¡Feliz Navidad!
Volume 58, Number 13
Española, New Mexico 87532
Thursday, December 25, 2014
Española City Councilor Resigns
Mayor Alice Lucero sent out an email,
stating Eric Radosevich quit Dec. 19
By Ardee Napolitano
SUN Staff Writer
Six months after he allegedly
pistol-whipped a man during an
altercation, City Councilor Eric
Radosevich decided to relinquish
his governing body seat last
week.
Mayor Alice Lucero notified
city officials of Radosevich’s
resignation via a Dec. 18 email.
“Be advised that Eric Radosevich had resigned from his position on the City Council effective, Friday, December 19,
2014,” Lucero’s email states.
“Keep him and his family in
prayer during this Holy Season.”
Lucero said Radosevich did
not send a formal letter of resignation to her. She said he either
told her he’s leaving his seat
through an email or a text message.
He did not give her a specific
reason for his resignation, Lucero said.
T
“I can understand and I respect
his decision,” she said.
Radosevich’s resignation
came after Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested him June
25, on a warrant charging aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery with a
deadly weapon, following the alleged June 21 altercation.
He allegedly pistol-whipped a
man who was allegedly trying to
flee an altercation with Radosevich and his passengers. Radosevich then allegedly shot twice at the
victim’s truck.
On Nov. 17, District Court
Judge T. Glenn Ellington rejected a plea deal that would have
allowed Radosevich to plead no
contest to a fourth-degree felony
and receive an 18-month suspended sentence and a conditional discharge. This means the
charge would have been dismissed at the end of an 18-month
supervised probation period.
Radosevich
A no contest plea would also
prevent an admission of the facts
of the case from being used
against Radosevich if the victim
in the case were to sue him.
Radosevich’s lawyer, Dan
Marlowe, told reporters at the
hearing, the former councilor
will not comment on his case to
the media.
During the Nov. 17 hearing,
Ellington told Marlowe and prosecutor Natalie Perry that he
wanted them to submit the statement of facts or a new plea by
Dec. 22.
Marlowe asked Ellington on
Dec. 22 to set a hearing for his
case. Radosevich appeared in
court for the docket call wearing
jeans and a polar fleece jacket.
“We’d like to ask for time to
talk to you about the case,” Marlowe said.
Marlowe asked Ellington to
set a hearing before Jan. 20, the
next docket call on the case. Ellington said he has too many trials set on his calendar for him to
be able to set a hearing by that
time.
Marlowe then asked Ellington
to waive Radosevich’s appearance for the Jan. 20 docket call
because Radosevich must work.
Ellington agreed.
Ellington said he will set a
hearing during or after the Jan.
20 docket call.
Radosevich’s trial is currently
set for mid-February.
Elected in March 2012, Radosevich still had one year and
three months left on his city
council term. The defunct District 3 councilor chaired the
Community Services Committee
read, so different types of plays and dramas were created and performed.”
Los Pastores, or “The Shepherds,” is a
morality play performed entirely in Spanish, that teaches the importance of good
and evil, while telling the story of the
search for Christ. During this trek, the
group of shepherds encounters different
situations and has to deal with the devil
and the troubles of their own emotions.
“It’s showing the humanness of people,” Cordova said. “There are all of these
cool little moments that happen through-
out this.”
The group starts at the back of the
church and makes their way forward
while singing, reaching the altar, which
acts as the camp throughout their journey.
“Music is a very big deal. It plays a big
part in the performance,” Cordova said.
“Los Pastores is the most musical of all
the dramas. My husband Arsenio has
composed songs that have now become a
See 'Play' on page A4
(SUNfoto by Melissa Vigil)
A group of actors performs Los Pastores at the
San Juan Bautista Parish in Ohkay Owingeh last
year. Many of the actors return each year to portray
various characters in the play.
Treasurer-Elect Taps County
Official for State Finance Job
By Barron Jones
SUN Staff Writer
The state’s leading chief financial officer-elect
has chosen a Rio Arriba County leader to fill a top
post in his administration.
New Mexico Treasurer-elect Tim Eichenberg
picked Deputy Treasurer Leo Marquez to serve as
one of his chief financial officers. Marquez said he
will be in charge of budgeting and finance.
Marquez told County commissioners that his appointment, as well as the recognition of several department heads as statewide managers of the year, is an attestation to the quality of people the County produces.
“It says a lot about the caliber of people Rio Arriba County has,” Marquez said. “We have had three
managers of the year.”
County Treasurer Jose Candalaria said although
talk of Marquez leaving has been floating around for
several days, he didn’t come to terms with the news
until right before the Tuesday (12/23), County Commission Meeting.
“I couldn’t believe he was going until he handed
in his official resignation,” Candalaria said. “I congratulate Marquez on his endeavors as chief financial officer for the state.”
