Latest news with #Ayala
Chicago Tribune
7 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Cousins who were longest-serving wrongfully convicted people in Illinois get innocence certificates
James Soto and his cousin, David Ayala, stood outside the doors of a Cook County courtroom Wednesday at the end of a more than four-decade entanglement with the criminal court and prison system, nervously riding out a final 20-minute delay in their hearing to receive an official declaration of innocence. 'It doesn't happen until it happens. I waited so long,' Soto said, listening for a call back into the room. Family and supporters audibly exhaled when the decision came several minutes later: a certificate of innocence was granted for the two men, the longest-serving wrongfully convicted people in Illinois. Ayala and Soto were released from prison more than a year and a half ago after a judge exonerated them. But the certificate of innocence means even the arrest records from the case will be erased. Soto said having the certificate will allow him to travel without restrictions, and both men said it would help them to move on with their lives. Soto, whose post-release journey the Tribune chronicled earlier this year, and Ayala were wrongfully convicted of murder in 1982 and served 42 years before their release from prison in December 2023. 'Our vindication is not based on some sort of technicality,' Ayala said after the ruling. 'This is clear proof of evidence, what we've been saying for over 42 years.' Cook County prosecutors previously dropped all charges in the case. But Soto, Ayala and their family and supporters all said they still felt on edge in court before the certificates were issued. 'It feels like I'm in a dream,' Rose Ayala-Olson, David's sister, said in the lobby of the Leighton Criminal Court Building. 'He's innocent. He always has been.' Soto earned a college degree in prison and learned how to write court petitions for himself and others who were in prison. He had a reputation inside prison walls for using his self-taught knowledge to help others who were incarcerated with their legal issues, sometimes writing the first petition that would eventually win freedom or a sentence reduction. A professor once called him 'one of the most successful non-licensed litigators inside of Stateville.' Next month, he's planning to take the LSAT, his attorney Lauren Myerscough-Mueller said. Now in their 60s, Soto and Ayala were 20 and 18 when they were arrested following the shooting deaths of 16-year-old Julie Limas and Hector Valeriano, 18, a U.S. Marine on leave, on Aug. 16, 1981. They were sentenced to natural life in prison. The case largely turned on a single witness who, in exchange for a deal, told a jury Soto carried out a shooting with him and a third person under orders from Ayala. That witness was later key to both men's exoneration, when an Illinois appeals court found that other witnesses contradicted his 'highly-incentivized' account. Ayala served 15 years in the supermax facility at the now-shuttered Tamms Correctional Center, which was known for brutal conditions and was the prison where the state housed people on death row before the death penalty was abolished in Illinois. Both men have been making up for lost time since their release, getting out in nature and volunteering, Myerscough-Mueller said. Soto last year filed a lawsuit against defendants including the city of Chicago and Cook County accusing police and prosecutors of using abusive tactics to get witnesses to tell a certain story, including threatening them with the death penalty and depriving them of sleep and food. He said he expects that process will continue for another four or five years. Ayala has filed a similar lawsuit seeking compensation for his wrongful conviction. 'This is something that I've been waiting for a long time, and to finally hear those words — I mean, it's like a whole weight lifted off me,' Soto said of receiving the certificate.
