Author: CNN Newsource

By Concetta Callahan

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    TUCSON, Arizona (KGUN) — A Tucson bicyclist was stabbed to death during his Tuesday evening ride along the loop in late September.

The crime happened just two months after a security patrol program ended that was being tested by the county along the loop.

A police investigation led to an arrest after several witnesses came forward.

KGUN9 News Anchor Concetta Callahan went to Pima County’s Office of Housing Opportunity and Homeless Solutions to see what came of the Chuck Huckelberry Loop Patrol Program.

She sat down with their director, Jenifer Darland.

Darland explained that for 10 months, security officers patrolled problem spots determined by the Parks Department.

Patrols were out there from sundown to 2 a.m., 7 days a week.

Jenifer said patrols saw a lot of drug activity.

From drug deals to drug use, but not camps set up along the loop.

“We were seeing more trash; we were seeing more foils,” Darland said. “You’ll hear people working in that space cleaning up the debris, seeing more drug paraphernalia, even you’ll see warming fires in some of those areas too, again that’s not necessarily an illegal activity in that space, but you just start to see some of the things that would suggest that there were people engaging in recreational drug use.”

The Santa Cruz section of the loop saw a lot of this delinquent activity.

Parks workers report that these areas are always trashed when they show up in the morning.

At both the Congress East and West banks.

Jenifer said parks with restrooms and ramadas are the most problematic areas.

So, does the county plan to bring back the patrols?

Darland says—no.

She said patrols would vacate the groups and they’d just move to another spot along the loop; felt like they kept chasing the problem.

She added that not a single person in the 10 months these patrols were out accepted help from their office to navigate the resources available.

Suggesting the problem isn’t solely a homeless issue.

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By Kate Devine

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    MAIZE, Kan. (KAKE) — Two Maize teenagers are being credited with saving a man’s life after stopping to help when his truck began swerving on the road Saturday afternoon.

Maize Police Chief Jeff Weible said officers were called to 37th and 119th Streets around 4 p.m. Saturday for reports of a truck driving in and out of the ditch. When officers arrived, they learned a 19-year-old and a 15-year-old had pulled in front of the truck to get it to stop and called 911.

Officers found the driver, Norman Stahlheber, was suffering from low blood sugar and had become unresponsive.

“These two teenagers had pulled in front of the truck to get the truck to slow down and stop, which they were able to do,” Weibel said. “The driver was having a medical issue. Had he kept driving, he could have wrecked or caused a fatality.”

Officer Lia Faber said the teens’ quick action likely saved Stahlheber’s life. “They didn’t hesitate to get involved,” she said. “It was beyond amazing that two younger people in this world took the time to not only call it in, but talk to him and see if they could do anything.”

Stahlheber said he’s grateful the teens noticed something was wrong and stopped to help. “They certainly were a big factor,” he said. “If they wouldn’t have stopped, I don’t know if anybody would have known.”

We did reach out to the teens and did not hear back, but the Maize Police Department plans to recognize the teens at an upcoming city council meeting in November. Norman and his wife say they plan to attend to thank the teens one more time.

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By Adi Guajardo

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    NEW YORK (WCBS) — A Long Island woman has been reunited with her biological mother 41 years after they were separated at birth in Chile.

Kaitlin Saar’s biological mom, Maria Gonzalez Seguel, touched down Wednesday at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

“Touching her, even like smelling her, it was just so surreal,” Saar said.

Gonzalez Seguel first reached out to Saar on Facebook nearly two months ago. The message unraveled Saar’s life.

“It said, ‘I’m writing to you because this is an attempt to contact you and your biological mother,’ basically to get us together,” Saar explained.

She said she learned over the summer that she was one of the hundreds, if not thousands, of Chilean babies illegally adopted under Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship.

“All of our paperwork said that we were given away willfully because of economic hard times, and so a lot of us never even looked for our families,” said Tyler Graf, with the nonprofit Connecting Roots.

Saar said her parents told her at a young age that she was adopted.

“The story that my parents were told was that she was poor, she was young and she wanted me to have a better life, so she agreed to give me up for adoption,” she said.

Saar reached out to Graf, whose nonprofit works to reunite adoptees with their biological Chilean families. They immediately started the DNA process and, when a match came back, they quickly arranged the reunion.

“We just started talking over the summer, and here she is staying with me in my house, it’s just a dream,” Saar said.

“Lots of beautiful things, happy feelings, a lot of excitement and also sadness,” Gonzalez Seguel said in Spanish.

Gonzalez Seguel said she was 16 years old when she found out she was pregnant, and she spent more than three decades searching for her daughter — time she’s now working to make up.

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By Jason Barr

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    TUCSON, Arizona (KGUN) — On a Sunday afternoon in Tucson, Arizona, Ken Larson, a chess coach with over four decades of experience, sits across from eight-year-old Nik Jain, offering a gentle nudge: “Maybe you should protect that pawn.”

Nik, a second grader at Ventana Vista Elementary, responds with focus, explaining his strategy: “In the opening, I’m trying to get pieces in the center and develop.” It’s a scene that captures the essence of chess—a game of strategy, intuition, and mentorship—and no one embodies this better than Larson, Tucson’s undisputed “Chess King.”Larsen has been a fixture in the local chess community since his days as a player at Amphi Middle School. Coaching since 1983, he’s guided countless young players to success, including Nik’s father, Sameer Jain, a former Arizona state champion.

