Police have arrested a 27-year-old woman in Las Cruces for child abuse charges at a daycare where she formerly worked.Jennifer Hernandez, 27, a former Pre-K teacher at a local childcare and development center, was arrested after being suspected of abusing a young boy who was in her care. In late February 2026, officers conducted an investigation after the parents of the child contacted the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office. The investigation was then referred to Las Cruces police due to the alleged abuse occurring within city limits.A Las Cruces Police officer obtained video from the Discovery Development Center at 3300 Del Rey Boulevard and observed several incidents of physical abuse on a 10-year-old boy at the hands of Hernandez. Police say that the abuse did not cause great bodily harm. All of the known incidents are said to have occurred during the early morning of Dec. 9, 2025. Police say the investigation is still ongoing and additional charges are possible. Hernandez was arrested March 4 and booked into the Dona Ana County Detention Center, where she will be held initially without bond.
LAS CRUCES, N.M. —
Police have arrested a 27-year-old woman in Las Cruces for child abuse charges at a daycare where she formerly worked.
Jennifer Hernandez, 27, a former Pre-K teacher at a local childcare and development center, was arrested after being suspected of abusing a young boy who was in her care.
In late February 2026, officers conducted an investigation after the parents of the child contacted the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office. The investigation was then referred to Las Cruces police due to the alleged abuse occurring within city limits.
A Las Cruces Police officer obtained video from the Discovery Development Center at 3300 Del Rey Boulevard and observed several incidents of physical abuse on a 10-year-old boy at the hands of Hernandez.
Police say that the abuse did not cause great bodily harm.
All of the known incidents are said to have occurred during the early morning of Dec. 9, 2025.
Police say the investigation is still ongoing and additional charges are possible.
Hernandez was arrested March 4 and booked into the Dona Ana County Detention Center, where she will be held initially without bond.
Vancouver-based metal outfit Spell are poised to deliver their most ambitious record yet with Wretched Heart, arriving May 1 via Bad Omen Records.
The first taste of the LP comes with the single “Lilac,” a bittersweet, addictive track that juxtaposes stadium-sized grandeur with wistful longing. Featuring a guest guitar solo from Tom Draper – known for his work with Spirit Adrift, Carcass, and Angel Witch – “Lilac” weaves harmony-laden metal riffs with synth-driven gothic chills.
The titular flower acts as a metaphor for the fleeting nature of love and life, though vocalist and bassist Cam Mesmer clarifies: “There are many things in life that disappear so quickly and will be gone immediately if we get preoccupied and forget to enjoy them and care for them. This song isn’t really about a flower.”
The video for “Lilac” was directed by James Barry and Sean Edwards for Ramble Films. Wretched Heart follows Spell‘s 2022 LP Tragic Magic, an album celebrated for embracing the mystique and darkness inherent in hard rock and metal.
Mesmer elaborates on the band’s philosophy: “Heavy metal can often be a regressive genre, almost by definition. But it doesn’t have to be! I think that getting set in your ways is death. I consider Spell to be a heavy metal band, and therefore whatever music we make will therefore be heavy metal, rather than the other way around, where you try to make your band fit into whatever narrow niche you think heavy metal is supposed to sound like.”
The Lysol maker halted production at a plant in Bahrain, its chief executive said, the latest company to suffer disruption as the conflict in the Middle East escalates.
Shwetha Surendran is a reporter in ESPN’s investigative and enterprise unit.
Multiple Authors
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — The men’s basketball program at California State University, Bakersfield won’t turn many heads with its last-place ranking in the Big West Conference. But when it comes to scandal, the school could be a top contender.
Cal State Bakersfield’s athletic department has been in upheaval since Aug. 29, when then-men’s basketball coach Rod Barnes opened an anonymous email from a tipster who alleged that Barnes’ temporary assistant coach, Kevin Mays, was also working as a pimp across four states. Other lawsuits, internal investigations, dismissals and finger-pointing have only served to deepen the department’s sense of crisis.
In the email, the tipster identified a woman whom Mays allegedly had trafficked for several months.
“FIX IT OR THE WHOLE STAFF WILL FALL,” the tipster wrote in all caps, adding that the email was a “first warning and a final warning.”
