Month: May 2019

The El Paso Scouts placed flags on gravesites at Fort Bliss National Cemetery Saturday morning in support of Memorial Day. About 1,000 El Paso Scouts volunteers helped place American flags on individual gravesites. Scout Stephan Alvarez told ABC-7, “It means a lot to me personally because my dad was in the military, and he’s a

On Friday, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (D- Texas 16) discussed the findings from the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on the high costs of prescription drugs for diabetes patients in El Paso. El Paso has about 19,000 Medicare beneficiaries on insulin, which is often cheaper in other countries than it is in the U.S., the

Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke’s campaign, Beto For America, has fully reimbursed the City of El Paso for its March 30th campaign kick-off rally in Downtown. ABC-7 obtained a copy of the check for $21,021.36 which was sent to the City of El Paso Thursday morning. That amount, received Thursday, was due today. “We appreciate

A federal judge blocked on Friday President Donald Trump from building sections of his long-sought border wall with money secured under his declaration of a national emergency. U.S. District Judge Haywood Gilliam Jr. on Friday immediately halted the administration’s efforts to redirect military-designated funds for wall construction. His order applies to two projects, scheduled to

Coronado volleyball star Campbell Bowden has left an impact on El Paso that extends far beyond the boundaries of the court. Bowden, who is on her way to play volleyball at Baylor, was honored Friday afternoon for her work with children in our community. Ever since she was in the seventh grade, Bowden has volunteered

Dozens of people from all over the Borderland, including several fellow law enforcement officers, showed up to donate blood Friday after an El Paso Police officer was critically injured in a wreck Thursday. The El Paso Police Department held a blood drive Friday for officer Daniel Rodriguez, a 13-year-veteran who works with the Westside Regional

A U.S. Army soldier stationed at Fort Bliss died at Big Bend National Park on May 18, 2019. The 1st Armored Division confirms the death is currently under investigation. Officials identified the solder as Pfc Mamady Kaba, an automated logistical specialist assigned to Charlie Company, 86th Expeditionary Signal Battalion. Kaba, a native of Riverdale, Georgia,

U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested an undocumented man previously convicted for kidnapping and sexual assault in the U.S. The Border Patrol said Domingo Larios Castro, 49, was attempting to enter the United States illegally with a group of 43 undocumented immigrants. The group, which consisted mostly of Central American families and unaccompanied children, was seen

Texas authorities on Friday denied withholding a cellphone video of Sandra Bland’s confrontational traffic stop, responding to a Democratic legislator’s heated questions about why the 39-second clip never publicly surfaced until now. Bland, a 28-year-old black woman from outside Chicago, had used her phone in 2015 to briefly film a white state trooper as he

A federal judge has sentenced three El Paso men for their roles in a sex trafficking scheme involving underage girls. Thursday, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone sentenced Khalil S. Maxwell, 22, to 25 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release. Maxwell was also known as “Korrupt” and “Khalil Zero Tolerance,” federal

The El Paso Police officer injured in a wreck Thursday morning is out of surgery and in stable condition, El Paso Police said. Friday, police identified the officer as Daniel Rodriguez, a 13-year-veteran of the police department assigned to the Westside Regional Command Center’s traffic section. The crash was reported at about 10 a.m. at

A tractor trailer fire Friday morning has shut down I-10 West and Clint. The closure extends from Clint to Horizon. The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office tweeted out that the fire has been extinguished, and no one was hurt. They expect I-10 to remain closed until at least 10:30 a.m. Take Texas State Highway 20

Oscar winners Robert De Niro, Tommy Lee Jones and Morgan Freeman soon will be on their way to New Mexico to start work on “The Comeback Trail.” The feature film will begin shooting in early June in Albuquerque, Tojajilee and other locations. Work is expected to last about a month and will include more than

New Mexico health officials report that a 50-year-old McKinley County woman is the state’s first reported case this year of hantavirus, a severely respiratory illness that can be deadly. The Department of Health’s announcement Friday that deer mice are the main carries of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in New Mexico, with the virus found in mice

The Latest on newly emerged cellphone video of Sandra Bland’s 2015 traffic stop in Texas (all times local): 9:30 a.m. Texas authorities are disputing accusations of withholding evidence in a heated exchange with lawmakers over why cellphone video of Sandra Bland’s 2015 traffic stop never publicly surfaced until now. Bland’s mother, Geneva Reed-Veal, attended the

