Guests - Betsy Smith, Elijah Norton, Kathy Sinnott & Pat Johnston

Oro Valley Police Face Critical Contract Negotiations Amid Public Support

The community turned out in force at the Oro Valley City Council meeting, with standing-room-only attendance and unanimous public support for police officer pay raises. The Oro Valley Police Department, considered one of the safest cities in the United States with a low violent crime rate of 33 per 100,000 people, has become embroiled in a contract dispute with town leadership.

"Oro Valley is considered one of the safest cities in the United States with a low violent crime rate of 33% or 33 per 100,000 people. That's enviable, right? Like Chicago would kill for that, literally," noted Kathleen Winn. "You have this city and your whole thing is about how safe you are. So what you would do is screw with your police department, not give them a raise, not do the things that you should do for your police department because that's your brand. That's why people move to Oro Valley."

Betsy Brantner Smith, spokesperson for the National Police Association, expressed shock at the town's unwillingness to fund its police department properly. "Oro Valley used to be the highest paid police department in Pima County. And now they're sliding toward one of the lowest," Smith explained.

The police association is asking for officers who have served at least a year to receive a 13.6% pay increase, while officers with 10 years or more experience would get an 8.8% increase. First-year officers in the Oro Valley Police Department currently make only about $57,000 a year, while officers with 10 years of experience make about $83,000.

The impasse stems from a deal struck three years ago with town leadership. According to previous discussions with Detective Christopher Knapp, president of the Oro Valley Police Officers Association, the town insisted on a three-year contract despite officers requesting two years, assuring they understood future implications. When the town manager recently shut down negotiations, it sparked public outrage.

"Three years ago, they negotiated in good faith and said, 'Hey, okay, we'll do this thing with you.' But in three years, we get X, Y, and Z. And when the city manager shut down negotiations, pulled the rug out from underneath them, and they went to the public, I guarantee you last night, it was an eye-opening moment for the mayor and council and the city manager who didn't realize the impact that these officers, they are the heart and soul of this community," Winn said.

While the department has secured its status as the safest city in Arizona, the town has prioritized other projects over police compensation. "They put a pond before police, which is what they did," Winn pointed out. "They made sure that pond got passed in April. They have been negotiating with these police for three years. That was reprehensible and egregious."

The town manager reportedly kept the leadership from the police and what they were trying to negotiate away from the mayor and council. At the meeting, the city made an offer, but the police wanted to examine it closely, with a representative saying, "trust but verify."

Many speakers at the council meeting came from the Tucson Police Department, where staffing and pay issues have created significant problems. "When cops retire from the Tucson police department, and even when they get hired, they don't live in Tucson," Smith noted. "They live in Marana. They live in Oro Valley. They get away."

The meeting highlighted the stark contrast between Oro Valley and Tucson's approach to policing, with Oro Valley potentially heading down a troubling path if police concerns aren't addressed. Without proper support, the department risks losing more of its 30 officers who are considering leaving if they don't receive the requested pay raise.

Tucson Police Officer Injured in Violent Store Incident

A Tucson police officer was severely injured while responding to a shoplifting incident at a Quick Trip store at Golf Links and Wilmot. According to Smith, "A shoplifting suspect was assaulting a store employee inside the Quick Trip. So a police officer comes and the suspect, 38-year-old Richard Lopez, ran. The officer caught him, but then he attacked the officer with canned goods and caused facial injury so severe that the officer is still hospitalized."

Two bystanders in the store assisted the officer and helped restrain the suspect until additional officers arrived. The incident highlights the dangerous conditions faced by Tucson police, who are severely understaffed.

"The Tucson police department responds to very little. They only take the highest priority calls because they just went from 1,100 police officers in Tucson down to less than 800 police officers," Smith explained. "The Tucson police department is at the same staffing that it was when my husband was a police officer in Tucson in the 1970s."

Smith pointed out that the understaffing has resulted in police only responding to "extraordinarily violent crimes in progress" while advising burglary victims not to expect a response.

