Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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TEXICO - Two years, a pandemic and a change of venue. But the Logan Longhorns were back like they never left. The defending champion Longhorns made it two straight titles in the Eastern Plains Athletic Conference girls bracket, using a series of timely runs to outlast top-seeded Fort Sumner 42-36 Saturday night at the Texico Sports Arena. Kyra Conway had 19 points to lead all scorers, including five points in a 9-0 Logan run that bridged the third and fourth quarters and gave the Longhorns the...
The Public Education Commission on Wednesday suspended the five board members for Floyd Municipal Schools for voting to disregard COVID-19 protocols for the upcoming school year. The department also reinstated superintendent Damon Terry, stating in its release Terry refused to carry out the board’s wishes. The board placed Terry on paid administrative leave on Aug. 2. Board President Leon Nall told The News the board did not have a disagreement with Terry and placed him on leave to protect him. Suspended along with Nall were board members J...
CLOVIS — Handing a first-time offender 182 days in jail for a petty misdemeanor is a rarity. But the state argued the position and public trust afforded to Chris McCasland justified it, and District Judge Drew Tatum agreed Monday afternoon by giving the former Roosevelt County sheriff’s deputy the maximum sentence for possession of stolen property. McCasland, convicted in a Feb. 21 bench trial, attended in person with assisting counsel Tye Harmon, while defense attorney Dean Border, Chief Deputy District Attorney Brian Stover and three spe...
CLOVIS - Alijah Jasper was scheduled to come into the world Jan. 4 through a C-section delivery at Plains Regional Medical Center. He had other plans, and instead arrived at 8:51 a.m. Friday as PRMC's first baby of 2021. Alijah, who weighed 6 pounds, 2.9 ounces and measured 19'3/4" at birth, is the first male child in the family of Andruw and Beverly Jasper of Logan. He joins his 2-year-old sister Azariah and 12-year-old twin sisters Aailyah and April. The couple knew a boy was coming after the...
SANTA FE — The New Mexico Supreme Court, in a 3-1 decision, ordered two former Portales daycare owners be granted release from prison pending an appeal on their 2019 convictions. Sandi and Mary Taylor, former owners of the Taylor Tots Daycare, were sentenced to 30 and 36 years, respectively, for reckless child abuse. The charges were in connection to the death of 22-month-old Maliyah Jones and injuries to then 2-year-old Aubri Loya. Prosecutors believe the two girls were left in a hot car for about 2 hours, 40 minutes while under the care of t...
PORTALES — A civil suit brought by a Logan teacher and coach who was dismissed three years ago will see another delay before reaching a jury. After a 78-minute virtual hearing Thursday morning in Portales’ district court, Judge Donna Mowrer granted attorney Warren Frost the opportunity to submit an amended complaint against Logan superintendent Dennis Roch to include teacher Dallas Valentine for a charge of intentional infliction of emotional distress. The jury trial was set to begin Sept. 28 but will be pushed to April 26-30 at the Quay Cou...
CLOVIS - Hundreds of political conservatives gathered in Clovis on Saturday, focused on turning New Mexico into a more conservative state. Representatives from various groups, most prominently Cowboys for Trump and Bikers for Trump, dealt with near-triple-digit heat to attend what was called the High Plains Freedom Ride to push for the re-election of President Donald Trump and push back against Democrats who hold every statewide and federal office in New Mexico. A planned rally drew national...
CLOVIS — Hello, Curry County Expo. See you next year, Curry County Fair. Curry County commissioners said both things, and plenty more during a 45-minute conversation in a Wednesday special meeting. Commissioners said they felt their hands were tied by the prospect of continued mass gathering restrictions for a fair that normally draws more than 25,000 people over five days, and unanimously approved two motions: • Postponement of the fair to 2021 due to limitations on gatherings pursuant to state public health orders. • Schedule a Curry Count...
CLOVIS — Independence Day fireworks, courtesy of your local governments. With city officials stressing the decision was a one-time deal, the Clovis City Commission voted 6-1 in a Friday special meeting to provide $10,000 in lodgers tax dollars for a 9 p.m. July 4 fireworks display. The show will be fired from what officials hope is a mostly empty Greene Acres Park. “It is not the Smoke on the Water event we all know and love,” Mayor Mike Morris said in opening the 18 minutes of discussion. “It is a fireworks display the city wants to bring....
SANTA FE — The New Mexico Supreme Court on Thursday ruled a Portales man’s conviction for fleeing law enforcement was correctly overturned. That’s because the Curry County Sheriff’s Office vehicle involved in the pursuit wasn’t adequately marked. The case of the late Roy Montano was combined with a similar case against William Daniel Martinez of San Juan County. Montano and Martinez were charged for aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer in 2013 and 2014, respectively. Both defendants argued the sport utility vehicles that chased th...
MELROSE - Making the ordinary plays was what got the Melrose Buffaloes an early lead against Logan on Thursday night. Hot shooting and hustle for extraordinary plays turned it into a blowout. Melrose led by double digits for the final 18 minutes and by as much as 34 in the second half, giving the family of Buffs coach Kevin Lackey plenty of time to fill his office with 200 balloons to celebrate that many wins over nine seasons with Dora and Melrose. "That just means I've coached a bunch of...
MELROSE - The Melrose and Logan girls basketball teams expect to see each other multiple times between Thursday and the conclusion of the season, and possibly for the Class 1A championship. But as much as both teams appreciate and respect the other, they're admittedly tired of seeing each other, and crossing one potential meeting off the list was a victory in itself. With a big fourth quarter from Karli Webb, the visiting Longhorns rallied to claim a 51-49 victory and eliminate any chance of a...
