Subject: Don Stapley

• The Warehouse Tape

  County supervisors erase any notion of compromising to preserve historic buildings

  June 24, 1999

• Ethics, Morals and Sex Ads, Oh My!

  Letters from the week of May 16, 2002

  May 16, 2002

• Feedback from the Issue of Thursday, January 15, 2009

  January 15, 2009

• Stapley Case Update: Andrew Thomas Disses Us, Confuses Self With Dennis Wilenchik

    It's true: We've had an ongoing chuckle at the expense of Lisa Aubuchon, the hapless prosecutor assigned to the Don Stapley case. But Aubuchon's most recent filing in this case isn't so much funny as pathetic. For one thing, she disses us. (Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas' office, dissing us? Who would have thunk it?) For another, the poor prosecutor seems really, really confused on her boss' true identity. A tiny bit of background: Thomas's office indicted Ma

  January 14, 2009

• Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley Indicted on 118 Counts

  In an apparent followup to newspaper stories from the early 2000s, Maricopa County finally took action against shady county supervisor Don Stapley. A grand jury has  indicted Stapley on 118 criminal counts, alleging he failed to publicly disclose land deals and other business activities going back to when he was first elected in 1994. The charges include perjury, forgery, false swearing, and filing incomplete or false financial disclosure forms. New Times cov

  December 2, 2008

• Don Stapley's Videoed Statements to Deputies to be Released

  The Maricopa County Attorney's Office is preparing to release a video interview by sheriff's deputies of Don Stapley, who was indicted this week on multiple counts of failing to disclose financial transactions on campaign forms. Michael Scerbo, spokesman for county attorney Andrew Thomas, writes in a news release that the county supervisor made comments to deputies that were recorded on video when he was served with the indictment on Tuesday. Prosecutors are working with th

  December 4, 2008

• Hot Links: Sheriff's Captain Fined $315,000 in Campaign Scandal; Don Stapley Booked; Nude E-mailed Photos Popular

  County news doesn't get more interesting: Maricopa County Sheriff's Captain Joel Fox is fined $315,000 for a dirty donation made to the Republican Party. Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley is booked and released on suspicion of failing to disclose some real estate transactions on his campaign forms. In a form of free digital love, teens and adults are e-mailing tons of pictures of themselves in the buff. Accused sicko shooters mock their victims in a tape heard by jurors. Arizona's popula

  December 10, 2008

• Hot Links: Cops Arrest Four Following Hate Crime Attacks; Suns Trades Upset Nash; Cops to Enforce License Plate Cover Law

  Never trust a guy who's got a swastika tattooed on his forehead: Phoenix cops arrest four suspected white supremacists after two hate crime attacks. Steve Nash says he's "emotionally drained" following the Suns' trade of Raja Bell and Boris Diaw for Jason Richardson of the Charlotte Bobcats. This is news you can use: Take your license plate cover or you'll get pulled over thanks to a stricter new law. Local anti-gang cops keep up the great work this year with a round-up of 622 fugitive g

  December 11, 2008

• Dave Hendershott, Maricopa Sheriff's Office Chief, Accused of Possible Improper Influence Peddling in Stapley Case

  Dave Hendershott, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's right-hand man, may have improperly tried to influence county Superior Court staff in the case against Supervisor Don Stapley, a letter sent to Hendershott today from the court's attorney states. The accusation comes as part of an ongoing squabble over a request for the e-mails of of judges and court staff made by the Sheriff's Office last year. There's apparently no criminal matter at hand -- the MCSO s

  December 11, 2008

• Four MCSA Demonstrators Arrested Outside County Board of Supervisors Meeting, Dressed as Pets

  A chicken (activist Chris Fleischman) is interrogated by plainclothes po-po.According to witnesses and a spokesperson for the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, four members of Maricopa Citizens for Safety and Accountability, an activist group critical of the BOS and Sheriff Joe Arpaio, were arrested this morning while sitting quietly in a lobby outside where a BOS executive meeting was taking place.Apparently it took some 15 deputies from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office to arrest the fo

  December 15, 2008

• Don Stapley Case: Court Rejects Motion to Change Judge; Prosecutor Denied "Unusual Request" for Judge Interview

  A Maricopa County Superior Court judge today rejected a bid by County Attorney Andrew Thomas to change a judge in the politically loaded criminal case of County Supervisor Don Stapley. Thomas (pictured) feels retired Judge Kenneth Fields, assigned to the Stapley case, is biased against Thomas. New Times has also learned that one of the prosecutors handling the Stapley case for Thomas, Lisa Aubuchon, has been slapped down by the court's presiding judge for circumventing

  December 15, 2008

• Sonoran Alliance Anonymous Blogger Criticizes, Praises New Times Coverage of Don Stapley

