Esquire Lounge faces deadline today in lawsuit
Andrea Egger
Staff Writer
GALLUP — Attorneys for the Esquire Discount Liquor &
Lounge have until 5 p.m. today to respond to the lawsuit filed
in April by the Ray Hobb family.
Farmington attorney Thomas Hynes said Tuesday that although an
answer to a civil complaint is usually due 30 days after the complaint
is filed, the attorneys for Wayne Radosevich and the Esquire asked
for an extension. They will have to file an answer today.
Hynes had few comments on the case, which centered on the death
of Hobb, his wife, Christine, and their 8-month-old daughter,
Safawntyra. The vehicle Ray Hobb drove was struck by the vehicle
driven by Johnny Caballero during a high-speed pursuit with police
March 13, 2000.
"I don't like to try these things in the newspaper,"
Hynes said.
He added at this point in the action, the defense doesn't know
a whole lot about the case.
"Investigations are being conducted. We're gathering information
at this stage," Hynes said.
The bar is being sued for wrongful death and for being a public
nuisance, according to the complaint, filed by attorney Ted Barudin
of Albuquerque, and Gallup attorneys William Keeler and Henry
Howe.
Keeler said Wednesday he doesn't have any comment until he's seen
the response to the complaint.
In April, Barudin castigated the Esquire, describing the actions
of staff in serving intoxicated people as "outrageous"
and describing the bar's reputation as "notorious."
The charge against the bar is that Caballero drank at the Esquire
and was obviously intoxicated when bar staff gave him more alcohol.
Bars are supposed to be responsible and not serve to intoxicated
people, Barudin said.
Radosevich didn't respond to a call for comment Tuesday.
But in an interview in April, he called the charges ridiculous.
He said the bar has videotape proof that Caballero didn't enter
the bar March 13.
Caballero reportedly picked up his sister at the bar. Radosevich
said Caballero had been banned from the bar for the past five
years because of fights he had at the bar.
"We do not serve to intoxicated people here," Radosevich
said.
In a March 28, 2000, issue of the Independent, Caballero's sister,
Margaret, said she and her brother's other passenger,
Carmelita Jojola, were with Johnny Caballero at the Esquire before
Johnny Caballero decided they needed to leave. Margaret Caballero
and Jojola both begged him to stop racing from the police moments
before the accident occurred.
Radosevich blamed police for the accident because they have restrictions
for hot pursuit and didn't follow them. According to police reports
at the time, the pursuit began because Caballero had no headlights
on that night.
Caballero wouldn't pull over when police tried to stop him. The
Hobb family also sued the city for wrongful death and settled
for an undisclosed amount of money in Ocbober.
Barudin also blamed the city and said the police should have stopped
the chase.
But that doesn't let the Esquire off the hook. Barudin and the
co-attorneys attached several documents including citations against
the bar for serving minors and serving intoxicated people, with
cases dating back to 1985.
The most recent was a few weeks, Jan. 13, 2000, before the accident.
On that date, the Radoseviches and the state entered into an agreement
in which the owners of the bar paid $1,000 to the state for two
citations.
In one citation, they were accused of permitting someone to leave
the bar with an open container of alcohol. In another instance,
the bar was cited for being a public nuisance.
Wayne and Mary Radoseviches' signatures appear on the document
as agreeing to the settlement and waiving an administrative hearing
on the charges.
Radosevich said in April that he doesn't remember paying the fee
or signing the agreement.
He said any time he's been cited for violations of the liquor
laws, the charges have been dismissed. In order to renew a liquor
license, Radosevich said an owner cannot have any outstanding
citations against the establishment.
"I've been in this business for 30 years," he said.
Radosevich said he feels sorry for the Hobb family but believes
the police were solely at fault.
The plaintiffs in the suit are Marie Cornfield, Christine Hobb's
mother;Nelsonja Bastion, guardian ad litem for the surviving children
Sharona Hobb, Latoya Hobb, Rhotasha Hobb, Raynelda Hobb and Rayvonda
Hobb and Zeita Mae Begay, the sister of Ray Hobb. The surviving
children are ages 4 to 17.
