Latest news with #JavierRodriguez
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
El Paso Walmart shooting victims remembered, but closure may never come to their families
The families of those killed in the Walmart mass shooting came together to share memories of their loved ones at the sixth anniversary of the El Paso Walmart mass shooting, but there has been no closure, even as the gunman will spend his life in prison. "No, I will never get closure," Dora Lizarde, grandmother of 15-year-old Javier Rodriguez, who was killed in the shooting, said in Spanish. "It (criminal case) is over, but for us it isn't. He (Javier) will never come back." Victims' families, shooting survivors and El Paso community members gathered Sunday night, Aug. 3, for the sixth anniversary of the mass shooting to remember those killed and wounded. The Day of Remembrance memorial was held at the El Paso Community Healing Garden National Memorial in Ascarate Park. The event was attended by more than 100 people, including prominent El Paso leaders District Attorney James Montoya, County Judge Ricardo Samaniego, U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, County Attorney Christina Sanchez, El Paso Mayor Renard Johnson and El Paso County Sheriff Oscar Ugarte. The family members sat by the plaques honoring their loved ones, crying, hugging and smiling at times when telling stories of those they lost. More: Hispanic community in El Paso that Walmart mass shooter targeted ultimately saved his life "He was always joking," said Patricia Benavides, who lost her husband Arturo in the mass shooting, as she smiled and tears rolled down her face. "He was always laughing. He loved food. He was always telling me not to ration his dinner. We would go everywhere together. He was always a very, very good husband. "I miss him a lot. It's been hard for all of us. I feel my house is now too big for me. I need him. I need him, but there's nothing I can do." Memorial comes months after gunman's sentencing The sixth anniversary of the shooting came just months after the Aug. 3, 2019, Walmart mass shooter pleaded guilty to fatally shooting 23 people and injuring 24 more in a racially-motivated mass shooting at an El Paso Walmart. The gunman was sentenced to 23 life sentences on April 21. "Even six years later, it doesn't get any easier, certainly not for the families directly affected, certainly not for the survivors," Montoya said. "There is never going to be closure. All we can really do is continue living in their memory, honoring their memory and live how they would want us to." The gunman's name was never mentioned during the memorial event. The scars and trauma of reliving the events months earlier at the gunman's sentencing were still fresh for the victims' families and the survivors. "Every year we have a better sense of where the community is at," Samaniego said. "But this year we don't because it's too quick after the sentencing. I've been talking to the families to see what we're going to do next year, because then it'll be a continuation of remembering and honoring their loved ones. But this year, it's about coming together and staying together after the experience they had to go through in court just months ago." Never forget the victims Patricia Benavides and Lizarde said they thank the El Paso community for their support over the last six years, but asked for the community to continue remembering and honoring the victims of the shooting. "I feel a lot of support and a lot of people have shown how much they care about us and sympathize with us," Patricia Benavides said. "We were not expecting anything like this to happen in El Paso. I hope that El Paso never, never, never forgets about this tragedy and they keep on praying for the families." Lizarde added in Spanish, "Time passes and people forget, I hope that El Paso will never forget, no matter how much time passes." More: Lights in darkness: Orange lights honor victims of Aug. 3 El Paso Walmart mass shooting The memorial featured music by El Paso Pro Musica musicians before a prayer was recited and the names of the 23 victims were read. As each name was read, a light behind the memorial wall was lit up, until all 23 lights met high in the El Paso summer night sky. Remembering the victims The 23 people killed in the El Paso Walmart shooting were: Jordan Anchondo Maribel Campos Arturo Benavidez Andre Pablo Anchondo Javier Amir Rodriguez David Alvah Johnson Sara Ester Regalado Moriel Angelina Silva Englisbee Adolfo Cerros Hernandez Juan de Dios Veláquez Chairez Gloria Irma Márquez Maria Flores Maria Eugencia Legarreta Rothe Raul Flores Jorge Calvillo Garcia Alexander Gerhard Hoffman Elsa Mendoza de la Mora Luis Alfonzo Juarez Ivan Filiberto Manzano Margie Reckard Leonardo Campos Jr. Teresa Sanchez Guillermo "Memo" Garcia Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@ or on X/Twitter @AMartinezEPT. This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso honors victims on sixth anniversary of Walmart mass shooting