The appointment comes at an apropos time, considering Eichenberg contacted his office shortly after
the election, offering a helping hand. Marquez will
work under Eichenberg, alongside unnamed chief
financial and investment officers.
See 'Outgoing' on page A4
Gov. Martinez
Appoints New
Northern Regent
By Ardee Napolitano
SUN Staff Writer
Two outgoing Northern
New Mexico College regents’ terms have not yet
expired, but Gov. Susana
Martinez has already found
a replacement for one of
them.
The governor announced
the appointment of Damian
Martinez to Northern’s
Board of Regents to replace
either Michael Branch or
Alfred Herrera. Damian
Martinez will serve a sixyear term on the Board.
He said he is excited to
soon work with Northern
administrators.
“I’m bringing a lot of
enthusiasm to the position,”
he said. “I just want to be
able to assist the college in-
to becoming a better institution — not that it’s a bad
institution now.”
A Las Cruces resident,
Martinez serves as an attorney and is a veteran of the
Air Force Judge Advocate
General Corps, the legal
arm of the United States Air
Force. He is also managing
director of Las Cruces law
firm Holt, Mynatt, Martinez
P.C.
Originally from Las Vegas, N.M., Martinez got his
bachelor’s degree in social
work from New Mexico
Highlands University in
1998. He then got his juris
doctor degree from St.
Mary’s University in San
Antonio in 2001.
See 'Regent' on page A3
See 'Councilor' on page A3
Celebrating the Season
By Melissa Vigil
he San Juan Bautista Parish in Ohkay Owingeh was treated to a performance of Los Pastores Dec. 22,
2013, with original songs and handmade
costumes helping to bring the drama to
life.
The story and performance of Los Pastores dates back to the 16th century. It
originated in Spain and traveled through
Mexico, before being brought to the New
Mexico area, Kathryn Cordova said. “It
was done in a time where people couldn’t
38 pages, 5 sections 50 cents
Co-op, REDI-Net
Officials Hold Talks
By Barron Jones
SUN Staff Writer
The ice seems to be thawing
between a federally funded economic development engine and
the area’s member-owned electric cooperative, that threatened
the project aimed at improving
the area’s broadband growth.
Some Jemez Mountains Electric Cooperative officials are optimistic that an agreement can be
reached with REDI-Net (Regional Economic Development Initiative) that would allow the
stalled project to move forward.
The project is designed to help
improve the region’s economic
outlook by upgrading the area’s
Internet connectivity.
The Co-op took steps to abandon a 40-year licensing agreement that allowed the economic
development initiative to attach
fiber optic cables and other
equipment to the utility’s infrastructure, after Co-op officials
accused REDI-Net of not fulfilling its obligations.
Co-op Board President John
Tapia said the two sides are finally exchanging dialogue,
which he hopes will help them
work out their differences.
“Joseph (Sanchez, Co-op general manager) and I met with
REDI-Net executives, and I can
tell you we got a very good reception,” Tapia said. “We are
making progress.”
The progress comes after
months of failed negotiations
that ended with the Co-op Board
issuing REDI-Net’s fiscal agent,
North Central Economic Development District, an ultimatum to
remove the equipment or run the
risk of having it confiscated. During those talks, Co-op officials
criticized REDI-Net for poor
communication on the issue.
The Co-op gave the economic
development organization a reprieve until they could enter into
good-faith negotiations.
The discrepancy involved a
plan to attach bundles of fiber to
Jemez’s poles, to secure broadband capabilities of 40 megabits
per second, compared to the ultra-slow 3 megabits per second
that much of the area currently
has.
The Co-op is crying foul play
because it said REDI-Net failed
to provide four strands of fiber
See 'Board' on page A4
Española School District Falls
Behind on Financial Audit
By Ardee Napolitano
SUN Staff Writer
The Española School District is
slowly following in the city of Española’s footsteps regarding the completion of financial audits.
District officials are running
more than a month late on the completion of their Fiscal Year 2014 audit. They are on the verge of finishing it, District Director of Finance
Jeanette Trujillo said.
She said delays were caused by
pending litigation involving Cariños
Charter School.
“As of right now, we’re complet-
ing the audit and we’re getting ready
to submit it to the state auditor’s office,” she said. “There’s been a lot of
delays with the Cariños issue.”
The audit should have been filed
with the Office of the State Auditor,
Nov. 15.
District officials are working
with California-based auditors
Harshwal and Company, who conducted the city’s 2010 and 2011 audits. The city’s 2011 audit was approved last month, three years after
its deadline.
Trujillo delivered a report on the
late audit at a Dec. 17 Española
School Board meeting.
District Superintendent Danny
Trujillo said at the meeting, Cariños
officials did not coordinate well with
the audit process.
He said with the closure of the
school’s rundown building, First
District Court Judge Sarah Singleton
advised Cariños officials to work
with District officials throughout the
audit process, but they have not submitted documents in time.
“This is basically putting us in
See 'Cariños' on page A2