Adrian Hedden
Artesia Daily Press
achedden@currentargus.com

Christopher Wayne Hays was working at an oilfield location in Malaga when he suddenly collapsed.

Hays, 42, was dead minutes later and a lawsuit filed Feb. 13 alleged his death was caused by a drink containing an herbal supplement known as kratom.

The suit listed as defendants the store where Hays allegedly bought the drink, Express Smoke & Vape on 102 E. Green St. in Carlsbad, and the product’s distributor MIT 45, a Draper, Utah–based company specializing in kratom products.

Kratom is an herbal extract from an evergreen tree that grows in Southeast Asia, according to a June 2024 article by the Mayo Clinic. It is often marketed as being capable of boosting energy, improving one’s mood and relieving pain, the article read.

Yet, the Mayo Clinic reported that kratom has not been proven safe or effective, noting the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued several warnings of potential dangers associated with the substance such as high blood pressure, confusion and seizures.

Hays allegedly bought the product “Super K Kratom” on Aug. 9, 2025, and died the next day after collapsing at work, read the suit filed by Hays’ wife Sarah Badgett-Hays in First District Court in Santa Fe.

The product did not include adequate warning as to any danger of consuming the product, read the suit. The store no longer sells kratom products.

Court records show that the complaint was filed Feb. 13, and a summons was issued Feb. 19 for the defendants to respond to the lawsuit. A trial date was not yet set.

The suit demands that Express Smoke & Vape and MIT 45 pay punitive damages, damages associated with Hays’ loss of income, and legal expenses to be determined by a jury.

First Judicial District Judge Bryan Biedscheid in Santa Fe was presiding over the case.

On the day of his death, Hays, who was a full-time resident of Taylor County, Texas, was in the Malaga area of southern Eddy County working at the Nabors X48 drilling rig as a supervisor for ConocoPhillips, read the lawsuit.

He alternated working two weeks in New Mexico and spending time with his family in Abilene, Texas, the suit read.

On Aug. 9, 2025, Hays bought the “Super K Kratom” drink at Express Smoke & Vape intending to use it to remain alert, similar to an energy drink, during a late shift on the rig, the suit read. He died the next morning while still on the job.

Just three months later, on Nov. 7, 2025, the New Mexico Department of Justice published a warning alerting the public to potential dangers of consuming kratom-based beverages, noting the state had no regulations in place to govern such products. The state justice department said seven states had banned kratom and 16 others restricted its purchase to those 18 and older.

“The information about kratom’s impact, particularly on young people, is extremely concerning,” read a statement from New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torres. “Consumers should understand that these products can have highly addictive effects similar to opioid narcotics.”

‘Suddenly ill’

Hays was unaware of any federal or state warnings when he purchased the drink, read the lawsuit, and at about 7 a.m. on Aug. 10, after allegedly drinking Super K Kratom, he “suddenly fell ill.”

The suit described Hays vomiting and experiencing seizure-like activity, according to coworkers. Emergency medical personnel were called but were unable to revive him.

An autopsy conducted by the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator showed Hays died from the “toxic effect of mitragynine,” the active ingredient in kratom. Hays suffered from swelling in the brain and fluid buildup in the lungs, injuries consistent with a drug overdose, read the autopsy report.

A toxicology analysis showed an elevated level of mitragynine, read the autopsy report, along with trace amounts of prescription medications Xanax and Adderall. The report specified the latter two substances were unlikely to have caused Hays’ death in the amounts present, concluding it was an accidental overdose of kratom that killed him.

He left behind four children, the suit read, for whom he was the “primary financial provider.”

“His tragic death leaves his wife without a spouse and provider and his four children without a father,” the suit read.

Managing Editor Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.

Adrian Hedden
Carlsbad Current-Argus
achedden@currentargus.com

A grouse native to the plains of southeastern New Mexico lost its federal protections after outcry from industry supporters and decades of debate.

The Wednesday. Feb. 26, announcement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service came in response to a federal court order in Texas last year and was the final step in removing federal protections and restrictions to development on lands where the bird was believed to dwell.

