Star journalists win 9 first-place awards in Arizona Press Club contest

Arizona Daily Star page designer Maria Camou de Toledo was named designer of the year by the Arizona Press Club and Star journalists took home nine first-place awards in the club’s 2016 contest — three of them by investigative reporter Emily Bregel.

Also, Star graphic artist Chiara Bautista was a finalist for designer of the year and Star border reporter Perla Trevizo was a finalist for journalist of the year.

Judge Andrea Zagata, a page designer for the New York Times, said Camou has “a clear voice” with “intelligent photo editing and clean design free of gimmicks.”

Zagata called Bautista’s graphics and illustrations whimsical and fun.

A judging panel said Trevizo’s “elegant writing, combined with solid, in-depth reporting, presents a vivid and nuanced portrait of life on the border.”

Public-safety reporter Caitlin Schmidt won the Don Bolles Award for Investigative Reporting for her coverage of misspending at the Pima County Sheriff’s Office.

“Through digging by the Arizona Daily Star, what appeared to be small case of wrongdoing ballooned into criminal charges,” wrote judge Dee Hall, co-founder of the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Reporting. “This is classic investigative journalism at its finest!”

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Here are the Star’s awards:

FIRST PLACE

• Tom Beal, science reporting: “Osiris-REx”
• Emily Bregel, breaking news: “Officials look into reports of Pima County voting problems”
• Emily Bregel, health reporting: “Cenpatico”
• Emily Bregel, sports investigative reporting: “Tucson Tech prep school”
• Maria Camou de Toledo, multi-page design: “Beyond the Wall”
• Jon Gold, sports column writing
• Ernesto Portillo Jr., Spanish-language commentary/analysis, La Estrella de Tucsón: “Republicanos procrean hijos de la SB 1070”
• Caitlin Schmidt, Don Bolles Award for Investigative Reporting: “Pima County Sheriff’s Office”
• Perla Trevizo and Curt Prendergast, Spanish-language news reporting, La Estrella de Tucsón: “Beyond the Wall”

SECOND PLACE

• Chiara Bautista, drawn illustration: “Tucson Festival of Books”
• Timothy Gassen, sports column writing
• Jon Gold, sports beat reporting
• Jon Gold, sports feature writing: “Here’s how Tucson Roadrunner Craig Cunningham cheated sudden death”
• Stephanie Innes, health reporting: “The hardest test”
• Dave Ord, headline writing
• Liliana Lopez, Spanish-language feature reporting, La Estrella de Tucsón: “Centro Muhammad Ali: la fuerza para seguir peleando”
• Ernesto Portillo Jr., Spanish-language commentary/analysis, La Estrella de Tucsón: “Personas transgénero buscan igualdad”
• Tim Steller, column writing
• Perla Trevizo, public safety reporting

THIRD PLACE

• Chiara Bautista, drawn illustration: “This is Tucson emojis”
• Tony Davis, environmental reporting: “Rosemont Mine”
• Greg Hansen, column writing
• Ernesto Portillo Jr., Spanish-language commentary/analysis, La Estrella de Tucsón: “Hablar de tortura es el primer paso para erradicarla”
• Ernesto Portillo Jr., Spanish-language feature reporting, La Estrella de Tucsón.: “Desde Tucsón: De la prisión al temple”
• Ernesto Portillo Jr., Spanish-language news reporting, La Estrella de Tucsón: “El sueño de esta Dreamer está en el scenario”
• Zack Rosenblatt, sports beat reporting
• Staff, public-service journalism: “Beyond the Wall”
• Perla Trevizo, public safety reporting: “Fentanyl”