by Matthew Holloway | Jan 7, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Maricopa County Sheriff Jerry Sheridan has taken his oath and is geared up to begin his term after 40 years of moving up in the ranks. In an interview with FOX 10’s Brian Webb, Sheridan set out his agenda for leading the law enforcement agency responsible for protecting the fourth most-populist county in the nation.
“I wore that uniform for 40 years, said deputy sheriff on it, and now my patch says sheriff,” Sheridan told Webb. “I don’t think the reality has kicked in.”
On Jan. 2nd, just under 48 hours into his new role, Sheridan sat for the interview and set out his top priorities. The first crisis he intends to tackle is homelessness. “I’ve reached out to some of the [Non-Governmental Organizations] that help with some of the missions, and I’ve already had discussions with them about what we can do to help you get people off the street,” he told Fox10.
Sheridan will also be placing a huge emphasis on collaborating with the second Trump administration on immigration enforcement in a return to the path blazed by former Sheriff Joe Arpaio. “I will focus on arresting criminals now,” he told Webb. “Whether they’re illegal aliens or not, doesn’t matter to me.”
In a post to X he wrote, “Spent my first 9 hours as Sheriff with the people that keep us all safe; our detention officers, deputies & 911 operators. I am so proud of the work they do & to be their Sheriff.”
At the outset though, there are some internal matters that Sheridan will need to address, such as resurrecting the county’s volunteer posse system, which was placed under review by Sheriff Penzone in 2017 and criticized by several media outlets for its long-time association with Sheriff Arpaio. Sheridan also told the outlet he will be directing a lot of his attention to ramping up staffing in the agency which employs about 3,500 personnel out of an allotted 4,000, according to the agency’s website. Per ABC15 reporting from September, the department is currently shorthanded by about 800 detention officers.
Sheridan also took time to push back on media criticisms for his membership in the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association (CSPOA). To which he responded, “Don’t forget, I took an oath to support the Constitution of United States and the constitution in laws of the State of Arizona, and I will be faithful to that oath.”
Sheridan shared video of his sign on in a brief broadcast to the department in the opening minutes of 2025. “It’s an honor to be your new sheriff,” Sheridan said. “It’s an honor and pleasure to work with everybody because I know you act with integrity.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Jan 6, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Mark Lamb signed off ceremonially for the last time as Pinal County Sheriff shortly after midnight on New Years’ Day, ending an eight-year tenure as the top elected law-enforcement official of the county.
In a post to X, accompanying video of his broadcast to the department, Lamb announced that his career in law-enforcement has come to an end. He wrote, “It’s impossible to sum up in one post how I feel tonight! I knew this day would eventually come, but it still doesn’t make it easy. I have loved this career! Thank you does not even begin to justify my gratitude to my family, my command staff, all of the sheriff’s office employees, all of my fellow law enforcement and to my community. This has truly been one of the greatest honors of my life, especially the last eight years as Sheriff of Pinal County. Not only is 2024 coming to an end tonight, my career (in) Law Enforcement has come to an end as well. We gave it a good run! God Bless and Happy New Year!”
Lamb opened his transmission identifying himself by the Sheriff’s callsign ‘Pinal One,’ and offered his emotional thanks to county dispatchers, deputies, corrections officers, employees, posses, COPs and his command staff. He closed his remarks by asking dispatch to show him as the police-standard ‘ten-code’ of 10-7 “Out of service,” which typically signifies the end of an officer’s watch or shift, for the final time.
Former gubernatorial candidate Karrin Taylor Robson thanked Lamb and congratulated him in a statement posted to X, “Arizonans are safer for the work and dedication Sheriff Lamb has put in to defend our communities the last 8 years. In addition to all of the work he’s done, he’s been one of the top advocates in the country for dealing with the problems on our border and been a strong advocate for border security. Thank you, @sherifflamb1, for everything you have done and do on behalf of the people of Arizona!”
In a Dec. 17th interview with KTAR’s Mike Broomhead, Lamb dismissed any further political office in his future following his primary election defeat to Kari Lake. “Politics in my future? It’s not a high probability.” He added, “But I am going to stay involved in the border.”
He told Broomhead that he’s currently working with the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR): “I’m gonna stay very active on [the] border and continue to tell people what’s going on there.”
The former Sheriff told KTAR in a statement that he’s hoping to assist the incoming Trump administration in its ongoing efforts to improve border security.
“As this administration begins to form itself out, and they start getting to work and starting to secure our border, holding people accountable who broke the law, I think that there will be some space there to at least consult, or help or sit on some boards or something that has to do with helping these policies,” Lamb said.
He told the outlet that he’s also willing to bring policy suggestions to Congress and work with them to pass more effective laws to address illegal immigration.
“I hope to be of some assistance as we try to fix this border crisis that this administration has created — or really, thrown gas on — over the last four years,” Lamb concluded. “I’m gonna stay in that law enforcement space, mental health space and border security.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Jan 6, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
The National Retail Federation (NRF), in partnership with the Loss Prevention Research Council, reported that nationwide shoplifting has increased by an astronomical 93% when compared to 2019 figures. The incidence of shoplifting is up 26% over 2023 numbers. According to the NRF’s, “Impact of Retail Theft & Violence 2024,” retailers participating in the study logged 177 shoplifting incidents per day in 2023. On some days, that number would spike to over 1,000. In addition, 73% of the retail outlets surveyed warned that shoplifters are acting with significantly increased violence and aggression than in 2019.
David Johnston, NRF vice president of asset protection and retail operations, told FOX Business, “This isn’t what we were used to. This isn’t the shoplifting I was apprehending 30 years ago. These are people who are shoplifting because they know when they have an outlet to sell this merchandise to.”
