When Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller appointed Harold Medina as APD chief in 2020, the department was still not fully in charge of itself, having blown past the deadline to end a court-approved settlement agreement the city signed with the U.S. Department of Justice six years prior. DOJ investigators had identified a deeply embedded culture at APD that led to the unconstitutional use of excessive force — and a leadership structure that enabled it. Medina was at the helm of APD when U.S. District Judge James Browning signed an order ending the consent decree on May 12. NMiF Host Nash Jones recently sat down with Medina to discuss how APD has changed through this 11-year reform project — and ask why federal oversight of his department has come to an end now.

Podcast Host: Lou DiVizio

Correspondent: Nash Jones

Guest: Harold Medina, Chief, Albuquerque Police Department

This week on the podcast, we explore what the end of federal oversight at the Albuquerque Police Department means for the city.

Today's episode features the parents of a man who Albuquerque Police shot and killed on April 12, 2011, when two plainclothes detectives killed 27-year-old Christopher Torres, shooting him three times in the back in his family's backyard. Since that day, his parents, Steve and Renetta Torres, have been prominent voices in the push for reform at APD. Executive Producer Jeff Proctor recently met with the Torres's to talk about what they lost 14 years ago, and to get their perspective on the decade-plus of trying to clean up the department that killed their son.

Host: Lou DiVizio

Correspondent: Jeff Proctor

Guests:

Renetta Torres, Son Killed by APD in 2011

Steve Torres, Son Killed by APD in 2011 

A new exhibit called 'the bomb' has opened at the University of New Mexico's Zimmerman Library. The exhibit takes visitors through a series of images, archival footage and film clips documenting the unsettling history and uncertain future of the world's most dangerous machine: nuclear weapons. KUNM News Director Megan Kamerick sits down with the exhibit's two creators and a university professor to discuss the project.

Host: Lou DiVizio

Correspondent: Megan Kamerick

Guests:

Eric Schlosser, Co-Creator, Journalist and Author, 'the bomb' Exhibit

Smriti Keshari, Co-creator and Film Director, 'the bomb' Exhibit

Myrriah Gómez, Associate Professor, University of New Mexico Honors College 

In September 2023, Jacob Johns was shot will attending a celebration of Rio Arriba County’s decision to delay installing a statue of Spanish conquistador and war criminal Juan de Oñate. Now, Johns and another demonstrator are suing county officials for allegedly failing to keep them safe. Searchlight New Mexico’s Joshua Bowling, who was first to report on the lawsuit, sat down with Johns in our studio to discuss the case and why Johns believes the county violated his civil rights that day.

Host: Lou DiVizio

Correspondent: Joshua Bowling, Searchlight New Mexico

Guest: Jacob Johns, Shooting Survivor, Plaintiff

For More Information:

Protect and serve: Did county officials enable Ryan Martinez’s violent actions at a 2023 protest in Española? - Searchlight New Mexico

Lou DiVizio opens the show with news from around the state.

Then, we turn our attention to federal cuts made to AmeriCorps, the government agency that's trained generations of Americans to help others. Until recently, AmeriCorps employed thousands to help others statewide — from Taos to Ruidoso, and in cities and pueblos in between. Now, the federal agency is a shadow of what it once was, as most of its staff have been fired and millions of dollars in federal grants have been axed. Host Nash Jones speaks with U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., to discuss President Trump's gutting of AmeriCorps, and what he and the state are doing about it.

The Albuquerque Sign Language Academy is one of several local programs hit hard by the AmeriCorps cuts. Jones recently sat down with Rafe Martinez, the academy's director, as well as former AmeriCorps board member Alvin Warren to discuss the federal cuts and their impact in communities across the state.

State Sen. Jay Block, R-Rio Rancho, introduced a bill during this year's legislative session to create a program similar to the Department of Government Efficiency. Unlike DOGE, Block tells senior producer Lou DiVizio that his proposed program will not shrink the government workforce, nor target what the Trump administration calls “woke propaganda.” 

Host: Lou DiVizio

Segments:

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich on Major Cuts to AmeriCorps

Host: Nash Jones

Guest: U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M.