The lesser prairie chicken was listed as endangered in November 2022 in its southern distinct population segment (DPS), which the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service used to describe the bird’s southern range in southeast New Mexico and West Texas.

The chicken’s northern segment, covering portions of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and the northern Texas Panhandle, was listed as threatened.

Endangered status means the agency believes a species’ extinction is imminent. The listing requires a federal recovery plan be put in place while often setting aside lands for habitat critical to recovery.

Threatened status indicates an endangered listing may soon be warranted.

The lesser prairie chicken is known for its distinctive mating dances during the spring, in breeding grounds throughout the plains of its range known as “leks.” The male birds inflate reddish air sacks on the sides of their heads and extend yellow feathers above their eyes, stamping into the sand to attract females.

This process known as “lekking” can be impeded by industrial infrastructure such as fences or oil wells, according to a 2022 report from the Fish and Wildlife Service, as the prairie chickens naturally avoid tall structures where predators may perch.

The report blamed a rapid decline in the prairie chicken’s numbers on heavy growth in agriculture and energy development throughout the bird’s range.

The grouse’s historical range was diminished by about 90%, the report read, and its population across the five-state range sat at just about 32,00 birds from an historic population believed to top 100,000. Those numbers led to Fish and Wildlife’s listing of the lesser prairie chicken as endangered but with the arrival of a new federal administration, the agency reversed course last year.

The shift began after backlash from the oil and gas and agriculture industries, and allegations the listing and recovery efforts could negatively impact local economies and the industries that drive them.

A federal lawsuit was filed in 2023 by the state of Texas and fossil fuel trade group the Permian Basin Petroleum Association. In August 2025, U.S. District Judge David Counts sided with the plaintiffs, issuing a ruling to vacate the lesser prairie chicken’s endangered status.

In its latest decision published last week to the Federal Register, the interior department said delisting was “necessary to comply” with the court, and that no opportunity for the public to submit comments on the matter would be offered.

This followed an August 2025 motion the Fish and Wildlife Service filed in the lawsuit, asking the court to reverse the agency’s own decision to list the species.

Specifically, the agency said its previous leaders falsely separated the species into two “distinct population segments” (DPS), and that a new listing procedure was needed to correctly apply federal law.

“The Service concedes that it improperly applied its DPS Policy in a manner that tainted the substance of the final listing rule,” read the motion. “Given the seriousness of the error identified, the Service will be unable to correct the rule’s defects on remand short of engaging in an entirely new analysis.”

The apparent alignment between the court and the Fish and Wildlife Service followed an executive order issued by President Donald Trump titled “Unleashing American Energy” as he took office in January 2025.

Trump via the order called on federal agencies to limit restrictions on domestic fossil fuel production. This included multiple endangered species listings that occurred under Trump’s predecessor, President Joe Biden.

“President Trump’s removal of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken from the federal Endangered Species Act list is a long-overdue victory for Texas farmers, ranchers, and energy producers,” said Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller in a Feb. 26 statement. “For years, rural Texans stood shoulder to shoulder with the oil and gas industry to fight back against a weaponized federal bureaucracy masquerading as conservation.”

The decision to delist drew uproar from the environmental community with multiple groups arguing the delisting put industry interests ahead of the environment.

“The Lesser Prairie Chicken is a metaphorical ‘canary in the coal mine’ for New Mexico’s grasslands. They need large tracts of native grasslands to thrive, and their numbers have dwindled dramatically over the past several decades,” said Demis Foster with Conservation Voters New Mexico.

“Research also shows that when it comes to ecosystem resiliency, every species matters.”

Jason Rylander with the Center for Biological Diversity called the decision “shameful,” and said that the Center planned to defend the species’ endangered status in court via an ongoing appeal the organization filed against the Texas court’s ruling in the Fifth Circuit U.S Court of Appeals.

It was the Center, then known as the Biodiversity Legal Foundation, that first petitioned the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995 for the lesser prairie chicken to be listed as endangered.

It was listed as threatened in 2014, but a subsequent lawsuit filed by oil and gas industry groups in federal court for the Western District of Texas in Midland led to a reversal of that decision. The Center filed again to list the species in 2016, and sued the federal government in 2021, leading to the 2022 listing.

