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Pregnant widow shares husband’s final text before alleged fatal sucker punch outside Arizona bar
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A pregnant widow recalled the last text message from her husband before he was killed in an altercation outside a bar in Scottsdale, Arizona, earlier this month.
Thomas John “TJ” Pizzitola, 29, was found lying unconscious on a sidewalk around 2:15 a.m. on Oct. 11 near Pattie’s First Avenue Lounge, after he and two friends were kicked out for unruly behavior, FOX10 Phoenix reported.
Pizzitola and his two friends had been walking outside to a rideshare pickup when one friend allegedly bumped into a woman. Drew Meneses, 24, then allegedly sucker-punched Pizzitola, knocking him unconscious.
Pizzitola’s wife, Krisan, said she had dropped him off at the lounge for what was supposed to be a fun night out with his friends just weeks before their son was due to be born.
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Thomas John “TJ” Pizzitola, 29, had gone out for a night with friends when the incident happened in the early morning hours of Oct. 11 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Pizzitola Family via FOX10 Phoenix KSAZ)
“I texted him that I had gotten home and he texted me back and said that he wished that I was there, but that he was so proud of me for staying home and taking care of our baby boy and that he loved me,” Krisan told the outlet.
“That was the last text I ever got from him,” she added.
Pizzitola was rushed to a hospital, though he later died from a fatal brain injury.
On Oct. 22, police arrested five people in connection with his death, including Meneses, who was charged with second-degree murder.
Drew Meneses, 24, was charged with second-degree murder and is being held on $1 million bond. (Scottsdale Police Department / Maricopa County Jail)
Meneses is being held on $1 million bond. He told the court that the incident “was a bad night,” according to the outlet.
“It was not supposed to happen like that at all and there was no malicious intent for that at all,” he said.
Prosecutor Angela Andrews said cellphone video shows Pizzitola “standing with his arms to his side” when Meneses walks “up behind him and essentially sucker punch him in the head,” according to the outlet.
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The other suspects include Julius Husser, 27, Tony Becker, 26, and Mark Whitford, 23, all of whom were charged with aggravated assault. Husser and Becker each face an additional charge of assault. A fifth suspect, 27-year-old Krista Molina, was charged with assault and disorderly conduct.
Julius Husser, 27, from left, Tony Becker, 26, and Mark Whitford, 23, and Krista Molina, 27, were all charged in connection with the assault. (Scottsdale Police Department / Maricopa County Jail)
Krisan is due to give birth to a baby boy next month.
“I’m trying so hard not to be so angry at this situation and try to be the strong woman that he thinks that I am,” she told the outlet.
Krisan added that she is going to name the child TJ Vito as a tribute to his late father.
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“All he ever wanted to be was the best father ever and the best husband,” she said. “But he wasn’t finished.”
A GoFundMe page for the family said Pizzitola will continue to help others through organ donation.
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The corporation that owns the Langham Huntington Pasadena has settled a civil lawsuit claiming the luxury hotel hiked room rates while more than 200,000 residents evacuated their homes during the pair of deadly and destructive wildfires that devastated the Los Angeles area in January of 2025. The lawsuit, filed by the Los Angeles County District […]
Southern California is bracing for a hot and muggy week ahead, with heat watches in place and a chance of thunderstorms across the mountains and desert regions.
Temperatures are expected to increase each day into midweek, prompting officials to extend a heat advisory until 10 a.m. Tuesday, when it will transition to an extreme heat watch for even warmer conditions through Thursday evening.
Temperatures are expected to peak on Wednesday, with many locations topping 100 degrees and some reaching 110, according to the National Weather Service.
“Monsoonal moisture moving over the area will add to the discomfort, also bringing the potential for showers and thunderstorms each day,” the Weather Service said.
Those thunderstorms are most likely to occur over the mountain and desert areas as subtropical moisture is drawn into the region by a strong ridge of high pressure.
Temperatures along the coast may even reach the 90s by midweek, with very warm temperatures continuing through the night.
“Given the extreme heat and humidity, it’s highly recommended to complete outdoor activities as early as possible,” the Weather Service said.
The high pressure is expected to slowly weaken Thursday, bringing afternoon highs to within a few degrees of normal in most areas by Friday.
Two rare corpse flowers have begun to bloom simultaneously at the Huntington Library in San Marino, the nonprofit organization announced Sunday evening.
Odorysseus, the taller of the two flowers, bloomed first. A second, smaller corpse flower named Odora appears to be following close behind.
The Huntington Library is inviting visitors to take in the flowers’ unique aroma, which is often compared to rotting flesh.
“And so it begins,” the Huntington Library wrote on social media.
Odora is shaped a bit differently than Odorysseus because its spadix is inverted due to a developmental irregularity. This is not expected to affect the blooming of the flower.
“Plot twist!” the Huntington Library wrote on Instagram. “Odora wants to steal the spotlight. Odora’s spathe has started opening, too. Tiny but mighty, we’re in for quite the show with a double bloom.”
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File: The Corpse Flower, as seen in 2024 at The Huntington in San Marino, California. (Photo by Linnea Stephan)
The Huntington is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Monday, and is closed on Tuesdays. Reservations are required Friday through Sunday, on holidays, and during peak seasons. “Twilight stroll” hours are available on the Huntington’s website.
The public can also watch a live stream of the bloom on the organization’s YouTube channel.
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