Sunland peanut product recall continues

A New Mexico food company that produced the peanut butter linked to an outbreak of salmonella poisoning has expanded an ongoing recall of its products to include raw and roasted peanuts. 

The federal Food and Drug Administration said Saturday that Sunland Inc. added raw and roasted shelled and in-shell peanuts sold in quantities from two ounces to 50 pounds to its recall.

 FDA inspectors have found salmonella in raw peanuts from the Sunland processing plant. Sunland manufactured the peanut butter sold by Trader Joe's that's been linked to 35 salmonella illnesses across 19 states. 

Sunland has recalled everything made in its contaminated plant since March 2010. 

Sunland peanut product recall continues

Skydiver Sunday jump successful

Felix Baumgartner

Officials say that Felix Baumgartner has become the first skydiver to break the speed of sound. 

At a news conference, Brian Utley of the International Federation of Sports Aviation said Baumgartner reached a maximum speed of 833.9 mph during his jump Sunday over the New Mexico desert. 

That amounts to Mach 1.24, which is faster than the speed of sound. No one has ever reached that speed wearing only a high-tech suit. Baumgartner came down safely in the eastern New Mexico desert about nine minutes after jumping from his capsule 128,100 feet, or roughly 24 miles, above Earth.

Skydiver Sunday jump successful

Newsbreak New Mexico 5pm Webcast 10/12/12

Newsbreak New Mexico 5pm Newscast with Vanessa Dabovich

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Bernalillo Sheriff Spokeswoman files lawsuit
Holywoood movie shooting in Santa Fe
Navajo Nation to use drones on crops
New Mexico/El Paso dwarf convention in ABQ

Newsbreak New Mexico 5pm Webcast 10/12/12

NM agricultural community pushes for change of focus at NMSU

Audio story here:

Matt Rush

This week the Regents of New Mexico State University appointed an interim president calling on Dr. Manuel Pacheco to serve until a more permanent replacement is found following the departure of Dr. Barbara Couture. 

In the midst of beginning a national presidential search the agricultural community at large is asking for the NMSU ship to steer in a different direction. 

The regents held an open meeting Wednesday to announce their decision and for the first time since the controversy regarding Dr. Barbara Couture’s departure began, they allowed public comment in the process. 

Of the people who spoke to the regents an overwhelming amount asked the regents to focus on the university’s land grant mission.

Board member of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association Joe Delk encouraged the regents to consider the role of agriculture and engineering. 

Delk-“ Over the years we in the agriculture and livestock industry have felt a drift away from the fundamental land grant mission of this university. We would fully support a move back in that direction and keep those fundamental elements in your mind as you are tasked with the job of finding a new president for the university.”

Farm and Livestock Bureau Executive director Matt Rush says NMSU is at a pivotal point in its agricultural history. Rush says it’s a great opportunity for the university to set a new course.

Rush-“We feel like the university has lost focus on what’s at the core. Maybe we’ve tried doing too many things and we need to get back to focusing on what we know best and what is at the heart and soul of this university.” 

The Regents plan to quickly begin the search for the next NMSU president and indicated that the appointment of Dr. Pacheco should be for no longer than one year. 

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the Morrill Act which established land grant colleges. It provided all eligible states with 30,000 acres of federal land to be used toward establishing educational institutions. It was through the Morrill Act the New Mexico State University was founded in 1888.

For Newsbreak New Mexico, I’m Vanessa Dabovich.

NM agricultural community pushes for change of focus at NMSU

Newsbreak New Mexico 12pm Webcast 10/12/12

Newsbreak New Mexico 12pm Newscast with Vanessa Dabovich

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Navajo Nation to use drones on crops
NM Democrats file straight ticket lawsuit
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Newsbreak New Mexico 12pm Webcast 10/12/12

Former Bernalillo County Sheriff Spokeswoman files lawsuit

Jennifer Vega-Brown

A former attorney and spokeswoman for Bernalillo County Sheriff Dan Houston has filed a lawsuit claiming she was retaliated against after raising concerns about discrimination and sexual harassment against Hispanic women in the Sheriff's Office.

 Jennifer Vega-Brown tells the Albuquerque Journal it was "hell" working for Houston. She was told last week that she was being fired. 

Houston told the ABQ Journal Wednesday that he did use some derogatory terms to describe Vega-Brown and another female sheriff's employee but says he was just repeating allegations made by someone else. The sheriff says he fired Vega-Brown for poor job performance. He also denied making some of the derogatory comments attributed to him in the lawsuit.

Former Bernalillo County Sheriff Spokeswoman files lawsuit

Newsbreak New Mexico 8am Webcast 10/12/12

Newsbreak New Mexico 8am Newscast with Vanessa Dabovich

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Belen teens plan school massacre 
NMFA fake audit update 
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Newsbreak New Mexico 8am Webcast 10/12/12

Navajo Nation to use drones to monitor crops

The Navajo Nation's farming enterprise plans to buy an unmanned aircraft as soon as next summer to help monitor its crops. 

The drone would be used to watch for changes in crops grown by the Navajo Agricultural Products Industry. CEO Tsosie  Lewis tells the Farmington Daily Times it would replace a contractor's manned plane flyovers and be cheaper. 

The Navajo farming operation grows potatoes, alfalfa, pinto beans, corn and winter wheat on 72,000 acres of farmland south of Farmington. The tribe-owned enterprise is aggressively seeking to expand the market for its "Navajo Pride" products. It generates $400 million in annual revenue, and employs more than 400 people.

Navajo Nation to use drones to monitor crops

NM Democratic Party files straight ticket lawsuit

The New Mexico Democratic Party has filed a lawsuit challenging the lack of a straight party ticket voting option in the general election. 

The lawsuit was filed Thursday with the state Supreme Court and also contends that ballots improperly have the emblems of political parties next to the names of presidential candidates. In the past, party symbols were next to the place on the ballot allowing voters to make a single mark to support a party's entire slate of candidates. 

The lawsuit names Secretary of State Dianna Duran as the defendant. She contends state law doesn't authorize the straight ticket option. The lawsuit asks the court to restore a straight ticket option on ballots that will be cast. It doesn't seek to invalidate absentee ballots cast since voting started Tuesday.

NM Democratic Party files straight ticket lawsuit

Gov. to campaign for Romney in Nevada

Susana Martinez

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez will campaign in Nevada this weekend for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. 

The Romney campaign announced Thursday that Martinez will appear at three events Saturday in the Las Vegas area, starting with a rally at Romney's state campaign headquarters. Martinez will greet voters at a campaign office in eastern Las Vegas and there will be an event in the suburban community of Henderson. 

The governor fluently speaks Spanish and could help Romney reach out to Hispanics, which account for 27 percent of Nevada's population. Nevada doesn't reliably vote Democrat or Republican, and is considered a battleground state in the presidential election.

Gov. to campaign for Romney in Nevada