This Hour: Latest Arizona news, sports, business and entertainment - Tucson News Now

BOYFRIEND SLAYING

Jurors deadlock on Jodi Arias penalty; retrial set

PHOENIX (AP) - The jury in Jodi Arias' murder trial has been dismissed after failing to decide if she should receive the death penalty.

A new panel likely will be seated to try again to reach a decision on a sentence - unless the prosecutor takes death off the table and agrees to a life sentence. The judge scheduled a retrial for July 18.

One female juror mouthed "sorry" to the family of the victim, Travis Alexander, as they cried.

Arias looked visibly upset with the jury's decision. Before it was announced, she sobbed in the courtroom. In announcing the mistrial, Judge Sherry Stephens gave a heavy sigh.

The same panel on May 8 found Arias guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Alexander in his Mesa home.

BOYFRIEND SLAYING-WHAT'S NEXT

The next steps in Jodi Arias case

PHOENIX (AP) - The jury in Jodi Arias' murder trial has failed to reach a verdict against the woman they convicted of murdering Travis Alexander. The next steps:

NEW JURY:

The judge scheduled a retrial on the penalty phase for July 18. A new jury must be seated to decide the punishment. If the second panel deadlocks, the judge will then sentence Arias to spend her entire life in prison or be eligible for release after 25 years. The judge cannot sentence Arias to death.

NO DEATH:

The prosecutor could decide to take the death penalty off the table and agree to a life sentence. The judge would sentence Arias to spend the rest of her life in prison. Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery issued a statement Thursday saying: "As of this point in time ... we will proceed with the intent to retry the penalty phase."

FALLEN FIREFIGHTER HONORED

Brewer orders flags at half-staff for firefighter

PHOENIX (AP) - Gov. Jan Brewer has ordered that flags at all state office buildings be lowered to half-staff from sunrise until sunset Friday in honor of fallen Phoenix firefighter Bradley Harper.

The 23-year-old Harper sustained critical injuries while battling a mulch fire last Saturday. He died the next day.

Harper's funeral is scheduled for Friday in Peoria.

TUCSON BICYCLIST KILLED

Suspect arrested in Tucson hit & run death

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - A suspect is in custody in the hit & run death of a Tucson bicyclist.

Tucson police say 64-year-old John Akers was fatally struck by a vehicle about 3:30 a.m. Thursday as he was riding his bicycle to work.

The Arizona Daily Star reports that Akers was a bus driver at Sun Tran and has worked for the bus service since 1974.

Witnesses say the car that hit Akers fled the scene. They provided a description of the vehicle to police and deputies found it hours later on Tucson's northwest side.

Police say the suspect is facing charges of second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a fatal collision.

The name of the suspect hasn't been released yet.

CHILD MOLESTATION ARREST

Prescott Valley man accused of molesting a girl

PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) - Authorities in northern Arizona say a Prescott Valley man has been accused of molesting a young girl.

Prescott Valley police said Thursday that 19-year-old Chaun Tyler Sewell is being held in the Yavapai County Jail on suspicion of 1 count of child molestation.

Authorities say Sewell is accused of inappropriately touching a 4-year-old girl that he knew.

The girl's father told police that he walked into a room and allegedly saw Sewell with his hand down the girl's pants.

The man briefly scuffled with Sewell before police arrived at the home.

Police say Sewell allegedly admitted involvement in the offense and was arrested.

They didn't immediately know Thursday if Sewell has a lawyer yet.

BULLHEAD CITY-ABDUCTION

Bullhead City police seek man in son's abduction

BULLHEAD CITY, Ariz. (AP) - Bullhead City police are searching for a 38-year-old man following the abduction of his 13-year-old son at gunpoint from the home of the boy's mother early Thursday morning.

Police say the boy was later found unharmed in a vehicle stopped by police but that Michael Darold Brewer fled the scene on foot. A loaded gun also was found in the vehicle.

According to police, Brewer forced his way into the mother's home and then held a gun on her, their son and the mother's boyfriend.

Police say Brewer is white, 5-foot-11 tall and weighs 175 pounds with brown eyes and brown hair.

He has his last name tattooed on his lower back and has a "White Pride" tattoo on his stomach.

NOGALES WILDFIRE

Wildfire in southern Arizona now at 10,000 acres

NOGALES, Ariz. (AP) - A wildfire has charred about 10,000 acres of grass and brush on ridges of the Coronado National Forest in southern Arizona but now is 55% contained.