Sam Thompson calls herself a private person by nature, and being a subject of interviews and documentaries is something she dreads. What she dreads more, however, is the thought her mother's killer may never be found. That's why she's one of many who took part in a Netflix documentary exploring the tale of Henry Lee Lucas, who falsely admitted to the killing of Jean Abla and hundreds of others. "It's been a never-ending source of frustration and heartache," Thompson said. "Being in this...
When asked how the flu season was going for Plains Regional Medical Center, Administrator Drew Dostal said it was a pretty good flu season. He quickly added that by good, he meant good if you were the flu. “It’s hard for us to call if it’s going to be one of the worst,” Dostal said. “It’s starting out of the gates pretty decently.” National indicators are showing that following two bad seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19, the 2019-20 flu season could be the worst since 2003 Nationwide, 3.5% of patient visits reported through the U.S. Outpatient In...
PORTALES — The family of a girl who died in 2017 after being left in a hot car at a Portales daycare is suing the state, alleging shortcomings in training and supervision contributed to the death. The case, filed in U.S. District Court, lists Erika Tafoya, the mother of Maliyah Faith Jones, suing the New Mexico Department of Human Services, the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department, the former Taylor Tots Daycare and former owners Sandi and Mary Taylor for wrongful death, personal injury, loss of parental consortium and other d...
CLOVIS — After months of rumors, Allsup’s Convenience Stores Inc. told its employees Oct. 8 an equity firm that operates Iowa-based convenience store chain Yesway is acquiring it. The deal for 304 locations, announced via a Yesway news release that morning, is subject to regulatory approval and closing conditions. Allsup’s has stores in Tucumcari and Logan in Quay County, while Yesway operates a store in San Jon it acquired in September 2018. “We are very excited to have selected Yesway as the acquirer of our company and the future custodi...
PORTALES — A quick look at Class 4A football in the Land of Enchantment looks like you’re playing a dice game, with four different title winners in each of the last four seasons. The better gambling metaphor, however, would be the World Series of Poker. Whatever cards get dealt, the same people always seem to find their way to the final table. The safest bet for 4A’s final four has been Portales, the only team to make every semifinal round in that time. They’re hoping to make it five, and als...
CLOVIS —Election reimbursements and workman’s compensation claim investigations probably aren’t that riveting to the people tasked to handle them. They’re even less interesting to John and Jane Q. Public. They are, however, discussions that need to happen and Clovis welcomed the people who should be having them — New Mexico’s county representatives, whether elected, appointed or hired. For much of the week, the Clovis Civic Center, Curry County Events Center and Clovis Community College played host to conversations and meetings across the...
Be it a senator or a representative, Republican or Democrat, representatives of Quay County assured their constituents the challenges faced in Tucumcari were the same challenges in pretty much every city they represent. The populations are dwindling and aging, but the population that remains needs upgraded infrastructure and adequately funded schools. A key, Sen. Pete Campos, D-Las Vegas, said at Thursday's legislator forum at the Tucumcari Convention Center, was for the communities of rural...
I don't get out to Tucumcari as much as I would like. Nearly every time I've been there, it was for a work related reason, and we have staff in Tucumcari far more competent than me to handle Quay County news. But I have good memories of the time I was interim managing editor there for four months while we searched for a long-term editor. The Rattler basketball team made the state tournament for the first time in more than a decade, the police chief wore his Atlanta Braves gear on casual Fridays...
TUCUMCARI - Be it a senator or a representative, Republican or Democrat, representatives of Quay County assured their constituents the challenges faced in Tucumcari were the same challenges in pretty much every city they represent. The populations are dwindling and aging, but the population that remains needs upgraded infrastructure and adequately funded schools. A key, Sen. Pete Campos, D-Las Vegas, said at Thursday's legislator forum at the Tucumcari Convention Center, was for the communities...
PORTALES — More than 80 miles away and nearly two years later, a fight continues for the job of a former teacher and basketball coach. A status hearing was held Wednesday at the Roosevelt County Courthouse on a civil case Rhyan Daugherty wants to pursue against Logan Schools Superintendent Dennis Roch and Jimmy and Dallas Valentine. Daugherty attorney Warren Frost claims his client was fired in violation of the Whistleblower Protection Act after performing his legal duty to report an allegation of misconduct, and that the Valentines c...
CLOVIS — Back in 2017, the people organizing the Draggin’ Main Music Festival and the people organizing the Clovis Music Festival thought they could be better together. “That was a huge test for both sides,” Draggin’ Main co-founder Gene Porter said of last June’s festivities. “What we discovered is it was a great marriage.” Now, in 2018, that’s exactly what it is, as they plan everything together and share the same name. There’s plenty to do during the anniversary party, with three concerts, tours throughout city landmarks and classic drive-i...
CLOVIS - Trae Clark believes in random acts, and he does them whenever he can. But he thinks the act he just finished Sunday wasn't random at all. The intricate series of events that put a jersey in his hands and Air Force-flown flags in two others, Clark said, all came together for a reason. "This is all God," Clark said. "This started at a Bible study." The Tennessee Titans website and social media accounts include clips of a flag presented to receiver and former Clovis High athlete Rishard...
CLOVIS — A group looking to conduct a deep drilling experiment in Quay County explained Thursday night what it hoped to do over the next few months, should the project continue. Quay County residents came along with plenty of dissent, and every indication they wanted the project to end. The High Plains Patriots’ meeting at the Clovis-Carver Public Library covered the possible creation of a 5-kilometer-deep borehole. High Plains Patriots President Carolyn Spence said the Patriots asked Enercon for a presentation after local media reported on...