Local roundup — April 8

Detention officer attacked by inmate

Roosevelt County Detention Center Administrator David Casanova confirmed Tuesday that a detention center officer was recently attacked by an inmate.

But, Casanova said, the officer was not seriously injured and returned for a scheduled shift the next day.

According to Portales Police Department call records, officers responded to an assault report at RCDC at 11:01 a.m. Sunday.

Casanova said he could not give any details on the incident because it is being investigated by law officers.

ENMU Zia symbol use up for vote

Eastern New Mexico University students will have the opportunity to vote today and Thursday on a resolution to discontinue using the Zia Sun symbol at ENMU.

The Zia is a sacred symbol for the Zia Pueblo tribe of New Mexico.

If the vote passes, the women's athletic teams will stop using Zia as their mascot and will be called the Greyhounds, just like their male counterparts.

The ENMU Alumni Association, Professional Senate and Student Senate have already passed resolutions supporting the initiative, and if the Board of Regents vote to approve it at their April 24 meeting, Eastern New Mexico University will discontinue using the Zia symbol and name.

ENMU Regent dies after illness

Brett Leach of Roswell, a member of the Eastern New Mexico University Board of Regents, died Friday in Roswell after a lengthy illness, according to a university press release Monday.

“Regent Leach was the epitome of what a regent should be,” said ENMU President Steven Gamble. “He was very involved in the policy-making and approval process for all three campuses. We will miss him very much.”

Leach was appointed to the ENMU Board of Regents in February 2011 and his term was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2016.

He served as vice president of the board in 2012 and was elected president in 2013.

Leach was born in Portales, graduated from Portales High School in 1965, and earned bachelor's (1969) and master's (1971) degrees in psychology from ENMU.

He was the instructor and director of Law Enforcement Education at the ENMU-Clovis campus in the 1970s before starting a long career in the financial sector.

He had been a financial consultant for Southwest Securities, Inc., in Roswell.

He was past president of the Roswell Sunrise Rotary and the Chaves County CASA Program.

— PNT staff