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Election 2011

Phoenix Mayoral Candidates Toss Political Barbs During Downtown Phoenix Forum By Monica Alonzo, Fri., Jun. 10 2011 at 10:52 AM

There was a lively exchange at the Downtown Voices Coalition's mayoral forum at the Lexington Hotel last night. At most forums, candidates cleave to the their talking points and engage in political niceties, but residents who attended last night's forum got a few fireworks. Downtown Voices leaders allowed candidates to ask questions of each other, adding a little spice to the evening.
Candidates Wes Gullett, Jennifer Wright, Greg Stanton, Peggy Neely, and Claude Mattox attended the forum and shared generic visions for downtown and views on how to make it a vibrant, walkable hub infused with the right mix of businesses and living spaces.

Moderator Richard Ruelas of the Arizona Republic asked candidates about the last time they rode light rail.

All had at one time or another, either to go to a meeting or a baseball game, except Wright. She was hissed by the downtown audience when she said she'd never been on the train.

She explains to the unsympathetic crowd that riding light rail doesn't work in her life as an attorney who needs to keep her files close, run between court houses and function as a mom with young children.
Wright said cities who employ urban planning fail miserably. She said supply and demand, not city investment or interference, should drive the type of housing and business mix that develops in downtown Phoenix. Neely said Phoenix needs a real vision for downtown, and uses county islands (unincorporated swaths of county land) as examples of areas where residents do not have to adhere to regulations.
She said, if someone didn't want regulations -- clearly aimed at Wright -- then they should "go live in the county."
Neely, who voted on the previous budget and understood that employee pay raises were included in the budget, said only that there needs to be "greater transparency throughout" and criticized City Manager David Cavazos for not doing a better job of explaining the pay-raise situation to the public.
Source: Valley Fever
Related Content:

• Phoenix Mayoral Candidates Greg Stanton, Claude Mattox Nab Coveted Public Safety Unions Endorsements June 8, 2011
• Equality Arizona: Forum Offers "Good Glimpse" of Phoenix Mayoral Candidates Stance on LGBT and City Issues April 5, 2011
• Phoenix Mayoral Candidate Wes Gullett Wants to Push Newest Candidate Out of Mayor's Race May 12, 2011
• Phoenix Republicans Snub Lone Democrat in Mayors Race; Candidate Greg Stanton Gets No Invite to Mayoral Forum May 11, 2011
• Arrogant Butcher Straw Poll: Greg Stanton Leading Again in Week Two March 22, 2011

Scott Bundgaard charged with misdemeanor assault

Laurie Roberts – COLUMNIST – Arizona Republic – June 10, 2011 - 3:34 PM

Sen. Scott Bundgaard has been charged with misdemeanor assault and endangerment stemming from the now-infamous Feb. 25 freeway fracas with his former girlfriend.

The charges, dated June 3, were served on the Peoria Republican this afternoon, according to a spokesman for Bundgaard.

Stay tuned for details on what must be the longest running misdemeanor investigation in Arizona history.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/Blog/LaurieRoberts/130878

Sheriff Arpaio raid nets 3 arrests at Old Spaghetti Factory in Phoenix

Brittany Smith / Connor Radnovich - AaCentral-12 News - June 10, 2011 12:38 PM

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office raided the Old Spaghetti Factory on Central Avenue on Friday, arresting three people on suspicion of identity theft.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio said they are looking for four more people, and will be going to their homes. All seven are suspected to be in the country illegally.

"These are serious crimes," Arpaio said.

http://azcentral.gon.gannettonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=HOMES&pub=azcentral

Chris Gilbreth, a server at the Old Spaghetti Factory, said workers there had no idea what was going on and questioned the necessity of these raids.

Gilbreth also said that he gave those arrested his phone so they could call their families.

