Greenlee County’s population of about 8,500 supports only one pharmacy. Yet a plan devised by the state Department of Health Services could mean the rural area of eastern Arizona will be home to a marijuana dispensary. It seems unlikely that anyone would decide voluntarily to open a specialty retail store catering…
The Green Bay Packers are headed to the Super Bowl this Sunday, which means one thing for those of us in civilized society (a.k.a. anywhere but Wisconsin): we’re gonna have sit back and listen to the Midwestern drivel coming from the mouths of Packer fans for roughly the next week.Packer…
As New Times and other news media reported on Monday, the latest proposed medical pot guidelines restrict the number of dispensaries to arbitrary boundaries known by their cute acronym: CHAAs. Each of the 124 state-licensed dispensaries could inhabit no more than one CHAA, and would be selected at random from the pool of applicants…
Jared Lee Loughner should run for the Arizona state Legislature. He’d feel right at home, particularly amongst the Russell Pearce Republicans, who are so delusional and high on their own supply right now that I’m half expecting to see state Senate President Pearce dressed up as Napoleon next time I…
The Arizona Cattleman’s Association is not impressed with a speech given by Homeland Security Director Janet Napolitano this week, in which, the group says, she “abandoned her mantra of the past year that the U.S. Mexican Border…’is more secure than ever.'” During a speech at the University of Texas’ El…
When the Gilbert Police Department parked a “bait car” near 950 North Gilbert Road Sunday night, they probably thought they’d nab someone trying to steal a stereo, or maybe even the car itself. But 18-year-old Anthony Rubio upped the ante: he burned the car to a crisp.According to court records,…
A peaceful February afternoon was disrupted for a Phoenix family yesterday when a completely naked man hopped a fence and strutted around their backyard. After being taken into custody, the man had an interesting plan, which he described to police in way (way) too much detail.Cops got a call about…
Governor Jan Brewer signed into law a measure that allows local governments to annex property without a property owner’s consent under certain circumstances.It is the latest attempt by desperate Glendale politicians to block the Tohono O’odham Nation from building a resort-style casino in the West Valley near the Phoenix Coyotes’…
The Arizona prison escapee who planned to commit suicide-by-bear while a fugitive last summer has pleaded not guilty to two murders he allegedly committed while on the run in New Mexico.Tracy Province was in federal court in Albuquerque this morning, where he pleaded not guilty to the murders of Linda…
We suspect that Allen probably would help most anyone (well, probably not an undocumented immigrant) out with a bite to eat if he or she knocked on her front door and asked nicely. But, Jeez, the quotes from this elected official in this morning’s Arizona Republic are cold-blooded enough to make…
State Representative Steve Montenegro seems to think he represents a district in China — where aborting babies based on sex or race might actually be a problem.Montenegro’s introduced two bizarre bills into the legislature — one that would require women getting an abortion to sign a document promising they aren’t…
The Tempe Police Department announced last night that the body found in Tempe Town Lake last week has been positively identified as Willie Jigba, a Tempe man reported missing more than two weeks ago.On Monday, authorities tentatively identified the body as Jigba’s. Yesterday, the medical examiner confirmed through fingerprint analysis…
The egg is on the face of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee this morning for calling Arizona Congressman Ben Quayle a “hypocrite” for accepting government funded health care. The problem being Quayle never actually accepted it.The DCCC put out a press release yesterday with the headline “Health care hypocrite Ben…
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:…
If you have the misfortune of standing within earshot of a Pittsburgh Steelers fan during the next seven days, you will hear him say some really, really dumb stuff.Part of that can’t be helped — the Steelers are Appalachia’s Team and native-born fans speak in a distinct hillbilly dialect that’s…
Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice (AACJ) held a press conference this morning to announce the release of a report highlighting the need for sentencing reform. The study, conducted by Judith Greene of Justice Strategies, notes that the state’s criminal justice policies have “been among the harshest in the nation for…
More than 2,000 underage drinkers in Tempe had some pretty crappy fake IDs last year. The Tempe Police Department announced Tuesday that 2,064 fictitiously used IDs were seized by police and Tempe’s Downtown District bars in 2010, all from under-21ers trying to get into liquor establishments…
The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club and this newspaper have an (ahem) interesting relationship. Every time we write about the gang (literally every time), the comment section of each blog post erupts with comments from people accusing the group of molesting children, cooking meth, and various other crimes. Members of the…
Carrying around $14,000 in cash is a bit suspicious. Throw a few guns, brass knuckles, knives, burglary tools, marijuana, meth, and heroin into the mix, and cops are definitely going to ask questions, which they did of a Phoenix man yesterday. Mark Anthony Kukawski racked up six felony charges during…
The voter-approved medical marijuana system doesn’t go far enough for one Republican lawmaker. Under a bill introduced by Representative John Fillmore of Apache Junction, possession of two ounces or less of marijuana — by anyone — would become a petty offense and carry a fine of only $100. Fillmore…
Has your spouse made your life a living hell? Want out of the marriage as quickly as possible? There’s an alternative to homicide called divorce, and the morality cops over at the Arizona State Legislature want to make it as hard, drawn-out, and painful as humanly possible.For the second time…
Phoenix police are searching for three men who robbed a CVS Pharmacy of more than 5,000 prescription pills early Thursday morning. Police say most of the approximately 5,200 pills taken from the pharmacy were OxyContin, a powerful painkiller Rush Limbaugh was once known to eat like candy used to treat…
