Subhead LEVI HILL NEWS-SUN You shouldn’t speed in Hobbs, but if you do, don’t do it after Sept. 5. That’s when the city’s new traffic code goes into effect and the fines for traffic violations will increase almost threefold. Monday night the Hobbs City Commission threw out the old traffic code and adopted a new one that is more in …

The New Mexico State Police has released the identity of the suspect who was shot by a Eunice police officer Tuesday. The NMSP preliminary investigation indicates that Eunice officers responded to a home on the 600 block of South Main in reference to a domestic violence call. One officer entered the home and found Roberto Granados Ocona, 41, armed with a knife. …

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Levi Hill News-Sun Nearly one in every 10 Lea County workers is unemployed. According to numbers from the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, Lea’s unemployment rate stands at 9.7 percent (unadjusted). Unadjusted numbers do not include seasonal jobs not yet tallied by the state. It’s an unemployment rate the likes of which Lea County hasn’t seen since 1999 when …

Eunice residents and motorists may have witnessed billowing smoke Saturday afternoon as a fire engulfed a home located east of town, but no one was hurt. The Eunice Fire Department responded to a structure fire on 5th Street and Texas Avenue at 4 p.m. Saturday and firefighters had the blaze under control about 5:30-5:45 p.m., according to Eunice fire chief …

Levi Hill News-Sun Waste Control Specialists may be ahead of Lea and Eddy counties in landing a long-term storage facility for spent nuclear fuel, but there could be room for both projects. That was the word from WCS Communications Director Chuck McDonald this week as he touted the latest developments in WCS’s attempts to land a spent fuel storage facility …

Hobbs store to close by Oct. 31 Kelly Farrell News-Sun A Hobbs staple for DVDs, books, records and more on North Turner Street will close along with 125 other locations nationwide due to Hastings Entertainment’s nationwide liquidation. The Amarillo Globe-News reported Thursday the Amarillo-based retail company must liquidate all of its stores by October 31 after being sold to two …

Curtis C. Wynee News-Sun LOVINGTON — The adage goes that the best defense is a strong offense. In the face of concerns they failed to keep their commitments, Spectra Event Management showered the Lea County Commission Wednesday with a 45-minute presentation featuring at least a half dozen corporate executives with plans for the future.

Kelly Farrell News-sun Two Hobbs men and a teen were arrested last weekend after they allegedly hosted a party at their residence where several minors drank alcoholic beverages. Matthew Morando, 19, was charged with possession of cocaine and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, both fourth-degree felonies; and criminal failure to appear, a misdemeanor. Xavier Estrada, 18, was also …

SWAT operation misses wanted man for second time Kelly Farrell News-Sun Hobbs resident Anthony Quiroz eluded law enforcement again Monday as Hobbs police made one arrest in an hours-long SWAT operation on East White Street. It is the second time in less than a week SWAT teams have surrounded a home in Lea County looking for Quiroz. Hobbs police and …