Vicki Christiansen, former Washington State Forester, has been appointed by Governor Jan Brewer to be the new Arizona State Forester and Director of the Arizona Division of Forestry.Brewer’s office made the announcement today, but a Google search shows Christiansen has been off and running for weeks now. On April 1,…

Average daily boardings of the Valley’s light-rail system dropped in March — a bad sign with the heat of summer and a substantial fare hike still weeks away.Stats just released by Metro Light Rail estimate that 972,962 riders boarded the system in March. That’s an average daily boarding of 31,386…

No degree for Obama, Arizona State University’s President Michael Crow decided after a couple of days’ second-guessing in the face of intense criticism.Instead, an hours-long meeting between university officials on Friday apparently has led to an unexpected “honor:” A scholarship will be named after the country’s first Black president. Whoo-hoo.We’re…

  The presidents of the state’s three universities want students to help cover a financial shortfall due to state budget cuts by paying more in fees. President Michael Crow of Arizona State University wrote in a letter to the Arizona Board of Regents that students should pay an extra $600…

The Arizona Republic ran a full-page ad in Spanish yesterday, making some newspaper readers wonder, “Que?” No, it wasn’t a test or an exercise in making non-bilingual gringos feel ignorant. The newspaper published the wrong ad, states a large correction notice on page A14 that’s opposite of the same full-page…

  Arizona State University President Michael Crow and other ASU officials have been in a long meeting this afternoon to decide how to best honor President Barack Obama when he arrives to give a commencement speech, say his secretary. Crow (pictured) and ASU have been the target of jokes and…

Arizona Attorney magazine published an article this month on the complexities of death penalty cases in Maricopa County and why they take so long to resolve. The article, by Superior Court Judge Robert Gottsfield and Marianne Alcorn, a scholar at Arizona State University, is “required reading” on the subject, says the…

  John Gray has fought for years to hold the state’s Child Protective Agency accountable for the 2005 death of his young daughter and honor the girl’s memory. The Ahwatukee man became an activist after his 4-year-old daughter, Haley (pictured), became locked accidently in a sweltering minivan and died while…

Local lawyer and former State Senator Chuck Blanchard will be returning to Washington D.C. soon to serve as the general counsel to the Air Force. Blanchard, a partner with the firm Perkins Coie, previously worked under the Clinton administration as general counsel to the Army and chief counsel to the…

A caller on KISS-FM (a.k.a. KZZP, 104.7-FM) this week who claimed to have witnessed a 1988 Kentucky murder may have been lying, say police. Phoenix homicide detectives interviewed the caller this morning. In a news release that seems to beat around several bushes, cops say “statements were made that he…

  The American Lung Association of Arizona is gearing up for a fundraiser this fall that will have participants bounding up the stairs at downtown Phoenix’s Renassiance Square. “Climb Phoenix” is a “vertical road race” that will have individuals or teams climbing the staircases of the Square’s two towers, for a…

Max Wilson, Chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, has agreed to meet with County Attorney Andrew Thomas to discuss a possible settlement to their lawsuit battle. In a letter today to Thomas, Wilson (pictured) notes the court decisions Thomas has recently lost and agrees litigation should continue during any…

  Meghan McCain, the “progressive conservative” daughter of Senator John McCain, has signed a book deal that will net her an advance in the “high six figures.” The New York Observer reports today that the local political princess shopped her idea around to other publishers before taking the offer from Hyperion…

  Tempe police reported today that a woman was arrested on suspicion of child endangerment after witnesess saw her pushing a baby in a stroller while drunk. Perhaps the most interesting part of this story, though, is the woman’s name: Fannie Jumbo. According to the Arizona Republic’s write-up of a…

  President Obama plans to move fairly quickly on immigration law reform, hoping to evolve a proposal for Congress to look at this fall that includes making illegal immigrants legal. The New York Times quotes administration officials who say Obama has made immigration a significant priority. He plans to talk to…

The producers of “Supernanny” and “It’s Me or the Dog” are looking for a few bad teens to star in an upcoming reality show in which kids trade in their parents for “The World’s Strictest Parents.” If you hear the call of show biz, strut on down to the Desert…

  Another day, another racial profiling allegation against the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. This one comes in the form of a lawsuit filed last month with the county Superior Court: Sheriff’s deputies assumed a Hispanic man jailed for an unpaid traffic ticket was an illegal immigrant and drove him to…

Senator John McCain grew visibly angry during a discussion about immigration issues with Hispanic business leaders, telling them “you people” made the choice in the presidential election, says a report by the National Journal Magazine. A spokesman for McCain called the accusation a form of “character assassination,” but the alleged quotes from…

Two former executives of the company that owns Checker Auto Parts — both local men — have been charged in a 31-count federal indictment with falsifying reports, lying to an auditor, and other schemes intended to manipulate the company’s reported earnings.  Former CSK executives Martin G. Fraser, 53, of Glendale,…