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From the KATO Newsroom
William Perry - News Director

July 2007 Archive

Graham County Sheriff Frank Hughes and Graham County Sheriff's Dispatch Sergeant Terresa Bigler announced Monday, that the new "Are You Okay" calling system will go into effect next Monday for those who sign up.

The "Are You Okay" automatic calling system was funded by a $9,000 grant from the Arizona County Attorneys' and Sheriff's Association to help the elderly, handicapped, and disabled, who need to be checked on daily.

The system will call those who sign up and check on them at the same time everyday.

If a person is called by the "Are You Okay" calling system several times and there is no answer, a deputy or police officer will respond to the persons home to investigate why they are not answering.

If you are interested in having "Are You Okay" call you or someone you know who needs to be checked on everyday, contact Graham County Dispatch at 428-0808. An officer can come to the person's home and sign them up.

There is no charge for this service.

       

Movies cameras will be coming to the Gila Valley to film an Arizona Highways program and a feature film, in the next two weeks.

The Arizona Highways television magazine, featuring Robin Sewell, plan to be filming the beauty of Graham and Greenlee Counties, August 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, of this week, to be featured on Arizona television sometime this year.

And a Hollywood movie film crew plan to begin shooting a major motion picture, next Tuesday, on and around Highway 191, also in Graham and Greenlee Counties.

Highway 191 used to be route 666, that started in Douglas and ran the same route as 191, through Safford, Clifton, Morenci, and continuing Northbound up into Utah.

According to Safford Mayor, Ron Green, who was contacted by the movie company, "It's about a man who is hitch-hiking along Highway 666". It's a horror drama to be filmed here in the Gila Valley, beginning August 7th.

       

Safford Patrol Officers were called to the 400-block of Main Street at around 3:00am, Saturday morning, to a report of a man who was passed out in front of the Sunset Designs store with the engine to his truck still running.

When Safford Officers arrived, they found a Dodge pickup parked halfway in the roadway and halfway in the parking area of Main Street, facing the Sunset Designs building.

The officers observed a man wearing a cowboy hat sitting in the driver's seat, asleep, and the doors to the truck were locked.

One Safford Officer was attempting to pull his patrol car in front of the truck when the driver suddenly woke up - Safford Officers began banging on the truck windows, yelling at the man to stop - the man put his truck into gear - and drove forward - up onto the curb - crashing the truck into the display window of Sunset Designs building.

The driver of the pick up, who was now awake, was identified as Errol T. Brown from New Mexico.

Brown was give a sobriety test and failed it. He was taken to the Safford Police Station where he was given a DUI citation and blood was drawn.

The owners of Sunset Designs were contacted at around 3:00am, Saturday morning, and they had to drive down to Main Street and stay there until they were able to secure the business.

       

A new 250-thousand-dollar robot will be used to defuse explosives in Pinal, Graham, Greenlee and Gila counties.

The machine equipped with four cameras, claws and a rack for a shotgun can be sent a mile away from its remote station where trained SWAT members can guide the robot up stairs and through doorways.

The robot will replace the need to send a lone officer into a building to defuse bombs.

Pinal County Sheriff Chris Vasquez says it's another step toward protecting buildings and people from explosives and acts of terrorism.

The robot was paid for through a U.S. Department of Homeland Security grant geared toward local law enforcement.

The Pinal County SWAT team has members from the sheriff's office as well as officers from Casa Grande, Coolidge, Eloy and Florence.

       

A sharply divided Arizona Supreme Court has ruled that it violates Fourth Amendment rights for police to search an arrested person's vehicle without a warrant when the scene is secure and the arrestee is handcuffed, seated in a patrol car and under supervision of an officer.

These types of searches happen alot in Safford.

The issue has implications for both personal privacy and police officers' safety, and the state high court's three-to-two ruling issued Thursday represents a dramatic departure in how such everyday circumstances involving traffic stops and other common situations have been handled by law enforcement.

A lawyer who argued the case on behalf of the state says the ruling may be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court but that Arizona police must comply with the ruling unless and until it is overturned.

