Arizona
Arizona Democrats attempt to repeal the state’s 19th century abortion ban – The Boston Globe
For a third straight week, Democrats at the Arizona Legislature are attempting Wednesday to repeal the state’s near-total ban on abortions, again spotlighting an issue that has put Republicans on the defensive in a battleground state for the presidential election.
Republicans have used procedural votes to block earlier repeal efforts, each time drawing condemnation from Democratic President Joe Biden, who has made his support for abortion access central to his campaign for reelection.
Arizona Republicans have been under intense pressure from some conservatives in their base, who firmly support the abortion ban, even as it’s become a liability with swing voters who will decide crucial races including the presidency, the U.S. Senate and the GOP’s control of the Legislature.
The vote comes a day after Biden said former President Donald Trump, his presumptive Republican rival, created a “healthcare crisis for women all over this country,” and imperiled their access to health care.
The Arizona Supreme Court concluded the state can enforce a long-dormant law that permits abortions only to save the pregnant patient’s life. The ruling suggested doctors could be prosecuted under the law first approved in 1864, which carries a sentence of two to five years in prison for anyone who assists in an abortion.
A week ago, one Republican in the Arizona House joined 29 Democrats to bring the repeal measure to a vote, but the effort failed twice on 30-30 votes. Democrats are hoping one more Republican will cross party lines on Wednesday so that the repeal bill can be brought up for a vote. There appears to be enough support for repeal in Arizona Senate, but a final vote is unlikely May 1.
The law had been blocked since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision guaranteed the constitutional right to an abortion nationwide.
After Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, then-Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, a Republican, persuaded a state judge that the 1864 ban could be enforced. Still, the law hasn’t actually been enforced while the case was making its way through the courts. Brnovich’s Democratic successor, Attorney General Kris Mayes, urged the state’s high court against reviving the law.
Mayes has said the earliest the law could be enforced is June 8, though the anti-abortion group defending the ban, Alliance Defending Freedom, maintains county prosecutors can begin enforcing it once the Supreme Court’s decision becomes final, which is expected to occur this week.
If the proposed repeal wins final approval from the Republican-controlled Legislature and is signed into law by Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, a 2022 statute banning the procedure after 15 weeks of pregnancy would become the prevailing abortion law.
Planned Parenthood officials vowed to continue providing abortions for the short time they are still legal and said they will reinforce networks that help patients travel out of state to places like New Mexico and California to access abortion.
This past summer, abortion rights advocates began a push to ask Arizona voters to create a constitutional right to abortion.
The proposed constitutional amendment would guarantee abortion rights until a fetus could survive outside the womb, typically around 24 weeks. It also would allow later abortions to save the parent’s life, or to protect her physical or mental health.
Republican lawmakers, in turn, are considering putting one or more competing abortion proposals on the November ballot.
A leaked planning document outlined the approaches being considered by House Republicans, such as codifying existing abortion regulations, proposing a 14-week ban that would be “disguised as a 15-week law” because it would allow abortions until the beginning of the 15th week, and a measure that would prohibit abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, before many people know they’re pregnant.
House Republicans have not yet publicly released any such proposed ballot measures.
Arizona
Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers live updates. Arizona DH back in the lineup
LOS ANGELES — After tests on his sore elbow revealed no structural damage, Pavin Smith took batting practice and was declared ready to return to the Diamondbacks’ lineup.
Smith, who was a late scratch on Opening Day, was a late addition on Day 2. He will bat fifth and serve as the designated hitter, sending Tim Tawa to the bench.
Smith is a relatively important member of the Diamondbacks lineup as a potential impact hitter against right-handed pitching. Last year, he hit .265/.361/.456 with eight homers against righties in 226 at-bats.
Diamondbacks at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m., Cox, Ch. 34
Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (7-3, 3.39)* vs. Dodgers RHP Emmet Sheehan (6-3, 2.82)*.
