White Sands teacher hides identity for 21 years, Speak Easy's license revoked, NMSU audit

I'm Damien Willis, a lead reporter for the Las Cruces Sun-News, and this is The Reporter's Notebook, a free newsletter highlighting some of the week's best stories.

This week, we'll talk to our reporters about how they reported their stories in an effort to bring some transparency to our reporting process. This is a way to pull back the curtain and to take you inside the newsroom — our conversations, our reporting process and the tips that occasionally led to interesting and important stories.

'A devastating situation': Las Cruces teacher responds to 21-year-old warrant in Florida

A Las Cruces Public Schools teacher is on personal leave after facing a bizarre allegation about her past.

Judy Young, a 15-year employee at the district, was charged with being a fugitive and booked into the Doña Ana County Detention Center in September.

Prosecutors alleged Young is wanted in Florida under the name of Stephanie Ann Garcia, who was convicted of grand theft and passing worthless checks in that state 22 years ago and later walked out on her probation.

The charge within Doña Ana County was dropped after Florida prosecutors declined to extradite her. However, last week she appeared in court via video conference to address the fugitive warrant.

Las Cruces Sun-News reporter Algernon D'Ammassa has been chasing this story for months. Here's how it came to pass, according to Algernon:

We received an anonymous tip in September from someone at White Sands Missile Range that a teacher had been arrested, and a few confidential sources told us a very old booking photo from Florida for a fugitive was making the rounds on base, because the subject — one Stephanie Garcia — appeared to resemble the teacher.

Some pieces fell into place right away. Court documents and a state police report showed us that schoolteacher Judy Young was also known as one Stephanie Ann Garcia, who allegedly walked out on probation for felonies in Florida back in 2000. Young said she had been a victim of identity theft around that time and that this woman was not her. Florida did not extradite her and Doña Ana County dropped its charges against her.

It was now clear this was a strange story. If you do some googling, you may find some fascinating news reports about innocent people arrested for crimes after their identities were stolen. (Here's a tip from me: Protect yourself against identity theft.) It is also the case that people who have achieved professional success and trust in their communities sometimes have unhappy chapters in their past.

Over several weeks, I researched court documents from criminal cases in Florida as well as New Mexico dating back to the 1990s. This is time-consuming and expensive work, and your subscriptions help pay for this.

We constructed a timeline covering more than 20 years, pored through court documents and police records and vetted claims made on an employment application from 2004, discovering a discrepancy in her work history that happened to coincide with Stephanie Garcia's legal problems in Florida.

Finally, we reported very carefully in our December story, keeping in mind the many unanswered questions and every person's right to a presumption of innocence when accused of a crime.

Ms. Young, who has been on personal leave since the arrest, is now addressing the warrant, as we reported in our recent follow-up story, based on court transcripts. Her next hearing, later this month, will require a personal appearance where a judge will decide whether to let her remain free on bond.

Estrada ends mayoral bid following Speak Easy license revocation

Local businessman Jason Estrada ended a bid for Las Cruces mayor hours after the Las Cruces City Council revoked the license for one of his businesses Tuesday, Feb. 8, denying an appeal from Estrada.

The business, Speak Easy, a CBD and cannabis-themed retailer, had its license revoked by the city Community Development Department in September after Estrada was charged with a cannabis-related felony. He allegedly sold cannabis to undercover law enforcement at Speak Easy.

Though Estrada has not been convicted, the city decided the charge was enough to warrant the revocation of the license.

"It's a violation of our own city code to allow a business, have a business or premise that allows crime to occur," Deputy City Attorney Robert Cabello said at the public hearing before the council Tuesday.

Speak Easy appealed the decision, delaying the revocation and putting the decison in the hands of the city council.

While Estrada's case was dismissed without prejudice Jan. 7, his attorney has said the state may seek a grand jury indictment.

Las Cruces Sun-News Reporter Michael McDevitt, who covers city and county government, has been following the story since September. He said it's one we'll continue to watch.

This story left more questions than answers in some ways, some of which I will attempt to resolve in the upcoming weeks. For one thing, this was the first business license revoked by the city in at least four years — possibly longer. We expect to figure out the last time something like this happened, including the precedent for revoking a business license on the basis of criminal suspicions.

Second, Estrada’s attorney, Matt Madrid, raised some precarious precedents possibly started by the council’s decision. Although Estrada has not been convicted of a crime, the city is acting as if a guilty verdict has been handed down — taking away his license for what they claim is the allowance of criminal activity on the premises. As we follow this story, we’ll seek to answer the authority by which the city can do something like this, as well as address potential due process concerns raised.

Finally, there are questions about the investigation. The undercover operation against Speak Easy appears to have been given high priority. Former metro narcotics agent Ryan Holguin testified to the council that he personally drove evidence to Albuquerque to be tested instead of waiting several months for results. Additionally, Madrid argued to the council that legal CBD was sold to undercover law enforcement — not cannabis. The lab tests completed by law enforcement were not presented to the council Tuesday.

While Councilor Johana Bencomo pointed out in the council meeting she would hope drug enforcement cops would be able to tell the difference between CBD and cannabis, it might be too early to rule out what would be a shocking development in this case.

NMSU conducts audit following faculty vote of no confidence: Here's what we learned

By late October 2021, faculty and students of New Mexico State University had had enough with university administration.

