Trash talk: Los Angeles is losing its battle with litter, and neighborhoods are stepping up

LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles residents are fed up with trash they have decided to take matters into their own hands and create their own trash clubs, the city of Los Angeles, is stymied over the problem, and is heavily losing the fight against trash.

A man crushes cans and containers that can be cashed in at recycling centers. Scavengers go through some of the garbage left curbside Los Angeles. The city faces big problems of trash left on streets. (Photo by Emeril Gordon/Cronkite News)

Symptoms of COVID ‘long haulers’ baffle doctors looking for treatment options

LOS ANGELES – With COVID-19 restrictions having faded away, doctors are seeing an influx of patients with long-term symptoms that are similar to the severe symptoms shown at the peak of the pandemic but are not as lethal. Doctors and other health care providers in Southern California are working with patients to correctly diagnose them and provide proper care to ease their suffering.


Justices grapple with legality of Indian Child Welfare Act in marathon hearing

WASHINGTON - Over the course of three hours Wednesday, the Supreme Court grappled with whether a law meant to keep Indigenous children with Native American families should be overturned as racist and unconstitutional, as critics charge.


‘Visibility matters’: LGBTQ care coordinator aims to improve care for Phoenix-area veterans

PHOENIX – There are an estimated 1 million LGBTQ+ veterans in the U.S., many of whom are more likely to report chronic physical or mental health conditions. The Veterans Health Administration launched its LGBTQ+ Veteran Care Coordinator Program to address these disparities.

Ash Senter is the LGBTQ+ care coordinator at Phoenix’s Carl T. Hayden Veterans' Administration Medical Center. Senter, who is transgender and nonbinary, is a former Air Force reservist and a health psychologist who started as the Phoenix coordinator in January – and they’re excited about the changes they’ve seen. “Visibility matters,” Senter says. (Photo courtesy of Public Affairs Office/Phoenix VA)

Supreme Court lets stand ruling upholding Arizona’s eight-person juries

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear a challenge to Arizona's law that allows defendants in serious criminal cases to be tried by a jury of just eight people.


Supreme Court asked to rule ‘gold standard’ of tribal adoption laws racist

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court will consider Wednesday whether the Indian Child Welfare Act is the "gold standard" of child welfare policy or a "outrageous and unconstitutional" law that has outlived its time.


Voters with disabilities have many ways to cast ballots in Maricopa County

PHOENIX – An estimated 38 million eligible voters in the U.S. have a disability, but they tend to have a lower turnout rate than voters without disabilities. A Phoenix nonprofit works with disabled residents on what to expect on Election Day.


Healing through culture: Increasing access to Native American practices to treat mental health

HOUCK – Traditional healing has always been a part of Indigenous culture, and it’s especially useful for treating mental health. But access often is limited. Arizona and other states are seeking authorization from the federal government to cover these services under Medicaid.

Wayne Wilson stands in a hogan at the Native American Baha’i Institute in Houck, Arizona, on Sept. 1, 2022. He is holding eagle feathers that he uses in traditional healing ceremonies. (Photo by Laura Bargfeld/Cronkite News)

Tucson woman arrested in abortion-rights protest during Supreme Court hearing

WASHINGTON - A Tucson woman was one of three people arrested Wednesday after they disrupted a Supreme Court hearing with a protest over the court's decision to reverse its 1973 ruling that had recognized a right to an abortion.


Supreme Court presses state on its rejection of Arizona death-row appeal

WASHINGTON - Supreme Court justices challenged Arizona's claim Tuesday that a death row inmate should not get a chance to appeal his sentence, based on what one justice called a "Kafkaesque" ruling by the Arizona Supreme Court.


Pain, action and hope: Activists have battled for police reform for decades

OAKLAND, Calif. – Activists are pushing for police reform, building on the struggles of the past to improve the future of policing in the U.S. To long-time activist Elaine Brown in Oakland, that means being willing to risk your job, to consistently confront the uncomfortable.

Marion Gray-Hopkins visits the resting place of her son, Gary Hopkins Jr,. at the Fort Lincoln Funeral Home & Cemetery in Brentwood, Maryland. The 19-year-old was shot and killed by a police officer in 1999. (Photo by Diannie Chavez/News21)

Protesters push Biden on pledge to pardon pot possession convictions

WASHINGTON - Students from across the country rallied outside the White House Monday to demand that President Joe Biden deliver on a campaign promise to release prisoners convicted of marijuana possession.