The injured officer now requires facial reconstruction surgery. Smith criticized the political climate surrounding law enforcement: "Why didn't the officer taser this individual? Why didn't the officer shoot this individual? You know why, folks? Because we have a county prosecutor who police officers are so fearful of because they don't know if they end up using deadly force, will they be the ones to get charged with a crime?"

"I want everybody to say a prayer for this Tucson police officer who is recovering, trying to do their job and trying to keep our Tucson community safe," Smith added.

Arizona Senate Rejects Controversial Insurance Department Nominee

The Arizona Senate voted to reject Governor Katie Hobbs' nomination of Barbara Richardson to lead the Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions (DIFI). The full chamber vote came one month after Richardson was initially rejected by the Senate Director Nominations Committee.

Elijah Norton, a candidate for state treasurer who had previous interactions with Richardson, expressed satisfaction with the outcome. "I guess the ongoing soap opera of this confirmation process is now coming to an end," Norton said. "It was a 17-13 vote strictly party line. Every Republican voted to reject Barbara Richardson."

Norton explained that Richardson has already been removed from her position: "She sent out an email immediately after to the employees at DIFI, letting them know that she was no longer the director. And in addition to that, I believe that they deleted her from the website within an hour or two."

The rejection of Richardson's nomination is significant in the insurance regulatory world. Norton described it as "one of the first insurance commissioners throughout the United States in 100 years to been essentially fired by the people of Arizona as representatives by state legislature. So almost like the equivalent of getting disbarred for an insurance commissioner."

Norton's opposition to Richardson stemmed from what he described as her attempt to violate his constitutional rights and her incompetence in managing the department. "Just yesterday, I tried calling into DIFI to do a very simple update on one of my company's records. I was on hold for 30 minutes and they told me that they have like a five to seven day wait. Barbara has taken a very high functioning agency and destroyed it," Norton claimed.

The confirmation process became contentious, with Democratic Senator Analise Ortiz allegedly attacking Norton personally during the floor debate, though without using his name directly. According to Norton, Ortiz falsely claimed he was not in compliance with continuing education requirements and had only recently started his businesses.

Norton clarified these points: "I renewed my license in April of 2024. I took the 58 or 60 hours of continuing education. My license expires in April of 2028. So I haven't tell April of 2028 to take those classes." He also noted that he's had "over nine licenses with DIFI" since around 2014-2015.

Governor Hobbs' spokesperson Christian Slater defended Richardson in a statement, calling her "a nonpartisan, career public servant" and claiming she was "railroaded by a partisan witch hunt." Norton rejected this characterization, arguing that the Senate was simply doing its constitutional duty.

"Our state senators represent the more than 7.5 million Arizonans, and their job is to make sure that we have the best of the best running our state agencies," Norton said. "If you nominate a bad person, and this would be applied even if it was a Republican governor, if they reject him, pick it up. The people's representatives spoke and put some rentals up. And eventually you'll find a good nominee."

Norton emphasized that previous Hobbs nominees who were rejected were typically followed by better nominees, suggesting the process works as intended. "What the Republican state senators did is they did their constitutional job. They did what they needed to do to protect the people of Arizona from a woman who would have destroyed our insurance market in the state," Norton concluded.

Rockin' For Heroes: Supporting Military, First Responders, and Gold Star Families

Pat Johnston and Kathy Sinnott, representatives from Rockin' For Heroes, joined to discuss their outreach program designed to support military personnel, first responders, and Gold Star families.

Rockin' For Heroes began after Michael and Bonnie Quinn lost their son PJ to a rare form of cancer. During PJ's illness, first responders were constantly in and out of their home. After his passing, the Quinns organized a concert in Oro Valley to thank the first responders.

"It was so well received that not only Oro Valley, but a lot of the residents of OV, Marana, and other areas said, 'We want you back. We want to see an annual concert,'" Sinnott explained. What started as a one-time event has now become an annual concert, with the fourth one having taken place on November 10, 2024.

When Johnston and Sinnott joined the organization in August 2024, they recognized its potential to do more than just put on an annual concert. "We saw it as so much more than that," Sinnott said. They developed an outreach program to create year-round initiatives supporting their four target groups: veterans, active military, first responders, and Gold Star families.

