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HEALTH CARE REFORM
WEATHER
Insurance money Zapata to share in $233K for federal navigators ZAPATA TIMES
Zapata, where about onethird of the population is without health insurance, is one of several counties to receive money for health care reform navigators. U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar recently announced
that the South Texas Development Council has been awarded over $233,000 in federal naviCUELLAR gator grants from the Department of Health and Hu-
man Services to serve Zapata, La Salle and Webb counties and other areas. Navigators provide inperson assistance to Texans with the Affordable Care Act’s Marketplace, including as they shop for and enroll in plans in the Health Insurance Market-
place. The South Texas Development Council has been awarded the federal funding to help residents in Zapata, La Salle and Webb enroll in affordable health insurance. The organization
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Photo by Danny Zaragoza | The Zapata Times
A Laredo man gets wet as he walks down Pace Street in Laredo during Friday afternoon’s showers.
Flash flooding possible
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LAREDO POLICE
CHILD’S BODY FOUND
In addition to more rain, area will see cooler temperatures ZAPATA TIMES
Photo by Cesar G. Rodriguez | Zapata Times
Police investigate the scene where a 3-year-old girl’s body was found Thursday. The girl was buried in a shallow grave at a construction site at Springfield and Michigan avenues, in Laredo. The girl’s mother and her boyfriend have been charged with murder in connection with the case.
Mom, man charged in death of 3-year-old girl By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
A woman claims that her child died inside a local hotel room at the hands of her boyfriend, who would allegedly take out his anger and frustration on the girl. The boyfriend, Cristian Yepez, 24, and the girl’s
mother, Janette Irene Pantoja, 20, were both charged with murder in the killing of JasPANTOJA leen Valdez, a 3 year old whose body was found Thursday in the 7300 block
of Springfield Avenue at a construction site north of Mary Help of Christians School. YEPEZ Pantoja, who showed police where the body was buried, is at the Webb Coun-
ty Jail, held on a $200,000 bond. Yepez, who authorities had initially detained in Houston for unlawful restraint, will be taken to Laredo to face the murder charge. Authorities said they learned that the girl was
See BODY
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A flash flood watch remains in effect for Zapata and surrounding counties through Saturday night. That means flooding is possible during the next 24 to 36 hours. “Residents living in flood prone areas should take action to protect property,” the National Weather Service said. Flash flooding can lead to water covering roadways and intersections and make travel dangerous. Low lying areas can be inundated by flooding. Zapata residents can expect 2 to 4 inches of rainfall. Some areas may receive up to 6 inches or more. As of Friday night, the flash flood watch was in affect from midnight to 7 p.m. Saturday. Residents should expect heavy to torrential rain, the National Weather Service said. “The combination of a cold front, upper level low pressure area and a tropical wave will lead to widespread showers and thunderstorms (Friday) and Saturday,” according to the National Weather Services. “The best chance for heavy rain will develop after midnight (Saturday) and persist as a cold front stalls over the region.” The flash flood watch is also in effect for Rio Grande City, Roma, McAllen, Edinburg, Pharr, Mission, Weslaco, Raymondville and Harlingen. A high of only 82 degrees is expected for Zapata on Saturday, giving residents a brief respite from the typical blazing hot temperatures. A high of 88 is expected for Sunday. And for next week, Zapatans will see high temperatures in the low- to mid-90s.
ABORTION CLINICS
Court asked to allow closure of most clinics By JANET MCCONNAUGHEY ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW ORLEANS — A federal appeals court that has already upheld a Texas law restricting abortions heard arguments Friday about an even tougher part of the same law, which requires all abortion clinics to
adopt costly standards mandated for walk-in surgical clinics. Texas Solicitor General Jonathan Mitchell asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reinstate the requirement found unconstitutional by a federal judge in Austin. The state also wants the
court to overturn another part of Judge Lee Yeakel’s Aug. 29 order, which exempts clinics in McAllen and El Paso from the section requiring doctors who perform abortions to be able to admit their patients to a hospital within 30 miles of the clinic. Abortion clinics attorney
Stephanie Toti said the order mandating that the clinics serve as surgical centers would make it difficult for many Texas women to obtain abortions. Judges Jerry E. Smith, Stephen A. Higginson and Jennifer Walker Elrod heard Friday’s arguments. Elrod was among the
three judges who upheld the admitting-privilege requirement in March. That decision overturned Yeakel’s October ruling that it placed an unconstitutional burden on women seeking an abortion and didn’t make the process safer. In August, Yeakel ruled that requiring operating
rooms, staffing, parking and other standards that are typically only required for surgery would make it unconstitutionally difficult for women to get abortions because it would close all but seven or eight clinics in a state “10 percent larger than
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