Arizona
Ted Price's family speaking out as battle over executions brew in Arizona
The battle over executions is once again brewing in Arizona. This comes after a two-year-long hiatus while an independent review was taking place.
In November, Governor Katie Hobbs fired the retired Judge appointed to oversee the review, and the State Attorney General said the intention was to seek a warrant of execution for Aaron Gunches. Gunches is on death row for the 2002 murder of Ted Price.
Prices’ sisters spoke exclusively to ABC15, as they wait to see if this will be their final chapter involving their brother’s killer.
Murder of Ted Price
Ted Price was a 40-year-old father of two, who had been previously married. His life would be cut short after leaving his family in Utah and coming to the Valley at the end of 2002. He had plans to attend school and temporarily stay with his former partner.
“So that’s my last picture of Ted,” said his sister Karen Price.
The picture shows her brother waving goodbye, something Karen feels is now ironic. But those photos and memories are all they have left of Ted, who was the oldest of four.
“He left on a bus on the 17th of November,” said Karen.
But the Price family never heard from him. Ted’s sisters eventually called anyone they could trying to find their brother.
“I would spend the days calling hospitals and police detectives and stuff like that, trying to get somebody to listen,” said Ted’s other sister Shelia Banaszek.
But Banaszek said never in her wildest dreams could she imagine what happened.
Court documents and thousands of pages from police interviews paint a contentious relationship. Price’s sisters told ABC15 their brother didn’t approve of his partner’s actions or parenting decisions.
She ultimately wanted Ted to leave, and during a heated argument hit Ted in the face with a phone. But it was Aaron Gunches who shot and killed Ted off Highway 87 near Gilbert Road.
“We found out on the 30th of December that he had passed,” said Banaszek. “And then at that time, we didn’t even know how he had passed.”
It would be months until Gunches was indicted for Ted’s murder. During that time, he was arrested for shooting a DPS trooper near the California border.
That trooper survived, and Gunches pleaded guilty in both cases.
Ted’s family was there through each court hurdle including the sentencing phase, which happened twice. Ultimately, Gunches was sentenced to death in 2013.
“The possibility of an execution, I didn’t think it would happen for decades,” said Karen.
Legal battles continue
But in early 2023, Gunches was set to be executed. It was a date that would come and go. Governor Hobbs said the state wasn’t ready and ordered a review of Arizona’s death penalty protocols.
“It’s like a slap in the face,” said Banaszek. “Basically, a slap in the face. It’s a big letdown.”
Karen and Ted’s own daughter even filed lawsuits, but they were left waiting until November 2024. That’s when Governor Hobbs fired the Judge working on the review. Attorney General Kris Mayes called the Price family.
“She said, we’re going to issue his warrant,” said Karen. “And I thanked her.”
Karen said she is hoping now Gunches’ sentence will be carried out.
“All could say to the people who have very strong opinions about the death penalty and are against it, is walk in my shoes and then tell me how you feel,” said Karen.
She knows each family member has their own opinions and feelings, but Karen wants to be in Arizona that day
“I mean, it needs to be over,” said Banaszek. “I don’t know that that’ll make a difference. As I said, the nightmares, the nightmare that won’t ever go away.”
Ted’s sisters sat down with ABC15, hoping to bring some of the focus back to their brother.
“He should be brought back to the forefront, and somebody ought to think about that victim,” said Karen
“I want everybody to remember a very genuinely good person was taken away that day,” said Banaszek.
Calls for transparency
The Price family represents the personal side of this complex topic.
In 2024 the Arizona Department of Corrections documented their own review, listing changes they made to their protocol. The director told the governor they were prepared to resume executions.
The Judge who was carrying out the independent review was David Duncan. Despite Gov. Hobbs firing him, Duncan’s working rough draft was released. It cited various concerns including about the execution team, chain of commands, and storage of lethal drugs.
“The whole point of the independent review is that you take the Department of Corrections out of it, you need independence in this type of review,” said ACLU of Arizona Legal Director Jared Keenan. “The Governor and the AG themselves said they need an independent review. And now suddenly they are telling us no, no, no, never mind, just trust us. And that’s not good enough.”
The ACLU was one of the organizations that held a press conference in December calling for more transparency.
All of this is happening as the State Supreme Court considers a motion by AG Mayes to set a briefing schedule, which could ultimately lead to a request for a warrant of execution.
Gunches, who is representing himself, has already asked the court to speed up that process and issue the warrant. The death row inmate, in a hand-written note, even noting a possible execution date of February 14.
ABC15’s Ashley Holden spoke with the ACLU and people tracking executions all over the country. She will have more on the battle brewing here in Arizona in the coming days.
Stay with ABC15 for the latest on the case.
Believe it or not, the 2026 All-Star Game voting process has already begun, as of Wednesday. Fans who want to see their favorite members of the Arizona Diamondbacks take the field in the midsummer classic this season can begin voting for their stars.
There are certainly some deserving players on this Diamondbacks club, which is currently 32-28 and occupying the third Wild Card sport in the National League.
