Email Author Monica Alonzo

Awards

• 2011 - Best of the West/First Amendment Funding, Inc., published December 16, 2010

  "Cloaked Brutality"

• 2011 - Best of the West/First Amendment Funding, Inc., published August 12, 2010

  "Seized"

• 2011 - Arizona Press Club Awards

  Valley Fever

• 2011 - Southern California Journalism Awards/LA Press Club, published December 16, 2010

  "Culture of Cruelty"

More

2010 Stories by Monica Alonzo

• Bus Union Contracts Extended To Sept 30; Transit Company Pushes For Worker Wage Cuts While Upping Execs' Pay and Perks

  published Sep 02, 2010

  No deal has yet been reached between Veolia Transportation, the company that operates Phoenix city buses, and the three unions that represent its employees. They have extended their contracts through ... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  Governor Jan Brewer "Has Did" Awful Job Debating During Gubernatorial Debate

  published Sep 02, 2010

  rIf you missed the hour-long gubernatorial debate on Horizon last night, you missed a train wreck performance by Gov. Jan Brewer. The hour-long session with the Brewer (Republican), Terry Goddar... More >>

• El Mirage City Manager B.J. Cornwall Directed By City Council to Reinstate the Firefighters He Laid Off

  published Sep 01, 2010

  El Mirage firefighters emerged victorious this week when the City Council voted 4-2 to reinstate the firefighters that City Manager B.J. Cornwall laid off in August.But they knew their victory was mer... More >>

• Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon's "Suggestion" Helps Transportation Company Muscle Nearly $30 Million From Phoenix

  published Aug 31, 2010

  Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon isn't supposed to be meddling in discussions or matters involving Veolia Transportation, the company that operates most of the city buses and has Gordon's girlfriend on its p... More >>

• El Mirage City Council Reconsiders City Manager BJ Cornwall's Decision To Lay Off Six Firefighters

  published Aug 30, 2010

  r Something isn't right in El Mirage. City Manager BJ Cornwall laid off six firefighters on August 6 even though firefighter union reps came up with enough money to bridge more than their share o... More >>

• Vernon Parker's Fund-Raising Party Guest List Included TheDirty's Nik Richie

  published Aug 11, 2010

  Vernon Parker's mouthpiece Jason Rose and other conservative politicos have been squawking much about the Ben Quayle connection to Nik Richie's scandalously sexy website thedirty.com.It's been part of... More >>

• 

  COVER STORY

  Seized: Inside the Brutal World of America's Kidnapping Capital

  published August 12, 2010

  Maria was drifting off to sleep on the bedroom floor. She could hear women getting raped in the next room. Only she didn't hear screams —... More >>

• Phoenix Transit Workers Protest as Veolia Brings in "Strike Busters"

  published Aug 10, 2010

  rVeolia Transportation officials and representatives of the three local transit unions continue to negotiate labor contracts and have managed to avoid a bus strike in Phoenix. So far. But more tha... More >>

• Judicial Watch Lawsuit Against Phoenix for Refusing to Release Mayor Phil Gordon's Security-Detail Logs Set for September 27 Hearing

  published Aug 02, 2010

  rPhoenix officials are scheduled to appear in Maricopa County Superior Court on September 27 to further explain why they are refusing to release Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon's security-detail logs.... More >>

• U.S. Air Force Likely to Assign F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to Luke Air Force Base

  published Jul 29, 2010

  rAlthough environmental studies are not yet complete, word is out that the U.S. Air Force considers Luke Air Force Base in Glendale the "preferred" home for its newest war bird: the F-35 Joint Str... More >>

• Tohono O'odham Nation's West Valley Land Closer to Becoming Part of the Tribe's Reservation, Feds Decide

  published Jul 23, 2010

  After a long battle, the Tohono O'odham Nation emerged victorious today when the feds accepted the tribe's West Valley land into "trust."This isn't the final step, but it is a major one for the Indian... More >>

• Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon's Staff Thins Out; Chief of Staff Heads to 12th Floor

  published Jul 23, 2010

  rPhoenix Mayor Phil Gordon ended the week down two staffers.Today was Debra Stark's last day as Mayor's Chief of Staff. On Monday, she moves into her new role as Executive Assistant to the City... More >>

