by Daniel Stefanski | Sep 9, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Two ballot referrals from the Arizona Legislature may be on thin ice as voters prepare their decisions for November’s General Election.
A poll released this week from Noble Predictive Insights (NPI) showed that both Proposition 135 and Proposition 137 were underwater with respondents, though many voters remain undecided.
According to the Arizona Secretary of State, Prop 135 would “terminate governor’s emergency powers, except for powers relating to war, fire, or flood, 30 days after the governor’s proclamation, unless extended by the legislature; [and] requires the governor to call a special session upon presentment of a petition signed by at least one-third of the members of the legislature.”
The NPI survey shows that 29% of respondents support the measure, compared to 32% who are opposed. Thirty percent of respondents are undecided on how they would vote.
“Many conservatives haven’t forgotten COVID,” said NPI Chief of Research David Byler. “Memories of lockdowns – combined with a Democrat in the governor’s mansion – make sense of the partisan divide we see on this issue.”
The Arizona Legislature referred this proposal to the Secretary of State on June 13, 2023 (HCR 2039).
According to the Arizona Secretary of State, Prop 137 would “eliminate judicial terms and regular retention elections and nullif[y] the results of the 2024 judicial retention elections, for Arizona Supreme Court Justices, Court of Appeals Judges, and Superior Court Judges in counties with over 250,000 persons.”
For this proposition, the NPI poll shows that 31% of respondents would support the measure, compared to 38% who are opposed to it. Twenty-four percent of voters appear to be undecided.
“While about 1 in 10 voters say they wouldn’t vote on Prop 135 or 137, the large shares of voters who are still unsure how they will vote on each measure will determine whether or not these measures pass come November,” said Mike Noble, NPI Founder & CEO.
The Arizona Legislature referred this proposal to the Secretary of State on June 13, 2024 (SCR 1044).
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Matthew Holloway | Sep 8, 2024 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
One Phoenix Police officer is dead and another remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Phoenix Police Officers Zane Coolidge and Matthew Haney were dispatched to a call of a suspect attempting to break into a vehicle on Tuesday, September 3 at 6:30 p.m. On encountering the suspect identified as Saul Bal, 41, the officers attempted to approach him but the suspect fled on foot. After the brief pursuit he turned and opened fire at the officers striking and wounding them both. Although one officer returned fire, the suspect was not hit.
Bal fled the scene and was later apprehended nearby. Both officers were rushed to a Banner University Medical Center, with Haney stable, but Coolidge in critical condition. Officer Zane Coolidge succumbed to his injuries Friday.
According to a statement from the Phoenix Police Department, Officer Haney was released from the hospital Wednesday, having been reportedly protected from more serious injury by his ballistic vest. However after days of battling his injuries, Interim Phoenix Police Chief Michael Sullivan announced, “The injuries he sustained after the cowardly acts of another were too much for him to overcome.”
As reported by AZ Family, investigating officers located a firearm they believe was used by Bal and the suspect was booked into Maricopa County Jail on multiple felony charges including two counts of attempted murder with his bond set at $2 million. Phoenix officials also said he has a lengthy criminal history with the outlet noting his previous convictions for attempted burglary and drug-related crimes in Arizona over the past two decades, and was under parole conditions set to expire Thursday.
Phoenix Law Enforcement Association President Darrell Kriplean told reporters, “I don’t really want to talk about the suspect because he doesn’t deserve our breath, but I will tell you that it’s infuriating that someone with a long criminal history like his would be allowed to be out amongst the community and continue, I mean he has demonstrated that he’s a drain on society, not a positive influence.”
Per reporting from the Associated Press, there was no information readily available on additional charges against Bal following Zane’s death.
Additional reporting from AZ Family revealed that Bal has been arrested and charged over forty times in the past 17 years, but somehow managed to avoid serious penalties for his crimes in most instances. Three of those charges were within the past 24 months.
The report specifically noted that an official with the Phoenix PD told AZ Family investigative reporters that on May 4th, Bal was booked on two felony charges of drug possession and a misdemeanor trespassing charge. However, prosecutors with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office withheld criminal charges pending the results of a lab test on pills found on the ground near Bal. The drug test results were reportedly never given to the prosecutors, but Phoenix PD questioned why he wasn’t charged based on the field-tested methamphetamines that were found in his possession as well. No charges were filed against the suspect. Though MCAO told reporters that he would’ve been released on recognizance anyhow.
