Richard Chrisman

Did Phoenix Police Need to Kill Zachariah Pithan?

During the uproar over the 2010 shooting death of South Phoenix resident Danny Rodriguez by former Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman, I often wondered why two Phoenix cops could not subdue one unarmed man without resorting to lethal force. See also: -Richard Chrisman Report Released by Phoeni ... More >>

Inside Drenth: A Look at What Made a Fallen Cop Tick

Morning Poll: Does Review of Phoenix Kidnapping Stats Vindicate Former Police Chief Jack Harris

Jack Harris, it turns out, is not a statistic-inflating liar.​Former Phoenix police Chief Jack Harris was forced out of office because of allegations that his department inflated kidnapping statistics in order to obtain extra federal bucks. However, a panel reviewing the Phoenix's kidnapping numbe ... More >>

Feedback from the Issue of Thursday, May 12, 2011

Under Mark Spencer's Leadership, the Phoenix Police Union Has Become an Anti-Immigrant Juggernaut, to the Detriment of Its Members

Richard Chrisman's Lawyer Defends PLEA BBQ, Slimes Sergio Virgillo Yet Again

Jamie PeachyAttorney Craig Mehrens: Clarence Darrow, he ain't For a hot-shot legal beagle, Craig Mehrens sure seems to have plenty of time to write op-eds for the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association.His latest ditty for the Phoenix police union's Web site defends PLEA's all-day BBQ/fundraiser today ... More >>

Richard Chrisman BBQ at PLEA Offices Protested

Protesters berate cops coming out of the Chrisman BBQCops and other attendees had to run the gauntlet today at a BBQ/fundraiser for fired, killer-cop Richard Chrisman, held in an underground enclosure at the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association, the powerful police union that reps rank and file Phoen ... More >>

April 7 In Blogs: Richard Chrisman, Steampunk, Rachel Austin, El Chorro Lodge, and Boring Proms

​​​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:

Richard Chrisman, Killer Cop, Feted by PLEA at BBQ/Fundraiser this Thursday

azplea.comNo shame in PLEA's game, as you can see​I have to wonder if the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association would be so supportive of fired killer-cop Richard Chrisman if his victim had been white instead of Latino.PLEA has gone all out to back Chrisman, who has kept his lips zipped about the O ... More >>

April 5 In Blogs: Richard Chrisman, Spy Headquarters, The Flaming Lips, Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame, and Final Exit Network

​​​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:

Richard Chrisman, Killer Phoenix Cop, Canned

Chrisman:Scouring the want ads tonight?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 ... More >>

Richard Chrisman Shooting: Mother of Victim Files $30 Million Notice of Claim Against City of Phoenix

Richard Chrisman is accused in the 2010 murder of Daniel Rodriguez.​The mother of a Phoenix man senselessly shot by Phoenix police Officer Richard Chrisman last year has filed a $30 million notice of claim against the officer, the city of Phoenix, and the Phoenix Police Department for the wrongful ... More >>

An Outside Panel Will Probe Whether the PPD's Numbers on Kidnappings Were Cooked

Mark Spencer Lawyers-Up, Clams Up on Virgillo Smear

azplea.comSpencer: hear no evil, see no evil, and speak not to County Attorney investigators The Maricopa County Attorney's Office's investigation of the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association and its president Mark Spencer, the subject of this week's Bird column, produced a nice doorstop pile of docum ... More >>

Is KPHO in Mark Spencer's Pocket?

KPHO Cops the PLEA Line on a Report Swiped From Another Police Union, Flubbing the Story in the Process

Mark Spencer's Spin Machine, and KPHO's Flubbed Segment on Police Supes

KPHOThe "him" in "Fire him" is Mark Spencer, not Jack Harris... I have praised Channel 5/KPHO's reporters and producers in the past. I consider them colleagues. Not necessarily drinking-buddies. (Yet.) But I have fun chatting with them when I see them in the midst of the media scrum.Still, ... More >>

Richard Chrisman Shooting: Victim High on Meth Before Death. No Word on Sobriety of Dog Also Shot Dead

Officer Richard Chrisman​The domestic violence suspect shot and killed by Phoenix police Officer Richard Chrisman was apparently high on crystal meth when the Phoenix Police Department's Killer Cop gunned down him and his dog in a trailer in south Phoenix last year.A toxicology report released tod ... More >>

Richard Chrisman, Daniel Rodriguez's Autopsy Report, and PLEA's Spin

Forget the spin on Chrisman. Let a jury decide.As a follow-up to my colleague James King's recent blog item on Daniel Rodriguez's autopsy report and the fact that meth was found in his system, I'm posting the Maricopa County Medical Examiner's findings, here.One thing to keep in mind, a fact some se ... More >>

Richard Chrisman Pretrial Conference Set for January

A pre-trial conference for Officer Richard Chrisman has been scheduled for January 14.​A date has been set for a pretrial conference in the case of a Phoenix police officer accused of gunning down an unarmed domestic violence suspect -- and his dog -- earlier this year.The conference for Officer R ... More >>

Feedback from the Issue of Thursday, December 2, 2010

Phoenix P.D.'s Alleged Time Thieves Plead Not Guilty

​Three Phoenix police officers, and one former officer, were in Maricopa County Superior Court this morning, where they all pleaded not guilty to theft-related charges.Sergeant Benjamin Swarungsymun and officers Steven Peck and Aaron Lentz face theft charges, while former Officer George Contreras ... More >>