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
Teen learns his fate after accidentally shooting 10-year-old cousin while playing with a gun
A Wisconsin teenager has been sentenced to a decade behind bars after recklessly firing a gun that killed his 10-year-old cousin while she slept. Javier Rodriguez, now 19, was handed a 10-year prison stretch on Thursday, with credit for just under 14 months already served in custody, after admitting to killing his cousin last year. He pleaded guilty in June to second-degree reckless homicide in the May 2024 death of Isdennyeliz Ortiz, a 'bright and bubbly' fourth-grader who had just celebrated her 10th birthday weeks earlier. Following his release, Rodriguez will spend an additional eight years under supervised release, a Milwaukee County judge ruled. The tragedy unfolded shortly after 12:40am on May 31, 2024, inside a three-story home in Milwaukee where several generations of the same family lived. Isdennyeliz, affectionately known as 'Issey' to family and friends, was asleep in her mother's bed with her baby brother by her side when the bullet struck her in the chest. The round had pierced through the floor and ceiling above, where police say Rodriguez had been recklessly handling a firearm on the upper level. According to a criminal complaint, Rodriguez ran down the stairs in a panic telling the girl's mother, 'It's my fault. I'm sorry. Please forgive me.' Her 14-year-old sister later told investigators that Rodriguez repeated the same words in a panic, 'I'm sorry. It's my fault. I did it.' Her mother turned on the light, only to see her daughter bleeding and unresponsive, and a fresh bullet hole in the ceiling above her. The child died before paramedics could arrive on the scene. Rodriguez, who was 18 at the time, fled the home before police arrived but was identified on home surveillance footage and arrested days later. Security footage showed him carrying what police described as a 'tan firearm' while wearing a blue rubber glove, just before a loud bang was captured by the camera's audio. Court documents also revealed Rodriguez had fired a gun in the home once before, a month prior, although no one was injured on that occasion. Investigators recovered a small arsenal of firearms from a closet, including three loaded pistols, a drum magazine, and several boxes of ammunition. 'Now we have a family whose 10-year-old daughter is not here,' said Marty Calderon to TMJ4. Calderon is a local activist with Milwaukee's Promise Keepers, a group that responded to the family after the shooting. 'How much more do we have to keep telling people - leave guns alone,' Calderon added. The emotional weight of the sentencing was felt throughout the courtroom. Although prosecutors did not allege Rodriguez intended to kill his cousin, they argued that his reckless behavior proved fatal. Isdennyeliz Ortiz was described by loved ones as a joyful girl who loved making YouTube videos and playing volleyball. She was looking forward to an upcoming family trip to Wisconsin Dells, her mother said. 'There is no other way to describe this horrific incident other than to say it is utterly unacceptable,' said Milwaukee Alderwoman JoCasta Zamarripa in a statement. 'Far too many young people continue to be impacted by gun violence across our city. These gun-related incidents are wholly preventable, and we must do better to stop them.' According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Homicide Database, youth homicide victims are tragically common in the city: 12% of homicide victims in 2024 were between between 10 and 17 years old. 'We have to give people the knowledge of how to safely handle a gun, how to safely protect yourself,' said Teneen Rucker with the nonprofit Safe and Sound, which plans to host a gun violence awareness event later this summer. 'This can't keep happening.' Rodriguez had faced a potential 25-year sentence before agreeing to a plea deal in June. In court, he showed remorse and accepted responsibility for his actions but the sentence, family members say can never bring back the child they lost. As part of the judge's ruling, Rodriguez is prohibited from owning or possessing firearms for the rest of his life.