The lawsuit quotes the McKinley Area Strategic Alliance Against
Substance Abuse as saying in a Sept. 24, 1998, letter to then-District
Attorney Forrest Buffington to "rid our community of this
problem outlet." At that time, Buffington was called upon
to find the Esquire a public nuisance.
Buffington turned the charges over to the state Alcohol and Gaming
Division. On Dec. 15, 1998, the Esquire and the state reached
a compromise agreement regarding the above claims in which a fine
was waived provided the bar did not receive any more citations
for liquor law violations.
The 2000 compromise agreement came after two more citations for
liquor law violations on Jan. 6, 1999, and July 10, 1999, according
to documents.
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Vintage cars roll through Gallup
James Staley
Staff Writer
GALLUP — Swan hood ornaments made of chrome, wooden wheel spokes
and leather hood straps were just some of the unique features of the
vintage roadsters that cruised along Coal Avenue on Wednesday during
the 2001 History Channel
Great Race.
The Great Race is an annual transcontinental rally race for pre-1960
vehicles. Rally racing differs from speed racing because racers battle
the clock as they test their endurance. Rally drivers must finish
sections of the course in a specific amount of time every second over
or under that time is a point deduction.
This year's race, the 19th annual, started June 17 and traces a secret
and mostly backroad path from Atlanta, Ga., to Pasadena, Calif. Limited
vehicle modifications are allowed for the 4,000-mile, 13-state journey.
During the race $275,000 in prize money is awarded to top racers in
several categories.
Gallup served as a lunch stop on Day 10 of the two-week event, a rest
during the leg that takes the drivers from Farmington to Flagstaff.
"We love this community," Great Race founder and CEO Tom
McRae said. "Gallup is very colorful." Gallup was a pit
stop two years ago.
At 11 a.m. a three-block section of Coal Avenue was closed and camera-wielding
citizens lined the curbs, trying to get a good vantage point. Local
vendors displayed goods and radio station vans blasted tunes as race
officials set up for the show.
The program bursted with red, white and blue flavor. Billowing American
flags surrounded the main gateway that the cars roared under before
parking along the street. Veterans, some of them Code Talkers, sat
on front-row chairs and were honored before racers arrived. The U.S.
Navy Ceremonial Band performed several patriotic numbers to the crowd's
delight.
By the time cars coasted in, several thousand people had crowded the
downtown area.
"Half the county must be here. It's nice," said driver Curtis
Graf, who sits in first place and has participated in every Great
Race.
The 106-vehicle fleet, worth an estimated $3 million, is made of a
sprawling array of makes and models. Buicks, Dodges, Fords, Cadillacs
and Chevrolets were common but there were also several rare automobiles.
A 1925 Rickenbacker, 1910 Hudson, 1932 Nash, 1948 Packard and a 1956
Studebaker all competed.
The field was not limited to cars. There were also trucks, jeeps and
even a 1938 Kenworth big rig for onlookers to admire.
"Old cars are magic," said McRae, who owns two vintage vehicles.
"They give people an attitude adjustment and make them smile."
Fans are not the only ones grinning. The drivers and navigators seemed
to enjoy the warm receptions they receive.
"Meeting people is the best part," said second-place navigator
Gary Kuck.
Kuck and driver Rex Gardner are two-time winners of the Great Race.
They won consecutive titles in 1998 and 1999.
"We plan on winning again," Kuck said as his partner repaired
a minor throttle problem. They man a 1917 Hudson Indy Racer. The 84-year-old
car has an aluminum body and can travel up to 102 mph.
Kuck's and Gardner's plans may be foiled by Graf and his navigator
Bruce Gezon, who won in 1995. The two pilot a cherry red and maroon
1934 Ford Roadster. "We're gonna win," said Graf, a Great
Race Hall of Fame member.
Those in the front seats are not the only ones eligible to win prize
money. Three cities will be awarded $5,000 to go toward public libraries.
