By Xavier Brathwaite Howard Center for Investigative Journalism
A new investigation by the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at Arizona State University and The Texas Observer reveals San Antonio police lost a bullet after logging it in as evidence in the shooting death of an 8-month-old baby. The SAPD has a history of problems with evidence handling, the report found.
Eight-month-old Rosalinda Martinez died in April of last year after a July 2023 indictment says she was shot during a fight between her parents over a handgun. San Antonio police collected evidence from the crime scene.
Police arrested Ruby Mora and Alejandro Martinez, the baby’s parents, for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and reckless bodily injury to their child, according to court records. Mora was arrested on April 18, 2023, and Alejandro was booked a month later on May 7. Both Mora and Martinez are in jail and awaiting trial in Bexar County Court.
PHOENIX – Before Diana Taurasi walked onto the court in the 2009 WNBA Finals, she elected to wear an arm sleeve. The world saw her rally the Phoenix Mercury back from a 2-1 series deficit to beat the Indiana Fever 3-2, average 20.4 points en route to her first finals MVP, and hoist the capped trophy, looking at it with great adoration.
But the world couldn’t see what was underneath her arm sleeve. It wasn’t an additional accessory, extra support or for compression; instead, Taurasi was hiding her moderate-to-severe eczema.
WASHINGTON – Teachers have been in short supply across Arizona. Nowhere is that felt more than at schools run by Native American tribes.
Arizona has 34 such schools, plus 20 others operated by the Bureau of Indian Education, or BIE. Most of the tribally controlled schools are in remote parts of the state, far from towns or metropolitan areas. That makes finding teachers tough, and the pay and benefits tribes can offer – often less than other schools – makes it even more challenging.
PHOENIX – An 87th-minute winner sent roars into the desert sky.
It was a moment that defined a shifting direction. Dariusz Formella secured his brace and three points for Phoenix Rising against Orange County last Friday, moving his squad into fourth place in the Western Conference.
Fourteen games into the season, the Rising are back on track after a temporary hangover from last season’s USL Championship win.
“As a team, we were not consistent through the first half of the season,” said Formella, whose squad visits El Paso Locomotive Saturday. “We had a lot of good performances, but not good results. I hope this game will be a big step and we can start a winning streak.”
The post-championship season has brought a lot of turnover and change to the club in multiple areas.
Most notable was the departure of coach Juan Guerra, who is now an assistant manager for MLS side Houston Dynamo. Guerra spent two seasons at the helm with a record of 21-13-16. He left the reins to his assistant manager, Danny Stone.
Stone, born in Liverpool, England, attended Corona del Sol High School in Tempe when he was 15. He eventually returned home to England where he played professionally for Blackburn Rovers and Notts County.
Stone took over a squad that looked a little different compared to the championship side that lined-up against Charleston last November in the title game.
The biggest piece missing is Danny Trejo, who scored 19 goals and provided seven assists in Rising’s championship campaign. In the offseason, he decided to head overseas and sign with Polish club Korona Kielce.
Trejo wasn’t the only one. Midfielder Carlos Harvey departed for MLS club Minnesota United. Forward Manuel Arteaga and defender Eddie Munjoma left for the Tampa Bay Rowdies. And now defender Darnell King is an assistant manager for the club.
However, when you win a championship, more positives than negatives typically emerge. The USL champion receives $300,000, which can help the club both financially and in the transfer market.
Not to mention holding the title of defending champion adds an extra incentive for players to join the club.
One of the biggest additions this year has been Rémi Cabral, who is on loan from the Colorado Rapids. Cabral has scored a team-high seven goals, filling an important hole up top while Formella was on a break from the team due to the birth of his child. With both players healthy, the squad is finally at full strength, and in a different spot compared to a few months ago.
At that time in late March, the Rising were off to a rocky start, losing three of their first four matches. But over the last seven matches, they have only lost one game, looking to continue the success into the coming weeks.
“Every time we get three points, the following game can really compound that and make last week’s three points even better,” Stone said. “We go into the game this weekend with a target of claiming seven points out of these last three games. To be consistent, a team that gets wins is absolutely the next sort of evolution I think for this team.”
Much of their success has come at home, where they have posted a 4-3-1 record. Strong fan support is partially due to the success of last season, but also greater effort from within the club to promote the Rising.