Relying on interpretations on past rulings by federal and state appellate courts, Arizona police have felt free to conduct post-arrest searches of vehicles' passenger compartments in order to check for weapons that could pose a threat to officers and for criminal evidence that could be destroyed.

       

As the population of Graham County grows, the Calls to Service and DUI's continue to increase in Safford.

Statistics from 2005 in Safford say that Safford Officers received 6513-calls to service from the community.

In 2005 Safford Officers wrote 21-DUI's to intoxicated drivers.

In 2006, Safford officers received 8228 calls to service and wrote out 97-DUI's.

This year, Safford is expected to receive 8,510 calls to service and write out 156-DUI's.

Also this year, Safford P.D. is expected to write 1108 citations, make 426 arrests, and investigate 314 accidents.

       

Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc's $26-billion acquisition of Phelps Dodge Corp, five months ago is paying off faster than Wall Street could have predicted.

The Copper and Gold giant, now based in Phoenix, said Wednesday that second quarter revenue increased four-fold to $5.8-billion due to the acquisition.

Freeport-McMoRan held $18-billion in debt after the March 19, 2007 acquisition of Phelps Dodge, but because of copper prices holding at more than $3.00 per pound, Freeport's debt was reduced to $9.8-billion at the end of this year's second quarter and is projected to drop to $8.2-billion by the end of the year.

Anthony Rizzuto, an analyst who follows Freeport-McMoRan for Bear, Stearns and Company in New York, noted that the company has reduced its debt, "much faster than anyone expected."

       

Graham County Sheriff Frank Hughes has announced that his office will start up a new service for older and disabled adults in Graham County called "Are You O.K.?"

The "Are You O.K." program is designed for elderly adults, disabled persons, home bound individuals who live alone, or anyone in the community who needs to be checked on daily.

"Are You O.K." is a computerized telephone calling system which will be operated free of charge by the Graham County Sheriff's Office. The system calls each enrolled subscriber every day of the year at the same time.

When the subscriber answers the phone, he or she will hear a voice saying, "Good Morning, are you okay?". If the subscriber fails to answer the phone after a few tries, of if there is a busy signal several times in a row, the computer immediately notifies the Sheriff's Office Communication Officers who will then send a patrol car to check on the person.

An introduction of the "Are You O.K." system will be held at the General Assembly room of the Graham County General Services Building at 912 W. Thatcher Blvd in Safford, on Monday, July 30, beginning at 2:00pm.

The "Are You O.K." system was funded by a grant from the Arizona County Attorney's and Sheriff's Association.

Graham County Health Department and Sheriff's Department personnel will be on hand to explain the new "Are You O.K." service.

       

A woman from Eagar, Arizona, who had been sentenced to prison and who was driving a stolen vehicle while intoxicated, crashed into another vehicle killing a Greenlee County teacher.

According to an article by Walter Mares (Mhar-res) from the Copper Era Newspaper in Clifton, Debra Nelson of Eagar, had been released by the courts, and was intoxicated, when the vehicle she had stolen smashed into a vehicle driven by Clifton Town Manager, Ray Pini, 61, killing his wife, Kathy Pini, instantly at an area about two miles east of Springerville, known as Picnic Hill.

Ray Pini was seriously injured to the point of having to be put into a medically-induced coma as a result of receiving several broken ribs, a broken hip, and two broken legs in the crash.

Ray was flown to a Flagstaff hospital where he underwent surgery Monday night and Tuesday.

The couple had just begun a vacation trip to Utah and were traveling on Highway 191 at around 4:00pm, Monday, when the crash occurred.

According to DPS investigators, Kathy Pini's body had to be extricated from the wreck by the Springerville Fire Department rescue crew and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Debra Nelson sustained facial lacerations during the crash. She was to begin a prison sentence next week and had been granted a furlough by a local court to put her personal matters in order. Nelson was also taken to a Flagstaff hospital.

Kathy Pini had been a coach at Clifton Schools and was preparing to begin teaching in the Morenci School District this fall.

