Arizona’s massive senior class was honored before the final home game of the season, the first at newly named Casino del Sol Stadium. And they went out on top, with many stepping up to keep the win streak going.
Arizona
Bills look to improve care, hold Arizona assisted living facilities accountable
PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) — The fight to improve patient care at assisted living facilities is heating up at the state capitol.
Several bills designed to hold the facilities more accountable have been introduced and are receiving bipartisan support. Allegations of abuse, neglect and downright dysfunction continue to pop up at assisted living centers across the state.
Jennifer Awinda is a memory care facility manager who has spent 20-plus years taking care of vulnerable patients. She recently decided to walk away from the job because of the frustration of not being able to do her job. “We’re being beaten up from the top and being beaten up from the bottom, and so that’s why I took my license off the wall three months ago,” said Awinda. “I just can’t; I can’t be responsible for 100 patients with dementia when I don’t have support.” Awinda claims widespread staffing issues, a lack of training, and accountability are the biggest problems facing long-term care facilities in Arizona.
AARP of Arizona director Dana Kennedy is on the frontline fighting to improve seniors’ care. State lawmakers are considering a number of bills to improve patient care at assisted living and memory care communities. “Many of the elected officials had stories that have happened to their own families, or know somebody that this happened to,” said Kennedy. “I feel very confident that elected officials want better oversight, as well. They have to answer to constituents and this is about holding facilities accountable.”
Two bills, HB 2764 and HB 2587, passed out of the House Health and Human Services Committee Thursday. The bills call for an increase in the daily fines facilities pay when cited for violations, going up from a maximum of $500 per violation to $1,000 per person, based on the number of people impacted by the violation.
The proposals also call for onsite monitors for repeat offenders and authorize protective service workers to file for emergency orders of protection against harassment. Another bill, HB 2653, which passed out of committee Monday, would require assisted living facilities to report whenever a resident or employee is injured.
Former caregiver Jodi Fialkin, whose mother battled Alzheimer’s, is pleased to see lawmakers stepping up to protect seniors. “I am very excited by it, very encouraged by it,” said Fialkin. “We have many, many things to accomplish, to improve Alzheimer’s and dementia care, so this is a good first start.”
A number of lawmakers raised concerns that the fines proposed should be higher, which could lead to changes in the bills moving forward.
The bills will now move on to the House Rules Committee.
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Arizona
Arizona football shuts out Baylor in 2nd half for 4th straight victory
The Wildcats outscored Baylor 27-0 in the second half, including 20 points in just over four minutes in the fourth quarter, for a 41-17 win. It was the fourth in a row overall for the UA (8-3, 5-3 Big 12) and improved its home record to 6-1, tying the school record for most home wins in a season.
Kedrick Reescano ran for three touchdowns, including a 19-yarder to turn a 4-point game into a 2-score advantage, while Noah Fifita threw for 183 yards and a TD and Arizona’s defense forced three turnovers and made three stops on fourth down.
Several UA seniors had huge games. Kris Hutson had nine catches for a career-high 133 yards and a TD, Ismail Madhi ran for 93 yards and a score, Dalton Johnson had 18 tackles and Treydan Stukes intercepted a pass in the end zone to preserve what at the time was a 4-point lead.
Baylor (5-6, 3-5) scored on its first two drives then had one field goal the rest of the way, gaining 129 yards after taking a 17-14 lead at halftime. FBS passing leader Sawyer Robertson was limited to 162 yards with a TD and two interceptions, making the Bears the ninth opponent not to reach 200 passing yards.
The UA won for the third straight game despite trailing at the half but went ahead for good just over three minutes into the third quarter on a 1-yardReescanorun. That came after the game’s fourth pass interference penalty thrown in the end zone.
Four consecutive 3-and-outs followed before Baylor put together a sustained drive, getting into the red zone to start the 4th quarter. The Bears went for it on 4th and 3 from the UA 12 but Robertson’s pass was picked off in the end zone byStukes.
The UA drove into the red zone after the interception but had to settle for a field goal, with Michael Salgado-Medina missing to the right from 38 yards out. It was his ninth miss of the season.
Yet a play later the Wildcats had the ball back, with Taye Brown forcing a fumble and Michael Dansby recovering it. The next snap saw Ismail Madhi score on a 28-yard run for a 28-17 lead with 10:29 to go.
Reescano’s third TD, from 19 yards out, came with 6:38 remaining, and 11 seconds later Jabari Mann returned a pick 34 yards for a score.
Baylor scored on its opening drive, only the third opponent to do so this season. A 30-yard pass on the first play and a pass interference call on 4th down set up Robertson’s 9-yard TD pass to Josh Cameron for a 7-0 lead less than three minutes in.
Arizona matched that score on its first possession, also benefitting from a pass interference call, with Reescano scoring on a 2-yard run immediately after.
The Bears went up 14-7 in the final minute of the first quarter on a 2-yard Robertson run after another pass interference call on Arizona. The Bears converted a 4th down earlier in the drive after also catching a break when forward progress was ruled on what looked like a UA fumble recovery.
The first stop of the game came with 4:59 left before halftime when, after Arizona forced a 49-yard field goal attempt, Baylor’s Connor Hawkins was wife left. But the Wildcats didn’t capitalize, with a Fifita pass going off Tre Spivey’s hands to Baylor’s DJ Coleman for an interception.
That snapped a streak of 140 consecutive attempts for Fifita without a pick.
