Anyone wanting his or her name to appear on the ballot as a candidate for one of the local offices up for grabs in the 2023 Regular Local Election must officially file a “Declaration of Candidacy” on August 29. Local election day is Tuesday, November 7. The Lea County Clerk’s website states, “Candidate filing day…

Hobbs resident, who labels himself as a “consistent conservative champion”, State Rep. Larry Scott (R-62) was unanimously selected on Wednesday, August 16 by Lea County Commissioners as the individual they want Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to choose to fill the State Senate seat recently vacated by Sen. Gay Kernan. Representing District 42, which consists of…

The uranium enrichment provider Urenco is expanding its Lea County facility by 15%. The company announced last month that it is expanding “…its enrichment capacity at its US site in New Mexico, known as UUSA.”  UUSA, which has been operating near Eunice since 2010, currently employs 230 individuals and plays “a key role in the…

Fugitive Ricardo Ruiz “Gramps” Leyva, age 43, of Hobbs has been attested. A Lea County warrant for Leyva’s arrest on First Degree Murder and other charges has been active since April.  Leyva’s arrest was made on Monday, July 31, after the Lea County Drug Task Force (LCDTF) received a tip regarding Leyva’s location. A press…

During the last week the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) has confirmed two human cases of West Nile Virus in the state. One of the cases is in Lea County. The other is in Sandoval County. Both infected individuals have been hospitalized and are recovering.  NMDOH also reports that in Sierra County one horse…

Midland, Texas based Davis Gas Processing has been added to the list of companies the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) is fining for air quality violations. The fine for permit violations at the company’s Denton Gas Plant located in Lea County near Lovington is the outgrowth of a 2020 NMED Air Quality Bureau inspection. According…

Former vice president and CFO of Florida-based Holtec International Kevin O’Rourke has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the company. In his suit O’Rourke claims that he was fired from his leadership role with Holtec as retaliation for his coming forward in August of 2022 about “false and misleading” statements Holtec’s leadership made to investors. O’Rourke’s…

On Tuesday, July 18, 85-year-old Liborio Canales was arrested in Lovington on federal charges for the 1986 stabbing murder of Barbara Villarreal. Lovington Police Department (LPD) officers assisted the FBI and Garland, Texas police force officers in the arrest. LPD detectives and patrol were involved in the arrest because Canales “…moved to Lovington in the…

Folks in southeastern New Mexico can look forward to better broadband access in the not too distant future. On Thursday, July 6, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced “…plans to expand broadband access … [statewide] after [New Mexico received] a $675 million award from the Biden Administration and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” states a press release…

On Monday, July 10, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agents with assistance of the Lea County Drug Task Force (LCDTF) and Lea County Sheriff’s Office Deputies “…conducted a joint operation of a controlled delivery of a FedEx box containing approximately 2 pounds of cocaine” to a residence in Lovington, states a LCDTF press release. During…