Bal had previously served three months of a six month sentence in Navajo County for possession of drug paraphernalia and shoplifting before making his way back to Phoenix. He was released in July. Had he served his full sentence, the outlet observed that he would have still been in prison at the time of the murder.
Chief Sullivan said in a statement, “Officer Coolidge’s family is dealing with unimaginable grief. We will do everything we can to help them through their darkest hours, and we pledge that they will always be a part of the Phoenix Police Family. I ask that you keep them in your thoughts and prayers.”
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 Staff Reporter | Sep 8, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
It appears there won’t be a debate for the Phoenix mayoral race.
Matt Evans, the Republican challenger to incumbent Democratic Mayor Kate Gallego, announced on Tuesday that neither Gallego or her campaign had ever responded about scheduling a debate.
In addition to these reported private requests, Evans has repeatedly asked Gallego for a debate publicly.
The revelation whipped the Maricopa GOP base into a frenzy. The Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) pointed out that Gallego had frequently engaged in debates for her successful 2018 run.
“[Gallego] participated in Debates to get where she is now. This time around, now that someone else is on the ballot, is she—representing 1 person—going to discriminate against the approx 770k registered to vote & 1.7M constituents of #PHX?” asked MCRC.
The party compared Gallego’s distancing from debates to a similar avoidance by Kamala Harris and, before her, Joe Biden. The comparison also expanded to both Harris’s and Gallego’s websites lacking any platforms or specific policy positions.
The most information that Gallego’s website offers in the way of policy consists of an “About” page, in which the mayor lists her accomplishments under her first term. These include bringing in the $65 billion semiconductor plant, establishing the Office of Heat Response and Mitigation, combating climate change, launching a cool pavement program, expanding electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and expanding clean drinking water access.
Gallego’s Republican challenger, Evans, includes several policy positions on his website, namely concerning homelessness. Evans, a Phoenix native and Arizona State University graduate, is an IT professional and married father of three.
Evans made an unsuccessful bid for the District 2 seat on the Phoenix City Council in 2022; he came in third out of the three candidates, gaining 17 percent of the vote compared to opponent Heli Nielson (30 percent) and the victor Jim Waring (53 percent).
According to the city of Phoenix’s latest reporting period, Gallego’s reelection campaign has raised over $1.3 million. Her highest donors this campaign in this year all gave $6,650 individually: EMILY’s List; International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers PAC; International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers PAC; Kathryn Lincoln; Jessica Raymond; Mark Breen; Walter Cichon; Sundae Breen; William Levine; James Pederson; Roberta Pederson; James Gordon; Norma Kafer; Georgia Michaelson; Mike Michelson; Jerry Simms; Jonn Graham; Jamie Hormel; and Susan Guzman.
Others also gave the same high amount — $6,650 — last year for her campaign: Simer Mayo; Ernie Adair; Gary Holloway; Jerry Reindsdorf; Mark Becker; Bob Ramsey; Jacob Zonn; Jaime Scanlin; Jenny Norton; Heidi Jannenga; Andrew Cohn; Jonathan Keyser; Mel Martin; Roberta Koleas; Patricia Christofolo; Jason Morris; Cheryl Najafi; Kurt Mangum; Michael Pollack; and Rosellen Papp.
City campaign finance records reflect that Evans has raised over $3,400. It is also noted that he has a negative balance of nearly $1,000 due to excess disbursements.
Evans’s top donor, Cassius Carter, has given $1,000.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Sep 8, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
A liberal Democrat is attempting to maintain her representation of a middle-of-the-road Phoenix-area legislative district for another term in office.
State Senator Eva Burch of Arizona Legislative District 9 is seeking to make a return to the chamber for the next term of office, running for reelection in the upcoming November General Election.
The incumbent Democrat proudly displays several endorsements from left-leaning organizations on her campaign website, including Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, Save Our Schools Arizona, Moms Demand Action, Climate Cabinet PAC, Emily’s List, Human Rights Campaign in Arizona, Arizona List, End Citizens United, and Sierra Club.
Burch is staunchly in the camp of her open-borders colleagues in the legislature – as her voting record indicates. Last year (2023), Burch voted no on HCM 2007, which expressed the legislative desire that Congress enact the State Immigration Enforcement Act, which would allow states or political subdivisions of states, to enact, implement, and enforce criminal penalties that are prohibited in the criminal provisions of immigration laws.