This raid follows an eight-month investigation, officials said.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2011/06/10/20110610arpaio-phoenix-raid-old-spaghetti-factory-abrk.html

Sheriff Joe Arpaio Raids The Old Spaghetti Factory in Search of Seven Illegal Immigrants; Only Nabs Three

Adele Hampton – Phoenix New Times - Fri., Jun. 10 2011 at 1:23 PM

America's self-proclaimed "toughest sheriff" conducted another of his signature illegal immigrant roundups this morning, this time at the Old Spaghetti Factory in central Phoenix.
Maricopa County's corrupt top-cop was targeting seven suspected illegal immigrants following an eight-month investigation.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio's boys in beige only nabbed three of the targets, who were busted on suspicion of identify theft.
Servers at the restaurant were caught unaware as officers calmly walked in, observers of the raid tell New Times.
"I'd say there were about 10 officers that I saw," said a patron, who would not be identified for fear of losing his job. "We were out just having a business lunch. They came in quietly."
Police plan to go to the homes of the missing four suspects to continue their search.
Old Spaghetti Factory manager Adam Wilcox refused to comment on the raid, however the restaurant continued to operate as normal.Check back for updates.
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/06/sheriff_joe_arpaio_raids_the_o.php

 Joe Arpaio Calls This Morning's Illegal Immigrant Roundup "Employer Sanctions Operation." No "Employers" Actually Arrested

James King – Phoenix New Times - Fri., Jun. 10 2011 at 3:09 PM

Call it what it is, Joe: an illegal immigrant roundup.

Following our previous post about Joe Arpaio's illegal immigrant roundup at a downtown Phoenix restaurant this morning, America's self-proclaimed "toughest sheriff" issued a press release, in which he boasts that his agency "is the only law enforcement agency in the state that is currently enforcing employer sanctions laws."
"Employer" being the operative word.
However, in this morning's raid, no "employers" were arrested, only employees -- at least three of whom happen to be illegal immigrants.
The sheriff's office tells New Times another person arrested this morning was a manager of the restaurant, but the owner of the Old Spaghetti Factory, Chris Dussin, remains unscathed.
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/06/joe_arpaio_calls_this_mornings.php

Scottsdale officer-involved shooting wounds man
Connor Radnovich - Arizona Republic-12 News - June 10, 2011 06:43 AM

An officer-involved shooting Friday morning at the Clarion Hotel Scottsdale left one man shot, Scottsdale police said.
Officers came to the hotel after getting a 911 call. When the officers arrived, they came under fire, police said.
Police said at least one officer returned fire, hitting the apparent gunman. No officers were injured, and the suspect was taken to a local hospital, police said.
The suspect's condition is unknown.
http://www.azcentral.com/community/scottsdale/articles/2011/06/10/20110610scottsdale-officer-involved-shooting-abrk.html

Arpaio aide report hearing set for June 14
Yvonne Wingett Sanchez - The Arizona Republic - Jun. 9, 2011 04:13 PM

Judge Sam Myers of Maricopa County Superior Court has scheduled a hearing on The Arizona Republic and 12 News' demands for Sheriff Joe Arpaio to produce an unredacted copy of a Pinal County investigative report that detailed serious misconduct by his top commanders.
The one-hour hearing will take place at 9:30 a.m. June 14.
The Republic and 12 News have been fighting since mid-April for access to an unredacted copy of the Pinal County sheriff's investigation into Arpaio's top command staff. Investigators turned over the 1,022-page report and more than 20,000 supporting documents to Arpaio's office in April. The findings led to the dismissals of former Chief Deputy David Hendershott and Deputy Chief Larry Black.
But large portions of the report remain redacted while the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office determines a punishment for a third commander, Capt. Joel Fox, who remains on administrative leave.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/azelections/articles/2011/06/09/20110609arpaio-aides-report-hearing0609.html


Pinal County Girl Has Fight With Mom -- Then Tells Cops About the Opiates She's Been Feeding Her
James King – Phoenix New Times - Fri., Jun. 10 2011 at 9:50 AM

A Pinal County woman was arrested last month after a fight with her 17-year-old daughter led police to the discovery of more opiates than you'd probably find at a pharmacy.
Police were called to the home of Eva Martinez on May 18, because she was fighting with her teenage daughter. Martinez was arrested and booked into jail on charges of disorderly conduct and assault against the girl.
The next day, Martinez's daughter went to the police station -- not to bail mom out of jail, rather, to tell cops about the massive amount of opiates her mother had obtained illegally and had been feeding to her and her younger brother for the past two years.
The girl told police that at one point, she overdosed on the drugs her mother fed her and ended up in the hospital.
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/06/pinal_county_girl_has_fight_wi.php

Court: New Times publishers can sue prosecutor for arrest
Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services – EV Tribune - June 9, 2011 1:44 pm

