Arizona
Arizona prosecutor refuses to extradite murder suspect to New York
An Arizona prosecutor said she will not extradite a New York murder suspect to the state on Wednesday, claiming Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) could not be trusted to keep the man behind bars.
Maricopa County prosecutor Rachel Mitchell said in a press conference Wednesday that the suspect will instead remain in Arizona.
“Having observed the treatment of violent criminals in the New York area by the Manhattan DA there, Alvin Bragg,” Mitchell said, “I think it’s safer to keep him here and keep him in custody, so that he cannot be out doing this to individuals either in our state, county, or anywhere in the United States.”
The suspect, 26-year-old Saad Almansoori, stands accused of the murder of a 38-year-old woman in New York City earlier this month. He was arrested in Arizona days later, after stabbing a second person.
Mitchell specifically cited Arizona’s mandatory minimum prison sentences as a reason to deny extradition, implying that Bragg would not pursue a harsh enough sentence.
A spokesperson for Bragg’s office denounced Mitchell’s decision not to allow extradition and her attacks on Bragg himself.
“It is deeply disturbing that D.A. Mitchell is playing political games in a murder investigation,” spokesperson Emily Tuttle said in a statement to The New York Times.
“New York’s murder rate is less than half that of Phoenix, Ariz., because of the hard work of the N.Y.P.D. and all of our law enforcement partners,” she continued. “It is a slap in the face to them and to the victim in our case to refuse to allow us to seek justice and full accountability for a New Yorker’s death.”
Bragg, a Democrat, has been a locus for political criticism of New York City law enforcement, with detractors claiming that the district attorney is to blame for a perception of higher crime. Bragg is also the prosecutor who brought the business fraud case against former President Trump regarding hush money payments allegedly made to cover affairs, attracting more claims of political motivation.
Bragg sued Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, last April, accusing him of a “transparent campaign to intimidate and attack” his work, following a House investigation.
Mitchell is also politically connected across the nation. She served as the outside attorney to Senate Republicans during the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and famously questioned the woman who accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault during a public hearing, Christine Blasey Ford.
The Hill has reached out to the offices of Bragg and Mitchell comment.
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PHOENIX (AZFamily) — College is already a stressful time for students, and now there’s another hurdle they could soon face: the Trump Administration’s cuts to the U.S. Department of Education.
Arizona State University is the most expensive public university in the state, but it’s also one the schools that gives out the most financial aid.
Some students on campus say that without the financial support, some of their peers won’t be able to return to class next semester.
“There’s a lot of stress going around about people who no longer are going to be able to come back next semester, or at least are afraid that they won’t be able to come back next semester,” said student Sarah McCartan.
It comes after more than 300 people were let go from the Office of Federal Student Aid, a division that manages the federal student loan portfolio. Within hours of those layoffs, access to the online Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) went out.
“That happened for almost 24 hours where nobody could access the form. Nobody could submit the form. So that was kind of I think, a decent hint at what was likely to be more impacts,” said Matt Carpenter, educational consultant and founder at College Aid Pro.
It’s a change that’s giving educational consultant Matt Carpenter a bit of déjà vu after experiencing issues with FAFSA last year. “Kept getting delayed and so many families had such a hard time completing the form itself that, as a matter of fact, so many of meaningful percentages gave up,” he said.
It’s a real concern for Niabari Nwinee, a freshman studying computer science.
“My family, they were refugees from Nigeria,” she said. “I’m the first generation to be starting college in my family, so that’s a pretty big impact.”
Like 130,600 other Arizona college students, she received federal grants last school year. However, FAFSA is not only for need-based grants. A third of Arizona’s undergraduates who receive federal student loans must also fill out the application.
“I honestly feel like without the FAFSA application that wouldn’t have been able to been going to college or any or to ASU as a whole,” she said.
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Arizona’s Caleb Love recalls the best moments from his previous March Madness appearances
Arizona’s Caleb Love talks about expectations for his team in the Big 12, and his hopes for March Madness. He also talks about his partnership with Ritz.
The NCAA Tournament bracket is set. How hard is the Arizona Wildcats’ potential road to the Final Four?
Here’s a look at Arizona’s possible opponents in each round of March Madness and our prediction for how far Tommy Lloyd’s team will advance in the bracket.
Last season, Arizona advanced to the Sweet 16 as a No. 2 seed, beating No. 15 Long Beach State 85-65 in the first round and No. 7 seed Dayton 78-68 in the second round before falling to No. 6 seed Clemson, 77-72.
The Wildcats haven’t made the Elite Eight since 2015. They haven’t made the Final Four since they lost to Duke in the 2001 National Championship game.
