Good morning, Las Cruces.

On Saturday, July 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., kids will join a free back-to-school skateboarding event at Radium Springs Community Center organized by the Doña Ana Village Association and Compas Skate Shop.

The event offers skateboarding, food trucks, music and community resources—aiming to keep children active and connected while the town skate park is under construction.

A Las Cruces man, Rudy Garcia, pleaded guilty to shooting a man during a fentanyl drug deal in 2022 and was sentenced to 19 and a half years in prison by a federal court—he fired his shotgun after believing the victim reached for a gun.

The Doña Ana District Attorney’s Office announced that Emily Portillo will serve seven years in prison after her high-speed driving under the influence of cannabis and alcohol on February 29, 2024—when her crash on Lohman Ave. killed Roy Parra.

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez and 15 other state attorneys general filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education to stop $1 billion in school-based mental health funding cuts — funds allocated under the Safer Communities Act after the Uvalde shooting in 2022 — arguing that the move defies the law and endangers programs that lower suicide risk and improve school attendance in New Mexico schools.

The New Mexico Hospital Association warned that the H.R.1 law signed on the Fourth of July cut Medicaid funds by about $566 million—reducing supplemental payments that help rural hospitals and affecting care for families.

Health experts also said that the law caps Medicaid patient payments, which may force commercial insurers to shoulder more costs over the next couple of years.

Music in the Park - Thee Locomotion Style and Satisfied

Enjoy the summer weather — Time not specified — Young Park — Free entry — Experience a vibrant afternoon of live music featuring local acts across various genres.

ORION 224 Live Concert

7-11 p.m. — El Camino — Ticket info not provided — Experience an exciting night of live music with ORION 224 and special guests.

Footloose Youth Edition by A.C.T.

7-8 p.m. — Rio Grande Theatre — Tickets available — Experience the electrifying youth rendition of Footloose with the teens of Bomont as they kick up their Sunday shoes.