The cities presenting the most enthusiastic receptions as judged by
drivers and navigators will earn the money for cities in pit stop,
lunch stop and overnight stop categories. Gallup is competing against
12 other cities.
The Great Race is scheduled to end June 30 in Pasadena. More than
120,000 fans have welcomed the racers during their trek through 44
cities.
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Man left for dead is ID'd
Andrea Egger
Staff Writer
GALLUP — Police have identified a man who was beaten and left
for dead behind Cowboy's Saloon May 10. His name is Arthur Thomas
Wills, 49.
Gallup Police Chief of Detectives Brian Guillen said the man has obviously
been living on the streets and had no address. He was born in Kentucky.
"The nurse said it looked like, to her, he was the muscular type,
the real tough living type. Like he was in a lot of fights and stayed
in shape living in the streets," Guillen said.
He had no idea whether the man was living on the streets of Gallup
for a long time or if he was just passing through. There were no further
Gallup Police reports on him.
The Gallup Police have not been able to interview him yet. He is drifting
in and out of consciousness at St. Vincent Hospital's rehabilitation
unit in Santa Fe.
The detectives have learned that he is talking a small amount, but
he has amnesia, and doesn't remember his name or why he is in the
hospital. Hospital spokesman Alan Bleiweiss said Tuesday that Wills
is in stable condition. Bleiweiss would not comment further.
But he said that he contacted Wills' nurse, who said Wills was not
in any condition to be interviewed.
Wills was spotted by a man collecting cans behind Cowboy's that Thursday
morning. He was lying near a dumpster, bleeding and unconscious.
He had obviously been beaten, but no weapons or suspects were found
at the scene. He had no identification on him.
Hospital staff at Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital determined
he had bleeding in the brain and would require brain surgery. Since
there were no neurosurgeons available in Albuquerque hospitals, staff
at Rehoboth McKinley Christian Hospital determined he would be flown
to St. Vincent's Hospital in Santa Fe, where he underwent brain surgery.
Wills was unidentified and unconscious for weeks at the hospital,
where he was listed in critical condition.
Guillen said police identified Wills by having his fingerprints taken
in Santa Fe, then forwarded to the Special Processing Division of
the FBI in Quantico. He was identified because he has done civil service
for some branch of the military.
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Padres pick up one run win over D-backs
Abelita Rose Freeland
Staff Sports Writer
THOREAU — Once the Padres took a one run lead against the Diamondbacks
they kept it to take a 5-4 win in the Major division in the Thoreau
Little League at Giant Field on Wednesday evening.
Pitching also played a major role throughout the game with 27 strikeouts
and seven walks combined from the pitchers from each team.
Padre's Nick Elkins took the pitching win with 15 strikeouts, five
walks and three hits.
In the top of the first inning, Elkins held the Diamondbacks by striking
out the first three batters.
T.J. Rousseau led off for the Padres with a double to center field
in the bottom of the first inning. The next two batters were struck
out and Elkins followed with a single. Both batters were left stranded
with the next batter struck out looking.
The Diamondbacks scored two runs in the top of the first inning.
Sean Stotler led off with a double to center field and Lorenzo Kenneth
followed with a walk. Both later stole home when the catcher overthrew
the ball at third. Maliki Begay was the last to take base on balls
before Elkins struck out the next three batters looking.
Behind 2-0, the Padres scored three runs in the bottom of the second
inning.
A double by Joe Wylie led things off for the Padres before Diamondbacks
pitcher Stotler struck out the next two batters.
Ryan George then followed with a walk before T.J. Rousseau took his
first pitch to left field for an RBI single. Dylan Madewell had the
last hit of the inning with a two RBI single up the middle of the
field. Diamondbacks first baseman Angelo Bonito made a fielder's choice
for the last out.
In the top of the third inning, the Diamondbacks took a 4-3 scoring
two runs.
Kevin Kenneth led off with a single then stole around to third base
and Gerald Johnson then took a walk. Both were hit in an a two RBI
single to center by Stotler. Two runners were left on base when the
next two batters struck out looking.
The Padres scored two more runs in the bottom of the third inning
to redeem the lead on a two out rally.
