State Senate President Russell Pearce and his political hatchet-bearer Constantin Querard must have Tom Ryan dolls they push pins into at night. Attorney Ryan, who brought the lawsuit that forced sham candidate Olivia Cortes out of the recall race in Legislative District 18, is coming after Pearce and Querard like…
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio met with leaders from the Methodist Border Mission Network at his Phoenix office this afternoon to discuss — amongst other things — some issues the group has with the sheriff’s policies towards illegal immigration.But that’s not the big news — the big news is that…
Remember that line from M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense, “I see dead people”? Well, if you’re familiar with the residents of Mesa, you’ll see some deceased individuals on state Senate President Russell Pearce’s campaign Web site, as part of his lengthy “Friends of Russell” list.You’ll also see some names…
Congratulations to the New Times reader who goes by the handle Painful Rectal Itch, you are the proud winner of this week’s New Times You Write the Caption contest (and you gave us an excuse to use the term “painful rectal itch” in a headline). On Friday, we asked readers…
Eye of the tiger, indeed…State Senate hopeful Jerry Lewis, the man seeking to topple the most powerful politician in Arizona, landed several verbal blows both during and after his debate in Mesa Thursday with state Senate President Russell Pearce, as you can see in this latest video from my colleague…
The last time Under Siege star Steven Seagal was in town, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office took some heat when it used a tank to apprehend a suspected cockfighter. The criticism went further when allegations surfaced that Seagal murdered a puppy.The allegations that Seagal killed a puppy haven’t been proven,…
Facebook calls it a glitch, but a Scottsdale woman and her Phoenix lawyer want to be compensated for the social media site’s surreptitious tracking of Web browsing history.Former state Attorney General Grant Woods filed the federal complaint on Friday for his client, Sharon Beatty of Scottsdale. But Woods is asking…
Last week, we asked our readers to offer suggestions for an appropriate caption for the above photo of Maricopa County Joe Arpaio’s aging goon squad for this week’s New Times’ You Write the Caption contest..We had 80 responses in the comment section of the post, which you can see by…
Speaking of Ed Moriarity, the Montana lawyer recently helped a local boxer and boxing trainer file a lawsuit against Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox, Janet Napolitano, and a raft of other defendants.Boxer Luis “Yori Boy” Campas and promoter Joe Diaz filed a $43 million claim against the county back…
Dennis Gilman’s video of Ryan’s press conference yesterdayAttorney Tom Ryan was in rare form Thursday afternoon as he faced the media with his client, Mary Lou Boettcher, the plaintiff in the lawsuit against sham candidate Olivia Cortes, and his co-counsel H. Micheal Wright. The scene was Mesa’s Wright House, owned…
At 11 a.m. today, Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, and nine other Arizona sheriffs, will hold a press conference at the Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza at the State Capitol to discuss the federal government’s bungled gun trafficking sting, “Operation Fast and Furious.”Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio will not be in…
In honor of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s 20th “crime suppression” sweep, we’ve chosen the above photo of the sheriff’s youthfully challenged goon squad we snapped yesterday as the sheriff announced his raid on southwest Phoenix.To be fair, not all of the henchmen Arpaio picked for his sweep were of…
When asked this afternoon why he spends so much time putzin’ around Maricopa County in search of illegal immigrants and petty criminals during his “crime suppression sweeps,” as opposed to focusing the resources of the sheriff’s office on more dangerous criminal activity, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said the following:”I’m…
Hours before she was to appear at a candidates’ forum in Mesa and one day before a second, scheduled evidentiary hearing in Maricopa County Superior Court over her sham campaign, Olivia Cortes this morning officially withdrew her candidacy for state Senate at the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office. SOS spokesman…
I am forever amazed that otherwise seemingly sane politicians seek and accept the endorsement of the grab bag of certifiable nuts, conspiracy theorists, and bigots that make up the Tea Party. Though I know I shouldn’t be.After all, politicians are shameless and at one time in American history, the Ku…
If you’re a criminal, illegal immigrant, or just don’t want to get hassled by Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s boys in beige, avoid West Phoenix tomorrow — the MCSO’s staging its latest “crime-suppression operation.”The MCSO isn’t saying where it will focus its op, only noting that it will be in Phoenix and…
Just when you thought you could go one day without more shenanigans from the pro-Pearce crowd, here comes Anthony Tsontakis, attorney for sham recall candidate Olivia Cortes, with a desperate appeal to the Arizona Supreme Court, seeking to halt a Friday hearing where more evidence is to be introduced in…
It ain’t over till it’s over, and the lawsuit challenging the sham recall candidacy of Olivia Cortes ain’t over, yet.Though Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Edward Burke yesterday refused to remove Cortes from the ballot, on Friday at 3:30, he will allow the plaintiff’s lawyers, Tom Ryan and H. Michael…
Scottsdale Lieutenant Mike Stauffer announced that he’s switching party affiliation in his push to unseat Joe Arpaio as the sheriff of Maricopa County.Stauffer, a life-long Republican, originally planned to face Arpaio in a GOP primary as a Republican. He’s now running as an Independent.See Stauffer’s explanation of his decision here.It’s…
Bradford Lund, heir to an immense Disney fortune and son of local developer Bill Lund, wants a federal judge to fire his state-appointed legal guardian.Lund, his father, and other members of the family have been embroiled in a nasty fight over hundreds of millions of dollars in a trust left…
Despite an 11th hour motion asking for a delay in a ruling in the lawsuit aimed at sham recall candidate Olivia Cortes, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Edward Burke denied the plaintiff’s application for a temporary restraining order, leaving Cortes on the November 8 ballot in Legislative District 18.In his…
UPDATE: Judge Burke has just ruled thrown out the complaint, despite this 11th hour effort by Wright and Ryan. Will post decision shortly.UPDATE 2, 1:30 PM: You can read Burke’s ruling, here.CORRECTION: The judge denied a request for a temporary restraining order. The lawsuit is still alive, though Cortes will remain…