The Soldier Basin fire is some five miles east of the Nogales airport in steep, rocky terrain in Santa Cruz County.

Forest Service officials say the fire is human-caused and isn't threatening any structures.

The fire began last Friday night.

It's being fought by about 200 firefighters plus three helicopters, 11 engines and seven water tenders.

HIGHWAY CLOSURE

Truck fire closes US 93 near Wickenburg for hours

PHOENIX (AP) - The main highway between Phoenix and Las Vegas now is fully reopened after a dump truck fire.

Arizona Department of Transportation officials say U.S. 93 was closed in both directions after the accident late Thursday morning.

Traffic later shared one lane about 20 miles north of Wickenburg before the highway was fully reopened around 1:45 p.m.

RECKLESS BURNING ARREST

Transient accused of starting small Flagstaff fire

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) - A transient has been arrested for allegedly starting a small wildfire in Flagstaff.

Coconino County Sheriff's officials said Thursday that 25-year-old James Duncan is being held on suspicion of 1 count of reckless burning.

They received a call from dispatchers assigned to the northern district of the Arizona Department of Public Safety regarding a hitchhiker who allegedly started a one-acre fire near Interstate 40.

DPS officers say a man was seen sitting in a log on a shoulder of I-40 smoking a cigarette in the area where the so-called Freeway Fire ignited.

Authorities say Duncan has denied causing the fire.

They didn't immediately know if he had a lawyer.

ZENDEJAS INDICTED

Ex-UA, NFL kicker accused of damage and theft

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Former University of Arizona and NFL kicker Max Zendejas (zehn-DAY'-hahs) has been indicted on damage and theft charges in connection with his recently closed Tucson restaurant.

Pima County authorities say the indictment claims Zendejas "recklessly defaced or damaged property" belonging to the university causing more than $10,000 in damages at the restaurant.

The Arizona Daily Star says the property includes a walk-in refrigerator, compressors, ceiling fans and kitchen sinks.

Zendejas opened the Mexican restaurant and bar across the street from Arizona Stadium in 2010.

The Zendejas 13 restaurant closed April 12.

The 49-year-old Zendejas set several scoring records with the Wildcats from 1982-85.

He was a fourth-round pick in the 1986 NFL draft and played one season with Washington and two with Green Bay before getting involved in family businesses.

GIFFORDS AWARD

Group names Giffords as its Woman of the Year

PHOENIX (AP) - A Democratic women's leadership group has named former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords its Woman of the Year.

Emerge Arizona honored Giffords at a ceremony Thursday night at a downtown Phoenix hotel.

The group is part of a 10-state network offering a training program to help qualified Democratic women run for public office.

The 42-year-old Giffords resigned from Congress last year as she continues to recover from injuries suffered in January 2011 during a meet & greet with her constituents in Tucson.

Six people died and 13 people were wounded, including Giffords, when a gunman opened fire outside a Tucson supermarket.

Giffords and her husband - former astronaut Mark Kelly - have formed a political action committee that seeks to limit the size of ammunition magazines and expand background checks for gun purchases.

CONDOR DEATHS

4 of 8 California condors died from lead poisoning

PHOENIX (AP) - Authorities say lead poisoning killed half of the eight California condors that died last winter in Arizona and Utah.

The Idaho-based Peregrine Fund says two other condors suffered fatal trauma possibly caused by a predator between last December and February and two carcasses were unrecoverable.

Condors encounter lead when eating animals that have been shot with lead bullets.

Officials with the Peregrine Fund's condor reintroduction project say 72 condors currently fly in a range that stretches from Arizona's Grand Canyon to southern Utah's Zion National Park.

There were just 22 condors when a program was started in 1996 to save the endangered species from extinction.

Arizona is trying to reduce the toll on condors by providing vouchers for lead-free bullets and other rewards for hunters who dispose of carcasses properly.

BREWER-BILL SIGNING MORATORIUM

Brewer vetoes 5 bills in latest budget standoff

PHOENIX (AP) - Republican Gov. Jan Brewer wasn't bluffing when she told lawmakers not to send her anymore bills until they made significant progress on a state budget and her proposal to expand Medicaid.

Brewer vetoed five bills Thursday after Senate President Andy Biggs said he was never told not to transmit bills for her signature.

