Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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Quay County Sheriff Russell Shafer on a Facebook post last week levied pointed criticism against 10th Judicial District Attorney Timothy Rose for his office’s handling of a Tucumcari sex offender who was given furlough and fled to another state more than 1,200 miles away. Rose, while acknowledging a strategic mistake by an aide in the case, responded by criticizing the sheriff’s “sudden and erratic decision to vent on social media” and that the post was “not completely accurate and very misleading.” By mutual agreement after they met at the...
The Quay County Fair from Wednesday through Saturday represents the completion of dozens of projects from area 4-H members. It also represents a highlight of fun for children of all ages with the arrival of the carnival at the Quay County Fairgrounds. For the latter, Sun Valley Rides returns to the fairgrounds for a sixth year. Rides begin daily at 5 p.m. The fair board has made available for presale 500 all-you-can-ride carnival armbands for $18. Carnival riders must be at least 36 inches tall...
Rain washed out the hay wagon tour Thursday evening during the annual Field Day program at the New Mexico State University Agricultural Science Center in Tucumcari, but not before the unveiling of a new sign that reflects the center's new name. Cynthia Kirksey, widow of the center's longtime superintendent, unveiled the sign that reads Rex E. Kirksey Agriculture Science Center. She was accompanied at the unveiling by her three children and numerous grandchildren. Cynthia Kirksey, in...
This is the text of Quay County Sheriff Russell Shafer’s Facebook post on Aug. 6. The post was deleted Aug. 7. “On December 25th 2017, Tucumcari Police made a traffic stop on a male individual by the name of Pablo Figueroa. Mr. Figueroa received a citation and continued on his way. In the late night hours of December 30th 2017, Mr. Figueroa was stopped once again on a call for a suspicious person, a vehicle driving in the immediate area was stopped due to the registration being suspended. When the Officer asked for his identification the dri...
This is District Attorney Tim Rose’s written response to Quay County Sheriff Russell Shafer’s Facebook post: “Issues surrounding the criminal justice system is something that has always been the subject of much controversy and heated debate. These debates are being held on a national, state and local level and for many people, especially those of us involved in the criminal justice field, hold strong personal opinions on how best to improve our justice system. For the system to work we need our legislators to do a better job to set polic...
Wednesday to Sunday — Quay County Fair. Home Arts entries are from 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday and from 8 to 10 a.m. Wednesday. Exhibits open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day. Bibles & Burritos will be at 8 a.m. each morning. Junior Livestock shows are scheduled each evening, with the sale starting at 6 p.m. Saturday. Sun Valley Rides Carnival begins at 5 p.m. daily. Presale all-you-can-ride tickets will be $18 (must be purchased before fair). Quay County fairgrounds, Tucumcari. Thursday — Got Shots? immunization clinic. The New Mexico Department of Hea...
In the 8th Century, a Christian missionary ventured into a pagan community in what is now Germany. History knows him as St. Boniface. His mission, to convert the heathen to faith in Jesus Christ, was initially quite unsuccessful. He soon realized the big issue was a large, oak tree in the village that was worshiped by all, the Oak of Thor. So, in about 723 A.D., Boniface took a sharp ax to the tree and chopped it down in broad daylight. The crowd was horrified. Thor had been impiously...
Among the early front-runners for the dumbest California law of 2019 is the first-in-the-nation legislation requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns to be eligible for the primary ballot. If it isn’t unconstitutional, it should be. Let’s be clear: Presidential contenders should follow precedent and voluntarily release their tax returns. It’s important for all candidates, but especially for Trump, given the controversies surrounding his financial affairs. Refusing this basic transparency test should be a red flag for voter...
As Quay County reels from the state’s decision not to grant a sixth racetrack-casino license, my inner wonk is motivated to see where the county stands as we figure out where we can go from here. As a first step, I collected U.S. Census numbers updated to 2018. I learned that Quay County still fares poorly in too many areas related to economics, but some neighbors fare worse in these areas. It also seems that surrounding Texas counties do better overall. Only two of the counties surrounding Quay actually gained population from 2010 to 2018, C...
Back when you could do it with little or no hassle, I remember casually walking across the bridge (and therefore the border) between downtown El Paso and Ciudad Juarez. As I left the U.S. side, lively Spanish music filled the air, slowly fading into the background as I made my way across the border. But by the time I had reached the south side of the bridge, I could hear music again — only this time, it was American-style rock ’n’ roll filling the streets of Juarez. When I heard people explaining the overlapping nature of these two borde...
"Honoring Military History" at the Tucumcari Historical Museum was billed as a look back at Quay County and New Mexico's role in the U.S. military, but nearby Cannon Air Force Base loomed large during Saturday's activities. An honor guard from the base near Clovis began the day by presenting the United States and New Mexico flags. Immediately afterward, Mayor Ruth Ann Litchfield read a City of Tucumcari proclamation that praised Cannon personnel for their efforts last month to repaint the F-100...
After a public hearing on the proposed code of conduct ordinance to guide decisions and actions of city officials and employees, the Tucumcari City Commission voted Thursday to table the ordinance. The issue of enforcement in the code brought some debate. District 4 Commissioner Chris Arias and Mayor Ruth Ann Litchfield argued in favor of empowering commissioners to take strong actions against colleagues to enforce the code. On the other side, District 1's Ralph Moya and District 5's Todd Duplantis argued stronger enforcement would give...