Referring to the onset of organized retail shoplifting groups that resell stolen goods, he said, “Not every shoplifter is going out there and selling their stolen goods online or at a flea market. They’re selling them in larger mass quantities to these local, regional or transnational organizations who are helping to feed the system.”
In Arizona, the opposite seems to be true. Shoplifting is down according to Department of Public Safety statistics from 41,519 incidents in 2019 to 34,587 in 2023, a decrease of approximately 17% with incomplete data for 2024 showing just 29,832 incidents. Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell told Fox 10 that in 2023, her office received approximately 600 submittals for the charge of organized retail theft. Mitchell warned at the time that the number was increasing.
“Arizona, specifically Maricopa County, will not tolerate this type of offense that is driving retailers to close stores, to hurt the communities that the stores are located in, and driving people out of business,” Mitchell told the outlet.
The NRF report shows that retailers who are capable of tracking organized retail theft saw a 57% increase on average in these incidents from 2022 to 2023. The organization is advocating for the passage of the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, which would increase federal level coordination with state and local level law enforcement.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Jan 5, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
On February 27, 1968, President Lyndon Baines Johnson was said to have listened to a devastating report by anchorman Walter Cronkite who assessed the Vietnam War as “to end in a stalemate.” According to Westpoint’s Modern War Institute, David Halberstam wrote in his 1979 book, “The Powers That Be,” that Johnson told press secretary, George Christian, “that if he had lost Walter Cronkite he had lost Mr. Average Citizen.”
Similarly, Arizona Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs appears to have lost Arizona Republic columnist Laurie Roberts. In the columnist’s “10 awards for the best of the worst in Arizona politics in 2024,” Hobbs was named “Biggest Loser.”
In the article where she in turn condemns Arizona’s Republican 2020 alternate electors, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, State Senator Justine Wadsack, State Representative Austin Smith, and former AZGOP Chair Jeff DeWitt, Roberts called out Hobbs’ catastrophic failure to flip the Arizona Legislature and wrench control of the government from the GOP.
As Roberts noted, “Instead, she lost two seats in the House and one in the Senate, and now faces the most conservative Legislature of our time … maybe even any time.”
The AZCentral columnist went on to observe that the increased majority in both houses of the legislature will likely spell trouble for the embattled Democrat, who finds herself at the lowest point of her favorability, 36%. But it doesn’t end there. As Citizens For Free Enterprise Press Secretary Dan Coulson noted in a late November post to X, Hobbs is also a “Target of 2 separate criminal investigations,” with an undoubted primary challenge on the horizon.
Roberts went on to prognosticate that the Trump administration would seek to characterize Hobbs as “out-of-touch with everyday Arizonans.” However, it seems likely that Trump will be more concerned with expanding the House GOP majority in Arizona, seeking to exploit any weaknesses in the Arizona House Democrats Caucus. One could imagine a concerted effort to oust Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ-04) who enters his third term in the House in January by a slim 7.2 point margin.
The gubernatorial challenge is bound to be far more of a concern for the Republican National Committee and the Republican Governors Association—though the President is likely to weigh in as he’s wont to do.
For now, Roberts’ assessment of Hobbs as 2024’s “Biggest Loser” appears to be apt, and the ghost of Walter Cronkite may have claimed another Democrat.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Jan 4, 2025 | Economy, News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona renters and landlords alike will get to breathe a sigh of relief this month when the Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT), applied by cities to rental payments every single month, is eliminated. While the cities that will no longer enjoy this source of tax revenue and lobbying groups like the League of Arizona Cities and Towns cry foul, local Republicans who pushed for the reform and the renters who pay it are celebrating.
Seventy-five cities across the state charge TPT on rentals ranging from 1.5% to 4%. Depending on rental rates, this could mean monthly savings of about $20-$50 per month based on estimates.
In a statement posted to X in November, Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen touted the tax elimination writing, “Its happening. Renters are about to get relief from the rental tax repeal passed by the Republican led legislature. The rental tax repeal was an important part of our majority plan to deliver inflation relief. To get the governors signature we had to delay the effective date to Jan 1 2025. Many people said the Dems would take the majority and put the tax back in place. Fortunately for renters we held the Senate and the House. Here is an email from a property manager letting the tenants know their rent will be going down.”
Jake Beeson of Beehive Property Management told AZFamily, “It’s going to mean quite a bit for some tenants. We work with the Community Housing Partnership as one of our clients, which has low-income housing, and those rents are between $900 and 1,000 a month. So for a low-income family to have a 2% discount every month doesn’t sound like a lot, but if you’re paying $900 in rent every month, that’s $18. $18 is a whole month of discounted lunches at your kid’s school.”
The outlet noted that the rates in the valley can range from 2% in Mesa to 2.3% in Phoenix or 3% in Cave Creek. Some cities charge as much as 4%.
But not everyone sees the rental tax relief as a positive. Lee Grafstrom, a tax policy expert with the League of Arizona Cities and Towns told Fox10, “You’re not cutting any of the services that citizens are requesting and requiring, so, we still have to do all the same amount of work. We just have this much less money to do it.”
He stressed that cities could find themselves in budget shortfalls, expecting a combined loss of $230 million in tax revenue annually.
“We have to find a way to either cut services or make up that shortfall,” Grafstrom told Fox10. “This is a minor piece of a solution to a much larger problem, in terms of housing affordability.”
The League said in a statement, “Cities and towns across the state are facing a loss of over $230 million in their budgets, which support essential services like police, fire, parks, and more. Without state funding to make up for these losses, local governments will be forced to make tough decisions to balance their budgets, such as cutting jobs and services or raising local taxes—both unpopular choices. Local leaders are working to address these challenges before the repeal takes effect in January.”
The additional savings could see renters parlay the funds into more goods and services to offset inflation, which still tolls heavily on Arizona residents.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