Could they end those skids in the 2025 NCAA Tournament?
Watch Arizona vs Akron on Sling TV
Arizona’s first-round NCAA Tournament opponent
Tommy Lloyd’s team is the No. 4 seed in the East Region of March Madness and will face No. 13 seed Akron in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Seattle, looking to begin a long NCAA Tournament run.
Arizona’s first-round March Madness opponent, Akron, advanced to the NCAA Tournament by winning the MAC Conference Tournament.
It went 28-6 overall in the regular this season and 17-1 in conference play.
Arizona’s potential second-round March Madness opponents
The winner of the Arizona vs Akron game will face the winner of the No. 5 Oregon vs No. 12 Liberty game in the second round on Sunday, with the winner of that game advancing to the Sweet 16.
Arizona’s potential Sweet 16 opponents
Arizona would likely face No. 1 seed Duke, No. 8 seed Mississippi State or No. 9 seed Baylor in the Sweet 16, if it were to win its first two games in March Madness.
Arizona’s potential Elite 8 opponents
If Arizona were to win its first three games, the Wildcats would face the winner of the other half of the NCAA bracket for the East Region in the regional semifinal, with No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 6 BYU and No. 7 St. Mary’s being the highest seeds on that side of the bracket.
Arizona’s potential Final Four opponents
The winner of the East Region faces the winner of the Midwest Region in the Final Four. If Arizona were to somehow make it that far, the highest seeds in the Midwest Region include No. 1 seed Houston, No. 2 seed Tennessee, No. 3 seed Kentucky and No. 4 seed Purdue.
Arizona’s potential National Championship game opponents
The winner of the Midwest Region vs East Region national semifinal would face the winner of the South Region vs West Region national semifinal in the NCAA title game. Arizona’s possible opponents in that game, should it somehow make a run in the tournament and advance that far?
Auburn is the top seed in the South, with Michigan State the No. 2 seed, Iowa State the third seed and Texas A&M the fourth seed. The West Region’s Top 4 seeds are No. 1 Florida, No. 2 St. Johns, No. 3 Texas Tech and No. 4 Maryland.
Arizona Wildcats NCAA Tournament March Madness prediction
We wrote about Arizona’s “potential” opponents in the March Madness bracket, but how far will the Wildcats actually advance in the NCAA Tournament?
We predicted an 85-78 win for Arizona over Akron in our first-round March Madness game prediction. As for the second round? We think the Wildcats can get past Oregon (or Liberty) to make their second straight Sweet 16 appearance under Tommy Lloyd.
But we don’t foresee Arizona getting to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2015 in this tournament. Duke will be too much for the Wildcats in that round, even if Cooper Flagg isn’t 100%.
Prediction: Arizona Wildcats lose in Sweet 16 of NCAA Tournament
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Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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PHOENIX — After days of busy weather across the state, we are drying out and warming up as high pressure builds in.
Tonight will still be chilly with lows in the Valley in the 40s, and the high country in the teens to 30s. Clear skies will stick around overnight into Sunday.
We will begin to feel our warm-up Sunday with abundant sunshine. Highs in the Valley will be around the mid 70s then into the 80s by Monday. Meanwhile, the high country is looking to warm up into the 50s and 60s.
As Tuesday rolls around, another storm is tracking toward the state. Trends on this system have become drier, but winds look breezy. A few rain and snow showers will be possible across the high country on Tuesday, with winds gusting up to 40 mph at times. Accumulations look minimal for now.
In Phoenix, we will miss out on rain with this next system as it tracks too far north, but we will feel a drop in the temperature and winds will gust to 20 mph on Tuesday.
Then, we warm up from there. We’ll see 80s back in the Phoenix metro by the end of next week.
More Impact Earth stories:
2025 Sky Harbor Official Rainfall to date: 0.78″ (-1.44″ from average)
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2024 Sky Harbor Official Rainfall to date: 4.54″ (-2.68″ from average)
Monsoon 2024 Sky Harbor Official Rainfall: 0.74″ (-1.69″ from average)
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Daily rainfall reports from all across the Valley can be found here.
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PHOENIX IS GETTING DRIER – LOWER RAINFALL AVERAGES NOW
Average Monsoon Rainfall in Phoenix (1981-2010): 2.71″ of rain
NEW Average Monsoon Rainfall in Phoenix (1991-2020): 2.43″ of rain
Average Yearly Rainfall in Phoenix (1981-2010): 8:03″ of rain
NEW Average Yearly Rainfall in Phoenix (1991-2020): 7.22″ of rain
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Share your weather photos and videos with us anytime: share@abc15.com.
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See the full 7-Day forecast
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