“Having a complete offseason, where we weren’t worried about moving the stadium but we could focus on the business side of things, has certainly helped,” Rising president Bobby Dulle said. “We’re always asking for feedback, doing surveys. We are trying to see what works, getting new people out who haven’t been to a game at Phoenix Rising. And we pride ourselves in trying to be accessible and affordable.”
With all the effort made off the field, the improved play on it is sure to help fill up the stands even more as the season progresses.
The Rising sit only six points off the top of the Western Conference. This weekend, they head to Texas to face bottom of the table El Paso with a chance for back-to-back wins.
The start to the season was not what the reigning champions antcipated. But come Saturday night, the Rising can continue their run of form, and maybe convince fans that the magic of last season could fall into this one.
Phoenix Rising FC secured a victory over Orange County SC, courtesy of two goals from forward Dariusz Formella, who is seen here receiving a warm embrace from teammates. (Photo courtesy of Phoenix Rising FC)
WASHINGTON – Republicans and Democrats took the field at Nationals Park with plenty of competitive drive at the annual Congressional Baseball Game, and with one unifying desire: don’t pull a hamstring.
Injuries were mostly kept to a minimum, except for egos left badly bruised on the Democratic side at the end of a 31-11 blowout Wednesday night interrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters and climate activists.
The team in red, which included Tucson Republican Juan Ciscomani, enjoyed late-inning rallies fueled by so-so pitching and fielding by the Democrats in blue.
Rep. Greg Stanton of Phoenix delivered a few solid defensive plays as the Democrats’ third baseman.
The U.S. Department of Justice issued a report Thursday accusing the Phoenix Police Department of routinely using excessive force, including deadly force; violating the rights of lawful protesters; and targeting people of color.
The report comes after a nearly three-year investigation, which was initiated after a series of incidents raised questions about police conduct in Phoenix.
WASHINGTON – A unanimous U.S. Supreme Court upheld access to a widely used abortion drug Thursday, tossing out an effort to take mifepristone off the market on grounds that the anti-abortion doctors who brought the case lack legal standing to sue.
The drug is used in nearly two-thirds of U.S. abortions available.
The justices – splintered ideologically in other abortion cases – all agreed that the doctors who brought this suit couldn’t show they’d suffered any personal harm from keeping mifepristone on the market.
By Isabelle Marceles and Morgan Kubasko Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – Law enforcement from Arizona and other states descended on Congress on Wednesday, lobbying against a proposal to allow much heavier trucks on the nation’s highways.
Backers say the idea would improve the supply chain. But Jeffrey Hawkins, president of the Arizona State Troopers Association, warned that heavier semitrailers would endanger other drivers and lead to more serious crashes.
“We only have 63% of Phoenix filled, currently, with troopers,” he said outside the office of Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., following a meeting with him. “It doesn’t matter what part of the state it’s going to be. There’s less folks, so it takes us longer to get there, if we get there at all.”
PHOENIX – Kahleah Copper walked past security scanners in the Verizon 5G Performance Center lobby Tuesday and sat in the press conference chair to discuss her first Olympic selection. Her eyes were watery.
The Phoenix Mercury guard talked for roughly 10 minutes before the team communications manager said, “Last one (question),” to the dozen or so reporters present. When asked where making the team ranked among her career achievements, the 2021 Finals MVP’s moist eyes turned tearful.
We also have a lack of recognition, a lack of regulation, stereotyping, discrepancies in funding and psychological impacts, many cheerleaders will tell you.
TEMPE – All eyes were on Marvin Harrison Jr. as the Arizona Cardinals kicked off minicamp.
The Cardinals ran through the first day of mandatory minicamp Tuesday. After an exciting offseason, headlined with the selection of Harrison Jr. at No. 4 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, the young wide receiver was the center of attention.
PHOENIX — Natasha Cloud had an arranged dinner with her agent Thursday night, but a burdened heart forced the Phoenix Mercury guard to cancel.
Cloud, teammate Natasha Mack and other staff members attended a two-and-a-half-hour private Moms Demand Action event earlier in the day. They met with local gun violence survivors and their families to hear their stories in preparation for Gun Safety Awareness theme night Friday at Footprint Center. Moms Demand Action is a nationwide grassroots movement that advocates for improved gun laws to protect the country from gun violence.
