Algernon D'Ammassa

Las Cruces

Southern New Mexico Reporter at Albuquerque Journal

Citizen, journalist. Mastodon: [email protected]. Bluesky: https://t.co/niv3hoCW3j

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Articles

Las Cruces aims for opioid settlement decisions in August

4 days ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES — City council members took another step Monday toward determining how Las Cruces will spend its nearly $10 million share of a landmark opioid liability settlement. At a work session, council heard updates from an advisory council convened two years ago to develop a plan for spending the funds effectively, based on terms of the settlement, joint sessions with Doña Ana County commissioners, public surveys and input from local agencies.
Accused Las Cruces City Hall window smasher released ahead of trial

1 week ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES — As police reviewed security footage that captured an act of vandalism at City Hall, they spotted a familiar face: A man arrested some 30 times since 2020 and more than 70 times over three decades, according to the 3rd Judicial District Attorney's Office. He had also been accused of breaking a window at City Hall last year, in a case that was dismissed after a court ruled he was not competent to stand trial. kA 5:ClQ=ECQmpE 23@FE bib_ 2]>] $2EFC52J[ yF?6 `c[ 42>6C2D 7:=>65 2?
'Freedom is for everyone': Sun shines on Las Cruces Juneteenth celebration

1 week ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES — New Mexico State University celebrated Juneteenth much as Bobbie Green remembers observing it in her childhood: Outdoors on a summer day, eating barbecue beneath trees and sunshine, relating the story of how chattel slavery in the United States came to an end. "We used to celebrate Juneteenth every year out in Apodaca Park," Green, the president of the Doña Ana County chapter of the NAACP, said in an interview.
Las Cruces to begin deleting mountain of archived police bodycam video

1 week ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES — Las Cruces police have been using body-worn cameras to film interactions with the public for over a decade. According to Police Chief Jeremy Story, most of that footage remains in storage, presenting a growing expense and burden on city resources. "We are the only police department that retains video indefinitely, that I’m aware of," Story told the City Council on Monday.
Accused Las Cruces stoplight shooter to be held through murder trial

1 week ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES – The man accused of shooting a motorist at a stoplight last week, seemingly at random, will be held without bond through his trial for first-degree murder, following a detention hearing in state district court Tuesday. The hearing fell exactly one week after Pancho Garcia, 35, allegedly walked into lanes of traffic on Picacho Avenue, approached a car and shot the driver 3-4 times before running back into the room he was renting at a Western Inn close to the intersection.
Las Cruces police chief addresses policing of weekend protests

1 week ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES — “There were children at this event. There were children with guns pointed at them for three hours,” Dylan Davis told the Las Cruces City Council Monday. “What happened Friday was nothing more than a show of force meant to send a message there was no intent to protect us.” For more than an hour, residents denounced the presence of SWAT sharpshooters during a Friday evening protest that preceded the larger and highly publicized “No Kings” demonstration over the weekend.
Las Cruces gathers for 'No Kings' protest in sweltering heat

1 week ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

LAS CRUCES — Triple-digit heat did little to discourage more than 2,000 people from assembling in the small city park near Las Cruces City Hall for over four hours Saturday. The prevailing sentiment was celebratory as demonstrators lined Main Street and Picacho Avenue with signs, drums, cowbells and cheers. Passing motorists expressed solidarity with prolonged blasts of their horns, while a few registered dissent by revving their engines and spewing exhaust fumes close to demonstrators.
Luna County Commissioners grab debate on federal lands by the horns

2 weeks ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

DEMING — "Sometimes I call this Lunatic County, because that's how we’re acting today."Luna County resident Alberta Morgan expressed her frustration at the podium during an acrimonious meeting Thursday, where two non-binding proclamations jointly stirred a hornet nest's worth of buzz and fury. The gallery seats were full as the chamber erupted at times with shouts and heckling.
Las Cruces man fatally shot at traffic light, suspect behind bars

2 weeks ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

A local school bus driver and father of two children was killed after being shot multiple times on one of Las Cruces’ major crosstown streets Tuesday morning. A suspect was later arrested after a standoff outside a motel room and charged with first-degree murder. Police responded just after 8:30 a.m. to reports of gunfire and a vehicle crash on West Picacho Avenue, which carries several lanes of traffic between downtown Las Cruces and the eastern city limits.
Supreme Court upholds murder conviction of Hobbs man

2 weeks ago | abqjournal.com | Algernon D'Ammassa

A Hobbs man serving a life sentence for first-degree murder, armed robbery and tampering with evidence appealed his conviction to the state Supreme Court, but the Justices unanimously upheld the outcome Monday. Ralph Prieto, 47, was arrested shortly after Hobbs police conducting a welfare check found Rick Ford, 50, lying face down in a hallway with a gunshot wound on Feb. 24, 2020. Ford was pronounced dead at the scene. kA 5:ClQ=ECQmp7E6C 96 H2D :56?E:7:65 2D 2 DFDA64E :?

Journalists covering the same region

Billy Armendariz

Sports Editor at The Deming Headlight

Billy Armendariz primarily covers news in the Mesilla Valley region of New Mexico, United States, including areas around Las Cruces and surrounding communities.