News

Fronteras: The immigration proposal senators are crafting calls for an expanded use of border drones, we look at how effective they have been along the border so far. We hear the story of an American veteran's two-year quest to get an Iraqi family to the safety of U.S. soil. Finally, a San Antonio surgery resident talks about his immigration experience so far, and the hurdles immigrant doctors face to work in the U.S. even though there are doctor shortages.

Visitors to the Alamo were greeted by some mid-day busking (street performing) yesterday morning.  Dotan Negrin has been hauling his upright piano all across the country for more than two years, performing on streets from New York to here in San Antonio.

Parked illegally next to the Alamo, Negrin unloaded his Baldwin piano from a fire-engine red van.

The compact upright piano has a laminated map velcroed to one side showing all the places Negrin has gone on his travels.

The San Antonio Fire Department held an open house to the media this week to detail what it does to determine whether or not a fire is considered an act of arson.

The fire department has 17 arson investigators, who the past two years have been called out to more than 1,200 fires.  Captain Chris Casals, with the San Antonio Fire Department's Arson Bureau, said his division exists to determine the cause and origin of a fire.

After a year-long flood control project had roads torn up along Sixmile Creek, Bexar County has re-opened the South Flores Bridge. With seven low-water crossings, the poor drainage around the area was a threat to nearby homes and properties during heavy rains.

Attorneys for Staff Sgt. Craig LeBlanc at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland initiated a vigorous defense Wednesday, but the military judge denied the motion for a directed verdict on LeBlanc’s aggravated sexual assault charge.

The defense said the government had not proven the alleged victim was in fear of losing her military career. But the government successfully argued that the environment in which LeBlanc placed the woman conveyed fear: The room was almost completely dark and he was sitting in a chair, patting his leg to get the woman to sit on his lap.

The problem of homelessness is massive and complex and it seems impossible to find a solution that’s going to solve the problem for one and all.

San Antonio is working on dealing with the issue with Haven for Hope by providing shelter, counseling and help with finding work, but for some of the homeless, they are finding the road back from living on the street by lacing up a pair of shoes and running.

While President Barack Obama covered a lot of territory in last night’s State-of-the-Union, one topic that’s being scrutinized is immigration reform. 

It took President Obama almost exactly an hour to deliver the annual address and 2 minutes and 18 seconds of it was dedicated to immigration reform.

“And right now, leaders from the business, labor, law enforcement, and faith communities all agree that the time has come to pass comprehensive immigration reform,” he said.  

A round of applause

While President Barack Obama did not mention San Antonio or Mayor Julián Castro by name, he did talk about early education initiatives during his State of the Union address Tuesday night.

For a moment in the president's address, it seemed like one of Mayor Castro’s Pre-K 4 SA campaign rallies.

Obama: "Study after study shows that the sooner a child begins learning, the better he or she does down the road. But today, fewer than 3 in 10 four year-olds are enrolled in a high-quality preschool program.”

Navy recruiter Juan Jose Pena has been arrested on charges of sexually assaulting a female enlistee. 

The 28-year-old sailor, who worked in a Navy recruiting office on Broadway, was arrested by Alamo Heights police Monday for allegedly getting drunk with a Navy enlistee and sexually assaulting her in the recruiting office.

Police told the San Antonio Express-News that Juan Jose Pena was arrested at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Monday. The enlistee’s cousin reportedly witnessed the assault.