In brief: Arizona canyon wildfire expands after officials set protective blazes nearby

Flagstaff, Ariz. – A wildfire burning in rugged terrain in a northern Arizona canyon grew significantly because of fires intentionally set by crews to rob the blaze of its natural forest fuels, officials said Saturday.

Crews have mostly completed burnout operations on the key northern flank of the Slide fire and were preparing to make similar protection efforts on the fire’s western end. The burnout operations conducted Friday night by fire crews contributed to the heavy smoke over Sedona and Flagstaff.

“They are making progress. Having the humidity and cooler temperatures was certainly very helpful. But we are by no means done yet,” Coronado National Forest Service information officer Gerry Perry said.

The size of the human-caused fire had reached 16 square miles by Saturday morning. It had grown nearly 5 square miles since the latest report on its size.

Utah Pride Center demands apology from governor

Salt Lake City – A gay rights organization is calling on Utah Gov. Gary Herbert to apologize for suggesting homosexuality is a choice and for calling decisions by other state leaders to not defend same-sex marriage bans the “next step to anarchy.”

John Netto, head of the Utah Pride Center’s board, said the governor’s comments during his monthly televised news conference Thursday were hurtful.

“To suggest that allowing gay marriage is the foundation of anarchy, to us, is hate speech,” Netto told the Salt Lake Tribune. “We think he is uneducated … on current scientific positions in regard to human sexuality.”

Herbert’s office didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Herbert said Thursday that he remains committed to defending Utah’s same-sex marriage ban, which was struck down by a federal judge in December. The ruling led more than 1,000 same-sex couples to marry in the state before the U.S. Supreme Court issued an emergency stay pending an appeal to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.

Officer fatally shot during traffic stop

Phoenix – A police officer for an American Indian community in eastern metropolitan Phoenix was fatally shot early Saturday during a traffic stop.

FBI spokesman Perryn Collier said the officer for the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community was shot after he made contact with people in the vehicle.

Salt River police spokesman Vicente Cendejas said the death marks the first time that an officer in the community’s police department was killed in the line of duty. Two suspects were in custody.