🚨 Public Safety
Man killed in midtown Tucson crash caused by red-light runner. A 47-year-old man died Monday after a vehicle ran a red light and struck his car in midtown Tucson, according to Tucson Police. No additional details about the at-fault driver or the intersection were immediately released.
Pima County Sheriff's deputies rescue injured hiker near Windy Point on Mount Lemmon. Deputies responded Wednesday evening to a call about an injured man near Windy Point. The call came in around 7:20 p.m.; the hiker was carried out and transported to a local hospital. Extent of injuries was not disclosed.
🏛️ Government
RTA Next approved by Pima County voters; older residents drove the margin. Pima County's Regional Transportation Authority Next ballot measures passed with approximately 60% approval in a special election concluded Tuesday, March 10. Older voters were the decisive demographic behind the broad approval of the multi-billion-dollar regional transportation package, according to an analysis of precinct-level results.
Tucson Sentinel, Arizona Daily Star
Arizona officials urge Pima County and others to withhold voter data from federal investigators. Arizona's top law enforcement and election officials are warning county officers not to turn over full, unredacted voter files to the FBI and DHS, which are probing the state's 2020 election. Secretary of State Adrian Fontes separately filed a lawsuit seeking to block a DOJ demand for Arizona voter rolls, calling it an "illegal" power grab.
Tucson Sentinel, Arizona Daily Star
Arizona Republicans advance bill that would make it easier for politicians to sue critics. The House Judiciary Committee approved Senate Bill 1099 along party lines Wednesday, a measure that would lower the legal standard for public figures to prevail in defamation suits by removing the long-established "actual malice" requirement. First Amendment attorneys warn the bill is unconstitutional; Rep. Alma Hernandez, D-Tucson, voted against it, saying elected officials should not be above public scrutiny.
Advocates and Rep. Grijalva protest proposed ICE detention expansion at Marana private prison. About 70 immigration and civil rights advocates, joined by U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva and Pima County Supervisor Jen Allen, gathered Tuesday outside a privately owned prison near Marana to oppose its potential use as an ICE detention facility. Organizers are urging Pima County to formally oppose any expansion of immigration detention operations in the area.
Arizona House committee votes to seek federal delisting of the endangered Mexican gray wolf. A resolution cleared committee Wednesday that would formally request the federal government strip Endangered Species Act protections from the Mexican gray wolf, which has recovered to fewer than 150 animals in the wild over three decades of conservation work. Critics say the move would reverse hard-won progress just as the population nears the threshold for downlisting to "threatened."
🏗️ Development & Business
Pima County and University of Arizona sign semiconductor industry partnership with Taiwanese manufacturer. Pima County Economic Development and the UA Center for Innovation traveled to Taiwan to form a partnership with JSEDM (Jiann Sheng Machinery and Electric Industrial Co.), which makes equipment used in semiconductors, optics, aerospace, and defense. JSEDM plans to bring machinery to the UA campus this fall for student interns to work with; officials say southern Arizona's lower costs give it an edge over the saturated Phoenix market.
Environmentalists challenge planned 160-acre state land auction for Copper World mine tailings. Conservation groups filed a formal protest Friday against the Arizona State Land Department's planned sale of 160 acres in the Santa Rita Mountains that would hold tailings for Copper World, a controversial open-pit copper mine about 30 miles southeast of Tucson. The challenge attempts to block the auction before it proceeds.
🎉 Community & Events
Tucson Festival of Books opens this weekend at the University of Arizona. The 17th annual Tucson Festival of Books — one of the world's top literary events — takes place Saturday and Sunday, March 14–15, on the UA campus. For the first time, the festival will enforce a clear-bag policy for author panel sessions. The lineup includes Rachel Eliza Griffiths, presenting her memoir about the year her husband Salman Rushdie was stabbed, and Tucson author Jacquelyn Jackson discussing "The Female Rogue."
Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Sentinel
⛈️ Weather — Tucson
No active weather alerts for the Tucson area.
Today: Sunny, high near 88°F. East southeast wind 5 to 8 mph. 0% precipitation chance. Tonight: Clear, low around 53°F. South wind around 6 mph. Tomorrow (Friday): Sunny, high near 90°F. South southeast wind 2 to 7 mph. 0% precipitation chance. Outlook: A warm, dry spring stretch continues through the weekend and into next week. Highs reach 90°F Friday and Saturday before easing slightly to 89°F Sunday, with lows holding in the mid-50s. No precipitation is in the forecast through at least early next week.
NWS Tucson Forecast API