Phoenix police have identified 19-year-old Pedro Ramirez as the allegedly drunk driver who got in a head-on collision on the morning of April 30, killing a 5-year-old boy.The boy’s mom was arrested, too, and faces child-abuse charges for putting her youngster in the car driven by Ramirez, and not placing…
Yesterday, former middle school teacher’s aide Gabriela Compton was sentenced to a lifetime of probation for having sex with one of the school’s students, and other related incidents.Compton, now 21, was arrested in March 2011 after principals at Phoenix’s Western Valley Middle School found out Compton had been sending nudie…
Mark Goldman, the wealthy lawyer buddy of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and disgraced former County Attorney Andrew Thomas, is seeking votes in a State Bar of Arizona election.He’s one of eight candidates vying for the Maricopa County District position on the State Bar’s Board of Governors, which oversees Bar…
Jeff Huelster, a teacher at Cortez High School — and the school’s head football coach — is accused of sex crimes against children, including live-streaming video of his penis over the Internet to a person he thought was a minor.In classic To Catch a Predator style, Huelster met the minor…
Gilbert police released the recordings of the 9-1-1 calls yesterday made before and after neo-Nazi J.T. Ready allegedly murdered four people before icing himself last week, and not surprisingly, local news outlets weren’t too hip to the idea of playing the entire recordings.Since we’re not in the business of sugarcoating,…
Update: Gabriela Compton Sentencing: Lawyer Weighs in on the ControversyWelcome to the wide world of teacher sex-scandal sentencing, as former middle school teacher’s aide Gabriela Compton was sentenced this morning to a life on probation.Compton, now 21, was arrested in March 2011 after principals at Phoenix’s Western Valley Middle School…
Former proseuctor Lisa Aubuchon and her husband, Peter Pestalozzi, owe $40,721 in federal taxes, records show.The federal tax lien listed on the Maricopa County Recorder’s website includes $3,388 in unpaid taxes for 2009 and $37,332 for 2010.Aubuchon, who was disbarred on April 10 along with her former County Attorney boss,…
One of the easiest ways to piss off Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio — aside from being in the country illegally or writing for New Times — is to mess with a puppy. Or probably it’s just that Joe realizes animals get his mug on TV easily. Animal abuse is…
As of Thursday, Andrew Thomas, Lisa Aubuchon, and Rachel Alexander no longer will be able to practice law in Arizona.A disciplinary panel of the Arizona Supreme Court ordered the trio’s disbarment on April 10, and court officials stated that the order would become effective on May 10. The former Maricopa…
Paul Chapa says he “does a lot of stupid shit when he is drunk.”According to what police say he did to a girl beginning when she was 3 or 4 years old, that’s an understatement.According to court documents obtained by New Times, Chapa, a 49-year-old truck driver, is accused of…
Believe it or not, the Feathered Bastard Stephen Lemons is thinking recalled Senate President Russell Pearce isn’t exactly being truthful about his ties to J.T. Ready, who police believe murdered four people before icing himself in a Gilbert home Wednesday.Lemons has been covering the duo for quite some time now,…
The Gilbert murder/suicide in which five people were shot and killed — allegedly at the hands of neo-Nazi J.T. Ready — began as a domestic-violence incident between Ready and his girlfriend, Lisa Mederos, police say.At a press conference this afternoon (thanks to 12 News for the live feed), Gilbert police…
At the Gilbert home where five people died yesterday in an apparent murder/suicide — allegedly perpetrated by neo-Nazi J.T. Ready — there was a reason the bomb squad showed up: six grenades.Gilbert police said this morning that “hazardous chemicals and military grade munitions” were found by investigators once a search…
Until around 5 a.m. today, news outlets were relying on sources to confirm neo-Nazi J.T. Ready was among the five people dead in yesterday’s massacre in Gilbert.Gilbert police have now confirmed Ready is dead, along with four other people, including a baby born last January.If Ready’s name doesn’t ring a…
A Phoenix woman pleaded guilty today to charges related to locking her 14-year-old stepdaughter in a bathroom for months, barely feeding her, and forcing her to exercise until exhaustion.Andrea Bass pleaded guilty today to two counts of attempted child abuse, several months after her husband, Scott Bass, also took a…
Reginald Gardner Jr., who happened to disappear around the time his 88-year-old grandmother was found dead in her Mesa home, was arrested while strolling around Miami Beach on Friday, according to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.Gardner, 43, faces a second-degree murder charge in his grandmother’s death.Lola Pershall’s body — which…
A pit bull went on a biting spree in a Phoenix neighborhood Tuesday after the dog’s owner allegedly ordered the pooch to attack her neighbor during an argument.The pit bull didn’t go after the neighbor, instead attacking five people on the street, one as young as 12 years old.The owner’s…
John Vigileos, a Tempe-based criminal-defense attorney, is being held without bond at the Maricopa County Jail after confessing to Gilbert police that he sexually molested his 12-year-old step-daughter at his home. The 45-year-old lawyer was arrested in the early-morning hours of April 23 after a series of previously unpublicized events…
As our colleague Ray Stern reported yesterday, former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas may have to fork over $554,000 for the disciplinary proceeding that ended with him losing his law license.Thomas, as you may recall, was disbarred by a Supreme Court disciplinary panel that found he and some of his…
On April 22, Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies went to the Sun City home of Lancelot Lipe after receiving anonymous calls about a fire burning at his place.According to court documents obtained by New Times, Lipe, 29, didn’t want the cops there, as he gave deputies a good ol’ “fuck you”…
People apparently are gambling on pigeon races in Arizona, and there’s actually a group that cares about it. Of course, that group’s called PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).PETA says it’s just completed a “15-month undercover investigation” over five states, including Arizona, into pigeon-racing operations.See, pigeons — which…
Andrew Thomas could be forced to pay $554,000 for the disciplinary proceeding that resulted in his disbarment. (UPDATED: The amount was first filed as $296,300, as we reported earlier today. The State Bar just informed us that an amended bill will be filed tomorrow with the new, higher amount. We’ll…