Baylor turned that into points just before the half, getting a 48-yard field goal from Hawkins.
The UA wraps up the regular season Friday at ASU, looking to take back the Territorial Cup and win for the second time in a row in Tempe.
Arizona
Freed sex offender allegedly poses as doctor, sexually assaults student at Arizona elementary school: police
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Friday – A convicted sex offender freed from prison two weeks ago allegedly posed as a doctor and sexually assaulted a student inside an Arizona elementary school, sparking outrage and calls for answers from parents, according to reports.
Abel Kai Gblah, 25, is accused of sexual assault and kidnapping after he accessed school grounds and posed as a doctor to lure a student into a classroom and assaulted her at Orangewood Elementary School on Nov. 19, according to the Phoenix Police Department (PPD).
PPD officials said in a statement to Fox News Digital that officers were called to the school after administrators reported that an incident had occurred on campus.
“When officers arrived, they learned an unauthorized man had made it onto school grounds and lured a grade-school-aged girl into a classroom where he sexually assaulted her,” police said. “At some point, the student was able to push the man away. He then ran from the scene before officers arrived.”
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Abel Kai Gblah was accused of sexually assaulting and kidnapping a student at a Phoenix elementary school on Nov. 19. (National Sex Offender Registry)
FOX 10 Phoenix reported that court documents show Gblah allegedly drew the attention of a student by impersonating a doctor and expressing that he had to examine her.
After fleeing the school, police located Gblah, who was booked into jail on multiple charges.
Gblah was released from prison two weeks ago on similar charges, according to the outlet, and was also allegedly involved in human smuggling across the U.S. border.
According to FOX 10, a prosecutor at Gblah’s court appearance said he was convicted twice in 2021 for sexual conduct with a minor and a registered sex offender.
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Abel Kai Gblah was arrested this week after allegedly sexually assaulting a student at a Phoenix elementary school. (iStock)
The news station reported that the Washington Elementary School District said in a statement that school administration immediately called 911 and placed the school on lockdown for over an hour.
“He was on campus for approximately 10 minutes and during that time, he made inappropriate contact with a student,” the district wrote.
The district shared a separate statement with Fox News Digital that it released to parents on Friday, which revealed the results of its internal investigation, including that Gblah was a former student of the school who attended from 2012 to 2015.
Abel Kai Gblah allegedly assaulted a student at Orangewood Elementary School in Phoenix on Nov. 19. (Google Maps)
While initial reports indicated that the Gblah gained access to the campus behind a student who had buzzed in, further investigation revealed that he entered through an unlocked lobby door, and walked in with a tardy student, the district stated.
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Following the investigation, a staff member has been placed on administrative leave, the district added.
“We understand how alarming this situation has been and want you to know that we are reviewing every aspect of our safety procedures and communication to ensure that an event like this does not happen again, wrote Orangewood Elementary Principal Emily Paterson.
According to FOX 10, Gblah is being held on a cash-only bond of $500,000, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for Dec. 1.
Arizona
Predicting the final score of Baylor vs. Arizona
Things just keep getting worse and worse for Baylor. After preseason hype and a potential Big 12 Championship-contending team, the Bears are sitting at 5-5 on the season and Baylor needs one win in the last two weeks to secure bowl eligibility.
Baylor’s remaining games will come against two winning teams and this week, the Bears will travel to take on Arizona. Noah Fifita and the ‘Cats are at 7-3 on the season, and could very easily have a few more wins on the season.
With Mack Rhoades OUT as athletic director, what are Baylor’s options for replacement?
Arizona has an electric offense with Fifita at the helm, and the Wildcats’ defense is great against the pass. Arizona ranks No. 1 in the conference in stopping the pass and Sawyer Robertson will have his hands full in this game. WR Ashtyn Hawkins is out for the first half after getting into a scuffle late in the game against Utah.
Here is how our staff sees Baylor’s game going down against Arizona.
On paper, these two teams are similar offensively. Both squads can toss the football around and have a good enough run game to get them by. But what separates Baylor and Arizona is the defense. The Bears’ defense is downright bad, and the Wildcats have one of the better defenses in the Big 12.
Sawyer Robertson will be going up against the top-ranked passing defense in the conference; however, it wasn’t that long ago that Robertson crushed a UCF defense that was really good on paper. While Arizona is better than UCF, I think Robertson can have his way.
While the Baylor offense could score points against Arizona, I don’t see the Bears stopping Noah Fifita and the ‘Cats.
Final score: Arizona 38, Baylor 31
The Bears need one win to become bowl eligible. Baylor doesn’t buckle under that pressure. Sawyer Robertson throws for a ton of yards for the second straight week, cuts down on the mistakes, and the Baylor defense bends but doesn’t break in a victory over Arizona.
Final score: Baylor 31, Arizona 27
I believe Baylor will bounce back in Tucson on Saturday. Although Arizona’s defense has been playing its best football of the season, I believe Baylor’s receiving corps is still one of the best in the nation. I don’t believe Sawyer Robertson plays two bad games in a row, and he will find the receivers throughout the game.
Look at Kole Wilson and Josh Cameron to continue to be weapons, with potential for Jadon Porter to play a big role. Although the Baylor defense took a massive step backwards against Utah, I believe there is potential to create trouble for Noah Fifita. I think it is a positive matchup for the Baylor secondary against the Arizona passing attack, and all the pressure lies on the linebackers and defensive line to stuff the run and actually make Fifita uncomfortable.
Final score: Baylor 33, Arizona 24
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