New York Times
02-08-2025
- Lifestyle
- New York Times
How a Veteran Lifeguard Spends His Fridays
Javier Rodriguez is a beach creature. Even after having dedicated more than 40 years to being a lifeguard, first as a 17-year-old growing up on the Lower East Side and now as a lifeguard coordinator for the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, his ideal day is still spent in and around water. And that includes starting every morning with a swim at his neighborhood pool in Queens. 'I love swimming — it's great exercise,' said Mr. Hernandez, 64, who is responsible for training and mentoring lifeguards and running the department's qualifying exams for the city's 53 outdoor pools and 14 miles of beaches. From February through June, he teaches classes for new guards, and then in the spring and summer, he conducts a flurry of certification and re-certification exams. During high season in May and June ('It's like tax season,' he said), he may oversee more than 150 tests a week, racking up hundreds of miles on his 2019 Chevrolet Impala shuttling between Queens, a testing site at the Chelsea Recreation Center and the beach in the Rockaways, where he is based. 'It's always good to hear when a kid tells me that they had their first rescue and that they were able to apply what they learned at the lifeguard school,' said Mr. Rodriguez, who has also been a lifeguard training instructor for the Parks Department since the mid-1990s. Mr. Hernandez lives in a four-bedroom home in Floral Park, Queens, with his wife of 32 years, Fleurette Rodriguez, 62, a flight attendant for Delta Air Lines. They have three adult children: Olivia Hernandez, 30, an emergency medical technician for the New York Fire Department; Antonio Hernandez, 28, who works for a beverage distribution company in Rochester, N.Y.; and Sophia Hernandez, 25, who will soon begin medical school at Touro University in Henderson, Nev. This interview has been condensed and lightly edited. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
DaVita Reveals Its Developments Towards ESG Goals in Its Community Care Report
DaVita Inc. (NYSE:DVA) is one of the . On June 18, DaVita Inc. (NYSE:DVA) released its Community Care report, highlighting its long-standing commitment to corporate citizenship and development towards ESG goals for 2025. DaVita Inc. posted its major developments in 2024. In 2020, the company announced broadened ESG goals and has since reported progress against its five strategic focus areas, including Patient Care, Team Engagement, Environmental Stewardship, Healthy Communities, and Leading with Integrity and Accountability. The company's 100% global operations are on track to be matched by renewable energy purchases by 2025. Moreover, over 8,200 DaVita patients received a kidney transplant in 2024, the company's highest number of annual transplants to date. Chinnapong/ 'This year, we're reflecting on 25 years of patient care and progress made toward improving the health and vibrancy of the communities and people we serve. Looking ahead to the next 25 years, I'm excited about how we're positioned to build on these recent community health achievements to enhance the care experience for people around the world,' said Javier Rodriguez, chief executive officer for DaVita. DaVita Inc. (NYSE:DVA) is a healthcare provider focused on transforming care delivery to enhance the quality of life for patients worldwide. While we acknowledge the potential of DVA as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
DaVita Reveals Its Developments Towards ESG Goals in Its Community Care Report
DaVita Inc. (NYSE:DVA) is one of the . On June 18, DaVita Inc. (NYSE:DVA) released its Community Care report, highlighting its long-standing commitment to corporate citizenship and development towards ESG goals for 2025. DaVita Inc. posted its major developments in 2024. In 2020, the company announced broadened ESG goals and has since reported progress against its five strategic focus areas, including Patient Care, Team Engagement, Environmental Stewardship, Healthy Communities, and Leading with Integrity and Accountability. The company's 100% global operations are on track to be matched by renewable energy purchases by 2025. Moreover, over 8,200 DaVita patients received a kidney transplant in 2024, the company's highest number of annual transplants to date. Chinnapong/ 'This year, we're reflecting on 25 years of patient care and progress made toward improving the health and vibrancy of the communities and people we serve. Looking ahead to the next 25 years, I'm excited about how we're positioned to build on these recent community health achievements to enhance the care experience for people around the world,' said Javier Rodriguez, chief executive officer for DaVita. DaVita Inc. (NYSE:DVA) is a healthcare provider focused on transforming care delivery to enhance the quality of life for patients worldwide. While we acknowledge the potential of DVA as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
