Tag: arizona

A law that helped convert Indigenous people is now used to get churches near—and on—school grounds

Earlier this year, a small school district just north of Tucson made an unusual decision: It would allow the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to build a complex on public school district grounds where students could be released from class to worship.

But the project quickly unraveled. A few weeks later, the Vail Unified School District reversed course, saying the church canceled the contract after local media reports and secular groups criticized the plan. Still, the construction of religious buildings near schools for the temporary release of students to practice their faith has become a growing concern of church-state separation advocates, who argue it violates legal requirements that keep public schools secular.

In Arizona and several other states, ‘release time’ for religious instruction is not only legal—it’s common.

State law allows students to be excused from school during the day to participate in religious instruction off campus. In the case of LDS students, these classes often include lifestyle lessons. They are typically held in buildings just outside campus boundaries, sometimes only a few hundred feet away.

Religious conservatives have pushed to expand release-time programs nationwide, arguing there is no need to separate religion from daily education. Here, such programs are only growing more popular.

Arizona’s history with religious release time

More than a dozen states currently require school districts to adopt release-time policies.

Most recently, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, signed a bill in February mandating school districts create a release-time policy after two districts rescinded theirs. Previously, Ohio law didn’t require districts to offer the program. The new law, known as the Parents’ Bill of Rights, also bans discussions of sexuality or gender identity before fourth grade.

The Guardian reported that the Arizona-based Alliance Defending Freedom, designated an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, has helped draft model legislation for states to expand release-time programs. This gives parents more authority over their children’s ‘moral and religious’ upbringing, often limiting exposure to diverse communities and families.

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Man Killed in Road Rage Incident Brought Back to Life and Speaks to His Killer in Court via AI-Powered Video

A Chandler, Arizona courtroom recently witnessed the use of artificial intelligence to resurrect the voice of a deceased man, Christopher Pelkey, during the sentencing of his killer, Gabriel Horcasitas.

Pelkey, shot dead in a 2021 road rage incident, was digitally recreated using AI to deliver a scripted “impact statement” written by his sister, Stacey Wales.

Horcasitas, 50, was sentenced to 10.5 years for manslaughter after shooting Pelkey, 37, when the latter approached his car in a heated confrontation.

“To Gabriel Horcasitas, the man who shot me: it is a shame we encountered each other that day in those circumstances,” according to the AI-generated video, featuring a digitally aged photograph of Pelkey.

“In another life, we probably could have been friends. I believe in forgiveness and God, who forgives. I always have, and still do,” the video said, which moved the judge, who openly praised the AI technology, to hand down a sentence a full year longer than prosecutors requested.

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WICKED: Far-Left Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs Gaslights Her Constituents as She Vetoes a Commonsense Bill Requiring Her to Follow Federal Immigration Laws

One of the most left-wing and wicked governors in America has decided she wants her state to remain a haven for criminal aliens.

Democrat Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, who ‘won’ her election under questionable circumstances, yesterday vetoed a commonsense bill passed by the Arizona State Legislature that would have required her to help follow federal immigration laws.

The bill in question, House Bill 2099, would have mandated the governor, attorney general, and every county, city, and town in Arizona to enforce and cooperate with all immigration orders, actions, and programs from the federal government.

Here is what Hobbs wrote in her veto message:

Today, I vetoed House Bill 2099. When I assumed the role of Governor, I pledged to uphold both the U.S. Constitution and the Arizona Constitution,” she wrote in her veto message.

I have worked productively with the federal government to secure our border, stopping fentanyl at our ports of entry through Task Force SAFE, disrupting cartel operations with Operation Desert Guardian, and working across all levels of government to keep communities safe with the Border Coordination Office.

I will continue to work with the federal government on true border security, but we should not force state officials to take marching orders from Washington, DC. My focus will always be on delivering real results for Arizonans.

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Katie Hobbs’ Arizona Agriculture Employee ARRESTED for Alleged Human Smuggling of Illegal Aliens

In yet another stunning failure of leadership from Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, a now-former employee of the Arizona Department of Agriculture (AZDA) has been arrested at the southern border for alleged human smuggling of illegal aliens — a scandal that now threatens to sink Hobbs’ controversial nominee to lead the agency.

Joshua Castro, who served as a produce inspector for the AZDA, is facing both felony and misdemeanor federal charges after Border Patrol agents caught him allegedly transporting illegal aliens across the U.S. border earlier this month, KOLD reported.

