New Mexico attorney general sues university over 'golden parachute' payment to outgoing president New Mexico’s top prosecutor is suing Western New Mexico University's regents and outgoing president to try to undo a lucrative severance package that included a nearly $2 million payout approved in the wake of a scathing report that detailed wasteful spending and lax financial oversight at the school.
State Attorney General Raúl Torrez outlined a number of allegations that included breaches of fiduciary duty and violations of the state's open meetings law and state constitution.
The attorney general's office initially filed an emergency motion in state district court seeking to delay any payouts to Shepard, not knowing that a check already had been issued on Jan. 2.
“It is absolutely disgraceful that the people who have been entrusted with making sure that they get the education they need to build a better future have instead used that opportunity to enrich themselves, to go on lavish taxpayer funded trips, and then when they are held to account, to hand out a golden parachute to one of their pals," Torrez said.
Despite requests for documentation from the university, Torrez said his office has not received any records that would show who initiated the negotiations around Shepard's departure.
