Oscar Fuchslocher first came to the United States from his native Chile in 1989, as an exchange student at Ironwood High School in Glendale. He liked Arizona so much he came back the next year, this time as a visitor on a six-month visa. The visa was renewed, but eventually…

The King of Mean As the senior member of the House of Representatives, Don Aldridge has had more time than any of his colleagues–14 years, to be exact–to earn his reputation as a petty, vindictive, ignorant legislator. Aldridge once filibustered a bill that designated nonsmoking areas in government buildings. He’s…

Every Rep At the Capitol Likes Lawmaking a lot. But the AldGrinch, Who lives just north of the Capitol, Does NOT! The AldGrinch hates Lawmaking! The whole statute season! Now, please don’t ask why. No one quite knows the reason. It could be his new kidney–was it put in all…

The State Bar of Arizona has asked a retired judge to investigate allegations of sexual harassment against Bruce Hamilton, the agency’s longtime executive director. On Monday, Bar officials confirmed rumors that have circulated widely in Arizona’s legal community since a heated Board of Governors meeting November 22: Hamilton is on…

Joe Young lives in a modest brick house with a broken garage door. The garage itself doubles as Young’s paint-spattered studio, where the Arizona State University art history professor stores the product of his years as an artist. Dozens of canvases stacked vertically around the room track the history of…

It was to be Maggie’s first airplane ride. She was flying to Los Angeles to lose her virginity. And there were other reasons for her to be skittish. Maggie, a Jack Russell terrier, was being left with a stranger. That stranger, a baggage handler, had propped her travel kennel atop…

In the late 1980s, the name Charlie Keating became a national symbol of fraud within the S&L industry. Now, in 1996, Maricopa County itself has become a national symbol–of municipal-bond securities fraud. In an October 28 story headlined “Miami Inquiry Becomes ‘Son of Maricopa,'” the Wall Street Journal reported that…

By nearly any standard, 80-year-old Vivian Martin is a model citizen. She has never–ever–missed an opportunity to vote. Her modest west Phoenix home is immaculate, from the green lawn to the autumn-themed pumpkin centerpiece in the dining room. She’s genteel and alert, although osteoporosis sometimes limits her mobility. And for…

Forgery. Lies. Organized crime. Multimillion-dollar transactions. Two guys in dark suits with expensive haircuts. It sounds like a B-movie, but it’s really the race between incumbent John David “J.D.” Hayworth Jr. and his challenger Steve Owens for the opportunity to represent Arizona’s sixth district in the U.S. House of Representatives…

Whoever whispered, “Build it, and they will come,” obviously wasn’t speaking to Andrea Zuhri-Adams. In 1993, Zuhri-Adams, an African American, was recruited by Phoenix city officials who wanted a minority-owned business in the ground floor of the city parking garage at 333 East Jefferson, just east of America West Arena…

Dave Alexander is on his hands and knees in front of the VCR. After shuffling through a pile of videotapes, he pops one in and–with noticeable effort–hoists his five-foot-eight-inch, 250-pound, 51-year-old body off the floor and onto a leather sofa. The television’s oversize screen soon fills with images of hard…

What do high-profile political campaigns and misplaced luggage have in common? Nothing–and that’s why Griffin Merkel is smiling. In September 1994, Merkel’s political consulting firm, Griffin and Associates, helped manage the campaigns of three congressional candidates, a Phoenix mayoral hopeful, and bids for the Arizona Corporation Commission and state Legislature…

Maricopa County residents who voted in the September 10 primary were given a pamphlet detailing propositions they’ll see on the November 5 general election ballot. The booklet is designed to inform voters and help them decide how they’ll vote on various propositions. The motto on the brochure’s cover: “Your Future,…

Snell Johnson was in trouble. A successful businessman one day, the target of an SEC investigation the next. So begins a 1992 segment of “The Rest of the Story,” a syndicated program in which radio commentator Paul Harvey “completes” a tale by revealing behind-the-scenes information in that halting, highly inflected,…

State Representative David Eberhart is a mild-mannered civil engineer from Peoria. In 1995, his fellow Republicans chose him to replace his more colorful colleague, Representative Jeff Groscost, as House majority whip. Groscost, as many will recall, was booted from his leadership post because he repeatedly failed to file his campaign-finance…

Info:Correction Date: August 15, 1996 A Cop on the Beat Assaults on his girlfriend and a litany of other conduct violations got Fred Santos fired from the Phoenix police force. Why he’s back in uniform, responding to domestic violence calls, is a mystery. By Amy Silverman On March 1, the…

The Phoenix Civil Service Board has reviewed the dismissals of three Phoenix police officers so far in 1996. Officer Fred Santos–whose dismissal was reduced to a 120-hour suspension–is one. Here are the other two, as detailed in the board minutes: Officer Mark LeBlanc “Mr. LeBlanc was dismissed for inappropriately identifying…

How many Democrats named Stuart does it take to challenge Congressman John Shadegg? Just one. And that makes Stuart Starky mad. Starky–a shoe salesman originally from Long Island–says Arizona Democratic party officials did everything they could to nudge him out of the primary race in Congressional District 4 and clear…

U.S. Department of Justice investigation into conditions at Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s jails documents what inmates and prison rights advocates have alleged for years: excessive use of force that verges on torture, and severely inadequate medical care. A federal report on jail conditions released last week reveals dozens of…

Treatment: War of the Roses meets The Money Pit meets The Player. Scene 1: A summer day in present time, early morning, a quiet neighborhood in central Scottsdale. The movie opens in the rambling ranch house of our main character, accomplished screenwriter Steven McKay. The camera pans the house–living room,…

YOU ARE HEREBY INVITED TO ATTEND the celebration of the completion of our first ASU Law School semester. It will be the “Mother of all 1L Post-Exam Parties” (herein known as the “Mother”). This “Mother” will be held on Wednesday, December 14, 1994, commencing at 11:30 a.m. You, along with…

When the U.S. Department of Justice asked Arizona elections director Lisa Daniel for a progress report on a new law designed to get low-income citizens to vote, Daniel did what Arizona Republicans love to do. She told the feds to get lost. It’s true that the Department of Justice has…