• UPDATE: No Bus Strike In Phoenix Come Monday; Union Contract Extended to August 15

  published Jul 23, 2010

  Phoenix bus-riders have been spared a bus strike come Monday ...The Teamsters Local Union No. 104, which represents the employees who fuel and clean the buses, extended its contract until August 15.Th... More >>

• Phoenix Warns of Bus Strike; $6.2 million Worth of Unpaid Employee Sick Leave is Part of Ongoing Negotiations

  published Jul 23, 2010

  rPhoenix sounded the alarms this week to prepare the public for a possible bus strike as talks continue with one of the transit unions.Negotiations are expected to continue throughout the day wi... More >>

• Rachel Alexander Stumps for J.D. Hayworth on Facebook, Writes That "McCain Mafia" is Threatening Her Political Career

  published Jun 24, 2010

  rRachel Alexander -- stumping for J.D. Hayworth -- has been complaining on Facebook that Senator John McCain's people are threatening her and trying to ruin her political career.But, um, wasn't ... More >>

• Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon Gets Into Arizona D-Backs' Game Free; Arizona Law Says That's a No-No

  published Jun 21, 2010

  rPhoenix Mayor Phil Gordon is many things, but not much of a sports fan. That didn't stop him from attending a Opening Day game for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Interesting because Arizona ... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon Says He "Values Transparency," Yet He Refuses To Answer A Host Of Questions, Including Who Paid For Him And His Girlfriend To Attend Two Super Bowl Games

  published Jun 18, 2010

  r Oh, the irony of all ironies. Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon sent out a letter today to Phoenix residents on the city budget with an opening line that read: "In the City of Phoenix, we value t... More >>

• Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon Enjoys Standing Ovation in Oklahoma for Blasting SB 1070, but Would They Have Cheered Him if They Knew He Approved Of a Similar Measure in Phoenix a Few Years Agor

  published Jun 15, 2010

  rPhoenix Mayor Phil Gordon is center-stage in highlighting the evils of SB 1070. He has become a champion to many in the Latino community for publicly condemning the misguided law that makes it ... More >>

• El Mirage Mayor Michelle Kern Wants Her Successor To Put Residents' Needs Above The Needs of the State, Luke Air Force

  published Jun 11, 2010

  El Mirage Mayor Michele Kern isn't seeking re-election, but she hopes that whoever replaces will focus on the residents and make decisions that are in their best interest. She has serious reservations... More >>

• Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon's Lack Of Transparency, Accountability Should Be On List of Story Ideas City Suggests to Media

  published Jun 03, 2010

  rEvery month the city of Phoenix Public Information Office sends out a blast to media with story ideas reporters might consider covering on a slow news day.Some of the June story ideas include cov... More >>

• El Mirage Probably Will See Complete Turnover on City Council, Effectively Silencing Concerns Over Potential Noise-Impact of F-35s On Residents' Quality of Life, Property Values

  published Jun 02, 2010

  rLooks like major change is on the horizon for El Mirage, a West Valley city where five out of seven seats on the City Council are up for grabs. The deadline for potential candidates to fil... More >>

• Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon Continues to Dodge Questions From New Times

  published May 28, 2010

  rPhoenix Mayor Phil Gordon apparently os breaking his silence about the State of Downtown Fund, graciously granting the Arizona Republic an interview. The article states that Gordon is... More >>

• Judicial Watch Files Lawsuit Against Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon to Force Release of Security-Detail Logs

  published May 24, 2010

  rJudicial Watch made good on its pledge to slap Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon with a lawsuit  because he and the city's legal advisers refuse to release "documents related to [Gordon's] taxpayer-... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  UPDATE: Phoenix Councilwoman Peggy Neely Announces Only That She Is Thinking About Running For Mayor

  published May 21, 2010

  rPhoenix Councilwoman Peggy Neely stopped short of saying she was running for mayor this morning at a press conference, announcing instead that she was forming an exploratory committee.Snooze. S... More >>

• Phoenix Councilwoman Peggy Neely Expected to Announce on Friday What Everyone Already Knew: She's Running for Mayor of Phoenix

  published May 21, 2010

  rPhoenix Councilwoman Peggy Neely is expected to officially announce her bid for mayor of Phoenix this morning at the Westin Kierland Golf Club in Scottsdale. (It's really in Phoenix, but they l... More >>