ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A 36-year-old inmate died at the Metropolitan Detention Center after a medical emergency in custody.

The Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center said Julian Wilgress was in custody when staff called a medical emergency code at about 1 p.m. on April 28.

MDC said Wilgress was booked into the jail on April 27.

MDC personnel said a medical team from the University of New Mexico Hospital responded, but Wilgress died.

The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office came to the facility to investigate. MDC’s Office of Professional Standards is also investigating under standard protocol.

The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator will determine the official cause and manner of death.

This marks the second inmate death at MDC after Derrick Benavides died on Monday morning.

April 29, 2026

Update:  Last night, increased relative humidity and decreased fire activity aided response efforts on the Sparks Fire. Crews made good progress beginning to establish fireline around the perimeter. Threatened residences received structure protection throughout the night. The fire is zero percent contained. 

Today, fire activity is minimal and exhibiting creeping and smoldering behavior. Crews will continue their full suppression strategy to secure the perimeter with the goal of increasing containment. Air attack is on scene to support operations. The fire’s acreage grew to an estimate of 10,000 acres after an initial flyover this morning. However, ground crews will conduct more accurate mapping with GPS as operations allow.  

The Sparks Fire was discovered at 3:20 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28 near HWY 156 in Quay County. The cause of the fire is under investigation.  

Safety: The primary objective for the Sparks Fire is firefighter and public safety. Structures in the area remain threatened. The public should avoid the area of HWY 156 near milemaker 41 north of Hassell, due to ongoing fire operations.  

Evacuations / Closures: None in place.  

Weather: Currently 60 degrees F, 51% RH, east winds at 5-10 mph. Today sunny, highs near 76. South wind 5-10 mph. Tonight, a 20 percent chance of showers before midnight. 

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Acres: 10,000 estimated. 

Containment: 0% contained.      

Start Date / Time: 3.20 p.m. on Tuesday, April 26. 

Fuels: Grass, piñon-juniper. 

Cause: Under investigation. 

Location: HWY 156 mm41. 

Ownership: Private. 

Structure Threat: Multiple structures. 

Smoke: Individuals sensitive to wildfire smoke should take precautions and use the New Mexico Department of Health 5-3-1 Visibility Method to determine if it’s safe to be outside. Learn more at nmtracking.doh.nm.gov/environment/air/fireandsmoke.html. An interactive smoke map at fire.airnow.gov allows you to zoom into your area to see the latest smoke conditions. 

Resources: Forestry Division, Quay County Districts 1, 2, 3, 4; Quay County Emergency Management, Oregon Department of Forestry, Cochiti FD, City of Santa Fe FD, Sandoval FD, Multiple VFD including Valley, Forest Fire, Jordan, House, Grady, Broadview, Melrose, Tucumcari, Porter. Total Personnel: 95. 

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The Sparks Fire, Wednesday, April 29, looking west from the air. Credit: NM Forestry Division

RIO RANCHO, N.M. — We won’t know who New Mexico’s next governor will be until November, but you’ll be deciding who will be on that ballot in just five weeks.

When it comes to the race for governor there are 6 candidates. Tuesday, the community got more insight into their platforms during a forum held at Rio Rancho Public School headquarters.

They touched on a lot of topics: the economy, crime, healthcare and more but one in particular kept coming up: education. In last week’s forum in Santa Fe, they mainly focused on the economy.

Five candidates participated in the forum: Republicans Gregg Hull, Duke Rodriguez and Doug Turner and Democrats Deb Haaland and Sam Bregman. Independent candidate Ken Miyagishima did not participate.

All five candidates say when it comes to education, it’s an issue New Mexico is failing at and pointed to the fact that our state ranks last across the nation.

Hull and Turner both believe part of the answer is stopping what they called “social promotion” which means letting a child go to the next grade even if they don’t meet certain goal posts like reading.

“I’m going to be very, very focused on getting Career, Technical Education into all of our school districts, any school district that wants it, we need to be a partner with that and make sure that we’re meeting the needs of the workforce,” Hull said.

“We can’t just promote kids throughout the their school career, because we end up with a workforce that nobody can hire. So if we don’t focus on our children at all levels, we will be we will continue to fail,” Turner said.

Meanwhile, Rodriguez believes the answer is in offering more programs.

“You can’t have better students without taking care of your teachers, which includes funding their pension plan. We have got to go back to the basics and make our students value their education, make the parents realize the importance,” Rodriguez said.

Both Democrats Haaland and Bregman believe more intervention from educators is needed.

“Our kids need to read sooner. That’s why I want to put reading coaches in the classrooms and make sure that teachers can identify kids that need the help, so that we can make sure that they are ready to go on to the next grade, and that gives builds their confidence,” Haaland said.

“When a first and second grader isn’t up to that grade level, we need to rush in with ped, get them the help they need right away, so that we don’t end up in a situation where they’re at third grade not reading at grade level, at third grade, not doing math at that level,” Bregman said.

All five candidates will be on the primary ballot which will be held June 2.

The Republican and Democratic nominees will face independent Ken Miyagishima  — if he gets more than 14,000 signatures and files on June 25, per the Secretary of State’s office.