Both the student and faculty senates claimed they had no confidence in President John Floros and Provost Carol Parker and called on the NMSU regents to ask Chancellor Dan Arvizu to fire both of them. (They've both since been terminated.)

Those students and professors who were loudest alleged the top brass were bullies to, or at least dishonest with, those beneath them on the organizational chart, leading to low morale and retention within the university community.

The regents ordered their auditing committee to investigate five specific claims from faculty: misappropriation of university funds, unethical hiring and promotion practices, deliberate circumvention of due process, rejection of principles and practices of shared governance, and broader impacts of a systemic failure of leadership.

Within the three months it took the committee to probe the allegations, Parker was put on administrative leave and Floros announced he would be taking a year's sabbatical with no intention of returning to his role.

Shortly after regents and the chancellor had the audit in hand, Parker was let go permanently.

Miranda Cyr, the Sun-News' education reporter and a Report for America fellow, has been following this story closely since the issue arose.

Last week, NMSU released its audit in response to the Faculty Senate's vote of no-confidence. This is something I've been closely following for the majority of the school year. What started as discussions lead to votes, resolutions, on-campus protests and employment terminations.

Then the audit came out and I think a lot of people were disappointed. Most of the claims we unsubstantiated. And what was substantiated was — in the grand scheme of the claims — very minor. There was all this build-up, and it does seem like things are headed in the right direction, but I think most who were involved in the resolutions would say this isn't enough.

In talking with NMSU Professor Jamie Bronstein, she explained that the audit only evaluates what is legal. She said that hiring an exorbitant amount of upper administration is legal, but it may not be ethical, and that seems to be what the student and faculty senates are concerned about more than the legality of it all.

However, there seems to be progress being made. Chancellor Dan Arvizu is meeting more frequently with students and staff. With the dismissal of President John Floros and Provost Carol Parker, it will be interesting to see how the university functions with a slightly smaller upper admin team. I think that's something we'll see over time. I will be sure to cover it as it unfolds!

Scooter's Coffee, Drive-thru-only franchise, coming soon to Las Cruces

Scooter's Coffee, a drive-thru-only coffee franchise, is coming to Las Cruces in the coming months.

Las Cruces healthcare professionals Matt and Jamie Yeager will own the local franchises — the first in New Mexico. The Yeagers plan to build at least three Scooter's Coffee kiosks in town, though the locations have not yet been determined.

A franchise widely known around the Midwest, Scooter's has become one of the biggest drive-through brands in that area. It first opened in Bellevue, Nebraska in 1998. Since then, the brand states it has been committed to high-quality drinks, speed of service and good customer service, and has had over two decades of success.

Scooter's is now approaching 400 locations in 20 states. The first Las Cruces location is scheduled to open in May.

Our new intern from NMSU, Cielo Rodriguez — who also works for The Round Up — shared the story with our subscribers and readers. As it turned out, she happened to know someone from the small city of Bellevue, Nebraska, where the company started. She reached out to her for input. Here's how it went down, according to Cielo.

Talking to Matt and Jamie Yeager was a great experience. They actually seem excited and passionate about their new business endeavor. Getting to know more about them and the reasons why they wanted to open up a new business franchise was truly inspiring. When doing more research about the brand Scooter's Coffee, I found out that it was originally founded in Bellevue, Nebraska which I found cool.

I remembered that my good friend, Kaitlyn Fye lived there for most of her life, and is a student who now goes to Kansas State University. I met her around five years ago at a marching band competition and met with her again the following year at the Band Of America Super Regional competition in St. Louis, Missouri.

Getting to hear her speak about how she's loved Scooter's Coffee because she had a Scooter's Coffee in her hometown was so enlightening, and I enjoyed hearing her experiences. Getting her input felt like it truly belonged in the story. It only reminded me of how important all the connections I make as a person, and as a journalist really are.

'The Reporter's Notebook' podcast

In this week's The Reporter's Notebook podcast, I talk to Sun-News public safety reporter Justin Garcia and former reporter Bethany Brunelle-Raja about several unfortunate anniversaries we're marking this month. They are three of Doña Ana County’s biggest crimes of the past several decades — all of which mark anniversaries in the first half of February.

First, it’s been one year since the death of New Mexico State Police Officer Darian Jarrott, who was shot and killed by a motorist on Feb. 4, 2021 after conducting a traffic stop east of Deming while assisting Homeland Security Investigations. Jarrott was 28 years old.

Then, we talk about the abuse and murder of 5-month-old Brianna Lopez — Baby Brianna — who would have turned 20 years old on Valentine's Day this year.

Finally, we're joined by Anthony Teran as we mark the 32-year anniversary of the Las Cruces bowling alley massacre. Anthony's brother, Steven Teran, and his two young nieces — Paula and Valerie — died in the attack. It remains unsolved to this day — one of the largest unsolved mass shootings in the nation. I hope you'll give it a listen.

Listen to all of our podcasts HERE.

Damien Willis is a Lead Reporter for the Las Cruces Sun-News. He can be reached at 575-541-5443, dwillis@lcsun-news.com or @DamienWillis on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: White Sands teacher hides identity for 20 years, Speak Easy's license revoked, NMSU audit