Delano, California

A 2-year-old boy was accidentally shot in the leg over the weekend at a home in Pixley, a small Tulare County community in California's Central Valley, after an adult in the house was cleaning a firearm, according to the Tulare County Sheriff's Office. Deputies responded to the home shortly before 11:30 a.m. Sunday, administered emergency aid and had the child transported to a hospital; his condition has not been confirmed.

The Sheriff's Office is asking anyone with information to come forward. Federal data cited alongside the report shows that from 2003 to 2021, the CDC recorded 1,262 unintentional firearm deaths among children, with nearly a third of victims under age 5 and about 7% of cases involving a gun being loaded, unloaded, or cleaned at the time.

LeRoy Chatfield, a lifelong advocate for marginalized communities, died of natural causes on September 15 at age 92. A former member of the Congregation of Christian Brothers who taught for free in poor California communities, he left the order at 31 to join César Chávez's effort to organize farmworkers, becoming a key figure in building the United Farm Workers' early infrastructure, including its first medical plan and initial headquarters in Delano. He left the UFW in 1973.

Chatfield later managed Jerry Brown's gubernatorial campaign and became the first director of Brown's California Conservation Corps, opening 18 centers in its first year and a half. He went on to advocate for Sacramento's homeless population and, in his later years, built what is considered the definitive digital archive of the UFW's early history, eventually acquired by UC San Diego. His death comes months after allegations surfaced that Chávez had sexually abused women within the movement; friends and family say those allegations do not diminish Chatfield's own legacy of service. He is survived by his wife, five daughters and 10 grandchildren.