THE NEWSPAPER OF AVONDALE, BUCKEYE, GOODYEAR, LITCHFIELD PARK & TOLLESON
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INSIDE
This Week
NEWS .............. 8 Avondale P.D. wins grant for tactical robot
SPORTS ........ 14 Look back at this year’s high school football season
9 DAYS ......... 18 Looking for something to do? Check out the 9 Days a Week calendar
LETTERS ..........................9 BUSINESS..................... 12 SPORTS ..........................13 FEATURES .....................20 NEIGHBORHOOD......23 SCHOOLS .....................24 OBITUARIES .................27 CLASSIFIEDS................28 WEST
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The Voice of the West Valley for 32 years
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November 8, 2017
Search for missing mom continues in Buckeye By Rachel Gettinger
Thirty officers dressed in protective gear are combing through debris at The City of Phoenix SR 85 Landfill in Buckeye for any sign of missing mother Christine Mustafa. “They are sweating. They are having to comb through debris with very heavy devices – it is true manual labor,” said Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams. The Phoenix Police Department is coordinating the search for the 34-yearold mother of two. Williams spoke to the media Friday, November 3, during the department’s first detailed press conference since the search began October 23. She stood in front of a sign from Mustafa’s family praying for the workers’ safety. “(The search team) keeps the hope by being reassured,” she added. “There are photos of Christine in the facility, just to give them the little charge that they need. “There is this banner behind me given to us by Christine’s family just with hope. The hope that we will find things. The hope that we will bring things to justice.” Officers from Phoenix, Glendale, Mesa, Tempe and DPS, along with FBI agents, support staff and construction workers make up the 50-person team that is on site daily. The volunteer officers conduct the search from daybreak to 2 p.m. Monday
Police officers, FBI agents, support staff and construction workers comprise the team searching The City of Phoenix SR 85 Landfill in Buckeye for missing mother Christine Mustafa. (Photo courtesy Phoenix Police Department)
to Friday, said Phoenix Police Sgt. Alan Pfohl. “Each searcher must be a sworn officer of law to participate as the search regards confidential evidence,” Pfohl said. Phoenix Police Department’s homicide
department contracted with Banicki Construction, a Tempe-based civil construction company, to provide the necessary tools and equipment for this dig.
Missing...continued on page 2
Tolleson bus cameras track dangerous drivers By Blakely McHugh
Tolleson Union High School District has installed cameras on 20 of its buses to deter motorists who ignore the stop signs that come down when students get on or off the bus. The district plans to add 18 more by the end of November. These stop-arm cameras are becoming increasingly popular, with districts across the country adding them to their buses. “What we’re finding is that more and more people are running through and not observing the stop arms when they actually deploy,” said James West, the district’s
transportation director. “We’ve got just an incredible amount of safety factors and issues that happen through that.” From 2006 to 2015, 102 school-age pedestrians died in school transportationrelated crashes – with 36 percent struck by vehicles such as passenger cars, trucks and vans, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. School officials hope the cameras – attached to the front, back and sides of the buses near the stop arms – will improve safety for the students.
“Once the stop arm is activated, it comes out, and the stop arm cameras detect any motion that happens between the front of the bus and the back of the bus,” West said. He said the cameras take still photos and video of the license plates and vehicle. However, only 15 states can actually use the camera footage to prosecute violators, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Arizona is not one of them.
Bus...continued on page 3