Here’s how and where you can vote for your hometown heroes:
How to vote for Diamondbacks players to make All-Star Game
Fans can utilize the following link to vote for members of their team on dbacks.com. Fans are permitted to fill out and submit as many as five ballots per day, selecting as many or as few players as they choose.
This period of the fan vote constitutes Phase 1 of All-Star voting, which will run from Wednesday, June 3 through Thursday, June 25 at 9:00 a.m. Arizona time (12:00 p.m. Eastern time).
Following Phase 1, the two overall top vote-getters will receive automatic berths into the All-Star lineups. If those two are not Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge once again, that would be an upset.
When and where is the 2026 All-Star Game?
The 2026 All-Star Game will take place at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Phillies in Philadelphia. All-Star week begins on June 10, with a full slate of activities, before the game is played on Tuesday, July 14 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time (5:00 p.m. Arizona time).
The full schedule of events are as follows:
- Friday, July 10: HBCU Swingman Classic
- Saturday, July 11: 2026 MLB Draft
- Sunday, July 12: All-Star Sunday, MLB Futures Game, MLBx All-Star 3-on-3
- Monday, July 13: T-Mobile Home Run Derby (8:00 p.m. ET)
- Tuesday, July 14: All-Star Red Carpet, All-Star Game
Which Diamondbacks are deserving All-Stars?
| Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
So, who should Diamondbacks fans vote for? Obviously, you may fill out the ballot however you choose. That can include a full roster of Diamondbacks, regardless of their stats or notoriety this season.
Still, here are some of the top performing D-backs who might have a leg up on an All-Star berth:
OF Corbin Carroll
Corbin Carroll is having another All-Star worthy season. He’s hitting .289/.380/.545 with a .925 OPS and eight home runs, while playing good right field defense. He has the eighth-most bWAR (2.7) among position players, fifth-most in the National League, and third-most among all pure outfielders.
2B Ketel Marte
If Marte wins the NL second base fan vote, it will be his third straight season starting the All-Star game. Despite such a slow start to the year, that feels possible again. Marte is hitting .259/.315/.456 with 10 homers and is playing the best defense of his career.
3B Nolan Arenado
Nolan Arenado is quietly putting together one of his better seasons of the 2020s, slashing .269/.351/.467 with eight homers and flashing his elite third base glove at nearly as good a pace as ever. His name still carries a lot of weight in third base conversations; he’ll get some votes, no matter what.
1B Ildemaro Vargas
Vargas’ bat has cooled down quite a bit since his historic start to 2026. He’s still hitting a sturdy .290/.318/.454, but feels more likely to be considered as a reserve selection than a leading vote-getter.
Honorable Mention: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez
Pitchers are not selected by the fan vote. They are selected by player ballots and the All-Star Game managers. The National League’s manager will be Dave Roberts of the Dodgers, again.
The National League has quite a few talented pitchers, but Eduardo Rodriguez currently holds the fifth-best starting pitcher ERA (2.24) among NL hurlers. It’s going to be difficult to dethrone Christopher Sanchez or Jacob Misiorowski, but Rodriguez could find his way into the pitching pool, especially after his WBC heroics for Team Venezuela.
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Arizona State has added Michael White to its coaching staff for the upcoming 2026-2027 season. White will join the program as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
“I am incredibly honored to return to my home state and join this elite program,” White said. “I’m proud to say that I am coming home. I can’t thank Coach Herbie enough for the opportunity to join his incredible staff and help these young athletes grow and develop into the best individuals they can be. There are so many friends and mentors who have left their mark on this program, and I’m excited for the opportunity to leave mine and help take this program to new heights. Go Devils!”
White arrives with the Sun Devils after most recently spending the last three seasons with Alabama as an assistant. The Alabama women finished 11th at the 2026 NCAA Championships while the men were 24th.
Prior to arriving at Alabama, White spent the 2022-2023 season as a volunteer assistant at Wisconsin. He primarily coached the freestyle, breaststroke and distance groups for the Badgers. In addition to coaching the Badgers, he also was an assistant senior coach with the Madison Aquatics Club for the year. He began his coaching career at Juniata College in Pennsylvania as a volunteer assistant from 2019-2021.
White spent his collegiate career at St. Bonaventure in New York. There he was a 7x individual Atlantic-10 champion and swam to three school records as a senior with a 1:47.30 200 IM, 3:52.18 400 IM, and a 1:47.70 200 fly. He also was team captain for two season and helped the team capture the 2014 A-10 team title.
The Scottsdale, Arizona native will return to his home state. He was a 2012 AIA Division I state champion in the 100 breast and 200 IM as a senior for Dobson High School.
White joins the coaching staff led by head coach Herbie Behm, who is already known to be an innovative coach. Behm spoke of White’s innovation as well saying, “Mike is one of the best young coaches in the NCAA. His interview blew me away with the innovative ideas he presented. I can’t wait to start implementing those ideas and continue our growth at ASU.”
Arizona State swept the 2026 Big 12 team titles, and the men went on to finish 4th at 2026 NCAAs while the women were 37th. Rising senior Ilya Kharun captured the NCAA title in the 200 fly with a 1:37.66.
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