Biggs sent the bills this week despite a moratorium on signings the governor put in place more than two weeks ago.

The Senate passed a budget last week, but Brewer said this week the moratorium would not be lifted until the House took action. House Speaker Andy Tobin opposes Brewer's Medicaid expansion plan.

4 of the bills Biggs sent are relatively minor.

Senate Bill 1178 would allow people to sue over potential violations of religious freedom.

ARIZONA LAWMAKER THREATENED

GOP Ariz. rep. who supports Medicaid is threatened

PHOENIX (AP) - A Republican member of the Arizona House says she received an obscene and threatening voicemail at her office because she supports Gov. Jan Brewer's push to expand Medicaid.

A visibly shaken Rep. Kate Brophy McGee, of Phoenix, urged fellow members Thursday to tell their constituents to be civil. She told them she should not be frightened to come to work.

The message came after Republican Rep. Bob Thorpe, of Flagstaff, sent an email urging his constituents to call Brophy McGee and five other GOP House members who support Medicaid expansion. Thorpe says he sent an apology late Wednesday to the lawmakers for naming them.

GOP House Speaker Andy Tobin says threatening any lawmaker or any Arizonan is inappropriate.

He says he spoke with Thorpe and he sent the apology.

SENATE-GOP RIFT

Tea party vs. old guard in Senate GOP rift

WASHINGTON (AP) - A long-simmering feud between establishment Republicans and tea partyers is in full view again with Arizona Sen. John McCain accusing younger colleagues of using tactics that might tempt Democrats to change Senate rules that now protect the minority party.

How to deal with the government's debt and spending became the latest quarrel between the GOP's 2008 presidential candidate and tea party champions such as Senators Ted Cruz of Texas, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Mike Lee of Utah.

Cruz and Lee expressed fears Thursday that Republicans might give up their ability to use a filibuster to wrest more spending cuts from Democrats and President Barack Obama.

McCain said Americans expect Congress - even though divided - to accomplish things through compromise.

HOPI INVESTMENTS

Arizona tribe claims bank mismanaged investments

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) - The Hopi Tribe of northern Arizona claims its investments were mishandled by a national banking institute, resulting in the loss of millions of dollars.

The tribe filed its claims against Wachovia earlier this month with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. It is seeking more than $190 million in damages and penalties through arbitration.

The claims allege that Wachovia and its financial advisers concealed losses from the tribe, misrepresented the risk in investments and overcharged fees.

A spokesman for Wells Fargo & Co, which acquired Wachovia in 2008, said Thursday that the bank would present its side during an arbitration hearing.

Wells Fargo settled a case in 2011 that claimed Wachovia Capital Markets LLC misled investors to sell mortgage bonds in 2006 and 2007 to the Zuni Tribe of New Mexico.

CADETS-RIVER RESCUE

West Point cadets rescue 2 kayakers on Hudson

WEST POINT, N.Y. (AP) - Two West Point cadets are being credited with rescuing two stranded kayakers on the Hudson River.

The U.S. Military Academy says Cadet Sam Mo and Cadet Daniel Bleyl swam out into the river late Wednesday night after hearing the kayakers' cries for help. Mo, a member of the Class of 2016 from Great Neck, N.Y. and Bleyl, a member of the Class of 2014 from Tucson, Ariz., swam 300 to 400 yards to get to the kayakers.

The pair, both members of the Army swim team, treaded water for about 20 minutes until help arrived. A third cadet swim team member notified emergency officials.

A power boat used by West Point's crew team helped the victims to shore. The unidentified victims were treated for exposure.

ARIZONA GASOLINE PRICES

Low gasoline prices in Ariz. this holiday weekend

PHOENIX (AP) - Gasoline prices at the pump this Memorial Day holiday weekend will be at their lowest level in three years around Arizona.

Officials with AAA Arizona said Thursday that the average statewide price for unleaded regular gasoline is $3.45 a gallon. That's up by less than a penny from last week.

This week's national average is $3.65 per gallon, an increase of nearly 6 cents from last week.

Tucson has the lowest average gasoline price in Arizona at $3.18 a gallon while Flagstaff has the highest at $3.67.

South Carolina has the lowest average gas prices in the continental U.S. at $3.24 a gallon with North Dakota having the highest at $4.23 a gallon.

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