Wednesday, February 19, 2020
The Arizona branch of American Friends Service Committee filed a ballot initiative called the Second Chances, Rehabilitation & Public Safety Act yesterday at Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs' office in Phoenix.
They have until July 2 to collect 237,645 valid signatures.
AFSC-AZ, headquartered here in Tucson, is a nonprofit organization that lobbies for criminal justice reform legislation at the state capital every year and conducts community outreach and research related to ending mass incarceration in Arizona.
Caroline Isaacs, the organization's director, described this ballot initiative as the "greatest hits" of all the reform bills they have tried to get passed in the legislature, but were unsuccessful.
If passed, the initiative would do four things:
- Allow people in prison serving time for non-dangerous offenses to earn additional earned release credits for good behavior and participation in rehabilitation programs. Arizona law mandates that every prisoner serve 85 percent of their sentence, no matter what. AFSC-AZ believes this will incentivize people in prison to rehabilitate themselves.
- Allow judges the ability to impose lesser sentences for non-dangerous offenses when doing so is "justified in the interest of justice, taking into account input from victims, individual circumstances, and rehabilitative options." This would combat the impact of mandatory minimum sentences.
- Clarify when a non-dangerous offender may be sentenced based on “a historical prior felony conviction.” Individuals are often faced with extensive prison sentences that come with the “repeat offender” distinction, which likely persuades them to take plea deals.
- Establish a fund that will provide services for victims of violent crime and ultimately prevent future crime, as well as address trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder experienced by first responders in the line of duty.
Tags: American Friends Service Committee , AFSC , ballot initiative , criminal justice reform , legislature , Image
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Pima County Signals and Lighting will perform the change for all left turn arrows beginning at 6 a.m. Work is expected to last until 7 a.m.
According to the county, the change “allows more flexibility to better distribute the signal timing for all directions with leading left turn arrows.”
Advanced traffic control signs with flags will be in place in all directions, and motorists should expect a slight delay.
Tags: streets , construction , roads , La Canada , River , Image
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Riley has served as a commander with OVPD since 2017, and has been employed with the department since 2004. Riley currently oversees field services for OVPD. Before becoming commander, Riley held roles such as patrol lieutenant and executive officer.
Town Council will vote on the appointment and an employment agreement for Riley at its scheduled meeting on Feb. 5. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. in Town Hall Council Chambers at 11000 N. La Cañada Drive.
Tags: Oro Valley , Oro Valley Police , police chief , Kara M. Riley , Chief Daniel Sharp , Image
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Flood, 56, was arrested by police on Friday, April 5, 2019, after her twin autistic grandsons, aged 8, were found dead with “obvious signs of trauma” in their home. Flood, the twins’ guardian, told the police “she alone was responsible for her grandchildren’s deaths.”
According to Pima Superior Court documents, on Thursday, April 4, 2019, Flood shot the boys twice each, and then attempted to kill herself by taking an “unknown quantity of prescription medication.”
Northwest Fire District personnel responded to a medical call at their home on the 2400 block of West Kessler Place. Upon arrival, medical personnel found Flood unresponsive in the house. While providing medical care to her, they found the bodies of the boys with gunshot wounds to their heads and torsos.
The victims were identified as Jaden and Jordon Webb, who were nonverbal and severely autistic, according to court records. Flood became guardian of the boys in March 2017 after their mother, Kristen Webb, died in February 2017. The boys’ father is unknown. Flood had no previous criminal record in Pima County.
Tags: crime , sentencing , manslaughter , Dorothy Flood , news , Flowing Wells , Image
Friday, January 24, 2020
One local resident and two dogs are displaced after their home caught fire on Tucson’s Northwest side.
Northwest Fire District responded to a report of fire at the corner of Carapan Avenue and West Palm Vista Street at 1:05 p.m. on Friday, said Brian Keely, Public Information Officer at Northwest Fire District. Crews had the blaze under control by 1:25 p.m., according to Keely.
“We prevented (the fire) from spreading into any exposures on the other side,” Keely said. “It’s contained to just the one double-wide mobile home.”
Keely said it’s unknown at this time if anyone was home or if there were any injuries caused by the blaze at this time.
Northwest Fire District fire investigators are on the scene. The cause of the fire has not been determined at this time.
Tags: fires , breaking news , Northwest Fire , Northwest Tucson , Brian Keely , Image
Thursday, January 16, 2020
In a statement posted on the town's website, it says staff were "startled" by the sudden announcement but they are "committed to work closely with our colleagues at the State, in the State Legislature, at Pinal County, and with our partners at our local correctional facilities to better understand the impacts of this decision and to strive to find a solution that is appropriate for our community, our residents, and the many employees that call Florence home for eight to twelve hours per day."
The Arizona State Prison Complex in Florence is Arizona's largest and oldest prison. It has existed for over 100 years and currently houses about 3,800 incarcerated men.
In his address, Ducey said all existing staff at the Florence prison will be relocated to Eyman prison, less than three miles away. The Governor’s Office says additional staff will allow the Eyman complex to be fully staffed, eliminating vacancies and “providing inmates with better access to programs and other services, such as enhanced second chance programs.”
They say no correctional employees will lose their jobs as a result of the move, and taxpayers will save an estimated $247 million over three years.
While their jobs are still secured for now, the Town of Florence believes this new development will still have lasting effects on their community.