Diamondback's pitcher Stotler made the first two outs out when he
caught a solid line drive and then struck out the next batter.
Wylie followed with a triple to center and Dillon Elkins had an RBI
hit and made it third when the right field overthrew the ball at second.
J.C. Cotant followed with an RBI double before the Stotler struck
the last batter out.
Defense held both teams up to the top of the sixth inning.
In the top of the fourth inning, Padre's Elkins struck out the first
two batters and then made a play at first for the last out.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, T.J. Rousseau was left stranded
on a single when Stotler struck out the next three batters.
The Diamondbacks were held in the top of the fifth inning on the first
three batters.
Padre's Elkins made a play at first and struck out the next batters.
The third out was made when the ball bounced off the batter and hit
him after he swung and hit the ball.
In the bottom of the fifth, Stotler stuck out two and Bonito snatched
a line drive to make the play at first.
The Diamondbacks were held in the top of the sixth inning when Elkins
struck out three batters.
Diamondbacks Stotler registered the loss with 12 strikeouts, two walks
and nine hits. He also led at bats going 2-for-3.
Kenneth had the only other hit for the Diamondbacks.
Padre's T.J. Rousseau led at the plate going 3-for-3. Wylie hit 2-for-3.
The following have made the Thoreau Little League's 2001 Major All-stars,
which will play on July 10, 2001 at Mile High Little League Stadium
in Albuquerque: J.C. Cotant, Nick Elkins, Gerald Johnson, Cales Mariano,
Nathan Morales, Ronaldin Saunders, William Sauter, Sean Stotler, T.J.
Rousseau, Marcus Toya, Jesus Quinoes, Zachary Willie. Replacements
are Latricia House and Robin Saunders.
The team will be managed by Les Quintana, coached by John Chase and
Ron Willie is the assistant coach.
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City couple wage bitter custody battle
Andrea Egger
Staff Writer
GALLUP — Attorneys were fighting tooth and nail Wednesday to
decide if 506 hours deprived of a parent's children was enough to
constitute malice.
After hours of testimony, Magistrate Rhoda Hunt decided that it was.
Hunt found probable cause to send Narciso Baca III, 32, of 301 Country
Club Drive, to District Court for trial over charges of custodial
interference. Baca is a custodian for McKinley County.
His ex-wife, Melissa Martinez, testified it was a total of 506 hours
that Baca kept their children, Narciso IV, 6, and Marissa, 3, at his
home contrary to a District Court order. The hours were divided up
into 23 occasions over a period of a year.
The court order for custody gave them joint custody of their children,
with the children living with Marti nez except for Tuesdays and Thurs
days, from 7:30 to 8 p.m. both days, and every other weekend, from
7:30 a.m. Friday to 7 or 8 p.m. Sunday. The children spend those times
with their father...
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Eastern Navajos try to solve checkerboard maze
Larry Di Giovanni
Staff Writer
GALLUP — President Theodore Roosevelt tried to do it by executive
order for the Eastern Navajos, and so did a U.S. senator from New
Mexico, Republican Bronson Cutting, before he died in a 1935 plane
crash.
Their objective was to consolidate Navajo land holdings in the 3 million
acre Eastern Navajo Agency, where alternating tracts of Navajo trust
land, Navajo family-owned allotments, U.S. government reserve property,
taxable tribal fee land, state land, Bureau of Land Management property,
railroad property and other public lands create a jurisdictional maze.
The Eastern Agency has the Navajo Nation's greatest concentration
of Navajos who own 160-acre allotments, which lends to the overall
"checkerboard" effect.
Navajos have long since decided to resolve many of the related consolidation
issues themselves. Starting Wednesday and continuing through Friday,
representatives from 31 Eastern Agency chapters are meeting with state,
McKinley County and federal officials with the long-term goal of agreeing
upon an Eastern Navajo Land Consolidation Plan...
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Driver faces charges in tot's death
Andrea Egger
Staff Writer
GALLUP — The District Attorney's Office has filed vehicular
homicide charges against a Gallup man after a crash on the interstate
killed a 3-month-old baby Sunday.