  In looking at Sonoran Alliance blog post about Andrew Thomas running for state attorney general, we couldn't help but notice another post by our mostly anonymous friends -- this one about New Times.  It seems that "Pat," whoever that is, believes that New Times contradicts itself about indicted County Supervisor Don Stapley when one recent article in the newspaper is compared to two others. Further, Pat says the newspaper "loses all credibility" because of the supposed contradic

  December 16, 2008

• Don Stapley Case: Andrew Thomas Wages Battle Through Media on Claim of Biased Judge

  As noted in our recent blog post, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas' office was told recently to provide the Superior Court by Monday with evidence that a judge is too biased against Thomas to hear the case of criminally indicted County Supervisor Don Stapley. Thomas couldn't wait till Monday. He put out a news release today to continue his pissing match with the judicial branch in the media, touting the statement of a court employee w

  December 17, 2008

• Don Stapley Case: Andrew Thomas Offers Up "Experts" Who Say Stapley Judge is Biased

  If you don't believe Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas when he says the judge appointed to hear the Don Stapley criminal case is biased, maybe you'll believe the experts he rounded up. Thomas submitted affidavits to the county Superior Court today by the experts, consisting of two judges, an attorney and a law professor. It's the latest effort by Thomas to get retired Judge Kenneth Fields, who openly supported Thomas' political opponent this election season, kicked off the Stapley case

  December 18, 2008

• Stapley's the One Facing 118 Criminal Counts, but Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Got Financial Disclosure Problems of His Own

    Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley now faces118 criminal counts of failing to properly disclose his real estate dealings on public disclosure forms -- but Stapley apparently isn't the only guy who forgot to disclose all his real estate transactions. A New Times investigation reveals that Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who led the probe of Stapley (pictured), failed to disclose at least three transactions of his own. That's our conclusion after reviewing 15 years of the sheri

  December 19, 2008

• Conley Wolfwinkel's Office Raided by Sheriff's Office as Part of Don Stapley Case

  The Tempe offices of companies linked to Conley Wolfswinkel, a developer with a history of questionable land deals, were searched today by deputies as part of the criminal case against County Supervisor Don Stapley. The East Valley Tribune has a story about the raid, which apparently happened this morning. Details in theTrib article are scant in this breaking story, but Lisa Allen, spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, apparently confirmed the search was connected to the St

  January 22, 2009

• Jan. 22 In Blogs: Obama Inauguration, Willie Nelson, One Dollar Subs and More

  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: Arizona State University Journalism Professor Estimates Only About 800,000 Attended Obama Inauguration Conley Wolfwinkel's Office Raided by Sheriff's Office as Part of Don Stapley Case Feathered Bastard: Waiting for the Auditor General's Report on David Hendershott, th

  January 22, 2009

• Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Deputies Harass Members of Don Stapley Legal Expense Trust Fund

  Members of a trust fund set up to help pay legal expenses of embattled County Supervisor Don Stapley are being systematically harassed by deputies. Mark Flatten, (one of the few remaining reporters at the gutted East Valley Tribune), broke the latest chapter in the Stapley saga this morning. It's interesting stuff, but old news to New Times readers who understand Maricopa County Sheriff Arpaio's heavy-handed ways with political enemies. Ernie Baird, (pictured), received a call fro

  January 28, 2009

• Stapley Case Bombshell: Indicted Supervisor Disclosed Wolfswinkel Partnership to County Attorney in 2006

    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 in 2006. He also filed a "conflict of interest" letter with the clerk of the Board of Supervisors, a letter drafted with the

  February 3, 2009

• Hot Links: Investigators Search Gilbert Business in Stapley Case; NBA to Assist Valley's Needy; Coconino County to Charge $20 to Fight Speed Camera Ticket

  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 other countries falls off. Awww, "NBA Cares:" Basketball officials and players spread some good will in the Valley before the All-Star game on February 15. It'll cost you $20 bucks to fig

  February 4, 2009

• Don Stapley's County Office Searched by Deputies

  Deputies served a search warrant on Thursday at the county office of Don Stapley, a county supervisor who stands accused of numerous counts of felony campaign-paperwork violations. The search was the latest in connection with the questionable investigation of Stapley by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and County Attorney Andrew Thomas. Last month, deputies searched the East Valley offices of developer Conley Wolfswinkel, a former business partner of Stapley's. According to 

  February 26, 2009

• Judge Wants Explanation for Leaked File in Stapley Case (Sheriff Gave it to East Valley Tribune)

    Don Stapley wasn't there, but his case triggered a heated argument in court this morning.Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Larry Grant upbraided the Maricopa County Attorney's Office this morning for allowing the Sheriff's Office to give a sealed deposition to a newspaper reporter. The deposition, of East Valley developer Conley Wolfswinkel, had been subject to a protective order, agreed to by both sides in the complex, water-related lawsuit pending in Grant's courtroom. Th