Now, Larsen is passing his wisdom to the next generation, with Nik as one of his star pupils. “When you win a game or figure out a position, it’s just satisfying,” Larson says, a sentiment that resonates with his young protégé, Nik, who already takes fourth-grade math despite being in second grade, shows a natural aptitude for chess.

“Some kids have a natural feel for math—some kids don’t,” Larsen notes, drawing parallels to the strategic thinking required on the board. Under Larsen’s guidance, Nik has helped Ventana Vista Elementary secure second place in the last two Arizona state chess championships, earning trophies nearly as tall as he is. “The gold one is an inch shorter than me,” Nik says matter of factly.

What makes Larsen’s coaching special is his ability to break down complex concepts for young minds. “When I explain concepts that might be complicated for an eight-year-old, he seems to understand them pretty well,” Larsen says of Nik.

This talent for chess runs in the famil. And, Nik’s father, Sameer Jain, who once trained under Larson, knew exactly who to call when he wanted the best for his son. “Ken is a good individual. He’s got a kind heart, he cares. He’s very smart. He plays chess at an extremely high level,” Sameer says.

In an era where artificial intelligence is transforming chess with powerful engines and analysis tools, Larsen brings something AI can’t: human connection and intuitive understanding. “Because you have to think about what move you want to play and what are the best moves and what are bad moves,” Nik explains, echoing the strategic mindset Larson instills. This blend of logic and creativity has helped Nik excel, much like his father did years ago.

For Sameer, watching his son thrive under his former coach is a source of pride. “Nik is a great kid, and it’s really cool to see him excel and doing well,” he says. “It’s cool to see his love of the game. I hope that he continues to grow with it.”

As Nik continues to progress, earning accolades and mastering the board, Larson remains the steady hand guiding Tucson’s chess legacy. From one generation to the next, the Chess King’s influence endures, one move at a time.

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By Daniel Wilkerson

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    LOGANVILLE, Georgia (WUPA) — Seniors at a Gwinnett County high school organized to protect their parking spot art after the school district said their paintings would be removed.

Students at Grayson High School were surprised when they were told their personalized parking spots had to go.

What happened next had people in the town, about an hour northeast of Atlanta, talking.

Senior Brook Burns was excited to be part of bringing a national trend to her school.

“Here at Grayson High School, we have something called senior stamp,” Burns said. “It gave seniors the ability to paint their parking spots.”

She said principal Dr. Rukina Stewart approved the project. Fifty-eight seniors signed up to take part, each paying $20 and buying their own art supplies.

“We had music out here. Some people even had tents out because it was hot,” Burns said.

But at the start of homecoming week, Burns said she and other seniors were told they couldn’t have their parking spots anymore.

She said the news was devastating.

“I just thought of my friend Milan Cannon, who actually founded it, and thought about how much hard work and effort she put into getting it approved,” she said.

The seniors began organizing alongside Cannon to save what she created.

“When you have so many people backing you up—I’m talking about parents, teachers from other schools, and your own peers backing you up—you’re comforted,” Cannon said.

The group looked through Gwinnett County’s laws. Burns started an online petition that quickly grew to hundreds of signatures.

To their surprise, the district reversed its decision. For this year only, seniors are keeping their painted spots.

“I am proud of the organized and respectful way you expressed your concerns,” principal Stewart wrote in a letter to the students.

“We knew the right way is always following the rules, and us as students, we stay in our place and do what we can,” Burns said.

Justin Burns, Brooke’s father, says her actions to save the art made him and his wife proud.

“We raised her to always be respectful, be kind, and always speak positive, and just do the right thing. Between that, church, and all of these leadership clubs she’s a part of, leads and things like that, man, she’s just got God’s hand on her,” he said.

CBS News Atlanta learned from the district that the school did not follow the proper channels to get the project approved.

The district says it reversed the decision because it did not want the students to be penalized for poor communication.

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By Jerry Olenyn

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    CHICO, California (KHSL) — An innovative approach to addressing homelessness in Chico was the focus of discussion at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting.

The North State Shelter Team is proposing a pilot program that would place tiny homes in church parking lots to house elderly women experiencing homelessness.

Action News Now has learned that the Community Church of God on East Avenue is one of three Chico churches considering allowing up to four tiny homes on its property. The homes would be designated specifically for senior women who are currently living on the streets.

“Depending on who you listen to, there are 40 to 80 senior women on the street every single night in Chico,” said Richard Hoyt, the pastor at the Community Church of God. “We’re very concerned about that population, and that’s who we want to help.”

The North State Shelter Team, a nonprofit that advocates for the homeless, believes the proposal could gain broad community support because of the vulnerable demographic it aims to serve.

“These ladies aren’t going out and hurting anyone,” said Lori Mason of the North State Shelter Team. “Their likelihood of having a drug or alcohol problem is less. Their ability to go out and raise hell or crawl through someone’s window and steal something is probably zero.”

While three of the seven councilmembers voted against the idea, Councilmember Mike O’Brien said he sees potential in the program. He suggested beginning with two tiny homes per church instead of four to help ease neighborhood concerns.

“I think neighbors will likely embrace something like that if it’s done well, and done small, and done very exclusively for older women,” O’Brien said. “I think that’s what we want to look at.”

The next step for the North State Shelter Team is to submit an official application to the city. Although churches are private property and do not require council approval for such projects, the group hopes to receive the council’s support before moving forward.

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