Barnes forwarded the anonymous email to the university’s human resources office, which sent it to university police, triggering an investigation that led to criminal charges against Mays.
Mays, who is being held without bond, faces a hefty rap sheet of 11 criminal and misdemeanor charges, including felonies such as pimping. He also was charged with possession of automatic firearms and high-capacity magazines and possession of methamphetamine and marijuana with intent to sell. Separate charges cited him for possession of more than 600 images of youth or child pornography and distribution of obscene matter involving someone under 18 years old.
Mays has pleaded not guilty on all charges. His attorney, David Torres, declined comment to ESPN.
Sally Selby, the public affairs and communications manager for the Bakersfield Police Department, told ESPN that investigators are still conducting follow-up interviews “to determine if there are other victims or applicable charges” in Mays’ case.
As this case reverberated at Cal State Bakersfield, the school announced in September that Barnes and athletic director Kyle Conder had left their roles. Barnes ended a 14-year career as head basketball coach that included taking the team to an NCAA tournament and an NIT tournament. The school did not explain the reason behind their departures, and neither Conder nor Barnes agreed to ESPN requests for an interview.
Acting athletic director Sarah Tuohy and university president Vernon Harper said in a September schoolwide email that they were conducting national searches to replace Barnes and Conder.
Jennifer Self, Cal State Bakersfield’s senior director of strategic communications, told ESPN in an email that the charges against Mays were “deeply concerning.” She said that even though the allegations didn’t involve a student, the school consulted with a local human trafficking expert and offered awareness and education training on campus.
“We also viewed this moment as an opportunity to take a broader look at our athletic program,” Self said, adding that the university also launched a commission to make a more comprehensive assessment of the athletic program and recommend “structural and administrative changes” to better align the program with the university’s “mission and values.”
At the campus basketball arena in Bakersfield, set in the industrial flatlands of California’s Central Valley, Barnes sat in the bleachers behind the Roadrunners’ bench watching his former team’s December loss to North Dakota State. He declined comment when approached by ESPN after the game.
The anonymous message outlining Mays’ alleged pimping took Barnes by shock, according to a police account of an interview with him. Mays took the job as a temporary assistant coach in June at a salary of just over $3,000 per month, according to school records obtained by ESPN.
MAYS HAD PLAYED at the university from 2014 to 2016. The Runner, the student-run news site, quoted Mays in May 2016 as saying he planned to play pro basketball in France or Italy. Later, he joined the athletic department as a player-development coordinator, according to school records.
In his application for the position in 2019, according to school records, Mays wrote that he was driven by basketball, team building and helping young men.
“I gained lots of experience dealing with learning to lead young men and help them navigate the Division I experience in a successful manner,” Mays wrote. “CSUB helped me tremendously and I look forward to giving back.”
The school conducted a criminal background check before Mays’ appointment but found no problems, an October email from university president Harper noted.
But the anonymous email to Barnes, titled “IMPORTANT MESSAGE 911 911,” indicated serious problems.
“HE IS TRAFFICKING A GIRL BY THE NAME OF [redacted],” the email read, according to police records. “HE HAS BEEN TRAFFICKING THIS GIRL SINCE MAY,” the email added, listing Las Vegas, Oregon, Washington and California as his alleged operating area.
University police tried to contact the sender on Sept. 3 for more information. In a subsequent email, the tipster claimed to have known both the alleged victim and Mays through previous travel for sex work. The context of the email suggested the person was a fellow sex worker.
Mays told the tipster he was a professional gambler, according to the second email, and that he allegedly threatened to take away the tipster’s child if the person exposed his activities. The sender also gave police the alleged victim’s phone number and noted she previously had been arrested in Oregon on a DUI charge in a car that Mays had provided.
Further police reporting revealed that Mays had rented the car, but investigators determined that the contract used the university’s account with the Enterprise car rental franchise at Bakersfield’s airport. Police declined to share a copy of the contract, saying it remained part of an open investigation. The Sept. 4 police report states that the sex worker used the car for her work.
An Enterprise clerk and another, apparently more senior person whose identity is redacted, confirmed to investigators that the car was assigned to a university contract. The latter person told police “that only MAYS and other CSUB staff were authorized to operate the vehicle,” the report says.
If the police findings are confirmed, it means a state account helped Mays carry out his alleged human trafficking operation.
