Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery has verbally spanked a pack of loony dog lovers who are pushing for animal-cruelty charges to be refiled in the Green Acre dog boarding case. During a regularly scheduled press conference Wednesday, Montgomery explained why he wouldn’t meet with the Green Acre lynch mob last…
The judge in the Jodi Arias penalty-phase trial tossed out a slew of defense motions on Wednesday, including those that suggested prosecutorial misconduct. That means the most popular courtroom drama in the world right now will go on, for the time being. Arias, convicted of first-degree murder in May 2013…
Phoenix police have arrested a man they believe is responsible for killing two young women more than 20 years ago. The remains of 22-year-old Angela Brosso and 17-year-old Melanie Bernas were found in and around the Arizona Canal in 1992 and 1993, and police just this week arrested 42-year-old Bryan…
A Florida man was kidnapped with his ex-wife last month, beaten, held in a trunk overnight, released — then arrested as a fugitive for a 23-year-old Mesa kidnapping. Guido Jesus Puccini, 56, now enroute to Maricopa County following extradition proceedings, Florida police confirm. The December 4 kidnapping has no connection…
Arizonans on the lower end of the income scale are paying a significantly higher portion of their incomes in taxes than wealthier Arizonans. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a non-profil research organization, released a report showing the nation’s poorest taxpayers have an effective tax rate that’s double that…
I go to Mexico frequently, as I live in Tucson. I kinda like Mexicans. Many Mexicans die in the Sonoran Desert in the Tucson border sector, trying to get to el otro lado. This is because your buddies at la migra in the L.A. sector have pushed them over this…
An indigo army of the insipid recently laid siege to the Maricopa County Administration Building in downtown Phoenix to berate County Attorney Bill Montgomery for dropping almost all charges against the owners and caretakers of Gilbert’s Green Acre Dog Boarding facility in the deaths of 20-plus dogs last June. Purple…
A proposal that would require Arizona high school students to pass a civics test before graduating may soon become a reality. The test would require high school students to correctly answer 60 of the 100 questions asked of immigrants seeking to become U.S. citizens, which includes general knowledge questions about…
Who does Jeffrey Otto know in state government? That’s the question on our minds after learning that ex-Governor Jan Brewer, just before leaving office, granted a rare commutation to convicted “Young Champions” arsonist Jeffrey Otto, knocking three years off his 10-year sentence. New Times reported extensively on the 2009 arson,…
Arizona State University nearly begged Professor Ersula Ore to sue over her high-profile May 20 jaywalking arrest, and now she’s gratifying the university with a $2 million lawsuit. Last week, ASU responded — albeit indirectly — to her November 12 notice of claim by notifying the arresting officer, Stewart Ferrin,…
Dozens of cannabis supporters rallied at the Arizona State Capitol today in an effort to bring their message to lawmakers. Pro-marijuana activists with Safer Arizona and other groups held signs and chatted with reporters and legislators about their goal to end pot prohibition in the state…
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this morning in the case of a small church blocked from putting up signs around Gilbert that advertise its Sunday Services. The case of Reed vs. Town of Gilbert is getting a lot of press today, being billed as a major free-speech or religious…
Not everyone agreed with New Times’ list last week of the 10 douchiest Arizonans in 2014. Now, we’ll give the readers their say, with a list of the 10 douchiest Arizonans in 2014, based on New Times reader feedback:…
Arizona State University released a harsh statement on Friday night about the end of negotiations with USA Place, essentially accusing developers of lying. As we reported on Thursday, plans collapsed for the $350-million-plus downtown project that would have brought a hotel, conference center and the Colorado-based USA Basketball organization to…
During her five-plus years as Maricopa County’s communications director, Cari Gerchick demonstrated a backbone of titanium, going where most public information officers fear to tread. Whether it was calling out Sheriff Joe Arpaio on his agency’s misspending more than $100 million in voter-protected jail funds, or, literally, standing in the…
At least three Republican lawmakers are looking to prevent welfare benefits from being spent at fast-food restaurants in Arizona. The bill submitted by Republican Representative Kelly Townsend is one of a handful of bills submitted before this year’s legislative session has begun. The legislation would ban the use of electronic…
A new state report shows that slightly more than 10 tons of marijuana were smoked, eaten or otherwise consumed in 2014 by Arizona’s 60,000 medical-marijuana patients. New Times obtained the information from the Arizona Department of Health Services, which produced a similar report in 2013 of the transactions at authorized…
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, it doesn’t feel that great…
USA Basketball, the governing body for basketball in the United States, may not be moving to Tempe after all following the collapse of the USA Place redevelopment project. As we reported earlier this afternoon, Arizona State University announced today that the USA Place project was dead but that it was…
Efforts to put together a financing deal for the basketball-themed “USA Place” development on Arizona State University land in Tempe have gone into overtime. The $350-450 million hotel-and-conference-center project was announced to the public in July 2013, with an expected groundbreaking that year. But it’s so far been unable to…
President Obama made another trip to Phoenix today, and as is usually the case when he’s in town, the president announced a plan to help homeowners. This time, Obama announced a reduction in fees for homebuyers with loans backed by the Federal Housing Authorities. FHA loans are common for homebuyers…
A coalition of local advocacy groups are planning to rally outside the state capitol on Monday, to kick off this year’s legislative session. The event is billed as a rally against “crAZy,” and ProgressNow Arizona executive director Robbie Sherwood tells New Times it’s an opportunity for something of a “pre-buttal…