Joe Arpaio, Bill Montgomery and Montgomery's First Day as County Attorney

Bill Montgomery (right) being sworn in by Superior Court Judge Norm DavisAs Bill Montgomery was sworn in yesterday as Maricopa County Attorney, Sheriff Joe Arpaio sat glowering, Nixon-like, from the front row of the Board of Supervisors auditorium.After the ceremony, I asked Arpaio of he was checkin ... More >>

Richard Chrisman Report Released by Phoenix Police Department: Read It Here

Richard Chrisman, Phoenix cop and alleged murderer of Daniel RodriguezThe Phoenix Police Department report on the October 5 shooting of Daniel Rodriguez by Officer Richard Chrisman was released today. And there's plenty in it for both sides in this tragedy to make hay out of. Several officers r ... More >>

Rick Romley Says Police Union's Under Investigation in the Chrisman Murder Case

Twenty-five Officers Eyed in Phoenix PD Fraud Investigation -- Including Officer Richard Chrisman and Sergeant Sean Drenth

Stephen Lemons Phoenix police Chief Jack Harris says fraud allegations are "misconduct" not corruption.​Phoenix police Chief Jack Harris (yeah, we're still callin' him "chief" until he takes off the uniform) insisted this afternoon that the Phoenix Police Department is not a "corrupt organi ... More >>

Richard Chrisman, Phoenix P.D.'s Killer Cop, Wants New Grand Jury

Officer Richard Chrisman is accused of murdering an unarmed domestic violence suspect and his dog.​Lawyers for the Phoenix police officer accused of killing an unarmed man -- and his dog -- want a new grand jury to take a look at the officer's case.Officer Richard Chrisman was indicted for second- ... More >>

Richard Chrisman Hearing: Phoenix PD Witnesses Paint Different Picture of Shooting. Sounds a Little Blue Wall-y if You Ask Us

Officer Richard Chrisman​In a hearing held yesterday for the Phoenix police officer accused of killing an unarmed suspect last month, two officers who responded to the shooting scene minutes after it happened painted a different picture of the incident than that of the officer who actually saw the ... More >>

Judge Rules in Favor of Officer Richard Chrisman; Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris Can't Give Him the Boot -- Yet

Officer Richard Chrisman​It looks like the Phoenix police officer accused of murdering an unarmed domestic violence suspect -- and his dog -- as well as planting a crack pipe on a mentally ill homeless woman, will not be getting the boot from the department. A judge granted an injunction today tha ... More >>

Maricopa County's Brady List Includes Phoenix PD Internal Affairs Commander

Officer Chrisman's on the Brady list, but so is the Phoenix PD's Commander for Internal Affairs Since the indictment of Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman on a second degree murder charge in the slaying of south Phoenix resident Daniel Rodriguez, there's been much speculation about the so ... More >>

Phoenix PD Used to Smell Sweet Compared to the MCSO -- Now They Both Stink

UPDATED: Phoenix P.D.'s Killer Cop to be Arraigned This Morning -- This Time for Murder

Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman​Charged with assault and currently free on bail, the Phoenix police officer who fatally shot an unarmed domestic violence suspect -- and his dog -- will be in court this morning to be arraigned on new charges.Officer Richard Chrisman will be arraigned on cha ... More >>

KPHO Goes After Wife of Phoenix Officer Who Witnessed Police Shooting of Unarmed Man

www.amazon.com​KPHO ran story last night about the criminal history of the wife of the cop who witnessed Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman allegedly go berserk in a Phoenix trailer earlier this month, ultimately killing a dog and an unarmed man.That officer, Sergio Vergillo, was heralded by ... More >>

Phoenix Police Fatally Shoot Suspect. That's Two Shootings in Two Weeks -- This One Seems Justified

​For the second time in just under two weeks, a Phoenix police officer fatally shot a man suspected of a crime. Unlike the last shooting, where Officer Richard Chrisman inexplicably shot an unarmed domestic violence suspect -- and his dog -- the officers involved in yesterday's early-morning shoot ... More >>

Phoenix P.D.'s South Mountain Precinct Gets New Commander -- Two Racially-Charged, Highly-Publicized Incidents Later

​A highly controversial precinct of the Phoenix Police Department will have a new commander, Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris announced yesterday.Phoenix's South Mountain Precinct has been at the center of two high-profile, racially-charged incidents since March, so perhaps a change in leadership ... More >>

Phoenix P.D.'s Killer Cop Indicted for Murder -- and We Got Some Video of the Accused Officer Planting Crack Pipe on Woman

Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman​The Maricopa County Attorney's Office today announced that the officer involved in last week's shooting of an unarmed domestic violence suspect has been charged with murder.If you're unfamiliar with the case click here. It's nuts.The county attorney also pro ... More >>

Phoenix PD's Killer Cop: Lawyer Says Officer Justified in Killing Domestic Violence Suspect -- and His Dog

Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman​The attorney for the Phoenix police officer accused of fatally shooting a domestic violence suspect tells New Times an officer who witnessed the shooting is a liar.Craig Mehrens, the attorney for Officer Richard Chrisman, says information in a secondary poli ... More >>

Phoenix PD's Killer Cop -- Attention Fox 10's John Hook: You're Awesome

Fox 10's John Hook​Often is the case in local TV news that a reporter asks a tough question, the subject gives some bullshit answer, and the conversation moves on without any sort of resolution.As for Fox 10's John Hook: homey don't play dat.Following the shooting of an unarmed Phoenix man by a Ph ... More >>

Phoenix Cop Fatally Shoots Domestic Violence Suspect -- and His Dog -- For No Apparent Reason

Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman​Yesterday, we told you about an officer involved shooting in Phoenix. Details were limited, so we told you to check back later. We got the details and they're pretty nuts.According to court documents obtained by New Times, Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chri ... More >>