“(The event) was heavy,” Cloud said after shootaround Friday morning. “We could have been there all day, having those survivors, whether they actually survived the bullet themselves or a family member was taken from them, to hear their stories, to hear their trauma, that is never fruitful. I hear a lot of times (people say), ‘This person lost so-and-so.’ They didn’t lose (someone); they were taken from them.” Continue reading “‘Voice for the voiceless’: Natasha Cloud, Phoenix Mercury use platform to raise gun safety awareness”
Slug: Sports-Controversial Wrestling Tour 1,500 words
13 photos available.
By Aaron Decker Cronkite News
PHOENIX – The metal trash can lid collides with the wrestler’s head, delivering a resounding “clang” and toppling the man to the mat. His opponent looks out into the crowd, absorbing the cheers and boos from the hundreds of fans surrounding the ring that rests in the middle of a bar floor. The room turns warm, and emits an aroma of draft beer, liquor and buffalo wings. They have packed into the Phoenix bar to see the wrestling tour that brandishes its name on the ringside banner, The Micro Mania Tour.
The wrestling tour travels the country with a roster of competitors who are primarily people with dwarfism. The show presents an entertaining night of wrestling, comedy and even singing before organizers tear down the ring, throw equipment in a van and drive to the next show.
The Micro Mania Tour is one of a few traveling wrestling tours that promote wrestlers with dwarfism, but it is unique in that it proudly advertises itself as “midget wrestling” and openly challenges the idea that the word “midget” is derogatory. The tour’s merchandise uses the word, and its ringside banner proclaims “Midget Lives Matter.” The tour’s organizer, Billy Blade, has said that the goal is to make the word midget great again and turn the perceived insensitive word on its head. Continue reading “Entertainment or exploitation? Controversial Micro Mania Tour that highlights wrestlers with dwarfism stops in Phoenix”
By Sam Ellefson and Aspen Ford Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU
PHOENIX – Thirty-four years ago, Congress granted Native American tribes a pathway to reclaim ancestors that were dug up, stored and sometimes displayed in museums. The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) required American institutions to return them.
The road to repatriation has been long at Arizona State University. The university has made under 2% of its Indigenous human remains available to Native American tribes, among the lowest rates in the nation, according to an investigation by Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU.
By Reagan Priest and Christopher Lomahquahu Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU
TUCSON – In early February, U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, took to the Senate floor to lambast 70 universities and museums for failing to return tens of thousands of Indigenous human remains and artifacts to the Native American tribes from which they were taken.
Schatz called the institutions the foremost offenders of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, known as NAGPRA, and accused them of having “done everything in their power to obstruct and obfuscate when confronted about their collections.”
One of the institutions Schatz singled out was the University of Arizona.
As food producers age, the number of farms is shrinking. For younger growers, land to get started on is increasingly scarce. Many gravitate toward organic and sustainable farming, where competition and costs are also obstacles.
There were just over 1.9 million farms nationwide in 2022, according to the USDA’s 2022 census – down 315,000 over the last quarter-century and by 141,733, or 7%, in just the last five years.
By Staff Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU
PHOENIX – Reporters for Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at Arizona State University examined the repatriation records of Arizona’s three flagship public universities and wrote stories about the two with the largest collections of unrepatriated Native American human remains and artifacts: the Arizona State Museum at the University of Arizona and Arizona State University’s School of Human Evolution and Social Change.
Northern Arizona University, with a collection of fewer than 10 human remains, made its entire holdings available for repatriation to the Hopi Tribe in 2022 and did not figure prominently in the investigation.
By Chad Bradley, Aspen Ford and Christopher Lomahquahu Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU
PHOENIX – In January, eight reporters set out to report stories about the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, or NAGPRA for short, as part of the course work for a master’s degree in investigative reporting at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
All early career journalists, they came from different states and different family backgrounds. Yet they all shared a keen desire to spotlight an important national issue and give readers and viewers information they didn’t have.
By Staff Cronkite News and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at ASU
PHOENIX – The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990 outlines a process by which tribes can reclaim ancestors and artifacts that were taken from their ancestral homelands.
The law’s major stakeholders include the nation’s 574 federally recognized tribes and villages, federally funded archeological institutions and museums, and federal agencies.