The executive director of the regional chamber of commerce on Wednesday told the Tucumcari Lodgers Tax Advisory Board about her forming a new organization to draw film and television productions to Tucumcari and the area. Carmen Runyan of the Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce explained her role at Film Tucumcari as a liaison for the New Mexico Film Office, and she attended the New Mexico Film Conference in Albuquerque over the weekend. Runyan said she would take a tri-fold brochure of potential Tucumcari and Quay County filming...
The Quay County Commission heard no objections during a brief public hearing Monday about its county infrastructure and capital improvement plan for fiscal years 2021 to 2025. The plan essentially serves as a wish list for when the New Mexico Legislature awards money for capital-outlay projects. Though the county can list items for the next five fiscal years, the summary details projects only for 2021 and 2022. Each item also is ranked by priority. The proposed projects would cost nearly $15 million in total. For 2021, the items listed on the...
An 85-year-old man who wandered away from a Tucumcari hotel the evening of Aug. 6 and became the subject of a Silver Alert was found safe Wednesday afternoon. Jim Swick walked away from the La Quinta Inn in Tucumcari. An emergency radio message that night said Swick was suffering from dementia. It was believed he was trying to get to Surprise, Arizona. New Mexico State Police announced shortly after noon Wednesday the Silver Alert had been canceled. A dispatcher at the Tucumcari/Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center said Swick’s son h...
New Mexico State Parks last week announced a multi-year improvements campaign that includes adding Wi-Fi throughout all state parks, including local favorites Ute Lake State Park in Logan and Conchas Lake State Park northwest of Tucumcari. The campaign, called “Next Generation of Adventure,” aims to increase visitation by upgrading facilities, adding interpretive programs, improving technology, and working with partners across New Mexico. The campaign was announced Friday at Hyde Memorial State Park in Santa Fe, where Lt. Gov. Howie Mor...
Altrusa International of Tucumcari announced its area scholarship winners for the 2019-2020 academic year. Each recipient received a $400 scholarship based on academic performance, need, desire to attend college and leadership as demonstrated by activities, community service and honors. Here are the scholarship winners: • House High School: Alexis Smith, with Katelynn Kenyon as the alternate. • Logan High School: Kaiden Jones, with Hannah Bruhn as the alternate. • San Jon High School: Saisruthi Bandla, with Leilani Gutierrez as the alternate. ...
No action was taken, but future minimum-wage increases mandated by the state loomed large during discussions about pay for dispatchers during the Tucumcari/Quay Regional Emergency Communications Board meeting Wednesday. Emergency dispatchers are paid $10.70 an hour, with more for those who no longer are probationary employees. New Mexico’s legislature enacted a law this summer that will increase the minimum wage from $7.50 an hour to $9 by 2020, to $10.50 by 2021, $11.50 by 2022 and $12 by 2023. Jamie Luaders, director of the Tucumcari/Quay R...
Tucumcari schools Wednesday — No school. Thursday — No school. Monday — Breakfast: Blueberry muffin and string cheese, cereal choice with cinnamon goldfish graham cracker, fruit, milk, juice; Lunch: Breaded chicken Parmesan with whole-grain spaghetti pasta, ham and cheese wrap, vegetable blend, fresh spinach with cherry tomatoes, fruit, milk. Tuesday — Breakfast: French toast sticks with maple syrup, cereal choice with cinnamon goldfish graham cracker, fruit, milk, juice; Lunch: Hot ham and cheese, turkey ranch wrap, sweet potato waffle...
On this date ... 1969: Jack Daum, liaison in the Washington office of U.S. Rep. Manuel Lujan Jr. (R-N.M.) announced Lujan scheduled a meeting today with the deputy director of the Bureau of Public Roads to discuss a problem of alignment on a two-lane stretch of Highway 66 east of Tucumcari. Lujan said he wants to work with the bureau, the state highway commission, city of Tucumcari and San Jon to resolve the problem. The 1964 agreement between San Jon, Tucumcari and the highway commission will be discussed, as will a state law making it mandato...
Two dogs in a Tucumcari north-side neighborhood attacked and injured a boy last week, requiring hospitalization. A woman who was running to aid the boy fell and broke her wrist. According to reports by Tucumcari police officer Reyes Gonzales and animal-control officer Mike Martinez, the attack occurred near North Side Park in Tucumcari the morning of Aug. 6. Both reports identified the dogs as pit bulls. Gonzales went to Trigg Memorial Hospital, where the boy was being treated for his injuries, after hearing about the dog attack from Martinez....
These calls were made to the Tucumcari-Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center from Aug. 5 to Aug. 11: Monday • 11:41 a.m.: Juvenile problem in 1200 block of South Jackson Street, Tucumcari. • 11:47 a.m.: Theft (shoplifting) in 2000 block of South Mountain Road, Tucumcari. • 2:18 p.m.: Theft in 200 block of East Center Street, Tucumcari. • 2:41 p.m.: Civil matter in 800 block of East Hines Avenue, Tucumcari. • 3:06 p.m.: Damage to property at milepost 58, Highway 156, Ragland. • 3:27 p.m.: Damage to property at North Side Park, Tucum...
These individuals were booked into the Quay County Detention Center from Aug. 6 to Aug. 11: • David Apodaca, 53, Tucumcari, breaking and entering. • Jose Alredo Ornelas, 34, Lovington, contempt of court. • David Peter Wittenstrom, 60, Tijeras, contempt of court. • Martin Calbert, 58, Tucumcari, shoplifting ($250 or less). • Allen Roy McKinney, 52, Tucumcari, contempt of court and criminal trespass (unposted). • Ronda Leigh Harless, 41, San Jon, contempt of court. • Andrew Morris Angel, 42, Tucumcari, aggravated stalking (violation of...