Holiday Hell

City Officials to Allow Christmas Tree at Summit of Camelback Mountain After Outcry

By Ray Stern
Dec 1, 2016

Christmas spirit beat out wilderness-area ethics in the fight to keep a Christmas tree at the summit of Phoenix's iconic Camelback Mountain. City officials reversed course on Wednesday afternoon, deciding to allow a undecorated tree after saying previously that all trees would be removed. Rangers removed a large tree from...
Phoenix Finally Gets Serious About Removing Christmas Trees From Camelback Mountain Summit

By Ray Stern
Nov 30, 2016

At ground level, signs of Christmas are everywhere — from stores and homes to the wreath-adorned automobiles on freeways. You might think hiking in one of Phoenix's mountain parks, where the goal has long been to keep things in as natural a state is possible, would be one way to...
AZ's Holiday Weekend DUI Stats Weren't Pretty

By Miriam Wasser
Jul 7, 2015

The DUI figures for the 4th of July weekend are in, and the results are, well, sobering: 443 people were arrested for a DUI between Friday and Sunday —151 of which had a blood alcohol content of .15 or greater. (To put that in perspective, with a BAC that high,...
Brooklin Yazzie of Mesa Gives Wedding Ring to Trick-or-Treaters on Halloween by Mistake

By Ray Stern
Nov 3, 2014

A Mesa woman says gave trick-or-treaters a special prize on Halloween -- her own wedding ring. Since then, the story of Brooklin Yazzie's lost ring, reported on Saturday by ABC-15 News (KNXV-TV) has been picked up by news outlets around the world. Any ghouls and goblins who hit the Yazzie...