The Daily Chirp

What started with Tom Crosby’s vote in Cochise County’s disputed 2022 election canvass has stretched into a long-running legal battle, with repeated delays now making it unlikely his felony case will go to trial before early 2027.

Aluminum Dynamics’ proposed Benson aluminum recycling plant has moved from local approvals and a state air permit to lawsuits and now a federal EPA petition, as supporters point to jobs and investment while opponents focus on location, traffic, and air-quality risks.

The Arizona Attorney General’s open meeting investigation in Benson is still unresolved, leaving city officials, residents, and project opponents still waiting to see whether the state believes any laws were broken in the lead-up to the controversial Aluminum Dynamics proposal.

Today - School leaders in Sierra Vista say closing Joyce Clark Middle School may be only the first of several painful decisions, as the district tries to close a major budget gap and respond to years of declining enrollment.

Today - A Sierra Vista homeowner says the city’s own lighting study confirmed what neighbors have been saying for months: the golf range lights are causing glare that violates local code.

Today - Fort Huachuca appears to have landed a major new mission that could reshape Sierra Vista’s role in national defense for years to come.

Today - Phil Vega helped shape the Herald/Review and Sierra Vista for decades, and this week the community is remembering a publisher whose influence reached far beyond the newsroom.

Plans to transfer Bisbee’s historic Fair Building to the city have been shelved for now after a heated public process that turned a proposed handoff into a contentious debate.

Today - Ramsey Canyon Inn’s long-running legal fight with Cochise County may be nearing a deal, but the case is still tangled in questions about zoning, business operations, and what happens next for the historic property.

Today - A former carriage house in Warren has turned into a temporary world of mammoths, magical creatures and big questions about what it means to be alive.

Bisbee’s fight over the historic Fair Building isn’t over yet, but after a heated council meeting, the city has taken a major step toward bringing it into public hands.

Today - Camp Naco is expanding its vision, with plans for a new community hub that could bring everyday services and office space to Naco residents.

Today - A court fight over 920 acres near Bowie is headed back to trial, reopening a high-stakes dispute over a planned pistachio orchard and a land deal worth millions.

A lawsuit over a 2023 fall on Tombstone’s famous Allen Street boardwalk has finally come to a close, ending a long legal fight that became almost as much about procedural delays as the accident itself.

Today - The future of one of Bisbee’s most recognizable downtown buildings could come down to a city council vote Tuesday night.

Today - A homicide investigation in Willcox is stretching across the border, as police say the main suspect in a deadly March 31 shooting has fled to Mexico.

Today - A Sunsites resident says a recent water outage exposed dangerous gaps in how emergency information reaches some of Cochise County’s most vulnerable neighbors.

Today - A Sierra Vista shooting suspect accused of opening fire on a vehicle is now facing seven felonies after police say he tried to avoid arrest by wearing a disguise that made him look like someone else.

Today - A lawsuit filed in Santa Cruz County is casting new light on long-running allegations surrounding a secluded spiritual compound near Tumacácori, where one woman says she spent her childhood under a system of abuse, coercion and control.

Today - A former Tombstone deputy’s past in Maryland is raising fresh questions about how he was hired in Cochise County.

Today - A March Madness run for Purdue is also a reminder that one of the Boilermakers’ big men first made his name right here at Cochise College.

A new Boys & Girls Club is opening doors in Douglas, creating a long-awaited space for kids to learn, grow and simply be kids.

A new federal terrorism-related charge has raised the stakes in the case against a former Sierra Vista gun store owner.

Today - A new grilled cheese restaurant is headed to Sierra Vista, bringing a fresh dining option and a local flavor to Fry Boulevard.

Today - A new report from the Arizona Attorney General says Tombstone’s troubled K-9 program showed serious procedural problems, but no criminal wrongdoing.

Today - A Sierra Vista man wanted in connection with a March 9 shooting is now behind bars after a tactical team arrest Thursday morning.

Bisbee is weighing a long-delayed wastewater rate increase as officials warn the city’s aging sewer system can’t keep running on yesterday’s prices.

Today - a domestic violence case in Bisbee ends with probation, counseling, and a difficult decision about where the defendant will live.

Today - A Bisbee comedy club owner with ties to Alaska’s entertainment scene was found dead after being charged in a homicide case that stretches across multiple crime scenes.

Today - A renewed reward is putting fresh attention on the still-unsolved 2015 killing of a Douglas woman whose death remains one of Cochise County’s most brutal mysteries.

Today - Douglas may be on the verge of shutting down its Flock Safety license plate reader system, as city leaders weigh public trust against law enforcement technology.

Today - Bisbee’s Canvas in Motion is coming back for an encore, bringing an Oscar-nominated animated short and a world of inventive filmmaking back to the screen for one night only.

Today - A Sierra Vista tradition brought together local chefs, music lovers and community supporters for an evening that was as much about connection as it was about competition.

The Mexican Consulate in Douglas marked International Women’s Day with a program centered on migrant women’s stories, resilience and the local resources available to support them.

A civil lawsuit in Tombstone is moving toward trial, centering on claims that a woman was defamed and lost her job after reporting a sexual assault.

Today - Bisbee heard a passionate petition about ICE, but city leaders say the legal risks and the threat to federal project money make this a lot more complicated than a simple yes-or-no vote.

Today - Douglas Mayor Jose Grijalva says he wants to be the one out front selling the city to businesses — working directly with property owners and potential tenants, and keeping City Hall in the background until the paperwork stage.

Today - The 2020 death of two-year-old Kenny “Bubs” Gamble is back in focus as his mother has been released from prison, and she’s now on ten years of supervised probation.

A St. David Tigers winter sports celebration With Dave and Paul Presented by Synergy HomeCare of Sierra Vista

A volunteer group born out of heartbreak in Sonora is now lending its hard-won search skills to the high-profile disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie.

Today - Bisbee residents will ask their city council Tuesday night to decide whether the city should formally refuse certain cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

A packed council chamber and two hours of pointed testimony have pushed Sierra Vista toward ending its contract for license plate reader cameras and rethinking how the city uses surveillance technology.

Today - In Bisbee, a bar owner says anti-ICE flyers pasted across his 1898 building crossed the line from protest into vandalism.

Today  - An internal misconduct investigation involving the lead agent in the case against Cochise County Supervisor Tom Crosby has delayed his upcoming felony trial.

Today - Border pay disparities are driving officers away from Nogales, leaving the city’s police department short-staffed and leaning heavily on overtime to keep up.

Benson officials face a March 6 deadline to answer state investigators as the Attorney General’s office keeps digging into whether the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission followed Arizona’s open meeting rules during key votes on the Aluminum Dynamics permit.

Today - Bisbee leaders are trying to put clearer rules around how the city markets itself, after a reset vote forced them back to square one on tourism contracting. Read more: https://www.myheraldreview.com/news/bisbee/bisbee-council-revisits-tourism-rfp-after-reset-vote/article_6075a278-12c3-4793-9607-a419b16ff0db.html

A Willcox man will spend the next 13 years in federal prison for robbing a Safford bank, while his alleged accomplice prepares to stand trial next month.

A Bisbee teenager who once faced decades in prison is now awaiting sentencing after reaching a last-minute plea deal in an assault case that hinged on his claim of self-defense.

Today - Cochise County leaders say the community is at a turning point as they weigh large-scale solar farms and data centers against shrinking state revenue and an aging population.