NZ Herald
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Puerto Ricans hope famous son's return will also showcase the US island territory
It's 'completely changed', the 29-year-old said, as crowds buzzed about La Placita where some bars were slinging Bad Bunny-themed cocktails. 'We're thrilled,' Ayala said. 'The tips are through the roof.' The fact that people are coming from across the globe to see Bad Bunny 'is a source of pride for Puerto Rico, too', he added. Arely Ortiz, a 23-year-old student from Los Angeles, couldn't score a ticket to a show - but said Bad Bunny was still the draw that prompted her to book her first trip to Puerto Rico. 'I really love how outspoken he is about his community,' she said. 'Just seeing him, that he can get so far, and he's Latino, it encourages more Latinos to be able to go for what they want.' 'He has for sure empowered Latinos, like 100 percent.' Tourism: it's complicated But while tourism has long been an economic engine for the Caribbean island that remains a territory of the United States, the relationship is complicated. Concerns around gentrification, displacement and cultural dilution have magnified on the archipelago beloved for stunning beaches with turquoise waters. That's especially because it's become a hotspot for luxury development, short-term rentals, and so-called 'digital nomads' who work their laptop jobs remotely while travelling the world. Visiting foreigners sample the island's beauty but are shielded from the struggle, say many locals who are coping with a chronic economic crisis exacerbated by natural disasters, as rents soar and massive blackouts are routine. Bad Bunny - who was born and raised Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio - himself has pointed to such issues and more in his metaphor and reference-laden lyrics. 'In my life, you were a tourist,' reads one translation of his track Turista. 'You only saw the best of me and not how I was suffering.' Historian Jorell Melendez Badillo told AFP that Puerto Rico by design has long catered to foreign investment. 'A lot of people see tourism as sort of like this colonial undertone,' he said. But when it comes to Bad Bunny and his residency at the affectionately nicknamed venue El Choli, 'we cannot negate the fact that it's going to bring millions of dollars' to the island, he added. 'We can celebrate what Benito is doing while also looking at it critically and having a conversation around what type of tourism will be incentivised by this residency.' Ana Rodado travelled to Puerto Rico from Spain after a friend native to the island gifted her a ticket. She booked a five-day trip with another friend that included a visit to beachside Vega Baja, the municipality where Bad Bunny grew up and worked bagging groceries before gaining fame. After posing for a photo in the town square, Rodado told AFP that she'd been trying to take the artist's 'shop local' plea to heart. 'Tourism is a global problem,' she said. 'To the extent possible, we have to be responsible with our consumer choices, and above all with the impact our trip has on each place. 'We try to be respectful, and so far people have been really nice to us.' Ultimately, Bad Bunny's residency is a love letter to his people - a show about and for Puerto Ricans whose narrative centres on heritage, pride, and joy. 'We're here, damn it!' he shouted to ecstatic screams during his sweeping first show, which at times felt like a giant block party. 'I'd come back for the next 100 years - if God lets me, I'll be here.' -Agence France-Presse
Toronto Sun
14-07-2025
- Toronto Sun
Man accused of 2024 Etobicoke double slaying in custody after months-long manhunt
Joseph Ayala, 34, faces two second-degree murder charges after manhunt was launched last summer Toronto Police say Joseph Ayala, 33, is charged with second-degree murder. Photo by Handout / Toronto Police Police have made an arrest in the deaths of two women found slain last summer in a south Etobicoke home. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Toronto Police were dispatched to a home on Silvercrest Ave., near Evans Rd. and Browns Line, just before 1 p.m. on Aug. 23, 2024, for a welfare check. Once there, crews found the victims — Sharon Fraser, 60, and her mother Colleen Fraser, 82 — with fatal injuries. Police have not released their cause of death. Read More A manhunt soon began for the suspect, Joseph Ayala, 34, of Toronto, whom investigators described as a 'relative' of the victims. Ayala reportedly lived in the same home as the two victims and CP24 has reported that they are his mother and grandmother. Now nearly a year after the slayings, police announced Monday that Ayala is in custody, facing two counts of second-degree murder. Anybody with information is asked to call police at 416-808-7400 or Crime Stoppers. bpassifiume@ X: @bryanpassifiume RECOMMENDED VIDEO Editorial Cartoons NFL Golf NHL World
Miami Herald
09-07-2025
- Miami Herald
Advocates for day laborers arrested in California after tire spikes found at immigration raid, authorities say
