John Cardinale

Investigators analyze flight data to understand the crash between an American Airlines jet and a military helicopter and exactly what was going on before disaster struck.

911 calls KOAT obtained have shed some light on what may have happened at Bonanza Creek Ranch Thursday, when actor Alec Baldwin fired a gun killing a cinema photographer and injuring the director.

With early voting underway for the primaries, the race for Bernalillo County District Attorney is drawing attention. “The district attorney’s office is a powerful position,” KOAT Political Analyst Brian Sanderoff said. “The person who holds it will be a crime fighter. New Mexico’s voters right now are very concerned about crime.” With crime at the top of minds, both candidates, Damon Martinez and Sam Bregman, are the top earners for the primary. According to the New Mexico Secretary of Sta…

An update on a former Las Cruces High School teacher who admitted to fondling students. New Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled Patrick Howard will be placed back on probation. This comes after Attorney General Raul Torrez filed a complaint last Friday, asking the court to reinstate Howard’s probation. This move came after Target 7 told you how a Dona Ana County judge released Howard from his probation two years early. His victims were not notified when a judge held the hearing that released him. Un…

Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman and Sheriff John Allen have been frustrated for months with the Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center. They claim several dangerous kids who should have been processed into the facility were just returned home. The frustration prompted them to send a letter on Tuesday, a day after the juvenile facility would not book a teen who allegedly had a gun on a high school campus Monday. “They’re not being booked. Officers are being told we are not a…

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez announced Friday that he is filing a complaint to the state supreme court. The complaint claims Dona Ana County Judge Douglas Driggers, violated the Victims’ Rights Act and never should have released former Las Cruces High School teacher Patrick Howard early from his probation. “The New Mexico Department of Justice has taken this action not only because we believe the judge acted improperly and in violation of the law, but more importantly, because of the…

On Wednesday afternoon, Krishna Vemulapalli appeared in court. Vamulapalli, a therapist in Albuquerque, is accused of inappropriately touching a child who was his patient. A judge ordered Vemulapalli to stay in jail until his preventative detention hearing. At that hearing, a district court judge will decide if Vemulapalli will stay behind bars until trial. The accusations are having some parents questioning how they should pick a mental health therapist for their child to see. Deep dive: Tar…

A crib sits empty at a home in Deming. “I got to build a bear in remembrance of him,” Isabella Hernandez said as she looked into the empty crib. That bear, along with a few stuffed animals, is all Hernandez has left of her son Wyatt Franzoy. “He was always very happy, always smiling and giggling,” Hernandez said. On November 11, 2023, Wyatt’s father, William Franzoy, received a phone call he will never forget. “An officer told me that my son did not make it. I felt the worst pain you could…

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced Tuesday they want to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug. The proposal still needs to be reviewed by the White House. It would recognize the medical use of cannabis and acknowledge that it has less potential for abuse than some other drugs. So, what effect will this have on New Mexicans? Pat Davis the founder of Weeds a cannabis consulting firm has the answer. “What it really means for average New Mexicans is not much,” Davis said. “Yo…

The walls of Peterson Properties LLC. are covered with security video. “We have a thousand cameras,” Doug Peterson said. “Across 52 properties and there is more to do.” Peterson owns those properties and he said he needs to get up to 3,000 cameras. However, one of his locations has been causing problems. “The property we’re talking about is at Central and San Pedro it’s called Central Mercado,” Peterson said. “We have over 35 cameras just for that property.” Peterson has had to hire private sec…

The sound of baseball fills the air at a field in northwest Albuquerque. “It’s good to be out here,” Cade Webber said. “Not everybody can do it. I can’t take it for granted.” Across town at another baseball field, there is nothing but the sound of silence, as the Rio Grande baseball team remembers 17-year-old Isaac Venzor Prado.“It’s just sad because, you know, he was just running, and then he just collapsed,” said Tristan Mendoza. The sudden death of Prado has hit the baseball community in Alb…

In total, three Albuquerque police officers connected to an FBI investigation have resigned from the department. That investigation is looking into the DWI Unit and whether officers were being paid to miss court, so cases could get dismissed. But can the officers who resigned find another job in law enforcement? In New Mexico, there is something called a LEA-90. “This is a form that a law enforcement agency is supposed to use to report any of their certified officers who have committed an off…

Everyone has their favorite TV show.“Here we are at the ‘Ellen’ studio in Hollywood,” Phillip Paulos said while pointing to a photo of his son. That trip to Hollywood was a big deal to Paulos’ son for one reason. “He got to stand in Ellen’s monologue spot,” Paulos said. “Jack’s a huge Ellen fan. He’s 14. He’s a freshman. He’s autistic.” When Jack’s not watching re-runs of “Ellen,” he’s doing well in school. “He has a high GPA. He was awarded honor roll, the day before the incident,” Paulos s…

Looking at first-degree murder charges from 2018 to 2022 in Bernalillo County, Target 7 discovered that two-thirds of completed cases ended in a plea agreement, and on average, the suspect is sentenced to 14.5 years in prison. “We have a very high standard for first-degree murder,” Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman said. “The Supreme Court has articulated how much of a burden that is on the state to prove.” Most of those agreements were pleaded to second-degree murder with a maxi…

In court Thursday, Byers explained why he tried to escape from custody after his arrest.

The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office arrested Stephen Morgan Byers. The arrest came less than 24 hours after Target 7 reported on Byers’ criminal and scam history in the state.Byers faces six arrest warrants in Nevada and New Mexico for scamming people with home improvement fraud and operating as an unlicensed contractor. He was wanted by BCSO for allegedly stealing construction equipment. Target 7 found Byers had been committing the scams for nearly four decades across the southwest. Moments…

Mary Ann Arner and her family moved to Albuquerque in 1977. “Hal was a navigator for the Air Force,” Arner said. Arner’s husband is a decorated military man. But more importantly, a loving husband, who fixed things around the house. “He was very handy,” Arner said of her husband. Deep dive: Target 7 Investigates So, when Hal died 11 years ago, she needed someone to help her around the house. But a year ago that all seemed to have changed when Mary Ann met Stephen Morgan Byers. Byers ad…

Only 10 days are left in this year’s legislative session and some lawmakers at the Roundhouse are focusing on passing a bill targeting fentanyl use around kids. House Bill 106 aims to create penalties for parents who expose their children to fentanyl. “We have a fentanyl epidemic. It is horrific what is going on in the state,” Republican New Mexico State Rep. Stefani Lord said. That’s why Lord and Republican New Mexico state Sen. Crystal Diamond have introduced the bill to change state law.…

Target 7 is continuing to uncover Jeffery Epstein’s ties to New Mexico and is looking into a contact book that was released years ago. Those contacts were put in what is referred to by journalists as Epstein’s “Little Black Book.” The book was leaked by Epstein’s housekeeper and has been published on Amazon and in other media outlets like Business Insider and The New York Times. In total, more than 1,500 names, around 5,000 phone numbers, and thousands of home addresses. Within all of that ar…

One person has died after a shooting involving Albuquerque Police officers. The incident occurred Thursday afternoon. Police Chief Harold Medina said officers received a call from a man who said he was having a mental health crisis. The man stated that he was armed with a gun and needed help.Medina said officers arrived at the scene near McMahon Boulevard NW and Golf Course Road NW. Medina said after a period of negotiations, the man exited a vehicle and began walking around with the gun. “A…