UTAH

Early Mormon settlers recognized during Pioneer Day

SALT LAKE CITY – People in Utah gathered to celebrate the state’s history and recognize early Mormon pioneers who trekked west in search of religious freedom on Pioneer Day.

The beloved only-in-Utah holiday on July 24 features parades, rodeos, fireworks and more. The festivities were canceled last year because of the pandemic.

Hundreds of people on July 23 camped and staked out spots along the parade route in downtown Salt Lake City.

Pioneer Day marks the date in 1847 when Brigham Young and other Mormon pioneers, many pulling handcarts, ended their treacherous journey across the country from Illinois to the Salt Lake Valley.

Many businesses and government offices close for the state holiday.

NEW MEXICO

Chile harvest starts early for some farmers

HATCH – The aroma of fresh roasted green chiles is already wafting through southern New Mexico as some farmers are getting a jumpstart on the harvest.

The earlier start to the season is the result of some much needed rain, cooler temperatures and a change in the way some farmers are planting the state’s most famous crop.

Instead of starting from seed, more farmers are planting seedlings that have sprouted in a greenhouse to get their fields going faster. For some it’s a hedge against increasing labor costs, while others see the method as a way to save water as climate change adds to the uncertainty of irrigation supplies with every passing growing season.

This year, irrigation allotments around New Mexico are among historic lows as other Western states are grappling with their own water problems, drought and wildfires.

In New Mexico, winter snowpack was close to average. But climate experts say the soil already was parched following a dismal summer monsoon season and warmer temperatures resulted in the snow melting earlier and more rapidly.

Joram Robbs, executive director of the New Mexico Chile Association, said one benefit with transplants is that farmers don’t have to water their seeds for four to six weeks in the spring.

Sergio Grajeda Jr. has been using transplants in some fields on his family farm in Hatch for about five years.

He was thankful for the recent rains, saying they could not have come at a better time.

The one thing he has concerns about is market demand and whether people have room in their freezers for fresh chile.

Processors and distributors took a hit last year. Commercial demand was reduced as restaurants and other venues were forced to close. Robbs said people got used to buying their chile from grocery store freezers and eating it at home.

Las Cruces lawmaker says politics led to denial of Communion

SANTA FE – A New Mexico lawmaker says he was denied Communion by his local Catholic priest because of his politics.

Democratic state Sen. Joseph Cervantes said July 19 that he has been treated differently by the church since voting to repeal a state law banning abortion under most circumstances.

Cervantes’ statement came after he tweeted over the weekend about not getting Communion from Peter Baldacchino, bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Las Cruces.

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, he said he “felt it necessary to address those who would politicize, and thereby belittle, the promises of the Eucharist.”

Cervantes, of Las Cruces, says the outdated law, which would have jailed women for getting an abortion, was unconstitutional.

A spokesman for Baldacchino declined comment to media outlets. The diocese, however, put out a statement.

“The Diocese regrets that Senator Cervantes chose not to enter into dialogue with any diocesan official and felt that Twitter would be the most appropriate outlet to express his concerns,” the diocese wrote.

MONTANA

Tribes sue over Indian Education for All compliance

HELENA – Montana tribes and the parents of 18 students filed a lawsuit July 22 alleging state education leaders are violating a constitutional requirement to teach about the unique culture and heritage of Native Americans.

The lawsuit, filed in District Court in Great Falls, seeks an order to require the Board of Public Education to create specific educational standards for the Indian Education for All program and to require the superintendent of public instruction to ensure schools meet those standards and accurately report how they are spending money allocated for the program.

A representative of the Office of Public Instruction declined to comment on the pending litigation and McCall Flynn, executive director of the Montana Board of Public Education declined to comment before the agency is served with the complaint.

Montana’s 1972 Constitution required all public school students to receive education about Native American culture and heritage. The Legislature passed the Indian Education for All Act in 1999, stating it was the policy of the state to “recognize the distinct and unique cultural heritage of American Indians and to be committed in its educational goals to the preservation of their cultural heritage.”

Funding began being allocated in 2007, but the lawsuit states schools aren’t providing adequate educational programs and face no penalties for spending IEFA funds for other programs.

During the 2017-18 school year, some schools reported making no Indian Education for All expenditures, the complaint states.

In some cases, schools are reporting spending Indian Education for All funding in ways that don’t advance the program, the plaintiffs allege.

An elementary school library in Helena has a book about marmots and their social habits with a sticker inside that states it was purchased in 2007 with IEFA funds. The book does not teach about marmots within the context of cultural significance, relevance or meaning to Native Americans, the complaint states.

OKLAHOMA

Appeals court upholds reversal of ‘Innocent Man’ conviction

OKLAHOMA CITY – A federal appeals court has upheld a federal judge’s reversal of the murder conviction of an Oklahoma man whose case was featured in the book and television series ‘The Innocent Man.’

A three-judge panel of the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver ruled 2-1 that Karl Fontenot, 56, has shown actual innocence in the 1984 kidnapping and death of Donna Denice Haraway in Ada, about 70 miles southeast of Oklahoma City, based on newly discovered evidence that the court said was withheld by prosecutors at the time.

The state has 120 days from the July 13 ruling to decide whether to retry Fontenot, according to the ruling.

A spokesperson for the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office said the office is reviewing the opinion.

The state could ask for a rehearing before the entire court, appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, allow the case to be retried or allow Fontenot, who was released from prison in 2019 following the federal judge’s ruling, to be permanently freed.

Fontenot and co-defendant Tommy Ward’s initial convictions and death sentences for Harway’s death were overturned, but both were again convicted on retrial with Fontenot again receiving a death sentence and Ward being sentenced to life in prison.

Fontenot’s death sentence was later reduced to life and Ward’s conviction has also been overturned, although he remains in prison while the state appeals.

The convictions have come under intense scrutiny for years and have been the subject of numerous books, including John Grisham’s “The Innocent Man,” which he produced into a six-part documentary.

The federal appeals court opinion noted that while Fontenot confessed to the crime, the details he provided were proven untrue.

Haraway’s body was discovered west of Ada, about 30 miles from the location identified by Fontenot and she was fatally shot not stabbed, as he had said.