On a recent December Sunday, on a still street nestled against Camelback Mountain, a party is in full swing at the L. Ron Hubbard House. It’s meant to be a holiday open house, to show off the stunning renovation of the simple brick dwelling where Hubbard founded Scientology a half-century…
We understand that in the 24-hour news cycle it can be difficult to keep up. Worry not! We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times’ blogs. Today’s entries: Valley Fever: Sheriff’s Captain Argues Mysterious Donors to Republican Party Not a…
We live in two Americas: Joe Arpaio’s medieval Maricopa County, where barbarism reigns, and our corrupt top cop parades hundreds of Hispanics through the streets in chains, like captives taken in some feudal conflict from faded memory. And then there’s Barack Obama’s America, one of enlightenment, and the rule of…
Yvonne Wingett, who writes the Political Insider column for the Arizona Republic, reports this afternoon that the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is requesting e-mails and other public records from all five county supervisors and 31 county employees under the state’s public records law. The meaning of the records request isn’t clear,…
As one way to deal with a huge revenue shortfall, the City of Phoenix will shorten hours beginning March 2 at all of its library branches. About half of the 15 branch libraries will no longer be open on Sundays. Victoria Welch, city spokeswoman for the library system, tells us the reduced schedule comes at…
As promised right here on Valley Fever, we’ve got a portion of MCSO Captain Joel Fox’s interview after his pre-hearing this afternoon. …
Captain Joel Fox of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office continued to play martyr during an administrative hearing on Wednesday, still unwilling to give up the names of the people behind a $105,000 campaign donation to the Republican Party that has been deemed illegal. Today’s hearing, which we told you about…
Now that the Phoenix City Council has signed off on a staggering $270 million in budget cuts, we can turn our attention to the really important stuff — the imminent vacancy for the District 6 Council seat. Of course we’re kidding when we say this is more important than…
NBA bad boy Stephen Jackson has found a home in Golden State. We’re not big Mike D’Antoni fans. As electric as his six-and-shoot system was during the Phoenix days, it was a paper tiger that bared its cardboard fangs come playoff time. Plus, the dude began to buy into his…
Sheriff’s investigators search a Gilbert business for evidence that County Supervisor Don Stapley made an improper deal to create a special tax district for land his buddy owned. At least copper theft will be on the decline: The metal scrap industry expects a miserable year as export demands from China and…
We understand that in the 24-hour news cycle it can be difficult to keep up. Worry not! We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times’ blogs. Today’s entries: Valley Fever: Stapley Case Bombshell: Indicted Supervisor Disclosed Wolfswinkel Partnership to County…
The Arizona Supreme Court today ruled that the state cannot collect an additional $30 million from cities and towns to help balance the budget. Back in November, it appeared the lawsuit against the state by the League of Arizona Towns and Cities was on firm footing when we wrote about…
[jump] The hearing takes place at 10 a.m., while the forced march is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sure, it’s interesting that Arpaio wants to keep a few illegal immigrants behind an electrified fence in canvas tents. But the campaign finance story — with its wisps of corruption and cover-up — has much greater implications…
Dreams of sex with a young cheerleader became a nightmare for a 14-year-old boy when the lights went on and he realized he had just boffed his 49-year-old teacher. It sounds like it could have been in The Onion newspaper, but the scene really did occur on Saturday at a Best Western Hotel…
We finally quit laughing over a January 29 news release from the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and are now able to write about it. The release involves a request for public records Sheriff Arpaio’s minions made in late 2007 to the county’s Superior Court — a blatant fishing expedition for the e-mails of judges…
For our own mental health, we’ve been trying to let go of the Super Bowl for two days now. We’ve been trying to remind ourselves that the NFL is sports entertainment, and that we correctly predicted what was going to happen: Cardinals fans would be massively outnumbered in Tampa, and…
You might say he’s gone to that Big Crib in the Sky. William Windsor, better known to Phoenicians as “Baby Man,” has sucked his last pacifier. According to Phoenix police, Windsor — a former country-western singer, Broadway actor, heir to the Popular Mechanics fortune, and full-time adult baby/diaper lover –…
Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley faces 118 criminal counts for supposedly failing to disclose his land holdings to the public — in particular, his association with convicted felon Conley Wolfswinkel. But according to an explosive new filing from Stapley’s attorneys, Stapley didn’t just disclose those dealings to a deputy county attorney…
You know what it means that the Suns blew out the Sacramento Kings 129-81 at US Airways Center Monday night? Nothing. The Kings are 11-39, officially the third-worst team in the NBA at 11-39 (the L.A. Clippers and the Washington Wizards are tied for worst at 10-38). Running them out…
So-called “date rape” cases will be handled differently at the state’s three universities because of a lawsuit settlement — no more sweeping cases under the rug. State lawmakers are considering a change to tax code — critics say that’s code for tax hike. Drink up on Indian land: The Salt River Pima-Maricopa…
We understand that in the 24-hour news cycle it can be difficult to keep up. Worry not! We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times’ blogs. Today’s entries: Valley Fever: Bible Study Ban Story by Sonoran Alliance Dies Without Details…
Jonathan McNamara It would take more than a Super Bowl loss to prevent the Arizona Cardinals from receiving a hero’s welcome at Sky Harbor Airport on the afternoon after their defeat to the Pittsburgh Steelers. A few thousand dedicated fans with the luxury of leaving their respective jobs at around 3:30…