The Eleventh Judicial District Attorney's Office also filed three
counts of causing great bodily harm, tampering with evidence and
aggravated driving while intoxicated against Ferman Silago, 23,
of Gallup.
Kirsten Fred died in her mother's arms in the crash, which occurred
at 5:53 a.m. Sunday, according to a McKinley County Sheriff's Department
report.
Silago was driving a pickup truck west on Interstate 40 when the
truck rear-ended the two-door car driven by Chad Begaye, 27, of
Fort Defiance, Ariz., one mile east of Thoreau. The impact caused
the truck to ride on top of the car for a few feet before disengaging...
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Indian Market ready to open
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — A ceremony to honor the completion of construction
of a modern Indian market will be held at 9 a.m. Tuesday in downtown
Window Rock.
Contractors for Sandia Oil Company have been working extended schedules
for the past two months in the drive to finish the three-building
complex for the Ch'i Hoo Tso Indian Market Place by July 4. The
market is located at the northwest corner of Arizona Route 264 and
Bureau of Indian Affairs Navajo Route 12 on the 6-acre site of the
old dusty Window Rock Flea Market.
Many of the old market's tenants, evicted by the Fort Defiance Regional
Business Development Office so the modern complex could be built,
plan to return, tribal officials have said. During the interim the
past year they have operated from a temporary site just to the west.
One part of the new facility will include paved parking, 60 vendor
spaces, an open-air pavilion, picnic tables, public restrooms...
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Delegate says vote 'means nothing'
Jim Maniaci
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — Navajo Nation Council Delegate Edison Wauneka
said a June 14 story in the Independent incorrectly combined a flyer
about reducing the size of the council body with his attempt to
call a special session on how many votes would be needed to approve
the June 19 referendum to forbid the tribe from taking over the
Navajo Area Indian Health Services hospitals and clinics.
Wauneka said he was seeking delegates' signatures to call a special
session to do something about the referendum situation, but that
someone else distributed the flyer about reducing the council from
88 to 24 members. That was the topic of a controversial referendum
last September.
Wauneka (Crystal, Red Lake, Sawmill chapters) obtained five members'
signatures and needed 40 more for a special session to be called.
Wauneka said that after the story was published delegates did not
want to sign his petition...
Shiprock man guilty of disembowelment
Larry Di Giovanni
Staff Writer
ALBUQUERQUE — A 34-year-old Shiprock man was found guilty by
a federal jury of two counts of felonious assault that
resulted in the victim having his bowels severed, U.S. Attorney
Norman C. Bay announced Tuesday.
On Monday the jury, after three days of trial before U.S. District
Judge C. LeRoy Hansen, deliberated less than one hour before finding
Dominick Harris Biggs guilty of assault resulting in serious bodily
injury and assault with a dangerous weapon.
A sentencing date has not been set as of Tuesday, said U.S. Department
of Justice spokeswoman Patricia Chavez-Arguello.
Biggs faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years imprisonment
and a $250,000 fine on each count.
The name of the victim was not released...
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Deaths
Hanna Silversmith
WINDOW ROCK — Services for Hanna Silversmith, 22, will be held
at 10 a.m. Friday, June 29 at the Community Bible Church in Tse Bonito.
Larry Harper will officiate. Burial will follow in Red Lake, Ariz.
Silversmith died June 23 in Warm Springs, Ore. She was born Oct. 23,
1978 in Fort Defiance into the Many Goats People Clan for the Red
Running into the Water People Clan.
Silversmith attended Window Rock High and Central High School. She
worked as a sales clerk. Her hobbies included dancing and reading.
Survivors include her son Miguel Seth Westbrook of Fort Defiance;
daughter Alexis Angel Mendivel of Window Rock; parents Sadie Jodie
of Window Rock and Larry Silversmith of Phoenix; brothers Holus Silversmith
and Miles Zane Jodie of Window Rock, Shawn Jodie of Pinon, Ariz.,
and Shonto Silversmith of Mesa, Ariz.; sisters Holly Silversmith of
Phoenix and
Melalena Yazzie and Morgan Yazzie, both of Window Rock; and grandparent
Kee Jodie.