LOS ANGELES - U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested four men on Tuesday on suspicion of interfering with immigration enforcement operations and placing homemade tire spikes allegedly intended to disable law enforcement vehicles, federal authorities said. Border Patrol Sector Chief Gregory K. Bovino identified the men as Jenaro-Ernesto Ayala, 43; Jude Jasmine Jeannine Allard, 28; Sadot Jarnica, 54; and Daniel Montenegro 30, in a statement on X. The case has been referred to the U.S. attorney's office for filing consideration, he said. Nonprofit organization Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur De California (IDEPSCA) identified Ayala and Allard as day laborer advocates. The group said the two men were arrested in a Home Depot parking lot in Van Nuys around 10 a.m. Tuesday while exercising their legal right to observe and document the immigration raid. IDEPSCA operates a day labor center out of a building in the parking lot, which the group says has been targeted several times in the last week. Ayala is a U.S. citizen and works as an outreach coordinator at the Van Nuys Day Labor Center, helping connect migrant workers to resources and jobs, Meagean Ortiz, executive director of IDEPSCA, told The Times. "I have not seen any evidence of what the federal government is accusing my staff of doing, but I do have evidence of masked federal agents tackling not just my staff member, but other volunteers who were recording," she said. Immigrant rights group Unión del Barrio posted Instagram video of people being tackled by federal agents during the operation. IDEPSCA and a coalition of community advocates held a news conference outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown L.A. on Tuesday evening to demand the release of Ayala, Allard and all the workers detained in the raid. "Ernesto was arrested, in our eyes, unconstitutionally in the course of an unconstitutional raid meant to attack our communities and pick up people based on the color of their skin and where they're standing looking for work," said Cal Soto, an attorney with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. "It is not a crime to be looking for work to support your families, and it's not a crime to be brown, Latino and looking for work," he continued. "It is also not a crime to observe and record law enforcement when they are enacting these kinds of raids." Soto said he attempted to enter the facility to provide Ayala and Allard with legal representation but was told that they were still being processed and that he was not allowed to see them. In addition to demanding the release of those arrested Monday, representatives for IDEPSCA and Unión del Barrio said they were demanding an end to "federal intimidation tactics" targeting community worker centers and Home Depot parking lots. "We will continue to fight for Ernesto, for Jude and for all the workers who continue to be kidnapped and terrorized in these lots, in these communities and in these streets that are our streets," said a representative for Unión del Barrio. "No amount of tackling people in a Home Depot parking lot is going to silence day laborer organizations." Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Los Angeles Times
09-07-2025
- Los Angeles Times
Advocates for day laborers arrested after tire spikes found at immigration raid, authorities say
U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested four men on Tuesday on suspicion of interfering with immigration enforcement operations and placing homemade tire spikes allegedly intended to disable law enforcement vehicles, federal authorities said. Border Patrol Sector Chief Gregory K. Bovino identified the men as Jenaro-Ernesto Ayala, 43; Jude Jasmine Jeannine Allard, 28; Sadot Jarnica, 54; and Daniel Montenegro 30, in a statement on X. The case has been referred to the U.S. attorney's office for filing consideration, he said. Nonprofit organization Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur De California (IDEPSCA) identified Ayala and Allard as day laborer advocates. The group said the two men were arrested in a Home Depot parking lot in Van Nuys around 10 a.m. Tuesday while exercising their legal right to observe and document the immigration raid. IDEPSCA operates a day labor center out of a building in the parking lot, which the group says has been targeted several times in the last week. Ayala is a U.S. citizen and works as an outreach coordinator at the Van Nuys Day Labor Center, helping connect migrant workers to resources and jobs, Meagean Ortiz, executive director of IDEPSCA, told The Times. 'I have not seen any evidence of what the federal government is accusing my staff of doing, but I do have evidence of masked federal agents tackling not just my staff member, but other volunteers who were recording,' she said. Immigrant rights group Unión del Barrio posted Instagram video of people being tackled by federal agents during the operation. IDEPSCA and a coalition of community advocates held a news conference outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown L.A. on Tuesday evening to demand the release of Ayala, Allard and all the workers detained in the raid. 'Ernesto was arrested, in our eyes, unconstitutionally in the course of an unconstitutional raid meant to attack our communities and pick up people based on the color of their skin and where they're standing looking for work,' said Cal Soto, an attorney with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. 'It is not a crime to be looking for work to support your families, and it's not a crime to be brown, Latino and looking for work,' he continued. 'It is also not a crime to observe and record law enforcement when they are enacting these kinds of raids.' Soto said he attempted to enter the facility to provide Ayala and Allard with legal representation but was told that they were still being processed and that he was not allowed to see them. In addition to demanding the release of those arrested Monday, representatives for IDEPSCA and Unión del Barrio said they were demanding an end to 'federal intimidation tactics' targeting community worker centers and Home Depot parking lots. 'We will continue to fight for Ernesto, for Jude and for all the workers who continue to be kidnapped and terrorized in these lots, in these communities and in these streets that are our streets,' said a representative for Unión del Barrio. 'No amount of tackling people in a Home Depot parking lot is going to silence day laborer organizations.'