       

Some might think fewer rodents would be a good thing, but scientists are concerned about the dwindling populations of two small fury creatures on New Mexico's list of endangered mammals.

The state Department of Game and Fish says recent surveys show the number of New Mexican meadow jumping mice has dropped by at least two-thirds.

And the Arizona montane vole is found only in a small region of Catron County and in east-central New Mexico.

Game and Fish mammalogist Jim Stuart says the common thread for the two rodents is the loss of riparian habitat along streams and rivers in the Southwest.

He says reasons could include drought, overgrazing and stream management.

The Game and Fish Department is hosting public meetings this week in Raton, Santa Fe, Alamogordo and Silver City to let people know about an effort to develop a recovery plan for the two rodents.

       

A state representative is resigning from the Legislature to run for the U.S. House post now held by Arizona Republican Congressman Rick Renzi.

Democratic Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick of Flagstaff was in her second term in the state House, representing a legislative district that includes Flagstaff and the Navajo Reservation.

The 57-year-old Kirkpatrick is running for the 1st Congressional District seat. That district includes much of rural northern and eastern Arizona.

She says she wants to restore integrity and confidence in the federal government.

Renzi has been dogged by ethics questions and has stepped down from House committees. He has insisted he is not resigning from his congressional seat, but it is unclear whether he will seek re-election.

Democrat Mary Kim Titla, a magazine publisher and a former television broadcaster in Tucson and Phoenix, and who is originally from the San Carlos area on the Apache Indian Reservation, has announced she is also running for the 1st District seat.

District 1 is one of the largest districts in the nation and includes Graham and Greenlee Counties.

       

Two local Police Chiefs and two local police officers will receive awards from the Governor's Office, today, for their efforts in DUI Traffic Enforcement in Southeastern Arizona, at the Governor's Office of Highway Safety - Annual DUI Conference in Tucson.

Thatcher Police Chief Mike McEuen and Thatcher Police Officer Shaffen Woods along with Safford Police Chief John Griffin and Safford Officer Lance Shurtz, will all be recognized by the Governor's Office for outstanding efforts in DUI and Traffic Enforcement in Southeastern Arizona.

The Annual DUI Conference is taking place, today, at the La Paloma Resort in Tucson.

McEuen, Griffin, Woods, and Schurtz, were all nominated to receive these awards by Terry Rutan, from the Governor's Office of Highway Safety for Southeastern Arizona in Tucson.

       

The Safford City Council held their July 23rd meeting, Monday night with several interesting items on their agenda.

The Mayor and Council decided to "table" a resolution for another meeting, a $200.00 per month salary increase for each member. If passed, the city ordinance would increase each council members monthly salary from $400.00 to $600.00 per month, and the mayor's salary from $800.00 to $1,000.00 per month, and going into effect July 1, 2008.

The Safford Council also Oked a Final Plat Approval to Hancock Enterprises, Safford Ranch Estates single-family subdivision on property just south of the railroad tracks along 8th Street and off of 14th Avenue, just north of Safford High School.

Safford Ranch Estates will hold 60-lots that is zoned as a Conventional Manufactured Home District.

Also, a matter of "Support our Troops" banners that were attached to ADOT street light poles along Highway 70 was discussed.

According to Safford City Manager, Huey Long; the City of Safford hired a subcontractor to solicit local businesses and help pay for banners that were purchased and then attached to ADOT right-of-way street light poles along Highway 70 in Safford.

According to ADOT Safford Engineer, Bill Harmon, attaching permanent banners on an ADOT right-of-way is "in violation of a state statute", and ADOT asked that the "Support or Troops" banners be taken down.

They were taken down and the plan now is to place the banners on main thoroughfares within the Safford City Limits.

Harmon said that as far as the City of Safford placing the banners on an ADOT right-of-way, Harmon called it "an honest mistake".

       

Graham County Sheriff's Investigators have arrested a Safford man for what looks like the hit-and-run death of Michael Luna, also of Safford.

In a preliminary investigation, it appears that Michael Luna was parked at Jobi's Market on South Highway 191, South of Safford. Luna was on his cell phone and getting ice when a vehicle driven by Tommy Lozano, ran his vehicle into the back of Luna's Suburban while Luna was loading ice into his ice chest.

