Jan. 6—New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez filed an emergency temporary restraining order on Monday to halt embattled Western New Mexico University President Joe Shepard from earning $1.9 million when he steps down on Jan. 15 under a cloud of ethics investigations.
Torrez filed the restraining order to “prevent a gross misuse of funds appropriated to support the education of Western’s student population,” he said in a news release.
Torrez sought the order to prevent the university’s five-member board from disbursing the severance payment before a hearing in 6th Judicial District Court and completion of a WNMU audit into university spending that began in 2023. Torrez asked for the hearing to be held prior to Shepard’s departure or for an order to prevent the payment from going through until a hearing can be scheduled.
The board acted “contrary to its fiduciary duty to the university,” Torrez said, by pledging public funds to what he called an unsupported severance payment and allegedly not giving the state time to consider the agreement. The severance agreement is “unconscionable as a violation of public policy and the public interest,” Torrez said.
WNMU spokesman Mario Sanchez said he received the state attorney general’s news release, but he did not immediately provide a statement on behalf of the university.
Shepard has served in the top job since 2011 and is in his final days as president. Shepard faces accusations he, his wife — ex-CIA Agent Valerie Plame — and members of the board racked up more than $360,000 in wasteful spending on lavish university foreign business trips and high-priced furniture for the president’s residence from 2018-23, as concluded by State Auditor Joe Maestas.
The AG’s filing is the latest issue to prompt public scrutiny of the board following Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s call last week for all of its members to resign immediately.
Only board chair Mary Hotvedt and member Lyndon Haviland have resigned, according to letters received by the Governor’s Office. Board members Daniel H. Lopez, a former Cabinet secretary, private attorney Dal Moellenberg, and former student Trent Jones remain.
The remaining members will meet virtually at 10 a.m. Tuesday for a previously scheduled meeting to discuss the presidential search and the president’s contract, a university spokesman said. The agenda for that meeting was listed on the university’s website on Monday afternoon.
Aside from WNMU, the state Ethics Commission and New Mexico Higher Education Department are also conducting audits into the university’s spending. Both are expected to be complete early this year.