New Mexico
Visas restored for 9 New Mexico State University international students
Trump administration restores visa registrations for foreign students
The Trump administration restored visa registrations for potentially thousands of foreign students.
Nine international students at New Mexico State University have had their visas restored amid an apparent change of course by President Donald Trump’s administration.
The visas for nine students who had their visas revoked, have been reinstated, according to NMSU. An immigration termination or violation doesn’t impact a student’s enrollment or academic standing at NMSU, so the students affected were not disenrolled.
NMSU recently reported the students had their visas revoked as a result of executive orders issued by Trump.
The university initially confirmed that six students had their visa revoked in April, but the university could not disclose the reason. However, since Trump took office, there have been more than 4,700 students deleted from the Student Exchange and Visitor Information System (SEVIS) database.
In a message to the campus community, NMSU President Valerio Ferme said that the revoked visas stem from the “result of infractions related to current law or outdated records,” not protests or social media posts.
Multiple universities have reported some international students discovered their visas were canceled in SEVIS via an unexpected text or email. Universities and the government use the database to track foreign students and students rely on it for their authorization to remain in the country. The terminations sparked more than 100 lawsuits.
Over 200 students removed from SEVIS have won court orders temporarily barring the administration from taking actions against them, according to a Reuters count.
A U.S. District Court in New Mexico ruled in favor of a Ghanaian doctoral student at New Mexico Tech last week, who challenged the abrupt termination of his F-1 student status without explanation. The Court granted the temporary restraining order requested by his legal team, allowing him to maintain his academic standing while his case proceeds.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico and Huffman, Wallace & Monagle LLC are representing the student, referred to as, K.O.D. in the case.
“(The April 23, 2025) ruling sends a clear message that the government cannot arbitrarily target international students,” said Rebecca Sheff, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of New Mexico. “This is an important first step toward justice for K.O.D. and potentially hundreds of other international students facing similar situations.”
LAS CRUCES, N.M (KFOX14/CBS4) — A gun-tracking program that uses shell casings to connect shootings is already helping investigators link crimes in Doña Ana County, according to new numbers released by the New Mexico Department of Justice.
The effort is part of New Mexico’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center, which uses ballistic evidence such as shell casings to track guns believed to be used in multiple crimes. The program relies on the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, or NIBIN, a national database that compares ballistic evidence to determine whether shell casings may have come from the same weapon.
In April, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez described how the technology can connect cases across jurisdictions.
“There may be a shooting that occurs in Deming that’s actually connected to a crime gun that’s recovered in Las Cruces. We may find shell casings in Silver City that are connected to something that happened in T or C,” Torrez said.
Four months into the program, the Department of Justice said 210 bullet casings have been analyzed in Doña Ana County. Those casings helped link 32 incidents to 13 guns.
Jordan Salas reports on New Mexico DOJ data: Shell-casing tracking links shootings in Doña Ana County (Credit: KFOX14)
Statewide, more than 700 casings have been entered into the system, connecting 74 shootings to 31 guns.
One person reacting to the numbers said, “That’s crazy. Honestly, all those shootings all coming from that little amount of weapons is crazy.”
New Mexico officials say the system is designed to help law enforcement share information faster and build cases more efficiently.
Also in April, Doña Ana County Sheriff Kim Stewart pointed to a local case she said the technology helped resolve quickly.
“We resolved a homicide with a suspect arrest in four days. We know that those casings may lead to another 1 or 2 incidents in another city,” Stewart said.
Some residents said the technology alone will not solve gun violence, but they see it as a step forward. One person said, “I mean, growing up, like hearing gunshots in the distance. That wasn’t something crazy. I have stories of, like, friends who’ve gone to parties that had guns go off there. So, yeah, I would say guns are a problem there.”
Another person said, “I would think that it’s a good thing. I’m personally like, just anything to help the gun crimes, you know?”
KFOX14/CBS4 contacted Las Cruces police and the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office to ask how the leads are being used in local investigations, but we are awaiting a response.
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- Who: New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez brought a lawsuit against Meta Platforms Inc.
- Why: The state claims Meta misrepresented harms to minors and created a public nuisance through its social media platforms.
- Where: The lawsuit is pending in New Mexico state court.
- How to get help: Has social media impacted the mental health of you or your child? You may qualify to join a social media lawsuit against the platform.
New Mexico’s attorney general is asking a state court to order Meta to pay approximately $3.7 billion to address what the state describes as a “public nuisance” caused by the company’s social media platforms.
The request comes after a jury previously found Meta misrepresented the risks its platforms — including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — pose to underage users. The jury also imposed a $375 million penalty in the first phase of the trial.
The case has now moved into a second phase, where the court will determine what additional remedies, if any, Meta must provide.
According to the state, the proposed $3.712 billion abatement plan would fund a 15-year effort to address the alleged harms caused by Meta’s platforms. The plan includes funding for public education, school resources, law enforcement support and mental health services for children affected by issues, such as online bullying and sexual exploitation.
“This request recognizes the scope of the public nuisance that Meta has caused,” counsel for the state argued in court.
The lawsuit alleges Meta concealed or downplayed the extent of harmful activity on its platforms while publicly portraying them as safe for younger users.
Meta disputes liability, challenges proposed abatement plan
Meta denies the allegations and argues there is no legal basis for the sweeping relief requested by the state.
Attorneys for the company contend the proposed abatement plan does not directly address or stop the alleged harmful conduct and instead seeks compensation for downstream effects.
“What no court has ever allowed … is payment for the downstream effects,” Meta’s counsel argued, describing the request as “damages masquerading as something else.”
The court is expected to hear additional testimony during the second phase of the trial before determining whether to approve any form of injunctive relief or financial remedies.
In March, a California jury found Meta and Google liable for mental health harms suffered by plaintiff Kaley G.M., who became addicted to Instagram and YouTube as a child, awarding $6 million in damages, including $3 million in compensatory damages and $3 million in punitive damages.
What do you think about the claims against Meta in this case? Let us know in the comments.
The state is represented by Raul Torrez of the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General and Donald Migliori, Linda Singer, Michael Pendell and David Ackerman of Motley Rice LLC.
The Meta lawsuit is New Mexico v. Meta Platforms Inc., et al., Case No. D-101-CV-2023-02838, in the First Judicial District Court of New Mexico.
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