Rodd Cayton, Author at City Desk ABQ

APD's real-time crime center integrates ALPR and other tools to prevent and investigate crime and keep the community informed. (APD)

Metro crime-fighting tools highlighted as federal funding package clears Congress

A package of federal appropriations bills that cleared both houses of Congress this week contains hundreds of millions of dollars for New Mexico, with a heavy emphasis on public safety in the Albuquerque metropolitan area. U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján issued news releases Friday detailing the legislation, which now heads to President […]

Recent snowstorms have improved the area’s water availability outlook, Anne Marken told the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District Board of Directors Monday. However, she said, the water supply in the basins that serve the district is still expected to be about half of the historical median. (Roberto. E. Rosales)

Water supply to be tight despite recent snowfall

Local farmers’ water fortunes will largely depend on precipitation this year. Recent snowstorms have improved the area’s water availability outlook, Anne Marken told the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District Board of Directors Monday. However, she said, the water supply in the basins that serve the district is still expected to be about half of the […]

Dream Week 2026 kicks off to honor Dr. King’s legacy

The New Mexico Martin Luther King, Jr. State Commission has designated Jan. 12–19 as Dream Week 2026, a statewide commemoration built around the holiday honoring the civil rights leader. In a news release, the commission called for “a week of commemoration, service, reflection, and action honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, […]

Pictured is the scene of an APD officer-involved shooting near I-40 and 6th street near the Love’s truck stop. Photo by Roberto E. Rosales/The City Desk. Photo by Roberto E. Rosales/The City Desk

APD shootings rise as federal oversight ends

Albuquerque Police police officers shot 15 individuals last year, according to department statistics, an increase from each of the previous two years when the department was under federal oversight. Data examined by City Desk ABQ shows last year’s total number of police shootings is up from 13 the previous year and 14 in 2023. Those […]

Albuquerque Police Department officials report 63 homicide incidents in calendar year 2025, with a total of 65 people killed. (Roberto. E. Rosales)

APD reports significant decline in homicide

Albuquerque Police Department officials report 63 homicide incidents in calendar year 2025, with a total of 65 people killed. That total is down by more than one-third from 2024, when 98 people were killed in the city. Police say 87%, or 55 of 63, of 2025 homicide cases have been solved, along with 25 cases […]

Bernalillo County held its annual formal burial of indigent and unclaimed residents Thursday, Sept. 4, at Fairview Memorial Park. Director’s Choice Mortuary Services and the county conducted the ceremonial services, which included a dignified and appropriate disposition of the cremains of 171 people. Pastor Richard Mansfield delivered offer the eulogy. Pictured is Robert C. Noblin Jr. of Director’s Choice Mortuary giving the opening remarks. Photo by Roberto E. Rosales / New Mexico News

Dignified farewell: Bernalillo County memorializes unclaimed remains

by Rodd Cayton September 4, 2025September 8, 2025

Their community remembers them. Bernalillo County Thursday morning, gave a dignified farewell to 171 individuals who died recently and whose cremated remains went unclaimed. The memorial service at Fairview Memorial Park was characterized by reminders that the deceased mattered. “No one should leave this world unrecognized or unmourned, and today, we all make sure that […]

General Interest

APS to implement clear-bag policy for games

by Rodd Cayton August 18, 2025August 18, 2025

Spectators at Albuquerque Public Schools’ athletics events will need to rethink their accessories, due to a new district policy. Starting with the season-opening contests, only clear bags will be allowed inside, the district announced. “We believe our first duty to students, parents and the community at an athletic contest is to provide a safe environment […]

The Albuquerque Public Schools Administration building located at 6400 Uptown Blvd. NE. Photo by Roberto E. Rosales/City Desk ABQ

Education, Housing & Homelessness

Over 13,000 Albuquerque students face program cuts as feds withhold $12M

by Rodd Cayton July 14, 2025July 14, 2025

Albuquerque Public Schools will have to scramble to provide some services after the federal government withheld millions of dollars in education funding just weeks before the school year begins. The U.S. Department of Education announced June 30 that it was delaying the disbursement of $6.9 billion in congressionally approved federal education funds, according to a […]

Housing & Homelessness, Local Gov.

Ethics board dismisses complaint against BernCo chair

by Rodd Cayton June 26, 2025June 26, 2025

A Bernalillo County ethics board’s dismissal of a deputy treasurer’s complaint against County Commission Chair Eric Olivas came as a surprise to neither party. Olivas told CityDesk ABQ the outcome was what he’d expected. He said the board’s argument is that there were no grounds for the complaint, which alleged he violated provisions in the […]

Pictured are the Route 66 Flats, a new affordable housing apartment complex being built in Albuquerque’s westside near 98th.

Housing & Homelessness

Cooling systems now required in all ABQ rentals

by Rodd Cayton April 17, 2025

By Rodd Cayton Renters in Albuquerque could find themselves a little more comfortable this summer. A new city ordinance requires all rental properties to have cooling systems. According to a city news release, the city council updated to the Uniform Housing Code e to protect renters from dangerous heat, as summers get hotter and last […]