The publishers of a Phoenix weekly paper can sue a special county prosecutor who arranged to have them arrested, a federal appellate court ruled Thursday.
In a unanimous decision, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected claims by Dennis Wilenchik that he was entitled to immunity. The judges said there was sufficient evidence to allow Michael Lacey and Jim Larkin pursue their claims that he infringed on their constitutional rights.
The court, however, refused to let the pair pursue Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former County Attorney Andrew Thomas personally for their role in the arrest. But they did say that Lacey and Larkin can sue Maricopa County as their employer.
http://www.ahwatukee.com/news/valley_and_state/article_32ab84d7-b4b3-5aa7-9ccf-c199d8b090d2.html

Phoenix Lawyer Dennis Wilenchik Can't Escape New Times Lawsuit, Ninth Circuit Court Rules; Dissenting Judge Blasts Joe Arpaio
By Ray Stern – Phoenix New Times – June 9, 2011

New Times' lawsuit over the 2007 arrest of its founders on bogus charges can proceed -- but only against a local lawyer who served as a special prosecutor, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today.
In a 2-1 opinion, the Ninth Circuit backed up a lower court's decision that New Times can't legally sue Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio or former County Attorney Andrew Thomas because the officials have legal immunity. But Thomas' former attack-dog special prosecutor, Dennis Wilenchik, still is on the hook for possible damages.
Wilenchik, a Phoenix trial lawyer appointed by Thomas to the special-prosecutor post, helped engineer what would become one of the most well-publicized abuses of power by Arpaio and Thomas -- the arrest of two newspaper executives for publishing an article about a grand jury that never existed.
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/06/lawyer_dennis_wilenchik_cant_e.php

Court says New Times editors can sue over arrest by sheriff’s office
Maggie Pingolt - Cronkite News - Thursday, June 9, 2011

WASHINGTON - A federal appeals court Thursday said a Maricopa County special prosecutor can be sued by two Phoenix New Times editors who said they were arrested after running stories criticizing Sheriff Joe Arpaio and other county officials.
A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Dennis Wilenchik did not enjoy immunity for his actions, which the editors said violated their free-speech rights and protection against unreasonable search and seizure.
The appeals court also restored Maricopa County as a party to the suit. But the judges upheld a lower-court ruling that Arpaio and then-County Attorney Andrew Thomas are immune from prosecution.
“I find it incredible that Arpaio and Thomas can be removed from this, since they orchestrated it,” said New Times Editor Rick Barrs. “No one could be more deserving of this punishment.”
Web site for the Opinion:  http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.leagle.com/xmlResult.aspx%3Fxmldoc%3DIn%2520FCO%252020110609139.xml%26docbase%3DCSLWAR3-2007-CURR&ct=ga&cad=CAEQARgAIAAoATAAOABA5rPI7wRIAVAAWABiAmVu&cd=7qR9BjoXYLA&usg=AFQjCNF1ZijNfhDIdMULicDS0aNYQn_DiQ
.http://cronkitenewsonline.com/2011/06/court-says-new-times-editors-can-sue-over-arrest-by-sheriffs-office/

Arizona Prosecutor Can Be Sued for Bad Arrests
TIM HULL – Courthouse News – June 9, 2011

Publishers of Phoenix's alternative weekly newspaper can sue the special prosecutor who they claim ordered their late-night arrests at the behest of Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the 9th Circuit ruled Thursday, adding that the journalists have no case against "America's Toughest Sheriff" himself.

In a partial dissent, Judge Jay Bybee of the San Francisco-based appeals panel called the case a "sordid tale of abuse of public office." It began in 2004 when the Phoenix New Times, which had long been critical of Arpaio and his policies, published the sheriff's home address in the wake of an investigation of his real estate holdings. Reporters discovered that Arpaio had removed his personal information from public records about his land holdings, and the sheriff claimed that he did so because he had received death threats. The newspaper countered by publishing the sheriff's home address, which was available on websites for Maricopa County and the local Republican Party.

Taking its lead from the original complaint, the ruling says Arpaio waited 10 months until his "political ally" Andrew Thomas was elected Maricopa County attorney before striking back at the newspaper. He asked Thomas to investigate the weekly for violating a state privacy statute, but the prosecutor initially refused. Meantime, the New Times went on criticizing the sheriff, and also began publishing articles critical of Thomas. For two years Arpaio tried to get nearby Pinal County to go after the paper, but prosecutors there ultimately passed as well.
http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/06/09/37255.htm