Granted, the Arizona Diamondbacks are not a well-oiled machine. We’re just not sure why. (Bad coaching? Poor team chemistry? Dodgy bullpen? Take your pick.) But there is one thing we know for certain: Thank goodness for Justin Upton. In the third, the should-be All-Star selection nailed a solo shot over…
> The New York Supreme Court approved the use of shocking a suspect with a Taser to force him to comply with a court order to give police a DNA sample. An article by Courthouse News about the decision makes it clear the Taser — made by a Scottsdale company…
Semper fake! A Scottsdale man is in big trouble for playing dress-up. Authorities say John William Rodriquez, 31, (pictured) presented himself at several local functions as a highly decorated U.S. Marine. A list of possible charges (see below) indicates Rodriquez may have been trying to earn money with the ruse,…
Chance may crown her. Thanks to missteps by Carrie Prejean that led to her firing by Donald Trump, Miss Arizona 2009, Alicia-Monique Blanco, could become Miss USA by default — as we suspected. It’s a longshot that depends on what happens to the current Miss USA, Kristen Dalton, say Miss Universe…
A couple of weeks ago, we asked Jay Heiler, spokesman for the Scottsdale office of the Australian speed-camera firm, Redflex, about the situation of out-of-state violators being visited by process servers. Heiler (at left) told us that Redflex wanted to be “transparent” about the issue and would get back to us. We…
Antonio Reid Cops want the public’s help to find two people suspected of involvement in a March murder. About 4 a.m. on March 14, Christopher Smith, 20, had been hanging with other partiers in front of a house near Indian School Road and 7th Avenue…
Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, Councilman Claude Mattox and officials with the Sister City program will kick off a fundraising effort this morning to benefit families of children burned in a Mexico day-care facility fire. At least 44 children were killed in the blaze. About 142 kids aged 6 months to…
How’s this for romantic: A University of Arizona professor found a new species of moth — one with beautiful pink wings — and named it after his wife, who likes the color pink. Tests proved the critter was a previously unknown species…
By the time the Arizona Diamondbacks caught up to San Francisco Giants pitcher Barry Zito on Wednesday night, the little things had all but done the D-Backs in. And by the “little things,” we mean putting down a sacrifice bunt, throwing accurately to first base on a pick-off attempt, and,…
Following President Obama’s decision in April to lift travel restrictions for Cuban-Americans, many Valley residents who have family in Cuba are taking trips to the country. Phoenix has a small but burgeoning Cuban-American community. Most other Americans are still barred from visiting Cuba or purchasing Cuban goods…A man in Wittmann…
I was riding the light rail when two female Mexicans sat down and start talking rapid-fire Spanish non-stop for 45 minutes! It seemed as if neither one stopped to take a breath of air. They were loud and could be heard the length of the train. Question: Is this why…
A HERO’S STORY War hero is deserving of a higher honor: What a life Tony Tercero’s lived! And Paul Rubin tells his story well. Tony does indeed deserve a higher honor from our government, whether he and his brother ran a big marijuana operation or not. It all happened after…
John Dickerson won the 2008 Livingston Award for Young Journalists in the local reporting category, for “Prescription for Disaster,” a series about poor regulation — and poor performance — of medical professionals in Arizona. Dickerson wrote the series while a staff writer at Phoenix New Times. Dickerson’s victory marks the…
Twenty years ago this December, a child’s apparent disappearance from the busy Metrocenter mall followed by the grisly discovery of his body in the desert north of Phoenix gripped the community. The 4-year-old was Christopher Milke. He had been shot three times in the back of his head from close…
The ugliest donnybrook to hit the Phoenix Police Department in years started with one man’s divorce. That man, Jeff Pataky, wasn’t a cop. He had nothing to do with cops, not at the time. He was just a software engineer-turned-blogger whose marriage had ended. But before all the issues in…
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:Darrell Ankarlo Learns “Compassion” After Traumatic Brain Injury, But Will He Bash the Brown When/If He…
In a response to the tragedy today at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum where 88-year-old white supremacist James von Brunn allegedly opened fire killing a security guard before being severely wounded himself, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon called on Sheriff Joe Arpaio to distance himself from his neo-Nazi and racist supporters.”I’m…
New Times columnist Sarah Fenske explained her concerns about the Arizona Clean Elections System this morning on the local NPR affiliate’s Here and Now, hosted by Steve Goldstein on KJZZ 91.5 FM. Fenske’s appearance on the program comes two months after the publication of her cover story, “The Dirty Truth About ‘Clean’ Elections,”…
We heard back from Rick Simonetta, CEO for Metro Light Rail, this week in response to our questions about the six-month-old system’s ticket-inspection processes. Or rather, the near-absence of any such processes. As we reported, Metro says that going by data from its random ticket inspectors, the light-rail system has…
Bar none, our favorite sporting event in the world is the the College Baseball World Series, played every year at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska. Been there just once, though, to watch and report on Arizona State’s third-place finish in the 1994 tournament. That was the one during which the Sun…
We got to know an awful lot about Jack Ballentine during 2005, the year we spent with him and his fellow Phoenix Police detectives of the C-32 squad — after which we published several stories in our “Murder City” series. Ballentine was and is a classic character: He worked as a…
Donald Trump stripped Miss California, Carrie Prejean, of her crown today — and also of her status as 1st Runner-Up for the 2009 Miss USA Pageant. The organization has already decided that Tammi Farrell, 1st Runner-Up for the Miss California pageant, will become Miss California. But what about the position…
