2023 Q1 Photo Essay

Quarter 1 Judges, Hide Terada, Bob Karp, Martin Evans, Mehmet Demirci, Edde Burgess, Ryan Terhune, and  Jessica Paige

First Place: There were three entries, but they were all extremely good individually.  This one stood out for first place because of the complete coverage and attention to detail.  Nicely done. 

Second Place: This photographer really worked every angle possible.  Impressive drone and/or helicopter footage.  Nice comprehensive body of work 

Third Place: This essay was exceptional too. There seems to be more to this story though. It would be great to see if the photographer could continue following the story. It wasn’t as complete  narrative as the first and second place.  

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First Place: david swanson, reuters

Interior the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S.

A heavily armed policeman blocks off a sidewalk near the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S.

A Crime Lab team member enters the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S.

Detectives enter the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

A woman lays flowers and reacts in front of the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 25, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

NBC's Lester Holt broadcasts from outside of the entrance of the Star Ballroom Dance Studio after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 23, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

A man prays at the entrance of the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 24, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

People leave flowers at the entrance of the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 24, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

People mourn outside of the entrance of the Star Ballroom Dance Studio after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 23, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

People gather for a candlelight vigil after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 24, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

People mourn outside of the entrance of the Star Ballroom Dance Studio after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 23, 2023.

CALIFORNIA-SHOOTING/

Vice Presicdent Kiamala Harris lays a wreath at the base of the Star Ballroom after a mass shooting during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, U.S. January 25, 2023.

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Second Place: david swanson, reuters

Cars sit abandoned on roads as floodwaters from the Tule River inundate the area after days of heavy rain in Corcoran, California, U.S., March 21, 2023.

A home on agricultural land is seen amid flooding from the Salinas River in Salinas, California, U.S., January 13, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/CALIFORNIA

Melissa Foley clears debris and helps in her neighborhood as the San Lorenzo River rises with emergency evacuation orders in Felton Grove, California, U.S., January 14, 2023.

Several people had to be rescued after two vehicles fell into a sinkhole in Chatsworth, California, U.S., January 10, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/

An SPCA worker rescues and abandoned dog as floodwaters from the Pajaro River inundate residents after days of heavy rain in Pajaro, California, U.S., March 15, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/

A vehicle passes next to a break in a levee as floodwaters inundate roads after days of heavy rain in Alpaugh, California, U.S., March 29, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/

A tractor sits stagnant as floodwaters from the Pajaro River inundate residents after days of heavy rain in Pajaro, California, U.S., March 15, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/

Water fills the Tulare Lakebed after floodwaters inundate residents after days of heavy rain in Corcoran, California, U.S., March 29, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/CALIFORNIA

Mehrdad Azim helps swipe mud away from a neighbor's driveway after the San Lorenzo river flooded in Felton Grove, California, U.S., January 14, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/

Floodwaters from the Pajaro River inundate residents after days of heavy rain in Watsonville, California, U.S., March 16, 2023.

USA-WEATHER/

A CalFire inmate crew helps secure a levee surrounding a dairy farm as floodwaters inundate residents after days of heavy rain in Corcoran, California, U.S., March 29, 2023.

A man fishes in the floodwaters as a train passes after days of heavy rain in Corcoran, California, U.S., March 29, 2023.

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Third place: gina ferazzi, la times

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KLAMATH, CA - Londa Williams shows off a tattoo she got for her daughter Tara William’s proposed restaurant Fish Stix, but Tara died in 2016 before being able to open the restaurant on October 4, 2022 in Klamath, California. Just days after domestic violence charges were filed against Tara’s boyfriend Cliff Moorehead, her body was found near a wrecked pickoff off a rural stretch of Highway 101. Her cell phone was found next to her. Phone records were never checked. Her death was not thoroughly investigated even though, Moorehead had a history of restraining orders and assault.Tara had spent time in a battered woman’s shelter more than once, but always went back to Moorehead. According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.Incomplete data make it hard to pinpoint the number of Native people who’ve gone missing or been killed, but the Bureau of Indian Affairs estimates some 4,200 cases have gone unsolved across the country. Sovereign Bodies Institute recorded 183 cases of missing or slain Indigenous women and girls in California, according to a 2021 report, though that’s probably an undercount. Alarming rates of substance use and mental health concerns led to unstable households and the removal of children into foster care.“I think we’ve had an inordinate amount of people suffer the consequences of this issue, meaning they’ve lost family members, they’ve lost people they grew up with. And the terror of it pervades the existence of our families,” Yurok Chief Judge Abby Abinanti said. “Their anguish never quits.”KLAMATH, CA - As the sunsets over Yurok Tribal lands near the mouth of the Klamath River, parents Londa Williams and her husband Chairman Phillip Williams discuss their torment over the circumstances of their daughter Tara William’s, 26, suspicious death in 2016 on October 4, 2022 in Klamath, California. Just days after domestic violence charges were filed against her boyfriend Cliff Moorehead, Tara’s body was found near a wrecked pickoff off a rural stretch of Highway 101. Her cell phone was found next to her. Her death was never thoroughly investigated even though, Moorehead had a history of restraining orders and assault.Tara had spent time in a battered woman’s shelter more than once, but always went back to Moorehead. Tara grew up fishing with her dad at this exact spot.