One of their first initiatives was establishing the Jacob Dindinger Scholarship Award at Pima Community College. "Jacob Dindinger was an EMT who got killed on the job. And the Queens had found out about this, worked very closely with the family, and that was the first scholarship that the Queens created at PCC," Sinnott explained.

The organization is now focusing on connecting with educational institutions to inspire youth to pursue careers in service. "The whole attitude about it is to bring awareness to the youth of our country and the different programs that we're working with now, like the EMS service out of the University of Arizona, or the VETS and the ROTC," Johnston said.

They've been working closely with the University of Arizona EMS program for about four months, creating a docu-series available on their YouTube channel. "They will have a new captain as of May 17th and we will then be working with him all throughout the summer, following them, what do they do during the summer," Sinnott explained. "And most importantly, and I'm really excited about this, is we will be able to be watching, filming, getting involved as they bring on new applicants."

Another significant initiative involves working with Gold Star families, those who have lost loved ones in military service. "One of the things I learned by interviewing all of those folks that day is that I heard the common theme was people come up to us and they congratulate us. And we don't like that," Sinnott shared about her conversations with Gold Star families. "And I said to Pat, you know, we have to get, we have to change the narrative here."

Their efforts with Gold Star families have led to a partnership with Charlie Foley's "Flags for the Flagless" program. Together, they're designating the upcoming University of Arizona football season as "the year of the gold star." Six home games will be dedicated to Gold Star families, who will be brought onto the field during the national anthem. The U.S. flag will be raised early in the morning on game day and then presented to the family afterward if they wish.

"Where the Music Never Ends": Expanding the Mission Through Music Events

Rockin' For Heroes is expanding beyond its annual concert with a new initiative called "Where the Music Never Ends," featuring smaller music events throughout the year. Their first such event is scheduled for Sunday, May 18th, from 1-5 pm at Growlers in Marana, featuring the No Sand Beach Band.

"What we're trying to do is to bring the community together to begin to see with music," Johnston explained. The event will bring together veterans, active military personnel, police officers, and other heroes to be recognized.

Growlers was selected as the venue in part because it features a Gold Star memorial, specifically a "missing man table" honoring fallen service members. "It's a perfect place to start," Johnston noted.

The event will serve as a fundraiser for the organization's educational initiatives, with proceeds going toward scholarships and funds for universities or other training programs. "All the funds that we generate from this event will be assured to go into the educational components as we were discussing before, the creation of scholarships, the creation of funds for universities or other programs," Sinett said.

Looking ahead, Rockin' For Heroes has scheduled their fifth annual concert for Sunday, November 9, 2025, at James D. Kriegh Park in Oro Valley. The concert will feature Lexington Lab Band, which Johnston described as "a studio band [with] a pretty good sized YouTube following, but the band itself plays all the classic rock favorites."

Johnston and Sinnott emphasized that they're building relationships with multiple bands to organize more mini-concerts leading up to the main event in November. They've been impressed by the community's willingness to help their cause. "This is just blowing me away because I have not experienced this much wonderful help where people aren't getting anything in return. And they're just doing a phenomenal job," Sinett said.

Winn suggested this reflects a broader shift in community attitudes: "I think we're in a new season in Arizona. I think we're in a new season in this country. And it has nothing to do again with politics. It has to do with people being exhaustive of what we've been doing and wanting to return to the things that matter most to us. And loving our country and loving those that serve us is at our heart and our core."

The organization is seeking volunteers to support their growing initiatives. Those interested in volunteering or booking a speaker can reach out via email at info@rockinforheroes.org or visit their website at rockinforheroes.org.

Breaking News: First American Pope Elected

During the broadcast, breaking news arrived that Cardinal Robert Provost, a Chicago-born cardinal, had been elected as the new pope, becoming the first US pope in the church's history. He chose the name Pope Leo XIV.

"He's also a citizen of Peru where he worked for many years and he oversaw the selection of many new bishops in the church," Winn reported. "He's considered a centrist because of his views, but he is traditional when it comes to ordaining women as priest, he is against that."

This historic selection marks the first time an American has been elected to lead the Catholic Church, with the College of Cardinals reaching their decision after just two days of deliberation.