A traffic stop in Surprise ended in suicide Tuesday when the driver slit his throat. According to police, George Lajeunesse, 43, was stopped because he was wanted for questioning in a domestic-violence call. Lajeunesse reportedly wielded a large knife at the traffic stop, and slit his throat after being Tasered…
A Douglas man was arrested at the U.S. port of entry with almost 700 pounds of marijuana Sunday night. The unnamed man, 20, was driving an F-150 truck loaded with pot, and was turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement…An English teacher at Higley and Williams Field high schools has…
Today, 30,000 doses of the swine flu vaccine will be available at 30 elementary schools around the Valley. The shots will be administered by Mollen Immunization Clinics, which will be set up at the schools. Mollen CEO John Roehm said most insurance plans cover the flu shot…The owner of two…
Since it was introduced in 1985, Jolt Cola’s had a well-deserved reputation as one of the world’s most caffeinated sodas, proudly standing by its motto of “All the sugar and twice the caffeine” — at least until the cane sugar in the original recipe was replaced with high fructose corn…
Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon is proposing a temporary sales-tax increase to prevent services and programs from being cut further. At a City Council meeting this week, Gordon said the city is facing an “economic emergency.” The council has already cut $270 million from the general fund…Playwright James Garcia has written…
Citing falling tax revenues, the Regional Council of the Maricopa Association of Governments has voted to cut back on freeway-expansion projects. MAG cut the $16 billion program to $9.4 billion. The South Mountain freeway project, which would relieve congestion on Interstate 10, survived the cuts…Chandler police arrested a student at Chandler-Gilbert…
The corner of Cave Creek Road and Cheryl Street in Sunnyslope isn’t usually a roadside attraction. Occupied by dilapidated wingding-style apartments and auto body shops with barbed-wire fences, the area is especially dark at night, where a single streetlight beams down uselessly on one spot of asphalt. It’s easy to…
Arizona State Representative Kyrsten Sinema is in Washington, D.C. today to attend a ceremony for the signing of a hate-crimes bill that would add crimes committed against people because of sexual orientation, gender, and gender identity. Sinema has sponsored similar legislation in Arizona…Tempe police believe they may have arrested the…
Arizona Superintendent of Schools Tom Horne says the state faces teacher layoffs on a large scale next year because of the state’s budget woes. Horne said the situation is “much grimmer” than Arizona residents realize…The male graduate student who committed suicide in a professor’s office at ASU yesterday has been…
There are seemingly a gazillion energy drinks on the market, loaded with sugars and artificial flavors and colors. And while we’re fans of the sweet stuff, sometimes we like to try and get a boost without all the artificial additives. Hence, the appeal of a product like Guru, a “100%…
A famous Hopi artist from Arizona has died from the H1N1 virus. Michael Kabotie, renowned painter, silversmith, and poet, died on Friday. He was 67…Fire crews were called to a home in Mesa near Guadalupe and Dobson roads early this morning, where they responded to a first-alarm house fire and…
State parks officials have devised a plan to aid Arizona’s ailing parks: add $10 to $15 to the cost of car registration. In return, motorists, who could likely opt out of the surcharge, would be able to visit any state park for free. The state has already seen the closure…
As many as 20 players from the Mesa High football team might be suspended for violating team rules and miss Friday’s game against Phoenix Maryvale. Mesa High principal Jim Souder and football coach Kelley Moore confirmed the suspensions, but neither would discuss what the infraction was…Arizona’s unemployment funds are running…
A massive project is planned for 230 acres of desert near the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. Phoenix-based Kitchell Development Company proposes to build offices, shops, and hotels on the land, ultimately stretching the Gateway 202 Airpark to 3.3 million square feet. Mesa’s Planning and Zoning Board will review the project at…
More than 13,000 students in the Glendale Elementary School District will receive free seasonal flu vaccinations from the Maricopa County Department of Public Health. All shots will be administered by November 6, and parents must sign a permission form for their child to get vaccinated…The Potato Fire that broke out…
The human sense of smell is one of our strongest survival tools. Without our olfactory perception, we might eat rotten food, not shower for days, and fart in church. We are biologically engineered with the ability to deduct that something that smells like crap probably tastes like crap, too. I almost didn’t want to take…
An inmate escaped from the State Prison Complex in Florence Sunday morning, after cutting a hole in a fence. Police are still searching for the escapee, Yelson Moreno, 20, a Mexican national who was serving a 30-month sentence for theft…Transportation officials at the Maricopa Association of Governments will vote Wednesday…
Almost $250,000 was found in a spare tire last night, after an Arizona DPS officer stopped a 2003 Chevy Trailblazer for moving violations. Officers found the money in the tire after receiving consent to search the vehicle, and arrested and booked the driver on money-laundering charges…Arizona is making way for…
The top two leaders at utility company Salt River Project have come under scrutiny after it was revealed they spent nearly $81,000 on travel expenses and dinners, even as the company raises rates and cuts jobs. SRP President John Williams Jr. and Vice President David Rousseau, who make $180,000 and…
Let’s get it out of the way up front: KMFDM stands for “Kein Mitleid Für Die Mehrheit,” a German phrase that translates literally to “no pity for the majority.” But KMFDM founder Sascha Konietzko is perfectly okay with the popular theory that his industrial dance band’s name stands for “Kill…
The Mesa Historical Museum will close early next year because of lack of revenue and city funding. The museum’s exhibits will be moved to other places, including the Arizona Museum for Youth, where the exhibit “Play Ball: The Cactus League Experience” will be housed…An illegal immigrant who was involved in…
State employees in Arizona will retain domestic-partner benefits for the next 12 months, even though the Legislature’s decided to eliminate those benefits in their last budget. The Department of Administration says cutting the benefits before October 2010 could put the state in violation of contract laws…Next week, the Metro light-rail board…
