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When you look back on the year, there are many stories that could be in the Top 10 in local news. Today, we offer thoughts on the local stories we think are memorable from the past year.
1. Agent goes through two trials
No story dominated the headlines like the murder trials against U.S. Border Patrol Agent Nicholas Corbett.
  
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Corbett went to trial for the January 2007 shooting death of Francisco Dominguez-Rivera, a Mexican who had illegally crossed with his siblings into the United States near Naco. Corbett didn’t deny shooting Dominguez-Rivera. He said he did it in self-defense as the illegal immigrant came at him with a rock. The prosecution argued otherwise.
Corbett went into federal court charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and negligent homicide. The jury had to decide if he was guilty or innocent.
The agent’s first murder trial started in federal court in February and ended in early March — as a hung jury. Another trial was set, and in early November, another jury could not unanimously decide guilt or innocence. After a few weeks, prosecutors announced they wouldn’t pursue charges against Corbett in another trial now, but left open the possibility by filing a motion to dismiss “without prejudice.”
Corbett’s trial was important in that it involved a Border Patrol agent being accused of murdering an illegal immigrant. It tested the wheels of justice, and in the end, there was no resolution. It taxed county financial resources, though the total amount spent on the case has yet to be disclosed. And it brought criticism about the Sheriff’s Office’s investigation of the matter, which also was a topic of conversation during the election of sheriff this year.
2. Border fence construction continues
The federal government, under a mandate from Congress, continued to build a border fence along the U.S.-Mexico border. Much of the activity occurred in Cochise County, and the work changed from being handled by a military task force to being handled by private contractors under the Department of Homeland Security. The fence was a source of debate between those trying to balance border security and the environmental and human consequences of the miles-long barrier. The government’s methods for building the fence also were questioned, and a new type of fence started to be built later in the year.
3. School overrides fail
Both Sierra Vista and Tombstone school districts asked voters within their boundaries to approve budget overrides in an attempt to raise more money for educational opportunities. Both attempts failed, with some voters saying the districts need to live within their means and trim the budgets. Sierra Vista’s new school superintendent, Brett Agenbroad, is working to do that and we’ll see what methods he’s devised as the new budget year preparations begin. But the district has said that more than 50 jobs could be cut and physical education, music and art courses would move under the auspices of the teachers and not specialized instructors.
4. Economic slowdown impacts many
In the early part of the year, the local real estate market started to feel the impact of a nationwide economic crunch, though not as hard as many areas in the state. By the fall, the national downturn started to be felt in other areas, including local governments and businesses. Businesses started to lay off people in hopes of meeting budget demands. Cochise County officials began to trim their budget by reducing the number of road projects and approving a way for employees to take alternative work hours. In Sierra Vista and Bisbee, the cities also began reviewing ways to trim their budgets. There was positive economic news, including the fact that Walmart planned to build a larger store in Sierra Vista, as well as a Sam’s Club, on the northwest corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and the Highway 90 Bypass.
5. Fort soldiers deploy, return home
On Dec. 24, more than 100 soldiers of the 11th Signal Brigade returned from a mission in Iraq. It was one of the homecomings seen this year. And it was part of the active deployments that Fort Huachuca and Sierra Vista have seen over the years. Soldiers in smaller groups have deployed this year, and the 40th Signal Battalion still has about 400 soldiers in Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Qatar working on missions. They’re due back in March. Fort Huachuca continued during the year to show its leadership role in the war on terrorism.
6. New legislative representatives
The Nov. 4 election brought many results, but the biggest likely came in the selection of people representing districts 25 and 30, the two that include portions of Cochise County. In the House of Representatives, Pat Fleming and David Stevens will represent District 25 and David Gowan and Frank Antenori will represent District 30. In the state Senate, the districts will be represented by two current state representatives — Manny Alvarez in District 25 and Jonathan Paton in District 30. With the change in leadership also comes a downside: loss of seniority. Representatives of Cochise County held the top leadership positions in the state Senate, and the representatives in the state House were positioned to be effective. That’s the challenge that the six who will represent the county will have once they take their seats in Phoenix.
