Hispanic man, around 5-foot-4 to 5-foot-6. The second suspect, who was driving the getaway vehicle, was described only as a man. Anyone with information regarding the suspects was asked to call Homicide Detective Luis Rodriguez at 310-412-5124. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
