Violence hearing coming to Duke City

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder's National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence will hold a public hearing in Albuquerque from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. It is the second of four public hearings scheduled around the country to seek input on the issue, and it will take place in the Vincent E. Griego Council Chambers, 1 Civic Plaza NW, in downtown Albuquerque.

Due to limited space, anyone wishing to attend must register with Will Bronson via email at www.defendingchildhoodtaskforce@nccdcrc.org. Attendees will be registered in the order in which registrations are received, subject to site capacity limits, and will be notified by email if a registration is confirmed. Photo identification will be required for admission.

Video of the hearing will be available at www.justice.gov/defendingchildhood/albuquerque-hearing.html, shortly following the session.

Film festival announces dates

The 2012 Santa Fe Independent Film Festival -- which started in 2009 as a venue to spotlight underground, independent and New Mexico-made cinema -- has announced that it will run at various in-town venues from Oct. 17 through Oct. 21.

Filmmakers may begin submitting entries on Sunday, and they will be accepted until May 1.

Visit www.santafeindependentfilmfestival.com for more information and to download an entry form.

Girls' School offers open house

Santa Fe Girls' School, a private school for girls in grades six to eight, will hold an admissions open house from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 9 at the campus, 310 W. Zia Road.

Staff and students will be on hand to talk about the school and answer questions.

The school, founded in 1998, has a capacity of 45 students and focuses on seminar-style classes with 15 students or less per class.

Call 820-3188 for more information.

Agents seize $325,000 in pot

SANTA TERESA -- U.S. Border Patrol agents working in Southern New Mexico have seized more than 400 pounds of marijuana and have made three arrests in two separate busts.

Agents near Santa Teresa spotted a vehicle and two people north of the border on Thursday. The vehicle sped off, but agents were able to stop it. Inside, they found three large burlap bundles of pot.

The driver, 19-year-old Melissa Vargas Otero, and 18-year-old Jason Nathaniel Harrison were arrested.

Near Deming, agents were inspecting a pickup when they found two large marijuana bundles in a container inside the gas tank.

Mexican national Leonel Romero Lechuga also was arrested.

In all, the seized drugs are worth about $325,000.

The drugs and those who were arrested have been turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

'Sun News' building comes down

LAS CRUCES -- A building occupied by the Las Cruces Sun-News for decades was demolished.

A fire that damaged the building a year ago forced the newspaper to relocate its operations, and the building has been vacant ever since.

A large part of the former grocery store building came down Friday. The newspaper reported that the publication had been located in the Las Cruces Avenue building since the 1960s.

Forest advisory panel applicants sought

The federal government is seeking applicants for a new national advisory committee to make recommendations to the secretary of agriculture and the U.S. Forest Service regarding a new forest-management rule.

The committee will recommend best practices, effective monitoring systems and methods for collaboration. The committee will consist of 21 members from diverse backgrounds and geographic locations.

The nomination period closes Feb. 21. Additional details on the committee are available in the Federal Register, or by calling 202-205-0830.




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