Month: August 2014

State Rep. Joe Pickett issued a letter to the community, stating he is against the trolley project planned for Downtown El Paso. Pickett told ABC-7 Tuesday he thinks it undermines an effort to generate more money for state transportation projects. “There’s so many other projects. We almost had to beg to get the new interchange

Downtown El Paso’s city representative said she’s offended by comments made by State Rep. Joe Pickett. It’s all over transparency and funding for the trolley system underway. The downtown reformation could soon include a trolley. For District 8 City Rep. Cortney Niland, that is great news, despite the investment. “We were able to qualify for

Recent litigation against the Central Appraisal District by the Outlet Shoppes of El Paso has left the Canutillo Independent School District paying back more than a million dollars. The lawsuit between the Outlet Shoppes and the Central Appraisal District was settled in March, with the CAD settling on a more than 30-percent reduction in the

The UTEP football team will begin its summer practice schedule in El Paso from Aug. 4-5 before going to Camp Alpine for 10 days. Practices are closed to the public. UTEP will have two scrimmages while in Alpine, one on Aug. 9 and the other on Aug. 15, before the team returns to El Paso

Movoto, a real estate website, has ranked the “26 Things You Need to Know About El Paso Before You Move There.” Surprise – liking our tacos rolled (ie. Chico’s Tacos) comes in at No. 2? Other things that made the list include the Franklin Mountains, Neon Desert Music Festival, steaks, and the hand gesture at

It’s been three years since a levee, breached by a gopher hole, unleashed the Franklin Canal into living rooms of the Ramos Court neighborhood. Tuesday night a community meeting was held to talk about the city’s latest improvement plans for the area and the mood was optimistic. The city presented its plans to fully reconstruct

Most of the thousands of unaccompanied children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border have no chance of winning legal status in the U.S. if the government does not provide them with lawyers, immigration experts say. These children arriving at the border and many of the guardians they are being released to have poor knowledge of the

A small medical diagnostic business set to close its doors last week is still open and serving patients. Owner Martha Vera said she brought digital mammography to El Paso a decade ago because cancer affected so many people in her own family. She was preparing to go out of business after serving more than 27,000

Johnny Gonzalez has been found guilty of murder – a lesser charge than that of capital murder. The sentencing phase of the trial will begin Tuesday at 8:30 a.m., and Gonzalez faces 5-99 years. The jury deliberated for about five hours after hearing closing arguments earlier Monday. Gonzalez is the teenager accused of the 2012

The Central Appraisal district — one of the most-criticized agencies in El Paso — has taken its share of shots for the way it values our properties. Now the Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce is hoping to do something about it. On Tuesday its CEO will make a number of recommendations for changes to

The University Medical Center board is meeting this afternoon to take action on next year’s budget. A hospital district tax increase looks to be in the works. UMC is dealing with the financial fallout at El Paso Children’s Hospital right next door. Last Friday, the County hospital announced it was laying off 56 employees. The

El Paso County today unanimously passed a resolution opposing Gov. Rick Perry’s “militarization” of the border. But some County residents felt the resolution was un-American. County resident Sal Gomez says County Judge Veronica Escobar is anti U.S. military — and pledging allegiance to various South american countries. Escobar questions Perry’s use of $12 million a

Closing arguments are taking place in the capital murder trial of Juan “Johnny” Gonzalez. He is on trial for the beating death of off-duty El Paso Police Officer Jonathan Molina nearly two years ago. Prosecutors say it happened after Molina saw a group of teens keying his car and he confronted them. Last week saw

If you want a room in some of El Paso’s newest low-income housing, you might have to apply quickly, as rooms are filling up fast. The apartments that recently went on the market are in a familiar location. They are on the second floor of the Rescue Mission of El Paso, a place mostly known

County Judge Veronica Escobar submitted the following resolution to be considered at County Commissioners Monday. “Approve and adopt a resolution opposing Governor Rick Perry’s militarization of the Texas and Mexico border.” WHEREAS, El Paso County and other counties and cities along the U.S./Mexico Border are among the safest – if not the safest communities in