  March 5, 2009

• County Creates New Civil Litigation Department With Money Taken From County Attorney Andrew Thomas

  The Maricopa County Board Supervisors today sealed the deal on their transfer of power over civil litigation matters out of the office of County Attorney Andrew Thomas (pictured). With a vote in their informal meeting this morning, the supervisors created a new department to handle civil lawsuits and funded it with $528,000 taken from Thomas' office. The meeting agenda claims the move will cause litigation costs to "decline over time." Here's the agenda item in full bureaucratese: &nbs

  March 16, 2009

• County Wants Lisa Aubuchon, Prosecutor in Don Stapley Case, Held Personally Liable for Release of Sealed Deposition

    The public feud between the county Board of Supervisors and the county attorney's office is getting more personal. Lawyers hired by the county supervisors want Lisa Aubuchon, the prosecutor in the criminal case against County Supervisor Don Stapley, held personally liable if a judge orders sanctions for Aubuchon's release of a sealed deposition. Minutiae? Hell, yeah -- but far-reaching minutiae -- especially from County Attorney Andrew Thomas' point of view. For the full ba

  March 18, 2009

• Andrew Thomas Spanked By Appeals Court

    That was fast. Two days ago, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas fired off a Hail Mary to the Court of Appeals, complaining that superior court judges are biased against him and asking the higher court to intervene. Today a three-justice appellate panel dismissed Thomas' petition for special action -- without even asking for a response from the other side, much less holding a hearing. The two-page opinion, signed by Division One Appellate Justices Phillip Hall, Maurice Portl

  March 26, 2009

• The Three US Airways Attendants Have Been Vindicated, So Why Doesn’t the Company Have Their Back?

  March 12, 2009

• It's Time to Kick Andrew Thomas Off the Stapley Investigation

  February 19, 2009

• Before Don Stapley’s Indictment, There Was the Land Deal

  January 1, 2009

• Feedback from the Issue of Thursday, December 25, 2008

  December 25, 2008

• Don Stapley’s Biggest Crime Was Failing to Hide His Real Estate Dealings as Well as Sheriff Joe Arpaio Did

  December 11, 2008

• Loose Screws

  The patriotic pigeon uses the bleedin’ facts to peck holes in the rantings of 9/11 conspiracy wacktivists!

  September 7, 2006

• Crack Addicts, Political Shenanigans and Indian Relics

  Only in Phoenix is this a formula for a real estate hustle

  May 9, 2002

• Suite and Low

  United Way loses thousands as county pols snag its World Series seats

  November 1, 2001

• Educating Don

  Despite repeated ethical lapses, Department of Real Estate exempts supervisor Stapley from minimum education requirements

  March 15, 2001

• Stapley Manner

  County Supervisor Don Stapley made a killing on a shady development and sank the profits into a mansion. Then he told the tax assessor to value his estate at $863,000 -- while listing it for sale at $2.5 million.

  June 1, 2000

• Continental Divide

  A development proposed for a north Valley slope has residents accusing the county of "collusion"

  October 7, 1999

• JERRY PANDERING BEGETS GERRYMANDERINGSUPERVISORS PLAY POLITICAL HOT POTATO WITH SUN CITY AND SUN CITY WEST

  September 7, 1995

• Don Stapley Criminal Case Won't Go Back to Grand Jury, Judge Decides

  Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Kenneth Fields ruled today that the criminal case against County Supervisor Don Stapley won't get sent back to a grand jury for reconsideration. Stapley's lawyers still have a chance on Tuesday to convince Fields to dismiss the 114 felony counts of failing to disclose information on his campaign finance forms. The afore-linked Arizona Republic article by former New Times writer Michael Kiefer notes the irony of Fields' decision, considering that Fields is su

  May 28, 2009

• Don Stapley Lawyers: Dozens of Public Officials Erred in Financial Disclosure Reporting, Including One Sheriff

  Don Stapley​We knew it!We've long been of the opinion that the disclosure forms mandated by the Arizona Secretary of State for public officials are confusing as hell. Every time we read these things, in fact, we find ourselves wondering how the doltish pols we typically deal with are able to sort them through.Now the confusion inherent in these forms has become part of the argument by indicted Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley. His lawyers recently filed a motion which details no fewer th

  August 4, 2009

• Don Stapley Case Update: 51 of 118 Criminal Counts Dismissed on Technicality

    ​It's 51 down, 67 criminal counts to go for Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley. The county leader under investigation and indictment for failure to follow campaign finance disclosure laws convinced Superior Court Judge Kenneth Fields to dismiss nearly half the counts on a technicality. Stapley's being strung up on a mix of felony and misdemeanor charges that he failed to properly list various sources of income on his disclosure forms, something New Times learned may be com

