Author: KVIA

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — The University of Texas at El Paso is one step closer to making legal education more accessible to the Borderland. The Woody and Gayle Hunt Family Foundation established a $5 million grant to support UTEP’s efforts to establish a law school — a major milestone for local aspiring legal professionals.

Wednesday, UTEP announced the grant will contribute one dollar for every dollar donated by the community. If the full $5 million match is secured, the challenge will generate a combined $10 million in support for law school efforts.

Since UTEP announced its goal of establishing a law school, other El Paso organizations and businesses have donated.

In October 2025, the Paul L. Foster Family Foundation established a $5 million matching challenge similar to the one announced Wednesday. In April, law firm Tawney, Acosta & Chaparro, P.C. committed $5 million. The initiative is halfway toward its $20 million startup funding goal.

UTEP is preparing to present it vision for a law school to the Texas Legislature in 2027. The university’s efforts follow a study that the legislature funded in 2023.

Members of the El Paso legislative delegation attended: State Senator Cesar Blanco and State Representatives Joe Moody and Vince Perez.

The study estimated that establishing a law school at UTEP would require $20 million in operating support over 20 years. UTEP proposed the legislature fund the building needed for a law school.

“I think we are closer to having a law school at El Paso than even before, and it’s because of the generosity of this community and the leaders of this community who said, ‘ Alright, we can do more together than anybody of us can do alone,'” said UTEP President Heather Wilson.

If approved, UTEP expects to enroll its first law students in 2030 and increase enrollment to 100 new students annually.

UTEP said a law school would fill a shortage of bilingual lawyers to serve people on both sides of the border. Specialized curricula include a focus on contracts, estates, taxation, imports and exports, customs and immigration and international water law.

Additionally, UTEP plans to make an accelerated degree path that would allow some undergraduates to start law school during their fourth year of college. Long-term plans include an evening Master of Laws program for attorneys trained in Mexico who wish to practice in the U.S.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Gerardo Cobos, a local construction truck driver, was driving west of Ciudad Juárez when he heard a distressing scream.

During severe storms that hit Ciudad Juárez last weekend, he heard a woman screaming for help and used his truck to reach a car trapped in a strong flood current, rescuing 10 members of a family, including two babies.

He was heading to his employer’s facilities after finishing his shift on Saturday when he noticed vehicles diverting around a flooded roadway near Arroyo de las Víboras.

Cobos said about 100 meters ahead, he saw a car caught in the rushing water and a woman in a yellow shirt calling for help through a window. He decided to approach the car despite the danger posed.

When Cobos arrived, he found the family trapped inside a car swept away by the floodwaters. The car had four adults and six children.

The family had crossed from El Paso to visit their grandmother in the Felipe Ángeles neighborhood in Juárez when heavy rain disrupted their trip.

Rushing water swept their car into a raised road barrier, where it lodged against a speed bump. A small wall prevented the car from being carried farther downstream, but the family remained trapped and couldn’t get out without risking being swept away, Cobos said.

Cobos, an operator for Concretos del Bravo, realized that approaching the car could have put him in danger, too, as the current was strong enough to destabilize his truck or push the stranded car back into the water.

Before attempting the rescue, he looked for a section where the water was not as dangerous and carefully maneuvered his truck toward the family, Cobos told Canal 44.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Tuesday, Doña Ana County Commissioners unanimously voted to have legal and county management provide notice to the Project Jupiter data center project of a potential breach of agreement about a proposed power plant.

Commissioner Chair Manuel Sanchez made a motion to authorize the county to provide notice of any breach of certain agreements about a proposed power plant for the data center.

Sanchez’ motion would “authorize legal and county management to provide notice to Project Jupiter entities of a potential breach of IRB agreements regarding the proposed power generation plant and engage in discussions to identify a path forward working with Doña Ana County.”

The motion passed unanimously.

The proposal comes after residents spoke out against a proposed agreement between Oracle, a developer behind Project Jupiter, and El Paso Electric. Representatives from Oracle said they wouldn’t pursue the agreement without further discussion with the county.

Sanchez said the Industrial Revenue Bonds (IRB) requires no connection between the data center and EPE. He said “there are ways that the company would be in breach if they went in that direction.”

ABC-7 has reached out to Oracle, Commissioners, and El Paso Electric and haven’t gotten any responses.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — A 20-year-old man from Horizon City has been charged with evading arrest after allegedly driving away from a traffic stop on an ATV.

On Oct. 24, Marcus Sanchez drove an ATV on Paseo Del Este Boulevard in Horizon, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said.

Marcus Sanchez’ mugshot.(Courtesy: EPCSO)

Video from EPCSO showed the ATV driver performing a wheelie in front of a patrol unit. Deputies initiated a traffic stop, and Sanchez allegedly drove away.

The sheriff’s office said Sanchez lost control of the ATV at the intersection of Paseo Del Este Boulevard and Kilvington Street. Video showed the ATV hitting a stop sign.

After a foot chase, deputies took him into custody. The sheriff’s office booked him into the El Paso County Detention Facility for evading arrest and evading arrest with a vehicle. His bond totaled $22,500.

“ATVs do not belong on public roadways, and fleeing from deputies puts everyone nearby at risk,” said Sheriff Oscar Ugarte. “If a deputy signals you to stop, pull over safely and comply. Choosing to flee can turn a traffic stop into a serious criminal charge.”

