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…
Commenters on a Sonoran Alliance blog post about Jesse Kelly, a Republican who wants to run against Gabrielle Giffords for Arizona’s Congressional District 8, point out an amusing conservative faux pax on the guy’s Web site. Conservatives usually try to corner the market on family values, but Kelly’s a guy…
The folks that put thousands in Phoenix’s streets February 28 to protest Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the 287(g) program are ready to do it again May 2, with Rage Against the Machine frontman Zack de la Rocha slated to participate as he did before.The difference this time is that the…
Meet the Beatle. This funky cat donned a wig to rob the Chase Bank near Indian Bend and Scottsdale Road yesterday afternoon, say Scottsdale police on their Web site. No weapon was seen — the bloke just passed a demand note to the teller, who gave him some cash. He…
The National League West might have three of the top players in the game in L.A.’s Manny Ramirez, San Francisco’s Tim Lintecum, and Arizona’s Brandon Webb, but it remains one of the sorriest divisions in the bigs. The West’s two presumptive contenders, the Diamondbacks and Dodgers, flip-flopped division titles the…
“We’re still going to play to win games. I told them, ‘We’re all paid a lot of money and we’re supposed to be professional, so we’re going to play out the season right.'” So said Phoenix Suns head coach Alvin Gentry previous to Wednesday night’s game in New Orleans against…
The Arizona Diamondbacks requested proposals last month for a new Cactus League complex, and Phoenix is one of the finalists. An aid to Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon says the proposed Phoenix site is located along Loop 101, but further details on the site are elusive thus far…Arizona Governor Jan Brewer…
We understand that in the 24-hour news cycle it can be difficult to keep up. Worry not! We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times’ blogs. Today’s entries: Valley Fever: Phoenix Cop Killing Trial Moving Along At Rapid Pace Grandma…
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…
As blogged previously, when Lou Dobbs had ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis and the Rev. Al Sharpton on his show recently to talk about Dobbs’ pal Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Arpaio’s racial profilin’ ways, the pair tag-teamed CNN’s alter kocker nativist, leaving him punch-drunk in his corner. Dobbs and Lewis in…
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…
We dropped in yesterday at the first-degree murder trial of Donnie Delahanty, a young Phoenix man who, on May 10, 2005, followed through on a promise he had been making to pals: If some cop, any cop, pulled him over when he was in a car, he’d shoot the son-of-a-bitch…
When a newspaper gets a good quote, sometimes you don’t know it’s good until much later. Such is the case with Andrew Paparella Jr., owner of Andrew’s New American at Citrus Cafe in Chandler, who’s been accused by Chandler police of stealing his customers’ credit numbers in a scheme 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…
The Phoenix Suns were impressive against a good team Wednesday night, beating the New Orleans Hornets 105-100 on sterling play by their team leaders. But it doesn’t matter. The Dallas Mavericks demolished the Utah Jazz 130-101 later in the evening and knocked Phoenix out of the playoffs. Remember, going into Wednesday…
ASU is bucking tradition a bit by declining to offer the keynote speaker at its next graduation commencement ceremony an honorary degree, even though that speaker is President Barack Obama. An ASU spokesperson says honorary degrees are conferred upon people with a large body of work, and Obama’s “body of…
Halfway through Bryant Wilkerson’s trial for manslaughter, aggravated assault, and a host of other felony counts, a juror had an interesting question for Judge Teresa Sanders. The question has yet to be posted to the public record, so I can’t tell you the precise phrasing. But the gist was this:…
The pivotal moment in Doug Grant’s murder trial came without fanfare. Former Phoenix Suns nutritionist and vitamin-supplement entrepreneur Grant was accused of committing the ultimate crime: the first-degree murder of his wife, Faylene, at their Gilbert home as three of their young children were in another part of the house…
