The New Mexico Department of Public Safety’s is requesting $234.1 million for Fiscal Year 2026. The proposed budget allocates $16.6 million to enhance safety in New Mexico through increased staffing, advanced technology, and modernized emergency infrastructure.


“This budget ensures our officers and staff have the tools they need to safeguard communities and respond decisively to emergencies," Secretary Jason R. Bowie said.

Key funding priorities include:

Staffing, recruitment and salary alignment: $7.1 million for new positions for civilian pilots, legal professionals, inspectors to improve service delivery, and attract and retain talent.

 Fleet acquisition: $3 million to...

SANTA FE — During a recent government-to-government Violence Against Women consultation focused on public safety, systemic justice issues, and the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People crisis, 25th Navajo Nation Council Delegate Amber Kanazbah Crotty called for comprehensive justice reform.

“Every child growing today carries the prayers of their grandparents like kernels placed in the Earth, nurtured with love and hope,” Crotty said. “We are here to restore that legacy, despite the history of violence and trauma, with prayers and teachings that will bring strength to our people.”

Crotty emphasized the need to integrate Diné cultural traditions with modern justice systems...

SELLING METH, FENTANYL OUT OF A PICKUP TRUCK

Gallup, Oct. 5

Gallup Police Officer Christopher Dawes was dispatched to Hooghan Hozho Apartments at 201 E. Coal Ave. around 8:45 pm on Oct. 5 after someone called Metro Dispatch to report that people were selling drugs in the alleyway behind the apartment complex.

The caller said they were selling the drugs out of a blue Chevy pickup truck, and when Dawes arrived, he couldn’t find the truck initially. He got onto Highway 66 and as he approached the intersection at Sound Second Street, he noticed the truck that matched the caller’s description turn right.

During this pursuit Dawes had to pass the truck due to traffic, and he...

ATohatchi man who has been calling the McKinley County Adult Detention Center home for the past couple weeks escaped the facility on Nov. 20.

Around 12:35 PM, an inmate named Johnathan Natanabah, 31, escaped from the McKinley County Adult Detention Center. Gallup Police Officer Daniel Brown was on a routine patrol nearby and noticed a man in an orange jumpsuit fleeing the facility.

After a brief chase, Natanabah was back in police around 1 pm. Officers found him naked near the Rio Puerco and re-arrested him without incident. Officers from the GPD, McKinley County Sheriff’s Office, and the New Mexico State Police assisted in this incident.

Natanabah was previously arrested on Nov. 7...