This week on New Mexico in Focus, Executive Producer Jeff Proctor speaks with Matthew Reisen from the Albuquerque Journal about a recent indictment alleging a multi-state machine gun scheme. It names but doesn’t charge former Bernalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales and former Laguna Pueblo Police Chief Rudy Mora. Reisen explains the indictment, including what both Gonzales and Mora are accused of doing to further the scheme.   

Then, Jeff speaks with Dianne Layden, a member of the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office Advisory Review Board, to understand why there aren’t any checks and balances in place to watch over sheriffs like Gonzales. Layden explains the role of the advisory board, why it was created and how the new sheriff has taken a more active role with the board.  

Our Land’s Laura Paskus sat down with the New Mexico Environmental Law Center’s Eric Jantz to understand how two bills passed by the Albuquerque City Council will affect efforts by a South Valley community to protect itself from pollution. The two also talked about how industry and many lawmakers claim environmental regulations harm economic development—but how the history of environmental protections in the U.S. doesn’t support that claim.  

Christopher Ramírez and Althea Atherton with Together for Brothers talk with Laura about the City of Albuquerque’s Zero Fares Pilot Program and why transit equity doesn’t just benefit those who need to take advantage of free fares on the city’s buses.    

NMiF airs on NMPBS 5.1 (KNME HD) Friday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 19 at 7 a.m., and streaming on the PBS video app.   

NMiF Segments

NM Lawmen Mentioned in Machine Gun Scheme Indictment  Correspondent  Jeff Proctor 

Guest 
Matthew Reisen, staff writer, Albuquerque Journal 

Exploring Oversight: NM Lawmen Mentioned in Machine Gun Scheme Indictment 
Correspondent
Jeff Proctor 

Guest 
Dianne Layden, Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office Advisory & Review Board 

Albuquerque City Council Targets Air Quality Rulemaking 
Correspondent
Laura Paskus 

Guest 
Eric Jantz, legal director, New Mexico Environmental Law Center 

Transit Equity in Albuquerque  Correspondent
Laura Paskus 

Guests 
Christopher Ramírez, executive director, Together for Brothers  
Althea Atherton, bus rider organizer, Together for Brothers 

Host
Lou DiVizio 

New Mexico in Focus is the New Mexico PBS prime-time news magazine show covering the events, issues, and people that are shaping life in New Mexico and the Southwest. NMiF takes a multi-layered look at social, political, economic health, education, and art issues, and explores them in-depth with a critical eye to give them context beyond the "news of the moment.

NMPBS Executive Producer, Public Affairs, is Jeff Proctor. New Mexico in Focus Senior Producer for Public Affairs is Lou DiVizio. “Our Land” Senior Producer is Laura Paskus. The producer of New Mexico in Focus is Antonio Sanchez and Co-producer is Kathy Wimmer.

Funding for New Mexico in Focus is provided by the McCune Charitable Foundation and Viewers Like You.

Funding for the Your New Mexico Government Project comes from the Thornburg Foundation and New Mexico Local News Fund.

Funding for Our Land: New Mexico’s Environmental Past, Present & Future, is provided in part by the Neeper Natural History Programming Fund for KNME-TV.