Arizona Supreme Court Won’t Allow Retrial of Debra Milke

Arizona’s highest court won’t be overturning a decision to prevent putting Debra Milke on trial again for the murder of her 4-year-old son. Milke spent 23 years on Arizona’s death row for the murder of her son Christopher, before finally being released in 2013 after a federal appeals court ruled…

Video: Arizona Lawmakers Debate Whether God Gave Americans Gun Rights

Arizonans, here’s a video of your lawmakers at work, debating whether God is responsible for letting you have guns. This debate took place late last week as the Arizona House of Representatives voted on a pair of gun-related bills, and Democratic Representative Sally Ann Gonzales took exception to Republican Representative…

Maricopa County Mugshots of the Week: A Little Off

At the end of the week, we bring you a roundup of visitors to the desert’s own Fourth Avenue Jail. To be considered for our Maricopa County mugshots of the week, get arrested, strike a pose, and we’ll take care of the rest. This week, we point out some things…

Jodi Arias Banned From Phone Calls and Buying Candy

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is dropping the hammer on convicted killer Jodi Arias. For the foreseeable future, she’s been cut off from visitation, phone calls, and buying snacks from the jail commissary. Sheriff Joe Arpaio issued a statement saying Arias “seems to be escalating her bad behavior now that…

Diane Douglas: Clean Elections Poster Girl

Were it not for the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Act, Diane Douglas would not be Arizona’s Superintendent of Public Instruction. The crazy cat lady now in charge of the Arizona Department of Education would still be a wall-eyed instructor at Glendale’s Stained Glass Shop if she hadn’t scored $97,620 of…

Phoenix Cop Stabbed by Murder Suspect

A Phoenix police officer was stabbed yesterday morning while trying to break up an attack on a woman in the middle of rush-hour traffic. Phoenix Police Sergeant Trent Crump says both the woman and the officer were stabbed by the man, who turned out to be a suspect in a…

Ask a Mexican on the Word “Esposa”

So there I was, sitting in Spanish class, like the good half-frog/half wop (i.e., “frop”) that I am, when I observe the Spanish teacher write the word “esposas” up on the board. Imagine my shock/horror when the teacher told us “esposas” has two meanings: “wives” and “handcuffs”! PLEASE TELL ME THIS IS…

Obama to Visit Phoenix VA

President Obama is making a trip this Friday to the Phoenix Veterans Affairs hospital that was the center of a national scandal over lengthy wait-times at VA facilities. Obama was bashed by critics in January when he came to visit Phoenix but did not stop at the hospital, despite his…

Arizona Government Employee Accused of Embezzling $34K

An employee for the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality is accused of embezzling $34,000 from the state. The Arizona Attorney General’s Office announced the arrests of the employee, 48-year-old Susan Marie Rall, as well as her husband, 60-year-old David Jerome Rall. According to the AG’s office, Susan Rall made payments…

Deputy Sean Pearce Gets Speeding Ticket in Fatal Crash

Maricopa County Deputy Sean Pearce pleaded guilty to speeding and took a driving class last week for his role in an on-duty fatal crash. In June, County Attorney Bill Montgomery announced that Pearce would face no serious criminal charges for the December 2013 crash that took the life of John…

ASU President: Budget Cuts a “Setback for Arizonans”

Arizona lawmakers passed a budget over the weekend, which includes spending cuts that the president of the state’s largest university calls a “setback for Arizonans.” The state is making a $99 million cut to higher education as part of the $9.1 billion budget, which Governor Doug Ducey’s office says “solves…