Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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A Roswell district court judge on Friday issued a temporary restraining order preventing the New Mexico Public Education Department from enforcing its 180-day school rule, court records show. The PED’s new rule was to be implemented during the 2024-2025 school year. Districts on a four-day schedule could apply for a waiver, but it would require substantial increases in students’ reading proficiency this year. Tucumcari interim superintendent Dave Johnson has said only a handful of districts in New Mexico would qualify for the waiver. The ord...
One person was dead after an officer-involved shooting Tuesday south of Tucumcari. The shooting occurred shortly before noon on Quay Road 49, about a dozen miles south of Tucumcari. New Mexico State Police Lt. Jerry Hernandez said at the scene that a law-enforcement officer exchanged gunfire with a person near the residence. Hernandez said one person is deceased. He said officer was not hurt, nor was anyone else. Hernandez did not identify the dead person or the officer. A brief news release...
The Mesalands Community College board of trustees approved a 2024-2025 budget that projects the college still climbing its way out of red ink after financial troubles surfaced in late 2022 and early 2023. The budget, which begins July 1, specifies $7.67 million in unrestricted revenue and $1.86 million in restricted revenue. The 2024-2025 budget states the college’s ending balance starting at a $250,998 deficit at the end of the current fiscal year on July 1, with it being $162,270 in the red in June 2025. That would be an improvement of a...
Free apparently is popular. Facing slow ticket sales for a Cinco de Mayo concert and complaints on social media, a committee of city and Mesalands Community College officials decided to make it a free event less than a week before it was scheduled to take place. By 9 p.m. Saturday night, well over 100 people had gathered in the Tucumcari Convention Center to listen to and dance to the music of Colorado AllStarz, with more streaming through the venue's front doors. Jonathan Brito, a city commissi...
A current deputy chief assessor and a former commissioner of the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission are competing for the Republican nomination to be that party’s candidate for Quay County Assessor. Early voting in the primary election began Tuesday and will continue through the primary’s Election Day on June 4. James Kleinsasser, 63, a chief deputy assessor in the county assessor office who lives in Tucumcari, and Jefferson Byrd, 52, a rancher and windmiller from Tucumcari and a former member of the PRC, are running for the Rep...
On this date ... 1974: Tucumcari and the surrounding area were scheduled to host the 38th annual convention of the New Mexico chapter of the National Association of Postmasters of the United States. More than 150 postmasters were expected to attend. The event included a get-together at the Tucumcari Elks Lodge, a tour of Conchas Dam, cruises on the lake, a buffet dinner at the Conchas Fishing and Ski Lodge and a golf tournament at the Mesa Country Club. — Tucumcari Retail Merchants discussed plans for the grand opening of the downtown mall, i...
Mother’s Day is this coming Sunday and, while many will celebrate with their mothers, others of us will fondly remember our mothers and be grateful for those who were godly and led us in paths of righteousness so we could know that, despite their passing away from this life, they still live, as Jesus promised (John 11:25-27). The name of the holiday is singular possessive because it’s set aside to honor each one’s mother, as is the case for Father’s Day, while Grandparents’ Day is plural possessive, likely because we all have several grandpare...
Tucumcari schools Wednesday — Breakfast: Blueberry overnight oats, Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, cinnamon graham cracker, fresh banana, apple juice, 1%, skim or strawberry skim milk; Lunch: Hot dog, ham and egg chef salad, ranch potato wedges, garden side salad, fresh broccoli, ranch dressing, fruit cocktail, 1%, skim, chocolate skim or strawberry skim milk. Thursday — Breakfast: Cinni mini, Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, cinnamon graham cracker, mandarin oranges, orange juice, 1%, skim or strawberry skim milk; Lunch: Cheeseburger, ham and chees...
May 19-25 — Mesalands Community College Iron Pour. This arts event resumes after the shutdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic. It includes the pouring of molten metal on Friday and opportunities for locals to make their own molds. More information on this event is coming later. June 8 — Doc Powers Memorial Car and Motorcycle Show. This free, family-friendly event will be hosted by the Tucumcari Elks Lodge 1172 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Registration of cars will begin at 10 a.m. with a $25 fee per vehicle, which comes with a free lunch. A prize raf...
