• Slug: BC-CNS-Lethal Restraint Superhuman,2100 words.
• 4 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Shahid Meighan, Nathan Collins, Elena Santa Cruz
Howard Center for Investigative Journalism

Deputy Steven Mills of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office was on patrol one night in 2013 when he received a call about a Black man walking down a rural road in Phenix City, Alabama, naked in 50-degree weather.

Mills said the man ignored his calls to stop, but when the officer threatened to use his Taser, 24-year-old Khari Illidge turned and walked toward him, saying “tase me, tase me.” In a sworn statement, the deputy later said he had to tase Illidge twice because he’d been unable to physically restrain the “muscular” man with “superhuman strength.” Continue reading “Myth of ‘superhuman strength’ in Black people persists in deadly encounters with police”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Artists 4 Liberation. 1,335 words.
• 13 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Kayla Mae Jackson
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – American writer Amiri Baraka once said, “The artist’s role is to raise the consciousness of the people. To make them understand life, the world and themselves more completely. That’s how I see it. Otherwise, I don’t know why you do it.”

Artists 4 Liberation is a Phoenix-based human-rights advocacy group that is using art to raise consciousness about the Palestinian people and fight for marginalized groups across the globe.

The organization holds community art events, fashion shows, movie screenings, rallies and marches throughout Phoenix in support of Palestinian liberation. At the events, local artists are invited to create posters with provided supplies, create political graphic T-shirts at screenprinting locations with designs by local artists, hang up political art flyers around the city and hear from local activists.

Continue reading “‘Power to evoke change’: Phoenix-based Artists 4 Liberation uses art to raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Abortion Repeal,790 words.
• File photo, video story available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Reagan Priest
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – The Arizona House voted Wednesday to repeal the state’s near-total ban on abortion, with three Republicans joining all Democrats to reverse the law despite emotional rhetoric from anti-abortion lawmakers.

The 32-28 vote came just two weeks after the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated the 1864 law that criminalizes abortion except to save the life of the mother, and it was the third try by Democrats to reverse that ruling.

The measure still needs Senate approval before it goes to the governor, who has said she would sign it. Continue reading “House votes to repeal near-total abortion ban; bill still needs Senate OK”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Abortion Calentdar,910 words.
• 2 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Martin Dreyfuss
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – As state lawmakers push to repeal a near-total ban on abortion, Planned Parenthood of Arizona confirmed Wednesday that it will continue to provide abortions up to 15 weeks of pregnancy “until the last legal moment.”

But when that last legal moment is depends on who’s talking.

Abortion opponents argue that the ban should have taken effect this week, while Attorney General Kris Mayes said it would not take effect until June at the earliest – and she would not enforce it then. It could take weeks yet for final Senate approval of a repeal, and even then it would be months before the law took effect. Continue reading “Abortion law status remains unclear, even as lawmakers near repeal of ban”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Veterans Suicide Prevention. 850 words.
• Photos available.

By Brooke Rindenau
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Suicide prevention was a key focus of the Arizona Coalition for Military Families’ 14th Annual Statewide Symposium held in Phoenix on April 17 and 18. The symposium brought together military, government and community resources to focus on strengthening services and support for the half-million veterans who live in Arizona and their families.

In 2021, 6,392 veterans were among the 46,412 suicides among U.S. adults, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Between the years 2015 and 2019, veteran suicides accounted for 20.6% of the suicides in Arizona.

Continue reading “Annual symposium for Arizona military members and families highlights veteran suicide prevention”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Navajo Nation Psych. 1,840 words.
• 5 photos available (thumbnails, captions available).

Mia Milinovich
Cronkite News

GANADO – As a Navajo himself, Dr. Richard Laughter understands mental health issues experienced by members of the Navajo Nation on a deeply personal level. As a Native American psychiatrist, he breaks down accessibility barriers for his people by blending Native cultural practices with Western behavioral health care.

According to Laughter, the rural nature of the Navajo Reservation greatly impacts the number of accessible behavioral health services because of the distances people have to travel to get to them. The Navajo Nation website says tribal lands cover 27,000 square miles in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico.

Continue reading “Navajo psychiatrist bridges gaps between Native American culture and behavioral health care”

• Slug: Sports-Roadrunners Future. 626 words.
• One photo available

By Josh Jones
Cronkite News

PHOENIX — Following the announcement of the Arizona Coyotes’ $1.2 billion relocation to Salt Lake City, another relocation rumor now swirls around a second professional hockey team in Arizona.

Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo mentioned on Thursday his plan to move the AHL Tucson Roadrunners to Arizona State’s Mullet Arena during an interview with Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo.

The move would be an effort to keep professional hockey in the Valley while Meruelo attempts to win a land auction in North Phoenix that could be a first step in bringing a new NHL team to Arizona that would carry the Coyotes name. The Roadrunners remain under the ownership of Meruelo and will be an affiliate of the new team in Utah.

“We intend to make a request to the NHL board of governors and ASU to relocate the Roadrunners to Mullett Arena,” Meruelo said.

On Friday, in a press conference with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman in Phoenix, Meruelo added to his comments with an explanation that the relocation could be more work.

Continue reading “With Arizona Coyotes leaving, relocation talk clouds Roadrunners’ future in Tucson”

• Slug: Sports-ASU Overwatch Esports. 950 words.
• One photo available.

Sammy Nute
Cronkite News

TEMPE — Grand Canyon University showed off its multi-million dollar esports facility in mid-March by hosting the Western Cactus League 2024, the first in-person esports competition to host all four major Arizona universities.

GCU, which has been at the forefront of investing in the Valley’s esports scene, opened its doors to Arizona State, the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University at the 3,200-square-foot Esports Arena. Built in 2019, the facility houses more than 70 personal computers and multiple consoles.

However, it wasn’t the host team that dominated the event that weekend.

Arizona State Overwatch stole the show en route to a tournament victory, adding to a stellar year of rapid growth. ASU climbed the Overwatch College Rankings into the nation’s top 10 without significant financial support from the school as a club sport. The program’s potential was on display amid its rise in the rankings, despite a decision by ASU’s student government to withdraw critical financial support this spring, according to the team.

Continue reading “No funding, no problem: ASU Overwatch stuns esports elites without university’s financial backing”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Lake Denied,600 words.
• File photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Martin Dreyfuss
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned down an appeal from Kari Lake and Mark Finchem, apparently ending their two-year bid to block the use of electronic voting tabulation in Maricopa and Pima counties.

Lake, the failed GOP nominee for governor in 2022 who is now running for U.S. Senate, and Finchem, the failed 2022 Republican nominee for secretary of state, had claimed in court filings the tabulating machines were susceptible to hacking.

But a district court judge rejected those claims as highly speculative, and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. That set up their appeal to the Supreme Court, which declined without comment to hear the case. Continue reading “Supreme Court turns down Lake, Finchem suit to ban electronic vote tallies”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Dad Together. 790 words.
• 4 photos, video story available.

By Naomi DuBovis
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – When Lord Washington became a father, he looked everywhere for other dads to connect with. Nothing he found gave him what he needed.

“There wasn’t much out there at all,” he said. “You can get links, but there was nothing that was meeting face-to-face, and there was nothing that was local to me at that point in time.”

But then he found Dad Together, a program where dads of all backgrounds and stages meet up, share their experiences and support each other through their parenting journeys. It offers one-on-one mentoring, discussions and a 13-week course, called Nurturing Fathers, that teaches dads the fundamentals of parenting and nurturing.

Continue reading “‘We’re not in this alone’: How an Arizona program gives support, mentorship to dads”