This past legislative session (2024), Burch voted against SB 1231, which would have made it unlawful for a person who is an alien (unlawful immigrant) to enter Arizona from a foreign nation at any location other than a lawful port of entry. She also opposed SCR 1042, which proclaimed the Legislature’s support for the people and governor of the state of Texas in its efforts to secure our nation’s southern border. Additionally, she voted no on HB 2157, which would have prohibited a court from using a defendant’s deportation as the sole reason for early termination of probation or intensive probation.
More recently, Burch refused to support a legislative effort to refer a border security measure to the ballot in this November’s General Election – HCR 2060, voting against the bill when it was considered by her chamber. The proposal, if passed by voters in the fall, would empower local law enforcement to better secure their communities from the increasing calamities from the border crisis. A recent poll from Noble Predictive Insights showed that over fifty percent of Democrat respondents support the measure.
The Democrat lawmaker has also established a clear voting record for opposing bills that seek to lower taxes and reduce burdensome red tape for Arizona businesses. In 2023, she voted no on SCR 1018, which was a resolution restricting counties, cities, towns, municipal corporations, and political subdivisions from imposing a tax, rule, or law based on vehicle miles traveled. Burch also voted against SB 1156 that year, which would have increased the amount of the individual income tax subtraction for unreimbursed adoption expenses.
In the 2024 legislative session, Burch returned to her anti-small government ways, voting against SB 1056, which would have prohibited city councils or county board of supervisors from increasing an assessment, tax or fee without a two-thirds vote. Also, she voted no on SB 1153, which would have prohibited a proposed rule from becoming effective if the proposed rule is estimated to increase regulatory costs by more than $500,000 within five years.
Burch is also a soft-on-crime legislator. Over the past two years, she has opposed several bills that would strengthen Arizona statutes against crime and increase penalties for lawbreakers and those who seek to perpetrate harm on innocent men, women, and children. In 2024, she voted no on SB 1414, which would require a person who is convicted of a third or subsequent organized retail theft offense to be sentenced as a category two repetitive offender. She also voted against HB 2591, which would have prohibited a public power entity or public service corporation from entering into a contract with a person or company that uses forced labor or oppressive child labor.
Last legislative session, Burch voted no on SB 1583, which would have mandated that a level one sex offender who commits specified sexual offenses is required to register on the internet sex offender website if the offender was sentenced for a dangerous crime against children. Additionally, she opposed SB 1323, which would have made an employee or independent contractor of a public school who refers students to or uses any sexually explicit material in violation of existing statute criminally liable for a class 5 felony.
Arizona Legislative District 9 is one of the most competitive in the state, with a 2.6% vote spread between Democrats and Republicans over the past nine statewide elections, according to the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission. Out of those nine contests, Democrats have won five compared to four for the Republicans.
Burch ran unopposed in the July 30 primary election. She is facing off against the winner of the Republican primary, Robert Scantlebury. In the 2022 General Election, Burch defeated Scantlebury by more than 3,000 votes to assume her seat.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Matthew Holloway | Sep 7, 2024 | Education, News
By Matthew Holoway |
The State of Arizona is deploying School Resource Officers (SROs) into additional schools through 2026. The firm Off Duty Management will be facilitating the deployment of armed, uniformed police officers into multiple schools across six counties as part of Superintendent Tom Horne’s agreement with the company.
According to a press release from the Arizona Department of Education, Horne announced the state’s partnership with Off Duty Management last October to facilitate the deployment of armed, trained and uniformed officers despite the shortage of police officers in many Arizona communities.
Off Duty Management is a firm founded by former law enforcement officers with a particular market in supporting law enforcement operations. It employs current officers during their off-duty time through it’s proprietary OfficerTRAK® software and mobile app enabling the officers to schedule opportunities to work as SROs at various participating schools.
Horne told reporters, “The safety of school campuses is a priority for my administration. If some armed maniac should try to invade a school, the most effective response is to have well-trained armed law enforcement officers to protect everyone on campus. Our partnership with Off Duty Management is a vital part of ensuring safety. It is proving to be a successful, effective public-private partnership and the first of its kind in the nation.”