She was preceded in death by grandmother Helen Jodie.
Pallbearers will be Hollis Silversmith, Larry Silversmith, Rex Yazzie,
Lambert Benally, Kim Wauneka and Austin Wauneka
The family will receive relatives and friends after the services mile
southwest of the Window Rock Civic Center.
Cope Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
Florence L. Whitman
CHURCH ROCK — Services for Florence Whitman, 91, will be held
at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 30, at Rollie Mortuary Palm Chapel. Burial
will follow on private family land, Church Rock.
Whitman died June 22 in Church Rock. She was born Feb. 17, 1910, in
Springstead into the Edge Water People Clan for the Bitter Water People
Clan.
Whitman attended Rehoboth Mission School, graduating in 1931. She
was a secretary for the Church Rock Chapter House from 1931 to 1971.
In 1957 she became a pastor and was the pastor for the Church of God
from 1968-90. She worked as a nursing assistant and was a rug weaver.
Survivors include her daughter, Betty Stump of Church Rock; brother,
Jerry Livingston; sisters, Adeline Livingston and Alice Sam, both
of Springstead; six grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren.
Whitman was preceded in death by her husband, Kenneth Whitman; parents,
Pete and Tullie Livingston; daughter, Marie Silversmith; brothers,
Charlie Livingston, Glen Livingston and Willie Livingston; and sister,
Nasbah Sam.
Pallbearers will be Raymond Barney, Edwin Brown, Harold Lee, Wendell
Mariano, Glenn Stump and Midge The Boy.
Rollie Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
Lynn Stewart Edsitty
PREWITT — Services for Lynn Edsitty, 47, will be held at 10 a.m.
Friday, June 29, at Assembly of God, Prewitt. Evangelist Angela Begay
will officiate. Burial will follow at Grants City Cemetery.
Edsitty died June 23 in South Chavez. He was born Dec. 12, 1953, in
Rehoboth into the Salt People for the Start of Red Streaked People.
Edsitty attended elementary and high school in Thoreau. He was self-employed
as a silversmith and artifacts maker. His hobbies include cleaning
and cooking.
Survivors include his sons, Wayne Edsitty and Toby Edsitty, both of
Prewitt and Cowel Edsitty of Mentmore; daughters, Connie Edsitty of
Grants, Bonnie Edsitty and Claralyn, both of Prewitt; brother, Arnold
Edsitty of Prewitt; sisters, Pearlie Morgan, Clara Willie, Lorinda
Hudson, Helena Mescale, Karen Craig and Priscilla Hudson, all of Prewitt;
and seven grandchildren.
Pallbearers will be Wayne Edsitty, Toby Edsitty, Tommy Morgan, Kasz
Abeita Sr., Phillip Chapo Jr. and Herman Abeita.
Cope Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
James William Nystrom
GRANTS — Services for James Nystrom, 78, will be held at 10 a.m.
Saturday, June 30, at Grants Mortuary Chapel. The Rev. Garland Moore
will officiate. Cremation will follow after services.
Visitation will be held from 4-6 p.m. Friday, June 29, at Grants Mortuary.
Nystrom died June 25 in Grants. He was born Nov. 5, 1922 in Crosby,
N.D.
Nystrom served in the U.S. Army and Air Force during World War II.
He was awarded the Purple Heart. He was a member
of the Grants-Milan VFW Post 3221 and the American Legion Post 60.
His hobbies were hunting and fishing.
Survivors include his sons, James A. Nystrom of Hillsboro, Ore., Tom
Nystrom of Farmington and Fred L. Nystrom of Bonners Ferry, Idaho;
daughter, Diana J. Weddle of Plano, Texas; brother, Bob Nystrom of
Boise, Idaho; nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Nystrom was preceded in death by his parents, Carl Fredrick and Eva
Ketchum Nystrom.
Pallbearers will be friends.
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