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KLAMATH, CA - In a family photograph, Tara Williams fishes near the mouth of the Klamath River in 2007. Her suspicion death at age 26 still torments her parents, Londa Williams and Tribal Chairman Phillip Williams. Just days after domestic violence charges were filed against her boyfriend Cliff Moorehead, Tara’s body was found near a wrecked pickoff off a rural stretch of Highway 101. Her cell phone was found next to her. Her death was never thoroughly investigated even though, Moorehead had a history of restraining orders and assault.Tara had spent time in a battered woman’s shelter more than once, but always went back to Moorehead. Tara grew up fishing with her dad at this exact spot. According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.(Williams Family Photo)

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PECWAN, CA - Yurok Tribal Police Chief Greg O’Rourke stands on the bridge where Emmilee Risling, 33, was last seen before she disappeared in October 2021 on a rural Native American reservation in Humboldt County on October 5, 2022 in Pecwan, California. A member of the Hoopa Tribe, Risling was once a straight-A student and graduated from the University of Oregon. Ongoing mental health issues, drug abuse and abusive relationships sent her into a downward spiral. Her family tried to get her into a psychiatric facility, but the closest one is 300 miles away and was full. Lack of mental health and social services on the reservations contributed to her demise.According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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PECWAN, CA - A missing persons poster of Emmilee Risling hangs on a bullet hole ridden bulletin board at the far corner of the Yurok Reservation called End of Road near where Risling, 33, was last seen before she disappeared in October of 2021 on a rural Native American reservation in Humboldt County on October 5, 2022 in Pecwan, California. The Native American was once a straight-A student and graduated from the University of Oregon. Ongoing mental health issues, drug abuse and abusive relationships sent her into a downward spiral. Her family tried to get her into a psychiatric facility, but the closest one is 300 miles away and was full. Lack of mental health and social services on the reservations contributed to her demise.According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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PECWAN, CA - A run down motor home sits above the Klamath River at the far corner of the Yurok Reservation called End of Road where Emmilee Risling, 33, was last seen before she disappeared in October of 2021 on a rural Native American reservation in Humboldt County on October 5, 2022 in Pecwan, California. The Native American was once a straight-A student and graduated from the University of Oregon. Ongoing mental health issues, drug abuse and abusive relationships sent her into a downward spiral. Her family tried to get her into a psychiatric facility, but the closest one is 300 miles away and was full. Lack of mental health and social services on the reservations contributed to her demise.According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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KLAMATH, CA - Fisherman and outcasts camp on Yurok Tribal lands near the mouth of the Klamath River, on October 4, 2022 in Klamath, California. California has the highest Native American population in the U.S. Rural Northern is the most dangerous for women on the reservations. According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate. The Klamath River is an iconic symbol of life and death for those living on nearby reservations.

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COVELO, CA - Family members put up new posters on a memorial for missing Khadijah Britton, 24, who was last seen Feb. 8, 2018 while being forced into a car at gunpoint by ex-boyfriend Negie Fallis in Covelo, California. A member of the Round Valley Indian Tribe, she had a restraining order against him. According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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COVELO, CA - Jerry “Lij” Britton stands inside the shell of an old newspaper building on October 6, 2022 in front of a mural of his missing daughter Khadijah Britton, 24, who was last seen Feb. 8, 2018 while being forced into a car at gunpoint by ex-boyfriend Negie Fallis in Covelo, California. A member of the Round Valley Indian Tribe, she had a restraining order against him. According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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COVELO, CA - The wall in the Britton’s home is filled with high school awards of Khadijah Britton, 24, who went missing on Feb. 8, 2018 while being forced into a car at gunpoint by ex-boyfriend Negie Fallis on the Round Valley Indian Reservation in Covelo, California. She had a restraining order against him. According the National Information Crime Center, 84% of Indigenous women experience some form of violence in their lifetime. Those living on a reservation are killed at 10 times the national murder rate.

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Meet Our Judges, Hide Terada, Bob Karp, Martin Evans, Mehmet Demirci, Edde Burgess, Ryan Terhune, and  Jessica Paige

Hide Terada:  Former Ventura County Star Newspaper Photographer. Currently a freelancer for The News & Observer (not pictured, he is taking the group photo) 

Bob Karp: 30 year photo editor, staff photographer and multimedia producer for Gannett

Martin Evans:  Raleigh NC photographer specializing in portraits, events and documentary photography. 

Mehmet Demirci: Photojournalist based in Raleigh NC.  Experience mainly covering Turkey,  Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel and Palestine conflicts. 2014 worked on several book projects and curated a presidency museum exhibit on President Abdullah Gul which is the first presidency museum in Turkey.  

Edde Burgess: Portrait, lifestyle and nature photographer based in North Carolina. 

Ryan Terhune: Professional photographer and graphic Designer based in North Carolina. 

Jessica Paige: Professional Photographer specializing in portraits and fine art in North Carolina.