Regional

The national non-profit organization KaBOOM! is recognizing Las Cruces as a 2013 Playful City USA community. The recognition is for Las Cruces’ efforts to provide children ample opportunities for play. Las Cruces is one of 217 cities and towns across the country to receive the recognition.

  The Lincoln National Forest is welcoming Forest Supervisor, Travis Moseley back to New Mexico. The selection process for a new Forest Supervisor spanned almost seven months, following Dr. Robert G. Trujillo’s departure last fall. This critical leadership role was filled intermittently by two acting Forest Supervisors during back-to-back, consecutive 120-day details. The formal announcement that Moseley had been selected as the Lincoln’s new Forest Supervisor was made on March 29th.

EL PASO, Texas – Members of the United States Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector along with other law enforcement agencies honored the men and women who lost their lives while protecting the nation in a special commemorative ceremony today held at the National Border Patrol Museum.

Chief Patrol Agent of the El Paso Sector Scott A. Luck and other high-ranking officials were on hand to pay tribute as well as offer inspiration and words of comfort to the family members of the fallen agents.

An 84-year-old Albuquerque woman on an oxygen tank has been indicted for drug trafficking.

KRQE-TV reports that Lillie Smith was recently indicted by a Bernalillo County Grand Jury for trafficking, conspiracy to commit trafficking, tampering with evidence and possession.

Court documents show the charges stem from a warrant served at Smith's apartment back in 2011. Deputies suspected that the woman's son, Nathan Jones, was running a small drug operation out of her Albuquerque apartment.

The eastern New Mexico peanut butter plant shuttered eight months ago after a salmonella outbreak is making nut butter again.

Sunland Inc. Vice President Katalin Coburn tells the Portales News-Tribune the company's products could be back on store shelves within a month.

The Food and Drug Administration shut the plant in September after its products were linked to 41 cases in 20 states. Most of those were linked to natural peanut butter the company made for Trader Joe's.

New estimates show Texas has eight of the nation's 15 fastest-growing cities.

Estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau show San Marcos in Central Texas led the way with a nearly 5 percent population boom between July 2011 and July 2012. That's the highest rate among U.S. cities with at least 50,000 people.

Of the 10 big U.S. cities with the largest gains, half are in Texas: Houston, San Antonio, Austin, Dallas and Fort Worth. Only New York added more people than Houston, which now has a population of nearly 2.2 million after adding more than 34,500 people.

The Census Bureau reports that Lea County, in the heart of southeastern New Mexico's bustling oil patch, was the fastest growing in the state last year but two-thirds of the counties lost population.

Lea County's population grew by 1.8 percent from 2011 to 2012. State demographer Jack Baker attributes much of that to the booming oil field economy

Sandoval County, which includes Rio Rancho, grew by 1 percent last year.

A move to give lawmakers the right to carry handguns anywhere they wish sparked an angry debate in the Texas House of Representatives between Republican lawmakers.

The shouting match erupted Thursday over whether lawmakers should give themselves special privileges not available to all Texans.