From the Las Vegas Optic Officials with the San Miguel County Detention Center have suspended in-person visitation amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Warden Matt Elwell told the Optic the suspension of visitations will last at least three weeks, and that officials will review the policy at that point. “We’ve canceled our public visitation, and (are preventing)…
From the Las Vegas Optic All visitors to Alta Vista Regional Hospital must enter from the emergency room entrance and will be subject to a COVID-19 screening before gaining access to other areas of the hospital, according to a Friday press release. Officials at Alta Vista said in a statement these measures were being taken…
From the Las Vegas Optic San Miguel County is following guidelines put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the New Mexico Department of Health, and it has plans in place in the event of an influx of COVID-19 cases in the area, according to Emergency Manager Leo Maestas. “This is…
From the Las Vegas Optic Voters in this June’s Democratic primary election will have to choose between two candidates for the position of district attorney in the Fourth Judicial District. No Republicans filed to run, placing more importance on the results of the primary election since the winner will run unopposed in November’s general election.…
From the Las Vegas Optic After serving four terms as the top prosecutor in San Miguel, Mora and Guadalupe counties, District Attorney Richard Flores has decided not to seek re-election. “After four terms, and about 16 years in this position, I just thought it was time to hand over the reigns to someone else,” Flores…
From the Las Vegas Optic Editor’s note: The following is part two in an ongoing series on drug and alcohol addiction in San Miguel and Mora counties. In the coming weeks, we’ll explore the roots of addiction, what’s being done about it and take a look at how other communities are addressing addiction. It was…
From the Las Vegas Optic Las Vegas Police are searching for a man investigators allege killed William “Skip” Smith Jr. in August 2019. An arrest warrant for Seig Isaac Chavez, 40, was issued following a lengthy investigation by LVPD. Chavez has been charged with first-degree murder and felony tampering with evidence in the stabbing death…
From the Las Vegas Optic Editor’s note: The following is Part 1 in a series. In the coming weeks, the Optic will explore drug and alcohol addiction in San Miguel and Mora counties, hear stories from police and prosecutors, health care providers and by those struggling with addiction. We’ll explore the roots of addiction, what’s…
From the Las Vegas Optic A Las Vegas man pleaded guilty to being intoxicated when he crashed a vehicle with four juvenile passengers on July 4, 2019. According to a plea agreement filed in San Miguel Magistrate Court, Alexander C. Crowell, 29, pleaded guilty to aggravated DWI, improper restraining of a child in a vehicle…
From the Las Vegas Optic A car horn disrupted the quiet July evening. Then came the gunshots. Three bullets that killed Leroy “Smurf” Lucero, leaving his wife without a husband, and his four children without their father. His violent death also shifted the focus of a nearly five-year-long FBI investigation to Las Vegas. That federal…