Arizona Department of Education’s Director of School Safety Mike Kurtenbach explained, “This agreement with Off Duty Management is a complement to the School Resource Officer program and illustrates how police officers who work as school safety officers also are trusted role models for students, which brings a sense of safety to the school campus.”
He added, “With this innovation, an officer can be provided to a school even if the community where that school is located has a shortage of its own officers. Cross-jurisdictional sharing of resources makes perfect sense to use this strategy to protect children and others in schools.”
He observed that the arrangement places over 700 officers, trained and eligible under the law, to serve at the disposal of Arizona schools. Sixty districts or charters in Maricopa County and dozens more across five other counties are participating.
Speaking with AZ family, Horne said, “We didn’t say no to anybody because my nightmare is that some maniac would go into a school and kill 20 kids.” He noted that the actions of two SROs were critical to halting the rampage of a 14-year-old who attacked and killed two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Georgia. Horne told reporters the tragedy could have been much worse. “It saved a lot of lives,” he said.
In a post to X following the school shooting, Horne wrote, “My heart goes out to the people of Georgia today. And to those who continue to resist School Resource Officers in Arizona, please watch the news. These tragedies are recurrent nightmares demanding we prioritize safety in our schools.”
He explained that at present, “There are 228 SSOs that are full-time, then we have what are called school safety officers that are part-time,” and cited the expansion will vastly increase that number. He told the outlet that all schools requesting an SRO should get one.
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 Staff Reporter | Sep 7, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
UPDATE: The Arizona GOP and Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell issued a joint announcement on Friday clarifying that the bipartisan observation program used in this year’s primary will be in place for the general election. State Representative Alexander Kolodin walked back the statements reported criticizing Mitchell’s office.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell has found herself embroiled in the hot-button issue of election integrity.
The attorney’s office declined to back a reform deal led by Republican State Representative Alexander Kolodin between Runbeck — the private election services company for Maricopa and other counties — and the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.
The deal, as part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) secured earlier this year between the state legislature and Runbeck, would have implemented a bipartisan observation program and enhanced security, legislative audits of Runbeck software, published an election workflow document publicly, and provided access to historical 2022 election data.
Sources told the Arizona Daily Independent that Kolodin had asked Mitchell to “talk sense” to the supervisors. When the deal fell through, Kolodin criticized Mitchell’s office publicly.
Kolodin told “The Afternoon Addiction” radio host Garret Lewis on Thursday that, according to Runbeck, Maricopa County Attorney’s Office Thomas (Tom) Liddy pulled the county out of the MOU, and implied that the board hadn’t voted on the decision.
“Technically, the board of supervisors has to vote,” said Kolodin. If there’s one thing I understand very well is that when it comes to elections Tom Liddy tells the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors what to do.”
Then, Kolodin advised voters to abstain from voting for Mitchell and implied she was a Democrat rather than a Republican.
“If we’re going to have Democrats running that office we might as well have the ones with the ‘D’ next to their name,” said Kolodin.
Kolodin also claimed that the board declined to approve the MOU because voters had declined to reelect them, the ones who worked well with Liddy.
“This is a big way for Tom Liddy to tell everybody eff you for taking all of his allies and control over the county away,” said Kolodin.
Mitchell disputed Kolodin’s remarks. She said that the board had declined to change the terms of its contract with Runbeck to align with the MOU back in March, and that her office didn’t have the authority to decline contractual changes the way Kolodin effectively claimed it did.
Mitchell said MCAO’s authority only amounted to providing legal advice to the supervisors.
“Here are the facts: The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has a contract with Runbeck to print ballots and provide other services. Rep. Kolodin attempted to negotiate a separate contract with Runbeck that would change the terms of the contracts for both the Board of Supervisors and Runbeck. On March 11, 2024, the Board of Supervisors chose not to accept those changes after considering them. Rep. Kolodin has misrepresented the situation by claiming that it was the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO) that rejected this change in terms. Quite the contrary: The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office has NO authority to accept or reject the terms. MCAO only can advise the Board of Supervisors as to what the law allows the Board to do. Rep. Kolodin’s misinformation campaign is false, irresponsible, and incendiary.”
Mitchell’s statement didn’t sway some local party leaders. Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) blamed Mitchell in a press release for the deal’s failure.
“The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (MCBOS), acting under the advice of Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell’s Office, just pulled the plug on [the] Election Integrity measures which Runbeck had previously agreed [to] in a Memorandum of Understanding,” stated MCRC.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