  August 25, 2009

• Thomas Ticked That Stapley Benefits in Criminal Case From Law He Failed to Properly Pass

  ​ It was a given that Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas was going to be miffed by the recent ruling on Don Stapley's case by Superior Court Judge Kenneth Fields. Thomas has been saying for months that Fields is biased against him and he tried to get the judge kicked off the case. Fields was brought out of retirement for the Stapley case by Presiding Judge Barbara Mundell, who the sheriff's office claims is under criminal investigation, (though under investigation for what, Sheriff Jo

  August 25, 2009

• Lawyer for Don Stapley Says County Attorney's Office, Not Stapley, Failed to Ensure County Adopted Campaign Finance Laws

  Paul Charlton​ Paul Charlton, former U.S. Attorney in Arizona and lawyer for indicted County Supervisor Don Stapley, says Andrew Thomas has only one person to blame -- himself -- for the embarrassing dismissal of 51 of 117 criminal counts against Stapley. As our follow-up post last night related, Thomas, the county attorney, claims that Stapley was "able to take advantage" of allegedly poor performance as a Supervisor. Thomas was irked after a judge tossed out the count

  August 26, 2009

• Don Stapley Victory: Prosecutor Drops Remaining Criminal Charges

    ​Don Stapley won. Andrew Thomas and Joe Arpaio lost. The Maricopa County Supervisor has been under a legal black cloud since December, when County Attorney Thomas slammed him with 118 felony counts of violating campaign finance law. But Thomas tossed the case to Yavapai County prosecutors after losing several key court battles, and a judge threw out 51 counts against Stapley in August. Now the whole case is history: The Yavapai County prosecutor in the case 

  September 18, 2009

• Joe Arpaio's 287(g) Stalled: Board of Supervisors Says It'll Sign After Feds Sign

  courtesy of Dennis Gilman/HumanLeague002 Supervisor Don Stapley, who backed Wilcox's move to table the sheriff's new MOA today The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors passed the buck back to the feds on Sheriff Joe's new 287(g) jails agreement this morning, authorizing Supes Chair Max Wilson to sign the document once Immigrations and Customs Enforcement honcho John Morton autographs it. Currently, only Arpaio and a deputy County Attorney have signed the authorization, which would allo

  October 7, 2009

• Joe Arpaio and Andrew Thomas: They're All About the Perp Walk

  October 8, 2009

• Stapley Resisted Handcuffing (Mildly), Say Deputies; Reports Don't Back Up Chief Deputy's Claim of Attempted Interference

  ​ Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley didn't order anyone to interfere with his September 21 arrest in a county parking garage -- and that's according to the deputies who arrested him. If you'll recall, Chief Deputy Dave Hendershott told us a couple of days after the arrest that Stapley had "ordered his protective service group to stop the deputies from making the arrest." The claim was more than just fodder for our blog: The sheriff's office is apparently using the tale of what yo

  October 19, 2009

• Feedback from the Issue of Thursday, October 22, 2009

  October 22, 2009

• Wilcox: No Conflict in Voting on Special Prosecutors Issue; Longtime County Supervisor is Under Investigation

  Image: Social Eye Media​ The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors voted today to publicly release a legal analysis that explains why County Attorney Andrew Thomas' request to hire special prosecutors wasn't being heard. Click here to read the eight-page analysis, which supports the Supervisors' decision to leave Thomas' request off the agenda for today's meeting. We covered the reasons, as explained to us by county officials, in a blog post yesterday. One interesting aspect to toda

  October 21, 2009

• Ex-U.S. Attorney David Iglesias on Joe Arpaio: "I Would Seek an Indictment" (w/Video)

  from CBS 5 KPHOFormer federal prosecutor David Iglesias said he would seek an indictment against Sheriff ArpaioCBS 5's nearly ten-minute segment on Sheriff Joe Arpaio's abuse of power last night did not disappoint. Essentially, reporter Morgan Loew and producer Gilbert Zermeno laid out all of the major cases of retaliation by the MCSO against the sheriff's political opponents: Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, ex-New Times staffer John Dougherty, Village Voice Me

  October 30, 2009

• Chuck Coughlin, Governor Brewer's Campaign Strategist, Tied to Demand Letter to Thomas on Stapley Case

  A couple of weeks ago, we heard about a demand letter received by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office from a local lawyer, Leonard Aragon, concerning the attempted prosecution of County Supervisor Don Stapley.Aragon insisted in his November 2 missive that County Attorney Andrew Thomas repay the money spent on lawyers Thomas wanted to hire as special prosecutors to go after Stapley. (Stapley, in case you haven't heard, has been accused of defrauding campaign contributors and failing to disclose

  November 16, 2009