In response to an ESPN records request for Mays’ financial records, the university stated that Mays “has not been paid or reimbursed by the campus during his employment, outside of his salary.” Self, the school’s public information officer, told ESPN that university employees get “preferred” rates at Enterprise. She added that the school has “no records of Enterprise invoices paid by CSU Bakersfield with Kevin Mays as the renter.”
According to Kern County court records obtained by ESPN, university police determined there were no alleged victims connected to Cal State Bakersfield’s staff or student body. University police forwarded the emails to the Bakersfield Police Department, which verified the tipster’s claim and determined that the alleged victim was 23.
Police in Bakersfield also identified a sex advertisement posted by the alleged victim in Sacramento, California. The post noted that the woman worked “independently” and that she was open to being anything from “arm candy” for a party to a “no strings attached girlfriend.”
“I can morph into the exact woman you need and want me to be,” the ad read. “… I do it all. If you’re ready to have the time of your life, I cant wait to make some memories with you xoxo.”
Sacramento police ran a sting operation on Sept. 4 by scheduling a “date” with the alleged victim at a Sacramento hotel room they later determined had been rented by Mays. Her rates were $300 for half an hour and $500 for a full hour, according to the police report.
When interviewed by police after the sting operation, the woman identified Mays as her “boyfriend” and said that Mays “routinely covered the costs” for rental vehicles, hotels and flights when she traveled for sex work. The report also noted that police saw evidence of text messages between the two that showed Mays’ “involvement and control” over the alleged victim’s sex work.
When Mays was arrested the next day, he denied any involvement in prostitution and told police his girlfriend had possession of his rental car. A police search of Mays’ car and apartment yielded multiple firearms, including automatic rifles, and a large quantity of drugs, the documents said. Police, using a warrant, conducted a subsequent search of his phone, which revealed close to 600 images of child pornography, including some depicting children as young as 4.
As startling as the allegations are concerning the Cal State Bakersfield basketball program, a separate development with the school’s softball team had been ongoing. It came into full public view after a softball player posted allegations on TikTok of having been verbally, sexually and physically harassed by softball coaches Leticia Olivarez and James Davenport.
The complex, often difficult-to-decipher web of personal interactions between the athletic staff and student-athletes underscored a culture of chaos. Inappropriate activity either went unnoticed or uncorrected by people in charge until a full-blown public scandal loomed.
Mays was far from the only one worthy of scrutiny. A June 2025 university investigation report delved into allegations against Davenport of illegal weapons transactions, threatening a student with a gun in a video, having an inappropriate relationship with a student and speaking openly about potentially criminal, violent actions against the school.
Lori A. Blodorn, the school’s vice president of people and culture, conducted the investigation. She concluded that the allegations against Davenport were adequately substantiated to warrant letting him go. “What began from this seemingly straightforward allegation and assessment of how we ensure coach and team safety, ultimately became a complex investigation into a myriad of allegations by Mr. Davenport and against Mr. Davenport, primarily from a [redacted] softball student athlete,” Blodorn writes in her report.
She concludes by stating, “Based on my investigation, I find the following: Davenport engaged in unprofessional and immoral conduct, and dishonesty, in attempting to facilitate the sale of illegal weapons.” He was dishonest when questioned about displaying a gun when talking online with a student, she adds. Blodorn goes on to list four other conclusions that, she writes, are based on a “preponderance of evidence” and justify separating him from his job.
Davenport had previously filed his own complaint with the school, claiming to have been the victim of workplace violence.
THE SCHOOL ANNOUNCED then-athletic director Conder’s immediate termination on Sept. 8, a few days after Mays’ arrest, but he later stated in a lawsuit against the school that he was fired in August — before the tip to Barnes but after Conder said he had uncovered “potential crimes and misconduct” at the university.
Conder’s lawsuit claims he had tried to warn the administration about nefarious activities within the athletic department. He asserted that he was fired in retaliation for whistleblowing.
The lawsuit adds that the school investigation could not substantiate the player’s claims against the softball coaches enough to fire them. Davenport’s contract expired in May 2025, and Olivarez remains on paid leave with a contract that ends in May this year. The player who accused them has transferred from Cal State Bakersfield, and the TikTok videos have been deleted.