According to a federal complaint filed by the U.S. District Attorney of Arizona, Castro was first spotted on April 9 speeding away from a known smuggling route near Nogales.

Border agents later caught up to him after witnessing the same vehicle ferrying two illegal aliens — Mexican nationals who admitted to paying between $7,600 and $12,000 each to be smuggled into the United States.

According to the news outlet, Castro was wearing his state-issued uniform during the incident, despite being off-duty.

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Arizona to Remove Up to 50,000 Noncitizens From Voter Rolls After Successful Conservative Lawsuit

All 15 counties in Arizona have now started reviewing and cleaning their voter rolls to remove noncitizens, including nearly 50,000 voters who registered without showing proof of U.S. citizenship.

The lawsuit was filed by America First Legal (AFL) on behalf of EZAZ.org and Yvonne Cahill, a naturalized U.S. citizen and registered voter. AFL was founded by Trump advisor Stephen Miller.

It argued that election officials were not following Arizona law, which requires proof of citizenship to vote in state and local elections. Counties must also run monthly checks to confirm the citizenship status of registered voters.

As part of the settlement, Arizona counties must now work with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to verify the citizenship of voters who didn’t provide documentation when registering.

“This settlement is a great result for all Arizonans,” said James Rogers, senior counsel at AFL in a statement provided to Fox News.

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Ex-CDC Director Pushes Extra MMR Shot For Babies, As Arizona Reports Suspected Measles Case Was ‘Rare’ Vaccine Reaction

Some infectious disease experts — including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) former director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky — are pushing health officials to recommend an extra dose of the MMR vaccine for babies ages 6-11 months who live in or travel to areas of the U.S. with measles outbreaks, according to Medpage Today.

The news comes as a suspected measles case in a 1-year-old child in Pima County, Arizona, this week turned out to be a reaction to the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine — not measles.

According to a Pima County news release, reactions to the MMR vaccine are “rare and do not carry the same risk as community-acquired measles.”

The Pima County Health Department did not specify the toddler’s symptoms but said state and county health authorities — and the local hospital where the child was treated — “took precautions in the child’s treatment as if it were an infectious case.”

Arizona has not reported any measles cases so far in 2025, the release said.

The CDC’s current Child and Adolescent Immunization Schedule recommends children receive their first dose of the MMR vaccine between the ages of 2-15 months, and their second dose between ages 4-6 years.

Infants 6-11 months old who are about to travel internationally are advised to get an extra dose before traveling.

Walensky and colleagues argued in op-eds published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and STAT News that the recommendation should be changed due to the uptick in U.S. measles cases.

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The Phoenix Lights: 28 years later, the mystery endures

On the night of March 13, 1997, thousands of Arizonans looked up and saw something they couldn’t explain—a massive, V-shaped formation of lights hovering in the sky.

Twenty-eight years later, the Phoenix Lights remain one of the most infamous UFO sightings in U.S. history, fueling speculation, debate, and ongoing scientific curiosity.

Among those who witnessed the phenomenon firsthand was Dr. Lynne Kitei, a former medical professional who was so profoundly impacted that she left her career in medicine to study the lights full-time.

“They have become the most witnessed, the most documented, the most anomalous aerial sighting in modern history, if not all of history,” said Kitei, founder of the Phoenix Lights Network.

Kitei recalls the day vividly, describing how two lower orbs appeared to hover motionlessly.

“It was just bizarre. Again, I’m a healthy skeptic, but I was seeing something that was so extraordinary.”

While some, like Kitei, are convinced that the lights were something beyond our current understanding, others believe there is a more earthly explanation.

Chris Impey, an astronomy professor at the University of Arizona, points out that the southwest sees an unusually high UFO reports—coinciding with the region’s large number of Air Force bases, frequent military flights, and clear skies.

“You know, the Southwest generates a lot of UFO sightings, and it’s not coincidental,” Impey explained. He says he tends to believe the more conventional theory that the Phoenix Lights could have been A-10 aircraft flying in a chevron formation, followed by military flares.

And sometimes, he adds, people may just be seeing the planet Venus.

“After sunset, you’ll see it low on the horizon, and with atmospheric effects, it might look like it’s moving or hovering. That’s a classic UFO sighting.”

Kitei, however, remains unconvinced.

“The impact it made on the witnesses themselves is so compelling,” she said. “It cannot be explained.”

