New Mexico jail director charged with marijuana possession

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico jail director is accused of purchasing marijuana from undercover sources on four separate occasions this year. The Las Cruces Sun-News reports (http://bit.ly/2teGPd8 ) 54-year-old Dona Ana County Detention Center Director Christopher Barela was placed on leave Friday after being charged with four counts of possession of marijuana. The misdemeanor drug charges come more than a year and a half after Barela was arrested by sheriff's detectives on fraud and embezzlement charges in a case that was eventually dismissed for lack of evidence. A summons ordering Barela to appear in Doña Ana County Magistrate Court will likely be issued at a later date. ___ Information from: Las Cruces Sun-News, http://www.lcsun-news.com