National Basketball Association. Come on, the Suns are in a rebuilding mode. From the looks of things so far, we predict they’ll be only slightly more competitive next season than the Arizona Diamondbacks have been this summer. Barring a major trade, look for the Suns to be a .500…
Arizona House Majority Leader John McComish (R-Ahwatukee) has found a polite way to tell freshman Representative Rae Waters (D-Ahwatukee) that her often loopy legislating could use a little work. Last week, McComish recommended Waters, who has an almost deer-in-the-headlights charm about her, participate in the Western Legislative Academy, a…
Ten years ago, a team of Canadian defense lawyers and diplomats pressed then-Maricopa County Attorney Richard Romley to spare the life of a man convicted of murdering an elderly Valley woman. Romley relented, deciding not to seek the death penalty against Paul Pilipow (pictured) and persuading the victim’s family to see…
Aarti Shahani talks 287(g) on GRITtv This video from Laura Flanders’ GRITtv is a must-watch for anyone concerned about Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano’s recent expansion of ICE’s 287(g) program — the program, which in Flanders’ words, “turns traffic cops into deportation agents.” The 10 minute clip features Aarti Shahani, co-author of the…
We just found a reason to support Phoenix City Councilman Sal DiCiccio’s proposal to regulate door-to-door salespeople: Jesse Lee Wise. As we reported Friday, Wise was arrested last week in Chesapeake, Virginia, and accused by police of taking a bus from the Valley to meet a 13-year-old chat-room buddy…
Here’s an update for those following the nomination of our intrepid algae-to-rocket fuel ASU inventors for the World Technology Award: Looks like scientists Qiang Hu and Milton Sommerfeld fell just short: The energy award was given on Friday to Zhengrong Shi from Suntech Power Holdings Co., for his work on…
Layoffs must be affecting judgment over at the Arizona Republic. What else can explain the poor journalistic decisions being made at the state’s largest, ever-shrinking daily newspaper? Greg Patterson of Espresso Pundit picked up on a couple of “What were they thinking?” snippets recently, including one over the weekend that nails the Repub…
As if it weren’t painfully obvious as they muddle through the 2009 season, the non-contending Arizona Diamondbacks are sellers, not buyers, on the trade market this July. So, after Sunday’s loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, the D-Backs shipped leadoff hitter and second baseman Felipe Lopez to the Cards’ division…
The Arizona Diamondbacks started the second half of the season just as they played most of the first half: on the losing side of a series. And true to form, it was all-pitch/no-hit this weekend in St. Louis. Each of the Diamondbacks’ three starters in the series — Jon Garland,…
In the latest four-alarm fire at a Valley structure (Richardson’s restaurant was destroyed last week), firefighters are battling a huge blaze at a recycling plant in Glendale. The fire broke out at 8 p.m. last night at the Tempe-Inland Inc. facility, and crews are expected to battle the blaze most of…
Has DHS given the pro-immigration crowd the ol’ pitch and switch? Have lefties been snowed by ICE? It was with great fanfare last week that Janet Napolitano’s Department of Homeland Security announced brand, spanking new rules governing the agreements that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has with local law enforcement agencies, such as…
ASU The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at ASU The memory of the late CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite is already leaving a lasting impression on the students whose school bears his name. Their Facebook pages, too. For anyone with a “friendlist” comprised of scores of…
Walter Cronkite, famous CBS anchorman known as “the most trusted man in America,” and long-time mentor to Arizona State University School of Journalism students, died today at his New York home. He was 92. The illustrious journalist–after whom the ASU journalism program is named–has been a pivotal figure for the…
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: Feathered Bastard: George Gascon vs. Joe Arpaio: The New Yorker’s William Finnegan on Joe’s Mesa Raid Comment…
This just in: A neo-Nazi who’s the son of a former political opponent of Maricopa County Sheriff Arpaio has lost the appeal of his murder conviction and challenge to his death sentence. Read today’s Arizona Supreme Court’s opinion on Patrick Bearup by clicking here. At right is his most recent photo…
Image: www.local-motors.com Rally Fighter A custom car company plans on producing off-road vehicles from a “micro-factory” somewhere in the Valley as soon as next year. Local Motors Company, based in Massachussetts, is already taking orders for its first car, the Rally Fighter, a $50,000 dune-buggy-type vehicle. The Phoenix Business Journal…
A schoolteacher who fatally shot a man while hiking alone in Arizona’s high country, becoming the poster boy for self-defense rights, won’t face another trial and will soon be freed from prison. The Payson Roundup reported yesterday that Coconino County Attorney David Rozema decided it wouldn’t be worth the time and hassle…
If you had told Wayne Gretzky when he was 17 years old and already playing professional hockey, that he would some day be going to court over a hockey team in Phoenix, he probably would have looked puzzled and asked: “Where?” But, here we are, and here he is. Phoenix has a…
The city of Phoenix announced today it will receive $830,000 in federal stimulus funds to “reduce diesel emissions by retrofitting and replacing city-owned equipment.” Forgive us if we don’t stand up and cheer. This money, half of which the feds are borrowing the future, isn’t going to make a wisp…
Image: Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office Raymond Steele, Levi Blanton and Russell Westergard Are the Juggalos a “criminal street gang” or not? We say no. Mesa police — in this case, anyway — say yes. Cops busted a trio of woop-woopers on Wednesday in connection with four break-ins at a deaf school. According…
An agent with the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and a Customs officer were arrested this morning after being indicted on suspicion of stealing government money. Agent Michael J. Kittson, 34, and U.S. Customs Patrol Officer Douglas R. Bothof are named in a 47-count indictment that accuses them…
There’s no question about it: the Phoenix Mercury’s Diana Taurasi’s the face of the Women’s National Basketball Association. A college standout at UConn and an Olympic champion, she’s the biggest women’s basketball player of all time. Not in physical stature (she a 6-foot guard), but in talent and fan appreciation. Take a look…