U.S. officials say the Trump administration has notified Congress it plans to send 1,500 troops to the Middle East amid heightened tensions with Iran. Officials said members of Congress were notified following a White House meeting Thursday to discuss Pentagon proposals to bolster the U.S. force presence in the Middle East. The officials spoke Friday

El Paso City Council approved a change to the Neon Desert Music Festival on Tuesday moving it east away from San Jacinto Plaza. “They’re going to be using a portion of Texas on Saint Vrain, it’s just south of City Hall,” said city spokeswoman Laura Cruz-Acosta, adding that portions of Kansas will also be used.

The El Paso Police Department is holding a blood drive on Friday to help one of its motorcycle officers who is currently recovering in the hospital after a crash. The blood drive will be from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the Westside Regional Command located at 4801 Osborne Drive. The crash happened Thursday morning

The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, or TAPS, was created in 1994 to provide support for those dealing with a death in the military. The Department of Veterans Affairs reports about 20 veterans die by suicide every day. TAPS has created a program specific to those grieving the suicide loss of a military member, in

The Las Cruces man convicted of hitting and killing his ex-girlfriend with his car in 2017, then fleeing the scene, was sentenced to nine years in prison on Thursday. “I don’t think he has any remorse,” said Estella Garcia, the victim’s mother. “He is not the victim. My daughter was the victim.” In December 2017,

The El Paso Chihuahuas had struggled in the past week or so going just 2-5, but they managed to find their offense in a 10-4 win Thursday night at home against the Reno Aces. The Chihuahuas were held to just three hits in the previous game but managed 14 hits Thursday in a solid bounce-back

A Las Cruces judge is expected to announce whether a group can move forward in the process to recall three school board members with Las Cruces Public Schools. The hearing began Wednesday in Third Judicial District Court. The group trying to recall the board is called ‘Enough’ and is made up of about twenty former

Police are investigating a collision involving three students at Pebble Hills High School. The wreck was reported at about 4:30 p.m. at Charles Foster Avenue and John Hayes Street, near the high school. A parent who witnessed the wreck old ABC-7 a student was behind the wheel of the Corvette that struck the two other

A Las Cruces judge will soon determine whether a group of former educators can move forward with attempts to recall the Las Cruces Public School Board. As ABC-7 reported in April, a group called ‘Enough,’ made up of former educators, announced that they would try to put the school board members up for a recall

El Paso firefighters contained two fires at two recycling facilities in South El Paso. The first blaze was reported at about 11:30 a.m. in the 1600 block of Paisano. A large plume of smoke was visible in the downtown area. The fire erupted at a cardboard recycling facility. Firefighters are dousing bundles of cardboard boxes

The Tornillo facility housing undocumented, unaccompanied migrant children closed in mid-January, but another tent facility could soon go up in the same area. A restaurant owner told ABC-7 she was reaping the rewards from the previous facility and hopes another will open. ” I was doing very well, ” said Maria Elena Guerrero, owner of

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday that $1.6 billion in teacher raises are coming in a deal partly driven by classroom unrest across the U.S. and Republicans who sharply changed course on public education ahead of 2020 elections. Abbott trumpeted the pay hikes near the end of an unusually muted session of the Texas Legislature,

Advocates demanded $100 million in damages Thursday on behalf of the family of a 20-year-old Guatemalan woman who was shot and killed by a U.S. Border Patrol agent last year. The legal claim on behalf of Claudia Patricia Gómez González was filed one year after she died. It comes as the U.S. government grapples with

University Medical Center of El Paso announced today that its maternal care is worthy of the highest possible rating from the Texas Department of State Health Services. Level IV Maternal Care designation gives certification that UMC has the critical care expertise, physicians, training and equipment able to meet stringent state guidelines for new and expectant

The Trump Administration on Thursday announced it will begin “fully enforcing” a law signed by President Bill Clinton in 1996 that holds individuals sponsoring non-citizens responsible for any welfare benefits received by the non-citizen. “President Trump is enforcing existing restrictions on welfare use by non-citizens in order to promote self-sufficiency,” the White House announced Thursday.