The canonization of Jerry Colangelo as the savior of Phoenix will continue this week as the local media stumble over themselves to heap accolades on him as he’s inducted September 10 into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Be prepared for full-page spreads in the Valley’s two major daily newspapers extolling…
“JSB is here! Jason just saw him in the parking lot!” In the toy-castle-styled arcade building just east of the water park at Mesa’s sprawling Golfland-Sunsplash amusement center, the news is passed above the din of blaring video games and hollering teens as if the words themselves were a stage-diving…
It’s a fine Tuesday night in the Zona, and Saddam Hussein’s chrome-dome, um, brother-in-law Sheik Samir Hussein is getting his ass beat down by a big-assed Catholic priest in a dog collar known as Father Punishment. The shirtless Sheik had come into the rasslin’ ring at The Sets in Tempe,…
DOUBTING THOMAS Balls to the wall: Your article (“Dangerous Mind,” Paul Rubin, August 26) was very direct, very clear and extremely informative, and I am now a lot more interested in voting. This [Andy Thomas for County Attorney story] is more horrifying news about Arizona politics, but it had to…
Cherry lollipop? Check. Eye patch? Check. Bandage on knee? Check. Loaf of bread open on the passenger seat, next to a half-empty bottle of Scope? Check. Bag of groceries with disposable diapers on top? Check. Driver’s license, registration and proof of insurance within easy reach? Check. Cell phone turned off…
Voters have a golden opportunity to throw 72-year-old Sheriff Joe Arpaio out of office in the September 7 Republican primary — an election that Independents can participate in simply by requesting a Republican ballot. This is far from a meaningless primary. Outlaw Joe is much more vulnerable in the primary…
Next time you head downtown for the First Friday artwalk, don’t be surprised to wait in line to see the art, particularly on Roosevelt Street between Central Avenue and Sixth Street. Even if you easily make it through the door at a gallery, you’ll have to literally rub shoulders with…
Now that’s what I’m talkin’ ’bout: The Zona finally starts jackin’ its game up to the minimum of what’s expected from 21st-century party people by extending the drink curfew until 2 a.m. It’s like the end of friggin’ Prohibition, yo! Granted, it’s not like Gotham where you can slam back…
Political Leanings Far from ideal: I have no doubt that Rick Murphy is a man of personal integrity. However, he is still far from ideal for representing Arizona (“Jesus Wouldn’t Do That,” Michael Lacey, August 12). He and Trent Franks are two peas in a pod, and their paternalistic social…
From the street, Tempe’s Palo Verde Lounge looks like the sort of janky, pale brick building that might house a meth lab, a massage parlor, or a drop spot where the mob boys stash shipments of disco doughnuts. The only outward signs of drink-slingin’ taking place are a neon Bud…
Public support for Outlaw Joe is eroding at an astonishing rate as the September 7 Republican primary nears, with more evidence surfacing that Arpaio profited by offering cushy jail space to the wealthy and powerful. The new Jailgate developments come as an independent survey released last week by the Rocky…
In his cruel and unusual 1994 book Crime and the Sacking of America: The Roots of Chaos, Maricopa County Attorney hopeful Andrew Peyton Thomas wrote this: “By publicly incarcerating drug dealers and other criminals, displaying them before their neighbors in large, open-air holding pens with their names and crimes prominently…
How often a car is stolen in Arizona: Every nine minutes, 16 seconds Value of cars stolen in 2002: $377.3 million Number stolen in 2002: 57,668 Number of vehicles stolen in 1993: 33,006 Number stolen in Maricopa County in 2002: 44,180 Number stolen in Greenlee County in 2002: 1 Number…
Editor’s note: John Dougherty’s August 5 column “Dog Day Afternoon” generated more than 1,000 letters and telephone calls from outraged readers. They were mostly from Maricopa County residents, but many came from other locales across the country. Printed here are a representative selection of this outpouring. As usual, because of…
It sounds too good to be true. Just stick the key in, jiggle it around a little, and presto: Any Chrysler product manufactured between 1992 and 1999 will open and start. At first, it is too good to be true. A Jeep. Then a Concorde. Then a Neon. Then a…
We all know how Joe Arpaio serves up justice to average schmucks. He proudly shows no mercy. He subjects them to the vilest of conditions. Death and injuries often result. But it’s a different story for the rich and powerful. If you or yours are in a position to help…
After vowing publicly that no piece of art would be cut, Arizona State University Art Museum director Marilyn Zeitlin chose to “eliminate” several pieces originally slated for inclusion in the “Democracy in America” exhibition, which will open as scheduled at the museum on August 31, to coincide with the debate…
SHERIFF WOE He’s not seeking publicity this time: As a resident of Maricopa County, I must applaud you for your outstanding articles on our current sheriff and his department’s tactics (“Dog Day Afternoon,” John Dougherty, August 5). Your articles based on extensive digging into the practices of the sheriff’s office…
On March 24, 1993, Robert Shawn Owens stood before Judge Ronald Reinstein in a downtown Phoenix courtroom. Owens recently had turned 30 at the Arizona State Prison, his residence for the previous six and a half years. In December 1986, another judge had sentenced him to 20 years on theft…
Joseph Stedino, the Cadillac-size Mafioso, shoved wads of cash toward Bobby Raymond, a state legislator who looked like an altar boy holding a collection plate. Stedino bribed the politician to secure off-reservation, goombah-style gambling in Arizona. Public servant Raymond promised action and plenty of it. To establish street cred with…
If hundreds of angry phone calls and e-mails in response to my commentary on a harebrained MCSO raid in Ahwatukee are any indication of the public’s disgust, elderly Joe Arpaio may soon be the ex-sheriff of Maricopa County. Readers are livid over the bungled July 23 raid by Joe’s goons…
Looking like a cross between Jet Li and the Hives’ Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist, pimped out like his bandmates in a regal purple tux and a Green Hornet-style black mask, and twisting and shaking as if Benny Hinn had just laid hands on him and filled him with the Spirit, Russell…
