Actor Bill Murray could be turning up at some U of A basketball games this season. His son, Luke Murray, has joined the UA basketball staff as a graduate assistant. Before his new gig in Arizona, Luke Murray served as an assistant coach at Post University in Connecticut.Luke says he’s…
The arson fire of June 14 at the Young Champions of America headquarters burned up every scrap of administrative records and melted scores of awards and trophies amassed over the years. Rory Hood, the company’s owner, considered quitting the business “for about an hour.” Then he heard the voice of his deceased…
Just when you think the nativists have sunk to a new low, they limbo right down into the gutter a little lower. In this case, it’s our old pal, Wiccan wackjob Laine Lawless (real name, Roberta Dill), known for her love of the bullwhip, her lesbian fanfiction featuring Lucy Lawless,…
Terry Goddard is one of 10 attorney generals across the country to take part in a task force with federal authorities against mortgage fraud. Rob McKenna, Washington’s AG, is co-chair with Iowa’s AG, Tom Miller, in the “unprecedented partnership” of federal and state authorities to target fraudsters in an…
Maricopa County Treasurer Charles “Hos” Hoskins has finally carried through on a threat he made back in December to sue the county again. Hoskins already has a lawsuit pending against the county regarding the alleged swiping of his office’s IT equipment. Hoskins believes drastic budget cuts imposed by the county…
The Arizona Republic seems to be taking a more aggressive stance lately against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Case in point: Its big Sunday story about the sheriff by Dan Nowicki entitled, (in the print edition) “Show of Force,” with a headline on the jump page reading, “Foes say…
The crime is sophisticated and devious: You’re tricked into swiping your card in a thieving cardreader planted over the real one. Meanwhile, the would-be Lex Luthors are watching you punch in your PIN with binoculars or cameras. Phoenix cops say the movie-like scenario actually happens — they call it “skimming”…
The Arizona Diamondbacks have taken a real beating on their current road trip; they lost seven in a row before snapping that streak on Sunday with a 7-5 win over the Houston Astros. During the streak, the offensive achieved levels of futility — an average of two runs scored a…
Scottsdale-based company Redflex Traffic Solutions Inc. is developing a solar-powered photo enforcement camera. The company has an agreement with Tempe-based Arizona Solar Concepts to design the cameras, but both companies refuse to elaborate until the project is further along. A Redflex spokesperson says the cameras are “not roadworthy” yet…A Mesa…
It should be no surprise that a cheesy, old-man’s magazine like Soldier of Fortune would stick our septuagenarian sheriff’s mug on the cover and proceed to pucker up to him in a puff piece written by some dude with the improbable name of “Dr. Martin Brass.” But couldn’t they find a better photo of…
Pedro Ultreras’ brutal, uncompromising film 7 Soles (7 Suns), which depicts the plight of a group of migrants crossing the Sonoran desert is a must-see for all Americans if they want to understand the sheer horror some immigrants are willing to endure to come to this country. In it, director Ultreras,…
In the 24-hour news cycle it can be difficult to keep up. We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times’ blogs. Today’s entries: Feathered Bastard: Arthur Frommer’s Correct To Be Disturbed by Arizona: Ernie Hancock and Chris B. Are Two…
If you’ve got it, spend it.That appears to be the motto of Phoenix City Councilman Sal DiCiccio, who’s raised a staggering $225,160 for his council campaign — and has already spent all but $65,000 of it.According to the most recent set of campaign finance reports for the hotly contended District…
Sharing is caring. That’s why I’m posting a link to a list of the names, ranks, serial numbers, hire dates, and pay rates for Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s 287(g)-trained deputies. (You can view the list, here.) These are the deputies trained by the feds to enforce federal immigration law, and according…
Some say that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.If that’s the case, the state legislature is officially insane.On Thursday, after seven painstaking weeks of budget negotiations, the legislature sent Governor Jan Brewer a budget plan that is nearly identical…
Parents will be delighted to learn that their college students now have a legal place to experiment with hard drugs. And it’s just across the border. No joke. Yesterday, Mexican President Felipe Calderon signed a controversial bill into law that will decriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs, including…
Massage parlors where the masseuse also serves as a madame are in the cross hairs of Mesa Mayor Scott Smith.Smith says that Mesa is home to several “seedy” massage parlors where clients are getting more than just their shoulders and backs rubbed. Smith says he is giving local law enforcement…
We would never recommend driving drunk, but this weekend, we really don’t recommend it.Starting Friday, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is beginning the national 2009 Labor Day holiday drunk-driving law enforcement campaign: “Over the Limit. Under Arrest.”In a press release, GOHS Director Alberto Gutier warns that this weekend there…
We know Sammy Hagar “can’t drive 55,” and it seems as though Arizona Department of Education Superintendent Tom Horne suffers from the same affliction.In the last 18 months, Horne has been ticketed for speeding six times “that he is aware of,” including once while zipping through a school zone.Horne tells…
Charges have been dropped against an 18-year-old man who took an Airsoft rifle — which shoots BBs or pellets — to Scottsdale’s McDowell Sonoran Preserve. The teen, Max Hoemke, was arrested by Scottsdale police on August 11 after a group of hikers became scared of him. Hoemke was dressed…
Creationists will have a field day with this one. Turns out that Charles Darwin was wrong about the appendix. Darwin believed the organ didn’t do anything useful, so it might have been vestigial — an evolutionary leftover from an early antecedent of humans. However, a team of researchers from Arizona State University, the University of Arizona and…
You want to ignore that speed-camera ticket — good for you. Heck, we even encourage it. But we also encourage authorities to prosecute to the fullest those who would commit violence as some sort of malicious protest against photo enforcement. The fatal shooting of an innocent photo-radar van worker earlier…