AmeriCorps Cuts Disrupt NM Programs

Host: Nash Jones

Guests:

Alvin Warren, Former AmeriCorps Board Member

Rafe Martinez, Director, Albuquerque Sign Language Academy

NM Sen. Jay Block on Creating State Program Similar to DOGE

Correspondent: Lou DiVizio

Guest: NM Sen. Jay Block, R-Rio Rancho

For More Information:

Records: New Mexico governor has OK’d more than $2M for National Guard deployment to Albuquerque - Source New Mexico

Nash Jones examines civil rights and immigration in New Mexico during Donald Trump's first 100 days in the White House. Nash speaks with Marshall Martinez of Equality New Mexico and Deanna Warren, an attorney with the ACLU.  Warren and Martinez consider how Trump's second term has changed federal policy regarding civil liberties and the communities their organizations serve. Then, Nash asks how state laws can help shield New Mexicans from those federal changes.

President Trump’s administration has pushed the limits of presidential and military power in its efforts to crack down on immigration. Valeria Garcia Tavares, an attorney with the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center, tells Nash what she’s hearing about the experience of those living in our state without legal status.

Segments:

How Advocacy Orgs Are Defending New Mexicans in Trump 2.0

Host: Nash Jones

Guests:

Deanna Warren, Gender Equity Attorney, ACLU of New Mexico

Marshall Martinez, Executive Director, Equality New Mexico

Immigrant Rights and Deportations in Trump’s Second Term

Host: Nash Jones

Guest: Valeria Garcia Tavarez, Survivor Advancement Senior Attorney, New Mexico Immigrant Law Center

Podcast Host: Lou DiVizio

Correspondent Gwyneth Doland interviews NMPBS General Manager Franz Joachim, who lays out the facts on what President Trump's executive order to end federal funding for public media could mean here at home.

The dam that creates the El Vado Reservoir on the Rio Chama Tributary is leaking — and in dire need of repair. Correspondent Elizabeth Miller recently spoke with water management expert Adrian Oglesby about the dam, as well as his concerns over the water outlook for New Mexico this summer.

Segments:

NMPBS General Manager on Proposed Federal Cuts to Public Media

Correspondent: Gwyneth Doland

Guest: Franz Joachim, General Manager and CEO, NMPBS

Failing Water Architecture in NM

Correspondent: Elizabeth Miller

Guest: Adrian Oglesby, Director, UNM Utton Transboundary Resources Center 

Many of New Mexico's state programs rely heavily on both federal funding and staffing. Recent cuts by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency are putting many of those programs in jeopardy. Senior Producer Lou DiVizio recently sat down with Bill McCamley, a Democratic former state representative and cabinet secretary, to ask how those cuts will impact New Mexicans. 

Host: Lou DiVizio

Guest: Bill McCamley, Democratic Former State Representative and Cabinet Secretary 

Lou DiVizio opens the show with some headlines from around the state.

Then, Correspondent Gwyneth Doland asks Michael O'Donnell, director of UNM's Bureau of Business and Economic Research, how President Trump's cuts to federal programs will make their mark in our state.

And, Lou speaks with Steve Jones, a certified public accountant and Republican candidate running for Congress, about Trump's decision to lay off thousands of federal workers.

Host: Lou DiVizio

Segments:

How Trump’s Cuts Could Hit NM

Correspondent: Gwyneth Doland

Guest: Michael O'Donnell, Director, University of New Mexico Bureau of Business and Economic Research

NM Republican Candidate on Trump's Second Term

Correspondent: Lou DiVizio

Guest: Steve Jones, Republican Candidate for U.S. Congress, District 1 

To commemorate sexual assault awareness month, correspondent Antonia Gonzales sits down with three advocates from the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women about their work in tribal communities.

Host: Lou DiVizio

Correspondent: Antonia Gonzales (Navajo)

Guests:

Tiffany Jiron (Pueblo of Isleta), Executive Director, Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women

Charolette Gonzales (Diné, San Ildefonso Pueblo), Policy and Advocacy Director, Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women

Patrick Gallegos, Sex Trafficking Prevention Coordinator, Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women