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Arizona Lawmakers Approve Psychedelics Bills To Create Psilocybin Advisory Board And Fund Ibogaine Research

Arizona lawmakers have approved two different bills focused on psychedelic therapy.

Senate passed a bill to create an advisory board tasked with studying the science of psilocybin, as well as state and federal policies surrounding the psychedelic, while the House separately approved a measure to fund clinical trials on ibogaine.

The Senate legislation from Sen. T. J. Shope (R) cleared the chamber in a 23-4 vote on Tuesday after it was significantly amended in committee, with members removing central provisions to establish licensed psilocybin service centers for adults seeking mental health treatment.

On the House side, the body advanced the ibogaine research legislation, sponsored by Rep. Justin Wilmeth (R), in a 36-22 vote on Monday, sending it to the Senate. It would provide funding for the state Department of Health Services (DHS) to “conduct a certified clinical research study on the use of ibogaine for the treatment of neurological diseases.”

An earlier version of Shope’s Senate psilocybin bill moved through both chambers last year with the regulated access components intact, but it was vetoed by the Democratic governor, who argued that “we do not yet have the evidence needed to support widespread clinical expansion.”

However, the year before, Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) signed into law budget legislation that included provisions to fund research into the medical potential of psilocybin mushrooms for a variety of conditions.

The new Senate-passed bill hopes to leverage some of those appropriated $5 million to create an Arizona Psilocybin Advisory Board, comprised of up to 12 members appointed by the governor and legislative leaders.

Representatives of the attorney general’s office and DHS, as well as military veterans, first responders, scientists with experience with psilocybin and physicians would be among the members.

Under the bill, the board would need to be selected by December 31, 2025, and they’d need to hold their first meeting by March 1, 2026.

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Arizona Lawmakers to Vote on Proposal to Pay Cops $2,500 for Each Illegal Alien They Help ICE Deport

Arizona lawmakers will be voting on legislation to pay police officers a $2,500 bounty for each illegal alien they help Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deport.

The legislation states that the bounties will be paid by taxing international money transfers.

Under the proposal, each international money transfer under $500 will be taxed $25, and those over $500 will be taxed $25 plus five percent of the additional amount.

Opponents of the legislation have argued that it will lead to racial profiling and distract police from handling their local duties.

Democrat Arizona Senator Lauren Kuby called the bill “racist” and compared it to the “wild west.”

“But it’s Wild West with a twist, it’s a racist bill,” Kuby said.

“This is a critical mission that Arizona voters overwhelmingly support, and we want to reward the efforts of our hardworking officers,” the bill’s Republican sponsor Senator Jake Hoffman said in a statement obtained by Reuters.

The report adds, “Missouri and Mississippi recently considered bills to pay civilian bounty hunters $1,000 for each illegal immigrant they caught. The legislation was shot down in Mississippi and looks set to fail in Missouri, with state Republicans reluctant to pay for immigration enforcement.”

The bill passed through committee last week and will now go to the state’s House and Senate for votes.

Arizona’s Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs has said she will veto the bill if it passes.

To override the veto, there would need to be a two-thirds majority vote in each chamber.

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Democrat Arizona AG Kris Mayes’ Alternate Trump Electors Case on Life Support After Judge Says Charges May Have Violated First Amendment

The Arizona alternate Trump electors case brought by Democrat Attorney General Kris Mayes started to crumble last year after a judge allowed the defendants to argue the charges are politically motivated.

During a hearing last year, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Bruce Cohen said he was open to listening to the defendants’ arguments to have the indictment thrown out under Arizona’s anti-SLAPP law, which was recently expanded by the legislature to cover vindictive politically motivated charges.

On Monday, Maricopa County Judge Sam Myers said the defendants successfully argued that the charges against them appear to have violated the state’s anti-SLAPP statute.

“Myers said that Arizona Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes’ declaration when announcing the indictment that “this should never happen again” can be construed as assigning political motivation to the prosecution,” Courthouse News reported.

Arizona prosecutors have 45 days to respond to the judge’s finding and prove the charges were to enforce the law and not violate the First Amendment rights of the defendants.

Trump 2020 election lawyer John Eastman responded to the judge’s finding: Major ruling in the Arizona electors case this a.m. The new judge just ruled that I met the prima facie case required to dismiss under the anti-SLAPP statute — that is, 1st Amend. rights implicated, & substantial evid. that the prosecution was to retaliate or deter those rights.

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