More information has been released in regard to the deadly shooting in Juarez, Mexico, near the U.S. Border. Chihuahua attorney in the Northern Zone Enrique Villarreal Macias said they are gathering surveillance video from different cameras installed along Avenida Juarez. According to witnesses one gunman who used two different weapons was involved in the attack

The City of El Paso will be seeing a new major general in town very soon. Major Gen. Stephen Twitty will give his first public speech as the commander of Fort Bliss, a day after replacing Major Gen. Sean MacFarland. Twitty will take over as commander on August 5th. He will be the keynote speaker

While President Obama and Gov. Perry have said the immigration situation on the border is a humanitarian crisis, one local politician says that’s not true. County Judge Veronica Escobar co-wrote an opinion piece published in Friday’s New York Times. Its title: “Why the Border Crisis Is a Myth.” Escobar said she started writing the article

Our Estela Casas will be joined by border reporter Angela Kocherga and her photographer max Benitez this week on ABC-7 Xtra. They’ll be talking about their recent trip to Honduras where they reported on the factors behind the immigrant influx. These included poverty to the ongoing violence and met several children caught in the middle

A pair of hikers went up Smuggler’s Pass but couldn’t come back down Saturday morning. The women, ages 35 and 39, were not injured. But they got lost after stepping off the trail. ABC-7 was there as members the fire department’s combined search and rescue team (COMSAR) made their way up the mountain to help

Police responded to a stabbing call at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, at a home in the 4900block of Royal in Northeast El Paso. They say the found Jennifer Amaya fighting with a 36-year old male. Police say the altercation escalated to the point that Amaya used a knife to stab the victim twice in the chest

An organization steps up to help out a health provider after seeing a story on ABC-7 profiling the trouble its nurses were having with parking downtown. ABC-7 reported in June how nurses with Epic Health Services who were caring for a sick child living in an apartment in Downtown El Paso were being cited for

El Paso County’s jury duty court will begin holding hearings again after a month-long hiatus, the Council of Judges decided Thursday. “The most important thing that we really want is to assure citizens under the constitution are guaranteed a trial by their peers,” said Council of Judges Administrator Patrick Garcia of the 384th District Court.

Emotional testimony in the capital murder trial of Juan “Johnny” Gonzalez on Friday as his grandfather took the stand in the morning. Gonzalez is accused of fatally beating El Paso Police officer Jonathan Molina in 2012. Prosecutors say it happened after Molina saw a group of teens keying his car and confronted them. During Friday’s

Below is the full text of letter UMC CEO sent to employees regarding today’s layoffs: July 25, 2014 Dear Associates, It is with deep regret that I must inform you that University Medical Center today was forced to reduce the size of its workforce because of mounting budgetary pressures. Fifty-six Associates were laid off today.

A dozen high school students may have a different outlook on life after they spent the last four weeks working closely with the Border Patrol. They realized there is a connection between their actions now and their plans for the future. “We started doing the discipline things and all the PT, the training we had

Local food vendors will soon offer healthier options at city parks. Healthy eating on-the-go is not that simple, especially for parents who spend a majority of their time at little league games. City-contracted food trucks are now required to have ten percent of its menu filled with healthier alternatives. Big Boy Concessions is one of

A Las Cruces MMA Fighter who fought off four men who allegedly broke into his home New Year’s Day, will not face any charges. The District Attorney’s office announced Thursday, Joseph Torrez, will not be charged in this case, that left one man dead. According to investigators, four men allegedly broke into Torrez’s home. One

Jurors in the capital murder trial of Juan “Johnny” Gonzalez were shown graphic autopsy photos during the second day of testimony Thursday. Gonzalez is accused of the beating death of El Paso Police Officer Jonathan Molina in September 2012. On Thursday, prosecutors lost the chance of questioning one of the key witnesses in the case,

El Paso County is in the process of installing some new software. The $6.3 million program replaces a current system that’s nearly 30 years old. “That tool alone won’t solve the performance-based budgeting challenge that we have,” said County Judge Veronica Escobar. “But I think the new chief administrator, coupled with the new software, between