I just want the world to know that all this “catch-and-kill” National Enquirer-style of so-called journalism is a disgusting exception, nowhere close to the rule of how newspapers behave. In my 30-plus years of newspapering, I’ve worked at big dailies and little weeklies and others in between, and I can confidently attest to the fact that I never, ever saw an editor or publisher “buy” the rights to a story, much less buy the right to bury it, as the Enquirer’s Pecker said he did for Donald Trump. That just doesn’t happen, at least not at any of...
Here’s to the deep state, or, what we used to refer to as the federal government. With little fanfare, the Federal Trade Commission has leveled the playing field for millions of workers. The FTC freed an estimated 30 million employees who are now bound to their current employers through non-compete clauses. On a 3-2 vote, the commission found that the clauses are an unfair method of competition and therefore a violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act which prohibits “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce.” There’s an exem...
What a good week it should have been for Republicans. Dozens of campuses from UCLA to Columbia University were being wracked by pro-Palestinian protestors who set up “Gaza Solidarity” encampments, spewed antisemitic hate speech, took over buildings and intimidated Jewish students. The protestors demanded their schools condemn Israel’s invasion of Gaza, come out in support of Palestinians or divest themselves of any Israeli investments. The riots were so heavily covered by the national media and criticized by conservatives that some spineless “p...
The Tucumcari girls track team breezed to a district title during the Class 3A-4 meet Friday at Ruidoso High School. The Lady Rattlers amassed 121 1/2 points, well ahead of runner-up Dexter’s 100 points in the team standings. Ruidoso was third with 86 points, and New Mexico Military Institute finished with 61 1/2. Haisley Huffman, a senior, captured two district titles for the Lady Rattlers. Her 17 feet, 4 1/2 inch effort in the long jump won the event by well over a foot, and her 35-10 distance in the triple jump won it by more than three f...
LOGAN - The Longhorns baseball team nabbed another district title Friday in dramatic fashion - a walk-off, three-run home run in extra innings by sophomore Mason Wallin, capping a 6-3 comeback victory over defending Class 1A champion Melrose in the first game of a doubleheader. Wallin also scored the tying run on a wild pitch in the bottom of the seventh inning, when the Buffaloes were one strike from securing the win. That run forced extra innings. Logan finished the day at 16-4 overall and...
Logan track standout Haden Judd and his younger sister Makinlee Judd played substantial roles in helping their respective teams win district titles on Saturday. Haden Judd, a junior, won three individual events - the 100-meter dash (11.72 seconds), 200-meter dash (0:23.73) and 400-meter dash (0:51.27) as the Longhorns breezed to a team district championship with 187 1/2 points. Melrose was a distant runner-up with 100 1/2 points at the six-team meet. Meanwhile, freshman Makinlee Judd won two...
Logan was seeded No. 1 in the Class 1A baseball tournament and earned a first-round bye this week. The Longhorns (16-4) won’t play until the semifinals at 10 a.m. May 16 on Field 5 of the Jennifer Riordan Spark Kindness Sports Complex in west Albuquerque. Logan will play the winner of fifth-seeded Grady (11-5) vs. fourth-seeded Mesilla Valley Christian (13-4). Those teams will face each other at Las Cruces on Wednesday. Gateway Christian (13-5) is the No. 2 seed and also earned a first-round bye. Gateway will play in the semifinals the winner o...
Mesalands Community College has a new rodeo coach, and he’s holds some familiarity with the Stampede program because he helped guide athletes against it. Mesalands interim president Allen Moss announced last week the hiring of Bo Segerman to take over the Stampede. Segerman had been an assistant rodeo coach for two years at New Mexico State University, a rival to Mesalands in the Grand Canyon Region. Segerman said NMSU’s head coach told him about the opening in Tucumcari. “I think it’s a great program,” he said in a phone interview last week...