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Co-founder of United Farm Workers and labor rights activist Dolores Huerta died, her family announced on social media Wednesday. She was 96 years old.

“We know that many of you around the world share in our mourning,” her family wrote on social media.

El Paso has shown its appreciation for Huerta’s impact on labor rights. In Lincoln Park – El Paso’s Chicano Park, artists painted her on one of the structural beams supporting the highway above the park.

Her image is one of many murals at the park symbolizing Chicano history.

The Mexican American Cultural Center, located in Downtown El Paso, said Huerta’s “courage reminds us of the importance of working with community to elevate our struggles, giving voice to our shared humanity, and finding ways to carry that work forward.”

Huerta spent more than six decades fighting for fair wages, healthcare benefits, and gender equality across the nation.

For local educators who worked alongside her family, her loss marks both a solemn moment of reflection and a renewed call to action.

Karina Echavarri a Mexican American Studies teacher at Franklin High school worked closely with Huerta’s daughter.

“Dolores has been in the movement for 65 years. And I feel that it’s a very, very sad day for us. But I also feel it’s a day to ignite us even more and to continue with the torch and to continue our activism and our community engagement. And the Lord has always said, Si, Se Puede.” Said Echavarri.

At La Mujer Obrera in Central El Paso, community workers added Huerta to their memorial ofrenda to commemorate her lifelong dedication to garment workers, farmworkers, and working families.

“She walked with the workers,” said Lorena Andrade, director of La Mujer Obrera. “She walked with women—men and women that are workers, some that are invisible, or made invisible, to a community like the garment workers here in El Paso and the farmworkers all over the country. And that’s one of the biggest examples: that you walk with the community and that you stay for the long term.”

Her impact remains deeply felt across El Paso, from local labor organizing to the vibrant murals depicting her portrait at Lincoln Park in Central El Paso.

“And she didn’t stop,” Echavarri added. “She never stopped.”

A community vigil for Huerta will start at Lincoln Park – El Paso’s Chicano Park Wednesday at 6 p.m. The park is located at 4001 Duranzo Ave.

UPDATE (12:15 p.m.): Police said 19-year-old Raul Alberto Sias died in Wednesday’s crash.

Preliminary investigation revealed that Sias rear-ended a truck with his motorcycle, according to the El Paso Police Department. The impact threw him off the motorcycle.

EPPD said speed is a contributing factor in the crash. Police said this is the 56th traffic death of 2026, compared to 56 last year.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — One person is dead following a major early-morning crash involving a motorcycle and a pedestrian in Socorro, according to El Paso Police Special Traffic Investigations Unit.

The incident occurred in the 9800 block of Socorro Road. El Paso Police investigators and emergency crews remain at the scene, working to determine what caused the fatal collision.

The crash has triggered significant traffic disruptions for the morning commute. Authorities have completely closed both the eastbound and westbound lanes of Socorro Road to secure the area and allow investigators to examine the scene.

Commuters traveling in the area are urged to find an alternate route.

The closure is expected to impact traffic throughout the morning as the investigation continues.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — On Tuesday, the El Paso City Council unanimously voted to approve an agenda item directing the city attorney to draft a resolution requiring the public disclosure of city-funded travel expenses.

In September, an ABC-7 investigation revealed members of the El Paso County Commissioners Court spent nearly a quarter of a million dollars traveling on taxpayers’ tab over the last five years.

Commissioners logged dozens of legislative trips across the U.S., while the county judge’s travel included a visit to Taiwan.

Since then, commissioners and the county judge have discussed ways to improve their travel policy to share the reasons why they travel and how it benefits taxpayers.

The El Paso City Council started that discussion, too.

City Representative Chris Canales called for members of the council to report any city-funded travel expenses once they’re back.

Backup documents on Tuesday’s meeting agenda said the recent public scrutiny of travel expenditures in other local government entities prompted the proposal.

The proposed policy would require that expenses be publicly reported on a future council agenda after travel is completed.

“We saw, in recent weeks, lots of attention on other government entities, in particular El Paso County and their travel,” Rep. Canales said. “Making sure we’re doing proactive disclosure on a rolling basis of this type of travel expenditure is just a good transparency act for the public.”

Members of the council get discretionary funds, and on top of that, they get $6,000 to travel, according to Sasho Andonoski with the Office of Management and Budget.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — A teenage boy from Odessa, Texas, died after crashing into an 18-wheeler in El Paso, according to the sheriff’s office.

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said that on Monday at 3:42 a.m., deputies responded to a crash on I-10 west near Mile Marker 53 near Tornillo.

A 17-year-old teen from Odessa, Texas, died after crashing into an 18-wheeler near Tornillo.

EPCSO said a 17-year-old by from Odessa drove west and hit the rear of an 18-wheeler. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver and passenger of the 18-wheeler weren’t injured.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — It’s your voice, your vote. Election Day is exactly one week away, and voters in Dona Ana County have an important decision to make about who will lead the county sheriff’s office.

Candidates Todd Garrison (R) and Vanessa Ordoñez (D) joined ABC-7’s Marcel Clarke to explain where they stand and make their case directly to you.

Watch the full report above.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Early voting in New Mexico ends this Saturday, Oct. 31.

Find voter resources and ABC-7’s voter guide on our Your Voice, Your Vote page.