7. Ancient village found in Sierra Vista
In May, the Herald/Review learned about an archaeological dig that was uncovering Native American artifacts in the heart of Sierra Vista and at the site of a planned housing development. For months the Herald/Review and another local newspaper waited to publicize the story. And that came in December, when the archaeologists spoke about their find and the pieces they have uncovered, including a piece called the “circle stone” the use of which is still unknown at this point. The studying of the items will go on and hopefully will tell us more about the people who once lived in this area.
8. 12-year-old in Douglas kills mom
On Aug. 1, a 12-year-old boy with a pistol shot and killed his mother after she returned home. Testimony in a hearing last week revealed the boy shot his mother eight times, and it was repeated that the boy had been trained on how to use the gun by his father figure, who was his mother’s boyfriend. The boy has been charged with first-degree murder, but is being tried as a youth, not an adult. A judge made that ruling after having heard that the boy may have been physically and verbally abused by his mother. An adjudication hearing is under way, with the next portion on Friday. Once that is complete, the judge will determine the boy’s guilt or innocence. While the trial didn’t gain the statewide attention of an 8-year-old shooting and killing two people in Northern Arizona, the shooting puts a boy in court for a serious crime — a first-degree murder charge.
9 Governor to become homeland secretary
With the election of Barack Obama as president, there was wide speculation as to whether he would tap Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano for a post in his Cabinet. That answer came in early December when Obama announced that Napolitano was his pick for Homeland Security secretary. If her nomination is approved by the U.S. Senate early next year, it will not only create a change in the leadership of this state, but it also puts a person in the Department of Homeland Security who has firsthand knowledge about the border in Cochise County and understands the challenges this area faces. All eyes will be on Napolitano and what direction she may take the DHS.
10. Recycling system changes in SV
Going from orange to blue seems impossible. But this wasn’t about changing colors; this was about a city advancing its recycling program. The city of Sierra Vista stopped its orange bag recycling pick-up program and began issuing blue bins to residents who had signed up for the program in October. The city was helped in purchasing the bins through grant money, and city officials have said they’ve seen a growing number of people who have been using the program in the first months of the roadside pickups.
TOP VIEWED STORIES ONLINE 2008
The stories by the Herald/Review received the most visits by our online readers during 2008 at our Web site www.svherald.com.
1. Border critic gets buzzed by F-16s: http://tinyurl.com/F16buzz
Glenn Spencer, a critic of the U.S. government’s illegal-immigration policies, was intercepted by F-16 fighters as he flew a watchdog mission in his Cessna 206 near the U.S.-Mexico border.
2. Man sought in connection to lewd act outside high school: http://tinyurl.com/mansought
A female Buena High School student reported to police that a man had indecently exposed himself to her in the school parking lot.
3. Some question aid to illegals at local church: http://tinyurl.com/illegalaid
Several parents have pulled their children out of Our Lady of the Mountains Catholic School amidst accusations that the church has been harboring illegal immigrants.
4. Border watch group changes name to Cochise County Militia: http://tinyurl.com/cochisemilitia
A local border watch group changed its name and tactics due to the types of illegal immigrants its members are encountering. The militia claims there is an invasion.
5. Man dies when two vehicles collide: http://tinyurl.com/cyclewreck
Frederick Bohan, 41, of Huachuca City died when his motorcycle collided with a van. A subsequent report tells of Bohan’s .23 percent blood alcohol content.
6. Ancient village discovered in Sierra Vista: http://tinyurl.com/villagefound
Archaeologists have unearthed a desert Mogollon community believed to be more than 1,400 years old.
7. Teen dies in two-car crash: http://tinyurl.com/tombstonecrash
A Tombstone High School student, 14-year-old Christina Waller, was killed in a two-vehicle crash on Dec. 5.
8. Motorcycle group banned from bar, veterans post after brawl:
http://tinyurl.com/bikerbrawl
A late-night incident in a Tombstone bar turns into a melee in which two men are severely beaten by a mob.
9. Two injured in Sierra Vista stabbing: http://tinyurl.com/pubstabbing
Two men are injured by knives during a fight outside a Sierra Vista bar.
10. Protest in the park was ‘sickening’ sight: http://tinyurl.com/parkprotest
A letter to the editor talks about the disgust of veterans at seeing an anti-war protest in Veterans’ Memorial Park.
