The past year in El Paso brought moments of reckoning, change and reflection — in courtrooms and classrooms, along the border and across neighborhoods shaped by faith, culture and shared history.
From landmark criminal cases to shifting immigration enforcement and decisions with lasting impacts on schools, infrastructure and the environment, the stories that defined the year often intersected with daily life in ways that were deeply personal.
Some of the year’s most consequential moments unfolded in the judicial aftermath of the 2019 Walmart mass shooting, when the gunman pleaded guilty after the district attorney decided not to seek the death penalty. Families of victims publicly grappled with grief, justice and forgiveness.
Immigration remained a constant and evolving story, as migrants were arrested outside courthouses and DACA recipients detained, underscoring the uncertainty facing immigrant communities as federal policies continue to change.
Elsewhere, the El Paso region confronted questions about growth and resources, including the rise of data centers and their demands on water and electricity in a desert region, the changing landscape of once-rich pecan farms, and the toll of dust storms on public health and quality of life.
In education, school districts navigated layoffs, campus closures and leadership transitions that will shape classrooms for years to come.
Amid the hard news, El Paso’s cultural and human stories continued to resonate: The brothers who bought an inoperable Boeing 727, the local priest being considered for sainthood and the legacy of El Paso native and wrestling icon Eddie Guerrero — reminders that the city’s story is also told through perseverance, faith and pride.
As we close out the year, here are some of El Paso’s most defining stories of 2025:
‘I feel it in my heart to hug you’
- Walmart gunman won’t face the death penalty
- Walmart mass shooter pleads guilty in El Paso court, gets life sentence
- An El Paso mass shooter killed their loved ones. They hugged him
- New information about Walmart mass shooting emerges in recently released evidence
Visit elpasomatters.org/aug-3-walmart-shooting-2025/ for all the year’s stories on the Walmart shooting.
Tech giants bring data centers, water concerns
- Austin-based company says it plans to spend $165 billion on New Mexico data center campus near El Paso. Here’s what to know.
- Tech giants Open AI, Oracle behind $165 billion data center campus near El Paso
- How much water will the $165 billion data center near El Paso use? Developers unveil figures ahead of Doña Ana commissioners vote
- Meta to build $1.5 billion data center in Northeast El Paso
Click here to read more about the region’s developing data centers.
Immigration, mass deportations
- The Trump administration says it’s targeting criminals for deportation. ICE arrested these 2 Las Cruces teens as they headed to work.
- Migrants arrested outside El Paso federal building after immigration hearings under new Trump expedited deportation strategy
- ‘The church cannot be silent,’ Pope Leo XIV tells El Pasoans in Vatican meeting on mass deportation fears
- $1.2B ICE detention complex opens at Fort Bliss in East El Paso under Trump’s mass deportation strategy
Learn more about immigration issues in our community and beyond.
From boardrooms to classrooms
- Socorro ISD board approves plan to lay off about 300 employees
- EPISD Superintendent Diana Sayavedra to retire under separation agreement; to receive $348,000 in salary, benefits
- James Vasquez named sole finalist for Socorro ISD superintendent
- Brian Lusk formally named El Paso ISD superintendent, vows to center student success
Click here for more of our reporting on education and schools.
Wind, dust and disease
- Dust and disease: Valley fever’s quiet toll on El Paso
- When the wind blows: How El Paso’s intense dust storms threaten our health, future
- El Paso ranked among most-polluted major U.S. cities in 2024. And 2025 may be worse.
- Breast cancer, dizziness, headaches: El Paso residents question warehouse’s toxic emissions’ health impact
An execution scheduled, then stopped
- After almost 4 decades, El Paso mom prepares to watch daughter’s killer die
- Texas appeals court blocks scheduled execution of David Leonard Wood
- Appeals court sends 1987 El Paso desert deaths case back to trial court
- El Paso death row inmate David Leonard Wood’s appeal in 1987 killings stalls as parties seek more guidance from appeals court
Other defining stories in 2025
On the lighter side – people, places and sheep
The Boeing brothers
- Sold! Boeing 727 long abandoned at El Paso airport sells for $10K at auction
- Who paid $10K for Boeing 727 abandoned at El Paso airport?
- El Paso brothers bought a broken-down 727 four months ago. They’re still not sure what to do with it.
- Some assembly required: Abandoned 1966 Boeing 727 sold at auction finds new home – in pieces
Editor’s note: The introduction to this year-end story was generated with the assistance of ChatGPT and reviewed and edited by El Paso Matters editors for accuracy and clarity.
The post Reckoning and resilience: El Paso’s most impactful stories of 2025 appeared first on El Paso Matters.
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