The Logan softball team remained in contention for a district title with a resounding 19-2 victory Friday at Clayton. Logan’s Marilyn Moreno hit a triple and an inside-the-park home run. She drove in four runs and scored four times. Presley Griffitt hit a double, drove into two runs and scored twice. Logan starting pitcher Zaiyana Grijalva struck out nine batters in three innings. The Lady Longhorns were scheduled to play a second game that afternoon, but it was postponed by lightning. Logan instead will host Clayton for a district d...
Tucumcari’s baseball team finished its regular season with a district doubleheader loss Saturday at East Mountain by scores of 13-0 and 17-0. After starting the season with a decent 3-5 record, the Rattlers lost 12 district games in a row. East Mountain improved to 18-7 overall and captured the district title with an 11-1 mark, edging No. 2-ranked New Mexico Military Institute by one game. East Mountain is ranked fourth in Class 3A by MaxPreps.com. In the first game, the Rattlers managed just one hit against Timberwolves pitchers Cole D...
The Tucumcari girls softball team dropped a close district doubleheader at home Saturday against Dexter by scores of 11-9 and 9-8. During the 11-9 loss, Harley McKinney smacked three doubles, scored three runs and drove in another. Alexis Ramirez and Caylee Benavides each drove in two runs. Tucumcari pitcher Mia Estrada allowed 13 hits and two walks while striking out six in seven innings. “We had them,” Tucumcari coach CJ Oglesby said. “We committed a couple of errors early in the game. Dexter scored just four earned runs.” Despite the losses,...
New Mexico State Police captured a Tucumcari teen wanted on a count of attempted murder after being accused of pointing a gun at another man. Julian Martinez, 18, was charged on May 1 with first-degree attempted murder (willful and deliberate) and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, both felonies. Martinez faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000 if convicted of the attempted murder charge. Magistrate Judge Noreen Hendrickson issued a warrant for Martinez’s arrest the same day he was charged. Tucumcari Police Chief P...
New Mexico has the biggest drug problem of all 50 of the United States and the District of Columbia, according to a study by Wallethub. The personal-finance website compared the states’ 20 key metrics, including arrest and overdose rates to opioid prescription use and employee drug-testing laws. New Mexico’s rank in these aspects: — First, share of teenagers who used illicit drugs in the past month; — Third, share of adults who used illicit drugs in the past month; — Seventh, drug overdose deaths per capita; — Second, share of adults who...
In a final tune-up before their district meet, the Logan girls team finished runner-up in the 13-team Wolverine Invitational last Tuesday at Texico. The Lady Longhorns scored 85 1/2 points, behind host Texico and its 127 1/2 points. Tucumcari’s girls finished ninth with 16 points. The San Jon girls scored eight points for 12th place. Logan’s Kaylee Williams won the 100-meter dash (0:13.20) and the triple jump (34-9), then finished second in the 200-meter dash (0:27.65). Teammate Makinlee Judd won the 300-meter hurdles (0:51.53) and fin...
The Tucumcari Lodgers Tax Advisory Board refused to cover half of the lodging cost of mural artist Doug Quarles when he was in town assessing the condition of the city’s murals and repairing others, including two at the Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce building. Board member Michael Carlson voted to recommend reimbursing half the $2,620.61 cost for 26 days in April and May 2023 at the Motel Safari that was initially covered by the chamber. “It does benefit the city,” Carlson said of the repairs to the murals, which are popular photo...
These individuals were booked into the Quay County Detention Center from April 29 to May 3: — Arthur Robert Wilson, 43, Tucumcari, contempt of court. — Michael Paul Chacon, 45, San Jon, three counts of contempt of court. — John Anthony Collision, 37, Tucumcari, contempt of court. — Rita Lorraine Lopez, 43, Tucumcari, contempt of court. — Toby Jarmillo, 67, Tucumcari, two counts of contempt of court. — Jerry Ingram, 27, Tucumcari, assault upon a peace officer, resisting, evading or obstructing a police officer (service of process) and warrant...