At Dodger Stadium: Nelson opened last season in the bullpen but moved into the rotation full time after RHP Corbin Burnes went down with elbow surgery. He was impressive from that point on, putting up a 3.38 ERA across 20 starts from June 1 onward. … Nelson faced the Dodgers three times (two starts) last season, giving up four runs in 13 innings with one walk and 12 strikeouts. … Nelson has solid career numbers against most Dodgers hitters, including 3B Max Muncy, who is 0 for 8 with three walks and five strikeouts. … Sheehan, 26, a sixth-round pick out of Boston College in 2021, returned from Tommy John surgery last year and performed well, logging a 2.82 ERA in 73 1/3 innings. He also logged important innings for the Dodgers out of the bullpen in the postseason. … Sheehan has never faced the Diamondbacks. … Last season, he averaged 95.6 mph with his four-seam fastball. He also threw a slider and change-up with the occasional curveball.
Coming up
Saturday, March 28: At Los Angeles, 6:10 p.m., Diamondbacks LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (9-9, 5.02)* vs. Dodgers RHP Tyler Glasnow (4-3, 3.19)*.
Sunday, March 29: Off.
Monday, March 30: At Chase Field, 7:10 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Michael Soroka (3-8, 4.52)* vs. Tigers RHP Justin Verlander (4-11, 3.85)*.
Tuesday, March 31: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (13-9, 5.25)* vs. Tigers RHP Casey Mize (14-6, 3.87)*.
* — stats from 2025.
(This story will be updated. Check back soon.)
Arizona
Make-A-Wish Arizona creates sea turtle adventure for San Tan Valley boy
Boats, beaches, and buckets of fun! Just the way you’d expect a boy to spend his Florida vacation!
But there was something else 11-year-old Miles Boyd got to do last year when he and his family traveled to Florida. It was a sea turtle adventure that truly became the trip of a lifetime.
“I had never been to the ocean before,” explained Miles. “So see that just wowed me. It was amazing!”
Miles and his family also got to see baby sea turtles on the beach at night.
“The ocean is so mysterious,” says Miles. “It’s such a big place, and the fact that these turtles can move but are so tiny and when they go in the ocean, they get to hundreds of pounds.”
In so many ways, the trip to Palm Beach County, Florida, was a dream vacation for Miles and his family, but it only came after what was a living nightmare.
“I couldn’t imagine losing him,” says Miles’ mom, Natasha.
It was the harsh reality that Natasha had to face after learning her son Miles had a cancerous brain tumor.
“The world just stopped,” Natasha says about the moment she found out the devastating news. “I just sat on the floor and cried.”
Even Miles admits he was scared.
“I’m just a kid, you know what I mean?” he says. “It’s a lot to handle all at once.”
After three brain surgeries, countless hours of therapy and rehab, and having to take a chemo medication twice daily, Miles proved to the world he is a true survivor!
And his trip to Florida, through Make-A-Wish Arizona, proved to be the medication he never knew he needed.
Miles explains that the trip motivated him to keep going.
“It showed me that I made it to this car, and I can keep going,” he says. “I started at the lowest of lows, and now, I’m on a beach – it just gave me confidence and motivated me that I could keep going.”
Last year alone, Make-A-Wish Arizona granted 476 wishes; they’ve also fulfilled more than 8,500 since being founded in 1980.
Across the Globe, Make-A-Wish has granted more than 650,000 wishes since 1980
Miles and Nick Ciletti will co-host Make-A-Wish Arizona’s Wish Ball on Saturday! To learn more about Make-A-Wish Arizona, click here.
Arizona
11 illegal Indian national truck drivers arrested at Arizona border last month
Eleven illegal Indian national truck drivers were arrested at the Arizona border in the month of February.
The Yuma Sector Border Patrol arrested 11 total Indian national truck drivers in Yuma, Arizona in February 2026.
According to a Facebook post by the Yuma Sector Border Patrol, all 11 truck drivers held commercial drivers licenses from the states of Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and California. All were “found to be present in the United States illegally.”
“Border Patrol remains committed to upholding immigration laws and protecting our communities,” the post continued.
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