Tuesday’s Top Stories

Tuesday’s Five Facts

[1] Defense presents case in Luis Talamantes trial tied to 2019 Jacque Vigil murder – Jurors are expected to finally hear arguments from Luis Talamantes-Romero’s defense Tuesday in the trial surrounding the 2019 killing of Jacque Vigil. The defense is slated to begin presenting its case following testimony from the state’s 14 witnesses across five days of testimony. The defense is expected to call at least one witness Tuesday, former APD detective Jessie Carter. Carter is expected to testify about his review of the murder investigation. Talamantes’ defense suggested in opening statements that certain evidence was ignored in the case.

[2] Teen found guilty of throwing baby away to get break at sentencing due to state law – Alexis Avila is scheduled to be sentenced next week for throwing her baby into a Hobbs dumpster last year. She faces a maximum of 18 years after a jury found her guilty earlier this month. Avila has been on house arrest since January 12, 2022. Online court records show Fifth District Attorney Dianna Luce has signed off on Avila receiving 475 days confinement credit for the house arrest. That means she will have more than a year knocked off her sentence. Luce said the law is clear: if someone is on house arrest, it is considered confinement.

[3] Rain, strong storms and stronger winds Tuesday – The next storm will be moving into the state today, bringing stronger winds, rain and snow. The wind will be highest in west-central New Mexico, where a wind advisory will be in effect this afternoon and evening. 50 mph wind gusts will be possible. There will be higher winds up to forty mph in much of the Rio Grande Valley. Eastern New Mexico will see lighter winds, except higher gusts from thunderstorms will be possible.

[4] Albuquerque students learn about DWIs, court system up close – A group of high school students was in court Monday morning for a DWI sentencing, to learn. The Courts to Shools Program brought students from Siembra Leadership High School to watch the sentencing and learn about the judicial system. The suspect they were watching was a 28-year-old who pleaded guilty to drunk driving last month.

[5] New Mexico couple plays role in creation of Metallica’s latest music video – A New Mexico couple is gaining national prominence thanks to the world-famous heavy metal band Metallica. Their work is featured in the band’s latest video. The Taos Pueblo man said he and his wife got the opportunity to work on it through a chance encounter with the son of the bassist of Metallica, Robert Trujillo, in Nashville. They went to see the son’s show the day after they got married and ran into Trujillo, himself. He said Trujillo liked his wife illustrations, and the deal was sealed. They hammered out their part of the storyboarding process over the course of three days. Gabriel said they were able to blend some of his culture into the creative process.