Albuquerque Journal from Albuquerque, New Mexico • Page 1

JOURNAL ALBUQUERQUE ON A ROLL WITH GO! B4 SPORTS D1 HOOP IT UP Newcomers to the Lobo basketball team are already at work BUSINESS B1 DIFFERENT ROUTES Ride-sharing service UBER applies for operating permits, while LYFT denies authority WEATHER D6 BRIDGE B5 BUSINESS B1 CLASSIFIEDS C4 COMICS B6 CROSSWORD B5, C4 DEAR ABBY B5 EDITORIALS A6 GO! B4 HOROSCOPE B5 LOTTERY A2 METRO NM C1 MOVIES C4 OBITUARIES C3 SPORTS D1 STOCKS B2 TV D6 WEATHERLINE 821-1111 Albuquerque Journal online ABQjournal.com INSIDE NEW LEADING NEWS SOURCE ABQJOURNAL.COM 75 cents FINAL THURSDAY JUNE 5, 2014 Copyright 2014, Journal Publishing Co. ESTABLISHED 1880 Chester Nez 1921-2014 LAST OF THE ORIGINAL CODE TALKERS DIES Fairgrounds to Central Park in the middle of Albuquerque I you look at an aerial view of the 236-acre rectangle of land that is Expo New Mexico the site of the annual New Mexico State Fair and year-round home to a racetrack and casino you will notice a color theme: gray. The site sits amid urban Albuquerque, and the gray is concrete and blacktop. From above, the place looks like one big parking lot, surrounded by concrete block walls and dotted with buildings. If you start with the assumption that the main activity of the fairgrounds is to serve the influx of people to the annual State Fair, then you begin to understand the layout.

To provide adequate parking for the tens of thousands of people who attend the State Fair each September requires lots of paved open space. David Vogel sees things differently. Vogel says as we meander around the south end of the grounds. in one of those seas of blacktop, a parking lot that also serves as a venue for the weekend flea market. Traffic whizzes by on Central Avenue just on the other side of a tall wall.

Leslie Linthicum See COMMONS on PAGE A3 Sheriff facing FBI probe Rio Arriba lawman involved in road rage By Mark Oswald Journal North SANTA FE Just hours after Rio Arriba County Sheriff Tommy Rodella lost his bid for re-election, FBI agents showed up Wednesday morning to search his area home, apparently in connection with arrest of a motorist in March. By account in court documents, the sheriff spotted a reckless driver, ended up in a vehicle pursuit and was almost run over by the driver before he was able to arrest him. But the driver, Michael Tafoya, 26, in a Wednesday interview described a road rage incident where he was begging for his life after a man he know was the sheriff jumped into his car with a gun, and then a younger man son pulled him out and threw him to the ground. Tafoya later contacted the FBI, which conducted search. thought he (the sheriff) was going to kill said Tafoya, who faces felony charges in the incident.

thought they were going to execute me right Tafoya said the son finally told him, you realize the When Tafoya asked to see a badge, Rodella shoved his badge into face and said, my badge, Tafoya said. The FBI on Wednesday confirmed the search of home but would only say that it was connection with an ongoing federal Rodella could not be reached for comment. Jake Arnold, spokesman, said the FBI raid was in connection with arrest. Arnold declined to comment further. On Tuesday, Rodella, the husband of state Rep.

Debbie See SHERIFF on PAGE A3 DEAN Navajo Code Talker Chester Nez poses at his home on West Mesa in this May 17, 2011, photo. Nez, who was the last living member of original 29 Navajo Code Talkers, died Wednesday at his Albuquerque home. He was 93. RODELLA: Lost primary election to former deputy By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar The Associated Press WASHINGTON A huge new paperwork headache for the government could also be jeopardizing coverage for some of the millions of people who just got health insurance under President Barack law. A government document indicates that at least 2 million people enrolled for taxpayer- subsidized private health insurance have data discrepancies in their applications that, if unresolved, could affect what they pay for coverage, or even their legal right to benefits.

The final number affected could well be higher. According to the administration the 2 million figure reflects only consumers who signed up through the federally administered HealthCare.gov website and call centers. The government signed up about 5.4 million people, while state-run websites signed up another 2.6 million. For consumers, a discrepancy means that the information they supplied, subject to perjury laws, does not match what the government has on record. put health law coverage at risk Navajo group played a key role during WWII By James Monteleone and Dan Boyd Journal Staff Writers New campaigns for governor were in full swing hours after the primary elections, with each candidate going after the record on Day One of the general election contest.

Newly nominated Democratic governor candidate Gary King united with three of his four primary opponents on Wednesday morning and said Democrats will work together to oust Republican Gov. Susana Martinez in November. all agree on one thing, and that is that the state of New Mexico cannot stand another four years of Susana King told reporters at a news conference in Albuquerque. The Republican governor spent the day Wednesday making campaign stops across northern New Mexico in her continued effort to woo Hispanic Democratic voters. Meanwhile, Martinez and the state Republican Party were quick to turn up the heat on King regarding his previously contentious relationship with state Democratic Par- King, Martinez go after each record on Day One Gov.

visits northern NM; former rivals stand behind him Chester Nez is in the center of the front row of this 1942 photo. Nez helped develop the top secret code the Japanese could never break. Copyright 2014 Albuquerque Journal By Charles D. Brunt Journal Staff Writer Chester Nez, the last of the Navajo Code Talkers who developed and implemented a top secret code that confounded the Japanese in World War II, died Wednesday at his home on West Side. Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly on Wednesday issued a proclamation directing all flags on the Navajo Nation to be flown at half-staff in honor from sunrise today until sunset Sunday.

The Code Talkers took part in every assault the Marines conducted in the Pacific, sending thousands See LAST on PAGE A2 KING: Says governor has failed Hispanics MARTINEZ: Says King botched cases as AG See NOMINEES on PAGE A5 See SOME on PAGE A4 TENNIS SPORT.ROVERRANGE2014A ADVENTURE IN NEWAISMILEEVERY Albuquerque LandRoverAlbuquerque.com 505-797-3600 RoverLand.