No decision was yet issued on the appeal as of Monday, March 2.

“We’ve been fighting for decades to protect these birds because they’re special and they have a right to exist,” Rylander said. “It’s shameful that the Trump administration sees fit to sacrifice these magnificent birds for oil and gas industry profit.”

Managing Editor Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.

Adrian Hedden
Carlsbad Current-Argus
achedden@currentargus

Former New Mexico Congressman Steve Pearce was approved by a U.S. Senate committee to become director of the federal Bureau of Land Management.

The Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted 11-9 on Wednesday, March 4, in favor of President Donald Trump’s nomination of Pearce to run the bureau. The nomination now goes to the full Senate for a confirmation vote.

The Bureau of Land Management, a sub-agency of the U.S. Department of Interior, oversees 245 million acres of federal public land along with 700 million acres of underground mineral rights. The acreage lies mostly in 12 states in the American West, including New Mexico, which means the bureau is tasked with overseeing oil and gas development on public land, a key driver of New Mexico’s economy accounting for about half of the state’s fossil fuel.

A Republican from Hobbs, Pearce served seven two-year terms as U.S. House representative for New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District – from 2003 to 2009 and from 2011 and 2019. The 2nd District includes most of southern New Mexico, including its deep-red southeast corner consisting of portions of Eddy, Lea and Chaves counties.

Pearce ran for governor of New Mexico instead of seeking reelection to Congress in 2018, losing to current Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. He chaired the New Mexico Republican Party from 2018 to 2024.

Pearce owned oilfield services company Lee Fishing Tools until 2003 when the business was sold to Key Energy Services.

The committee vote to advance Pearce’s nomination was held without debate, although members questioned the nominee during a Feb. 25 hearing. The vote fell along party lines with all the committee’s Republican members voting in favor while the panel’s eight Democrats and one independent voted against.

The nomination needs 51 votes to be confirmed by the Senate where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority. A confirmation vote has not been scheduled.

Pearce’s prior association with the oil and gas industry was a sticking point for U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) who serves as ranking member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and voted against Pearce’s nomination.

During his hearing before the committee last week, Pearce touted his experience in Congress while representing the 2nd District, which includes vast stretches of federal public land in the southern portion of the state.

He said the federal government should collaborate with local communities and the industries they depend on while balancing the needs for outdoor recreation.

“If confirmed, I fully intend to uphold these same principles as BLM director and ensure local input is a key factor in my decision-making,” Pearce said during his opening remarks. “I have also seen firsthand the importance of our public lands and support those missions completely.”

Ahead of Wednesday’s vote, Heinrich voiced concerns about Pearce’s past support of selling federal public land and opposing conservation designations such as national monuments.

“When Congressman Pearce testified,” Heinrich said, “he promised that he would not recommend rolling back national monument designations, something which is extremely important to me; and he acknowledged that (the bureau) cannot conduct large-scale selloffs of public lands under existing law, which is correct.

“I intend to hold him to these statements. But I also know that commitments to follow the law by previous Trump administration nominees have proven unreliable at times.”

The vote to advance Pearce’s nomination drew criticism from environmental groups, and support from industry leaders.

Camilla Feibelman, director of the Sierra Club’s Rio Grande Chapter, which covers New Mexico and portions of West Texas, said she was concerned about Pearce’s past support of reductions in national monument acreage and cutbacks to regulations intended to reduce air pollution linked to oil and gas.

“These lands belong to all of us and are an economic engine for our communities,” Feibelman said. “Americans deserve a trustworthy leader who would prioritize managing our cherished public lands for the good of all, rather than selling them off to polluting corporations.”

Dan Naatz, chief of policy for the Independent Petroleum Association of America, a national oil and gas trade group, said Pearce’s experience in the federal government, and a “multi-use” philosophy for public lands – including mineral development and conservation – make the former congressman the right choice to lead the Bureau of Land Management.

“It’s important that the head of the BLM understand the multiple use mandate for federal lands management as enshrined in law,” Naatz said. “Pearce’s background in Congress and serving the state of New Mexico qualify him to lead the agency.”

Managing Editor Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.