Their statement says:
"We are concerned for our residents, who for so many years have shouldered the burdens and stigmas associated with being called a 'prison town.' Without legislative action, resources currently used in the community could dry up and could radically change this historic community and the county seat of the state’s fastest growing county. Preliminary estimates on impact show that the Town could lose up to 3,600 prisoners and hundreds of permanent jobs upon the closure of the facility. The loss of these residents and their associated revenue could equate to a $1.3 million direct impact on Town services (or about 13% of its total state-shared revenue). To a rural community like ours, this is not inconsequential."
The Florence closure is part of Ducey's shift toward a more treatment-based approach to corrections. This decision was coupled with the announcement that the Arizona Department of Corrections will be rebranded into the "Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry."
While closing the state's largest prison is a statement within itself, the effects it will have on the incarcerated population are still unknown. Ducey's plan offers no details on whether inmates at Florence will be eligible for early releases, nor does it provide a path to reduce prison populations at all.
Florence still anticipates a need for carceral facilities, adding in their statement that "should new facilities be desired, Florence has available land that is zoned and planned for this type of use."
Their full statement can be viewed here.
Tags: Florence , Prison , Doug Ducey , Governor , Closure , State of the State , Image
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Mayor Regina Romero today signed on with Mayors Against Illegal Guns and announced the creation of the Mayor’s Task Force on Gun Safety and Violence Prevention at a City Hall press conference.
“It is important that we stand in solidarity with mayors across the country to show that in absence of state and federal action, our national cities will act,” Mayor Romero said. “We do not need to wait for the federal government to act locally.”
Mayors Against Gun Violence is comprised of a bipartisan nationwide coalition of current and former mayors committed to end gun violence and is a program of the advocacy group Everytown For Gun Safety. More than 1,000 mayors have signed on with the coalition, according to everytown.org. Everytown For Gun Safety is also the parent group for Moms Demand Action.
“Mayor Romero understands the importance of taking real action to reduce gun violence in our community,” said Rene Friedkin, a volunteer with the Arizona chapter of Moms Demand Action. “We are thrilled to have her join this bipartisan coalition who are working on the frontlines of gun safety.”
Romero also announced the creation of the Mayor’s Task Force on Gun Safety and Violence Prevention, which will be composed of gun-violence survivors, students, neighborhood leaders, mental health professionals, public safety officers and others.
Tags: Tucson Police Department , Mayor Regina Romero , gun safety , gun violence , Mayors Against Illegal Guns , Everytown For Gun Safety , Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus , Image
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Chipres, who was an automotive instructor at the school, began working at Mountain View Feb. 8, 2016, according to MUSD Director of Public Relations Tamara Crawley, who confirmed his resignation with Tucson Local Media.
According to the district, school administrators immediately contacted the Pima County Sheriff’s Department Monday, Dec. 9 when students reported an alleged relationship between Chipres and an 18-year-old student.
Following an investigation by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, no arrest occurred, though the school district immediately acted and Chipres resigned from his position.
“We recognize that you may have questions and may also feel a range of emotions surrounding this,” wrote Mountain View Principal Todd Garelick in a Dec. 11 letter to parents. “However, due to confidentiality and personnel laws, we are extremely limited in the information that can be publicly disclosed. I can tell you that this student was not a student in the teacher’s class and the criminal investigation did not result in an arrest.”
Pima County Sheriff’s Department Deputy James Allerton confirmed that detectives investigated Chipres on Monday, and found no criminal activity.
Tags: Mountain View High School , investigation , Pima County , teacher , teacher/student relationship , Image
Friday, December 6, 2019
No, this wasn't Santa making an early delivery stop in the Old Pueblo; it was a man in his 30s who, by his own account, had been stuck in the chimney for several hours.
Tucson Fire Department responded to the 911 call just after 12:20 p.m. and it soon became a full-on technical rescue.
The technical rescue team utilized a rescue ring and rope to remove him from the chimney and then he was able to use the ladder with assistance to get back down to the ground.
The man got out of the chimney unscathed, though he is currently in police custody.
Tags: chimney , Tucson Fire Department , rescues , crime , technical rescue , Image
Wednesday, November 27, 2019
The report, "The Carceral State of Arizona" was released by the Advancement Project and Puente this October, and alleges degrading and inhumane treatment of migrant detainees in the Eloy facility.
The report ranks Eloy as one of the deadliest ICE facilities in the country, claiming there is a lack of adequate emergency services, food and medications, among other mistreatments.
Grijalva, who has introduced legislation since 2015 to combat private prisons and detention centers, said that the Eloy Detention Center has been "plagued by a long and tragic history of neglect."
"Since 2003, there have been more than a dozen deaths," Grijalva said in a statement Wednesday. "Unfortunately, many of these deaths could have been prevented had the facility acted according to law. Yet, the reality is that for-profit detention centers and private prisons are motivated by profit, not human decency. The incarceration of pregnant women, individuals with serious health needs and immigrants must stop. The federal government continues to contract with the private prison complex who acts without accountability or oversight. We must end private prisons and immigration detention centers. Congress must provide that accountability and oversight."
In 2017, Grijalva introduced the Justice is Not For Sale Act which, along with requiring "federal, state, and local governments to directly operate and perform core services at adult prisons and detention centers," requires ICE to "use Alternatives to Detention, and increases oversight to prevent companies from overcharging inmates and their families for services like banking and telephone calls."
To see the full report, visit https://insideeloy.org/pdfs/carceral-state-report.pdf
Tags: reports , Eloy Detention Center , Grijalva , migrants , immigration , Image
