Good morning, it’s Tuesday July 6th and this is The Herald Review’s podcast, the Daily Chirp. We’re excited to bring you a closer look at one of our top stories, events in the community, local history, sports, and more.
Today - A man charged in the death of two undocumented migrants will remain in the Cochise County Jail on $1 million bond.
Before we begin, some local history.
Did you know that Sierra Vista was the hometown of Jeffrey Williamson (better known as Axe), a professional Super Smash Bros. Melee player? It’s true! Playing as Pikachu, Axe has placed in the top ten every year since 2016 and is widely considered the best Pikachu player in the world. He is currently sponsored and playing for Team Tempo Storm based in Los Angeles.
Also, The Daily Chirp podcast is giving away 5 Amazon Echo Dots - one every month now through July. You can enter for your chance to win twice a day! Today's code is Freedom and find the other codeword in our “Daily Chirp Podcast Alert” e-newsletter. To enter the sweepstakes go to myheraldreview.com, again today's codeword is: Freedom
Now, our feature story.
A man charged in the death of two undocumented migrants will remain in the Cochise County Jail on $1 million bond. This decision comes after a superior court judge said he committed the offenses in this area while on probation for violations in another county.
Cochise County Superior Court Judge Laura Cardinal issued the ruling after prosecutor Michael Powell also argued that William Maurice Brown had stolen a gun in Maricopa County. At the time he was on probation for armed robbery.
Powell noted that the fact that he stole a gun while on probation should be enough. He continued to say that this is a dangerous individual and a lifelong criminal.
Brown has now been charged with two counts of first degree murder in the death of two undocumented migrants in January.
The two people were killed in a truck that Brown was driving when he lost control. Three other undocumented individuals were injured as well.
According to police reports, Brown and another man drove to Douglas in two vehicles to pick up 10 undocumented migrants.
As the migrants were climbing into the respective vehicles, an off-duty Border Patrol agent spotted the activity and called it in to his colleagues.
At that point, Border Patrol agents spotted Brown’s truck and the Jeep. They began following them as the drivers headed out of Douglas and toward Bisbee.
Both suspects accelerated on the highway and attempted to escape at speeds over 100 miles per hour. The headlights on their vehicles were turned off and they almost slammed into other motorists. Eventually, Border Patrol agents called ahead to alert Bisbee police of the situation.
When Brown and the driver reached the traffic circle in Bisbee, they failed to slow down and Brown lost control. The car flipped and two of the passengers died at the scene.
Brown later told investigators that he had been paid $2,000 to drive the load. Load is the term human smugglers use to refer to undocumented migrants. These migrants fork over thousands of dollars to be taken to Tucson, Phoenix or beyond after they’ve crossed the border illegally.
Defense attorney Chris Kimminau argued that if Brown was released, he would remain under the supervision of Maricopa County since he violated probation.
But Cardinal said Brown is a danger “to this community and the state.”
The judge also mentioned the continuing situation with undocumented migrants crossing the border in Arizona and the perils that creates. She admonished Brown for being involved in the human smuggling trade, and especially while on probation.
Brown is set to reappear in court on July 12.
To learn more visit us at myheraldreview.com
Next - Earlier this spring, the population of beavers along the Upper San Pedro River grew by one! This beaver transplant was saved from being euthanized in Northern Arizona. It will augment the population of San Pedro beavers, building dams that slow flows, recharging the aquifer and creating more wetlands critical in the desert.
Critter Control, a private animal removal company in Northern Arizona, was called to remove a beaver along Oak Creek because the landowners didn’t like the beaver chomping on their cottonwoods.
Critter Control needed to find a new home for the beaver in short order or the animal would have to be euthanized. Beavers need year-round water for their natural habitat, and being trapped in a cage, the beaver was not eating much and quickly losing weight.
So they called the Watershed Management Group to help. As part of their Release the Beavers campaign, they have been supporting monitoring efforts along the San Pedro, public education initiatives and river restoration projects in the Santa Cruz and San Pedro watersheds to ensure desert beaver populations can thrive.
WMG has been advocating for beavers as part of their larger efforts to protect and restore flowing rivers in Southern Arizona.
As we know, western watersheds and desert rivers have been drying up for the last 100 years, but beavers provide a powerful, nature-based solution to reverse that trend, even in the face of a warmer and drier climate.
If you’d like to get involved, visit Watershedmg.org/Beavers for updates on the Release the Beavers campaign, including volunteer opportunities and events. They also offer a wide variety of free conservation classes and workshops, including virtual and in-person opportunities related to river restoration, water harvesting, soil stewardship and native ecology.
Next, as pandemic restrictions are easing, we’re excited to tell you about more events going on in our community.
-- brought to you by our sponsors, Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative.
The USA Dance Sierra Vista Chapter 4050 will be hosting their FIRST dance social of 2021!
There will be a group class from 7-8 PM, and then open dancing until 9:30 PM! The cost is $10/person, and USA Dance members will be admitted for half price! Whether you're an absolute beginner or an experienced dancer, all are welcome to attend!
Before we go, we’d like to take a moment to remember the life of
Ray Jennings of Benson.
Ray was born on the family farm in rural Minnesota. As the youngest child in the family, Ray was always into mischief. At age 17, Ray joined the Army where he served with the prestigious 101st Airborne. His career spanned 21 years and four foreign deployments. In between tours, Ray married his high school sweetheart, Ruth. They remained happily married for 55 wonderful years. The military life took them all over the country from South Carolina to Alaska and Colorado before retiring to Benson.
Ray was an avid woodworker who could often be found in his woodshop creating lovely, handcrafted pieces of work. Ray made many pieces of furniture for Ruth and countless crosses, piggy banks, coat-hooks and other gifts for his friends and family. Ruth and Ray could regularly be found at the local craft shows sharing their works with the community.
When Ray was not sharing his gifts, he was sharing his humor, and his endless supply of stories with those around him. He truly made the world a better place with his easy kindness and gentle laughter. He would always flirt with the waitress and leave a big tip, because he knew that small acts of kindness made big impacts on the people he cared about.
Ray lived his life with conviction and dedication to his community, his country, and most of all his family.
Thank you for taking a moment with us today to remember and celebrate Ray’s life.
Thanks for tuning in to the Herald Review podcast today, join us again on Wednesday! And remember, the Herald Review is here for you with local news you can trust. For more information on any of the stories you heard about today, visit us at myheraldreview.com. Right now you can become a member starting at just $1.99 per week.
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