Self, the university spokesperson, said that school officials “strongly deny the claims” made by Conder and as defendants in the case intended to “challenge the legal sufficiency of certain aspects of Conder’s complaint.” She added that the university remained “open to dispute resolution discussions in an effort to limit the disruption to the campus community and ongoing university operations.”
Separately, two anonymous softball players sued the school and Davenport last year. It also alleged that Conder “had a pattern … of failing to respond when receiving complaints against Coach Mays.”
The school has since denied the entire complaint and asked a court to throw it out, according to court filings. Davenport, in his court filing, also denied all allegations made against him. His lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.
In his own lawsuit, Conder says the school made him a “convenient scapegoat” to divert attention from the players’ lawsuit and the embarrassment surrounding Mays. He noted that the announcement of his termination came days after Mays’ arrest, making it appear “directly tied to the unfolding scandal.”
“Plaintiff’s termination was handled in a summary fashion, with no due process whatsoever,” Conder’s claim alleges. “… In reality, Plaintiff’s termination was motivated by retaliation and incompetence.”
Mays remains in jail awaiting trial. The preliminary hearing in his cases, originally set for Oct. 30, 2025, is now scheduled for March 13. A spokesperson for the Kern County District Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, declined comment to ESPN “to protect the integrity of the pending case.”
The drama inside the athletic department at Cal State Bakersfield has attracted the students’ attention, though some appeared unsurprised.
“We always joke in Bakersfield that we only make the news for the bad things because that stuff always just shines really bright,” student Seth Tolleson said. A scandal like this wasn’t what he expected when he transferred from a local junior college, he added. “It’s either zero or 100.”
The private Institute for National Security Studies in Israel has offered a range of figures that highlight the scale of the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. According to the INSS, Iran has launched more than 1,600 drones at Israel, Jordan, Persian Gulf nations, and Cyprus:
Launches from Iran at:
-Israel: Approximately 200 missiles and more than 120 UAVs
-UAE: 941 UAVs, 189 ballistic missiles, and 8 cruise missiles
-Bahrain: 92 UAVs and 74 missiles
-Qatar: 41 UAVs and 112 missiles
-Jordan: 36 UAVs and 13 missiles
-Oman: 5 UAVs, 3 missiles (Gulf of Oman)
-Kuwait: 178 ballistic missiles, 384 UAVs
-Cyprus: 2 missiles, 3 UAVs
-Iraqi Kurdistan: 70 missiles and UAVs
-Saudi Arabia: 14 UAVs, 5 cruise missiles
-Turkey: 1 missile
Launches from Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based:
-Israel: 27 UAVs and 35 rockets
-Cyprus: 6 UAVs
The INSS said the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran had, as of Thursday, included at least 11 waves of attacks against some 600 targets. The joint strikes saw Israel fire some 5,000 munitions while the U.S. had used more than 2,000.
The latest casualty figures cited by the institute, which is affiliated with Tel Aviv University, said at least 1,097 people had been killed in Iran, citing data provided by the U.S.-based activist organization HRANA. INSS noted that at least 87 Iranian sailors were reportedly killed in a U.S. torpedo strike against an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean on Wednesday, off the coast of Sri Lanka.
In the Gulf region, INSS said casualty figures include:
-Israel: 13 killed (including 3 from related medical issues, not direct fire); 1,524 wounded
CBS News has not independently verified all of the INSS data, which the organization says is based on constant monitoring of “intelligence assessments, open-source information, and media reports.”
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Milder-than-average morning temperatures are still once present with some passing clouds & occasional gusts of southwesterly winds for some mixing that dry air around, although higher humidity has returned in Southeast New Mexico. Air temperatures in the north are starting off mostly from around the teens to the 30s, except for the […]
Norwegian black metal icons Trelldom, spearheaded by the legendary vocalist Gaahl (Kristian Eivind Espedal), have unveiled their chilling new music video for “By the Word,” the first single from their highly anticipated album …by the word…. Set for release on May 29, 2026, the record marks the band’s continued evolution from their 2024 comeback album …by the shadows…, which ended a 17-year hiatus.
Speculation suggests the album title draws inspiration from stanza 141 of Hávamál, where Odin recounts his mastery of the runes – a fitting nod to the mythic and darkly poetic atmosphere Trelldom have always cultivated.
