A newly filed whistleblower and racketeering lawsuit from disgraced former Western New Mexico University (WNMU) President Dr. Joseph Shepard has exploded into one of the most serious allegations of political retaliation and corruption in recent New Mexico history. The 75-page complaint, filed in Grant County District Court, names as defendants WNMU, Senate Finance Chairman George Muñoz, former State Senator Siah Correa Hemphill, Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, State Auditor Joseph Maestas, and WNMU Board of Regents Vice Chair John Wertheim.
Shepard’s lawsuit claims he became the target of a coordinated campaign to destroy his career and reputation after he exposed what he describes as a fraudulent $1 million legislative appropriation involving Sen. Correa Hemphill and Sen. Muñoz. The appropriation allegedly funneled taxpayer dollars through WNMU to the Aldo Leopold Charter School, where Correa Hemphill’s children attended. Shepard alleges the money was laundered to benefit the senator and her husband, Jay Hemphill, a WNMU photographer, and that another $250,000 was steered to the university’s Mimbres Press to publish a photography book by her husband.
According to the complaint, when Shepard raised concerns about the scheme in 2023, Sen. Muñoz threatened him directly, saying he would “use all of his powers as Chair of the Finance Committee” to conduct an audit and “make life difficult for Shepard”. Shortly afterward, the Office of the State Auditor launched multiple investigations into WNMU, aided by the State Ethics Commission and the Higher Education Department. Shepard claims these probes were politically motivated efforts to discredit him after he reported the alleged corruption to state officials, including Attorney General Raúl Torrez.
The lawsuit also implicates powerful Democratic figures in a broader retaliatory conspiracy. Shepard alleges that Senate Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, a political ally of Correa Hemphill, helped coordinate a smear campaign through media contacts, while Auditor Maestas abused his office to “weaponize” investigations against him. The filing accuses WNMU Regent John Wertheim—a former state Democratic Party chairman and ally of Sen. Muñoz—of colluding with newly appointed Regents to invalidate Shepard’s separation agreement and faculty contract in violation of the Whistleblower Protection Act.
Shepard’s court filing portrays a pattern of political vengeance and state overreach, calling the affair “a roadmap to what transpires if you are deemed a threat to power.” It draws parallels to the political retaliation faced by his wife, former CIA operative Valerie Plame, after her identity was exposed during the Iraq War scandal.
The former university president argues he was unlawfully terminated in July 2025, seven months after a previously approved settlement with the university. He claims the retaliation escalated even after an independent forensic audit cleared him of any wrongdoing—finding no fraud, misuse of funds, or personal enrichment.
Shepard’s complaint seeks damages for retaliation, defamation, and violations under New Mexico’s Whistleblower Protection Act and the state’s RICO statute, asserting that public officials used “the power and unlimited resources of the State to destroy a citizen and his reputation.”
“This case is about principle,” the lawsuit declares. “It brings to light the pervasive corruption in the state of New Mexico that keeps it mired at the bottom of nearly every national ranking of value”.
The explosive allegations are likely to send shockwaves through state government, potentially implicating top legislators and officials in what Shepard’s attorneys describe as an “orchestrated campaign of retaliation and cover-up.”
Read the full lawsuit for yourself here: