If you happen to have a problem with a Sasquatch trampling your lawn or unicorns eating your shrubs or a leprechaun’s running amok in your garage, just call state Representative Steve Montenegro or state Senator Nancy Barto — they seem to have a knack for solving problems that don’t actually exist…on…
When 29-year-old Eric Matthew Papanek allegedly walked defiantly out of a Peoria Circle K holding a 12-pack of Heineken — and the knife he had just used to stab a man — over his head last week, he probably didn’t anticipate hiding in a closet like a coward when police…
The Phoenix Police Department has completed its investigation into the February freeway fracas between Senator Scott Bundgaard and his then-gal-pal Aubry “Heavyweight Champion of the Highway” Ballard and concluded that Bundgaard should be charged with assault.Ballard was initially charged with assault following the fight, but that charge was dropped after…
The Arizona Court of Appeals has agreed that Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley did not violate any financial disclosure law, ending a tainted criminal case against him. The ruling today is another major blow to former County Attorney Andrew Thomas, who could be disbarred in an upcoming discipline hearing related to his…
Arizona Department of Transportation crews checking a drain near a Valley freeway yesterday afternoon made a pretty gruesome discovery: human skeletal remains.According to the Phoenix Police Department, about 2 p.m. yesterday, ADOT crews were checking a storm drain near the on-ramp to the I-!0 and the Loop-202 just north of…
The defending NCAA champion Duke Blue Devils will strut into the basketball arena in Anaheim later today brimming with confidence, fully expecting to leave as the victor over the Pac-10’s Arizona Wildcats in a Sweet 16 contest. Yes, the Blue Devils are as well-coached and deep as ever, and the…
The Phoenix Suns kept their playoff hopes alive last night with a 114-106 victory over the terrible Toronto Raptors. For awhile, it looked like the Suns were going to let another home game against a lousy team slip away. Planet Orange played tired for much of the contest, no doubt…
Arizona Congressman Jeff Flake announced earlier this week that he’s changing his stance on comprehensive immigration reform in order to focus on securing the border. Flake, a one-time rare-for-Arizona Republican advocate of a guest-worker program and a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants, now says he’s only focused on securing…
Editor’s note: A March 11 post on our culture blog, Jackalope Ranch, got so much attention in Yuma — a front page story in the Yuma Daily Sun, airtime on the NBC television affiliate, talk of a billboard in downtown Phoenix — we decided to share it this week in…
The push by advocates to gain publicity at any cost often involves local law enforcement. Once again, the Super Bowl became a platform to push a religious agenda and bogus numbers. Last November, Dallas Police Sgt. Louis Felini was quoted predicting that up to 100,000 prostitutes would descend on the…
There’s an old saying in journalism: If your mother says she loves you, check it out. It’s a facetious way of saying: Trust no one, verify everything. Yet some of the biggest, most respected media outlets in the country failed to perform their due diligence when it came to the…
The 2010 Village Voice Media series “Amongst U.S.” has been selected to receive the Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism at a March 30 ceremony at Hunter College in New York City. Writers from VVM newspapers across the country contributed to the series, including Monica Alonzo, Stephen Lemons, and Paul…
ROCKY ROAD Don’t want to be caught in the crossfire: It’s a sad state of affairs in Rocky Point (“Scarecation,” Ray Stern, March 10). I personally hope the place doesn’t go under [economically], because I have loved going there for more than 20 years. But it is Mexico, and as…
I often pick up the Albuquerque Alibi to read your babosadas. Now, let me get this straight: You appear to be a bright guy who claims to have the Mexican people all figured out, right? To you, we are all 5-foot-6, medium-complexion, and we all pray to Moctezuma to come…
A deceptively simple assault prosecution involving a Maricopa County sheriff’s deputy and a Gila Bend couple has ended after nearly two years and more machinations than in some murder cases. The case of State of Arizona vs. Clemente and Maria Hinojosa concluded, happily for the couple, with something of a…
ATTORNEYS REPRESENTING CRAIGSLIST told Congress on September 15 that the ubiquitous web classifieds site was closing its adult section. Under intense scrutiny from the government and crusading advocacy groups, as well as state attorneys general, owner Craig Newmark memorably applied the label “Censored” in his classifieds where adult advertising once…
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:…
A Kingman-area man fell off a 150-foot cliff near his home and was stranded for four days in rainy, cold weather before being found. Merideth Isom, 66, was walking on his property about 10 miles north of Kingman, intending to give treats to his dog, when he fell off…
Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman, who faces a second-degree murder charge in the October 5 shooting death of South Phoenix resident Daniel Rodriguez, was terminated today by the City of Phoenix. Phoenix Police Department spokesman Sergeant Tommy Thompson issued the following statement to the press via e-mail:”In answer to questions…
An exit report given to the Glendale Elementary School District by substitute teacher Tony Hill backs up — in part, anyway — a letter he wrote that criticized his students’ behavior. Hill’s letter created quite a stir since it was sent to State Senator Russell Pearce a couple of weeks ago…
The Arizona Republic took a look at what Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon hopes to accomplish in the final months of his time in office.It was a sweet piece looking at how Gordon is trying to execute his lofty goals in the scant nine months he has in office.And what a…
Arizona’s conservative, anti-immigrant politics help make it a “failed state,” says the Boston Review in a lengthy article published today. The piece makes plenty of good points, but gets watered down by writer Tom Barry’s overly simplistic solution. If Arizona simply raised taxes, elected liberal leaders, embraced the federal government as…