Part of the record’s intensity comes from Gaahl‘s further vocal experimentation, partly realized during a return to Grieghallen Studios in Bergen to work with legendary producer Eirik Hundvin, aka Pytten, who helped define the Norwegian black metal sound.
The current lineup plays a key role in Trelldom’s daring new directions. Guitarist Stian “Sir” Kårstad (Djerv) ensures continuity, while drummer Kenneth Kapstad (formerly Motorpsycho, Spidergawd, Thorns, etc.) injects inventive rhythms and brought in renowned jazz saxophonist Kjetil Møster (Møster!, Röyksopp, The End). The band is rounded out by new bassist Eirik Øien, contributing fresh dynamics to the sound.
Target said it plans to open more than 30 locations this year, part of the retailer’s strategy to drive long-term, sustainable growth by investing in its stores.
The Golden State Warriors will look to snap a two-game losing streak when they battle the Houston Rockets in a key NBA Western Conference matchup on Thursday night. Golden State is coming off a 114-101 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday, while Houston downed the Washington Wizards 123-118 that same night. The Warriors (31-30), who are the eighth seed in the West, are 12-17 on the road this season. The Rockets (38-22), who are third in the conference, are 20-7 on their home floor. Steph Curry (knee) remains out for Golden State. Alperen Sengun (illness), Jabari Smith Jr. (ankle) and Amen Thompson (ankle) are all questionable for Houston.
Tipoff from Toyota Center in Houston is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Rockets lead the all-time series 129-110, including wins in each of the last two meetings. The Rockets are 9.5-point favorites in the latest Warriors vs. Rockets odds from. DraftKings Sportsbook, while the over/under for total points scored is 215.5. Before making any Warriors vs. Rockets picks, check out the NBA predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in betting profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past eight-plus seasons. The model entered Week 20 on a sizzling 41-18 roll on top-rated NBA spread picks dating back to last season. Anyone following its NBA betting advice at sportsbooks and on betting apps could have seen huge returns.
After 10,000 simulations of Warriors vs. Rockets, SportsLine’s model is going Under on the total (215.5). The Under has hit in seven of the past 10 head-to-head matchups between the teams, including each of the last two. The Under hit in the last Golden State game, and in five of the last nine Houston games. The Warriors are 3-7 against the spread in their last 10 games. The Rockets, meanwhile, are 5-5 ATS in their last 10.
The SportsLine model is projecting the Warriors’ De’Anthony Mason to score 18.2 points on average and be one of five Golden State players to score 10.6 or more points. The Rockets’ Kevin Durant, meanwhile, is projected to score 24.2 points as six Houston players score 11 points or more. The teams are projected to combine for 214 points.
BERLIN — A court convicted a Syrian man on Thursday of stabbing and seriously wounding a Spanish tourist at Berlin’s Holocaust Memorial just over a year ago, and sentenced him to 13 years on prison.
The 20-year-old defendant, whom authorities have identified only as Wassim Al M. in line with German privacy laws, was convicted on charges including attempted murder and attempted membership in a foreign terrorist organization, German news agency dpa reported.
The Berlin district court found that he traveled from Leipzig to Berlin on Feb. 21, 2025 to carry out an attack in the name of the Islamic State group.
He chose the Holocaust Memorial because “he believed he would find people of Jewish faith there,” presiding judge Doris Husch said, and he stabbed the Spanish tourist in the throat before shouting “Allahu akbar,” or “God is great.”
The 31-year-old victim survived but is still unable to work and receiving psychological treatment.
The defendant said during his trial that he had regretted the attack immediately, and asserted that he had traveled to Berlin under pressure from an online acquaintance he had gotten to know as he watched IS videos.
The defendant arrived in Germany in 2023 as an unaccompanied minor and successfully applied for asylum, investigators have said. He lived in Leipzig. He was arrested nearly three hours after the attack when he approached officers with blood on his hands and clothes.
The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, a field of 2,700 gray concrete slabs near the Brandenburg Gate in the heart of Berlin, honors the 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust.
The attack occurred two days before a national election in which migration become a critical issue, pushed to the forefront by a string of deadly attacks involving immigrants in the months before the vote.