Lozano pinned Luna and smashed the back of the Suburban.

Lozano then left the scene and when to a residence on Catalina Drive in Safford.

According to witnesses, Sheriff's deputies and an ambulance were called.

An attempt to fly Luna to Tucson was unsuccessful because Luna died before the helicopter could get to Tucson.

Sheriff's Investigators are still trying to unravel why Luna was killed.

More information is expected to become available soon.

       

Graham County Sheriff's Deputies were dispatched to the parking lot of Jobi's Market, south of Safford, at around 8:11am, Saturday morning, to a report of a man seriously injured in a two vehicle accident.

According to a news release from Graham County Sheriff, Frank Hughes, when deputies arrived they found a man seriously injured, laying in the parking lot, identified as 45-year-old Michael Luna of Safford.

Witnesses reported to deputies that a white pickup truck came through the parking lot and ran over Luna. After running over Luna, the truck drove onto Highway 191, and sped back toward Safford, almost colliding with oncoming traffic.

An ambulance was called and transported Luna to the Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Another witness apparently followed the hit and run suspect vehicle that left the parking lot to a residence on Catalina Drive in Safford.

The driver was identified as Tommy Lozano, 39, of Safford.

Lozano was arrested and taken to jail and has been charged with first degree murder.

As of Monday, Lozano was still in the Graham County Jail and no bond had be set.

The Graham County Sheriff's Office is investigating the death of Michael Luna as a homicide.

       

A small wildfire located below West Peak in the Pinalino mountains, South of Pima, has been allowed by the Forest Service to burn brush and unwanted fuel along the mountain side since Tuesday afternoon.

Two lightning strikes started the "Widemouth" fire Tuesday afternoon according to Forest Service Manager, Buddy Zale.

Zale said that monsoon rain is expected this weekend and beause the scrub brush where the fire started needed to be cleaned out, the Forest Service decided to let it burn itself out naturally.

Since Tuesday afternoon, Forest Service personnel have kept a close eye on the "Widemouth" fire and reported Wednesday night, the fire received quite a bit of rain.

As of Thursday afternoon, the "Widemouth" fire had burned 353-acres and had almost quit burning.

       

Graham County Search and Rescue Volunteers were called out Tuesday to conduct a search for a missing employee of Darling Environmental and Survey Company out of Tucson.

A three-man crew were out in a mountainous area, North of Ft. Thomas, Tuesday afternoon, about 25-miles northwest of Safford, when one of the three employees, Brandon Larriva, 22, from Globe, became separated from the rest of the crew and had been missing since 2:30pm, Tuesday afternoon.

Graham County Deputies then called out Search and Rescue and called in the DPS Ranger Helicopter to assist in the search for the missing man.

One of the survey crew explained to a Graham County Deputy that Larriva continued to walk ahead of the other two crew men and they stopped to rest several times. When they finally made it back to their vehicle, at around 3:00pm, Larriva was nowhere to be found.

The two men were told by their boss to wait for an hour to see if Larriva would show up, but he never did.

When the DPS Ranger helicopter arrived, Search and Rescue had them search a wash that was to the West of where Larriva had parked his truck. Search and Rescue volunteers also began a ground search.

At around 7:00pm, the DPS helicopter advised that they had found Larriva. The helicopter landed and brought Larriva back to where the search began.

Larriva told officers that he had gotten lost and separated from his group. He found a road headed toward Ft. Thomas when the helicopter found him.

Larriva was dehydrated but okay.

       

Rain has significantly reduced the danger of wildfires in Arizona.

As a result, most fire restrictions are being lifted or reduced across the state, effective at 8 a-m Friday morning.

The Kaibab National Forest is lifting all closures, although campfire and smoking restrictions will remain in effect.

The Tonto National Forest will keep its campfire and smoking restrictions, as will most public lands in Arizona managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

However, campfire and smoking restrictions will be lifted in the Coronado, Apache-Sitgreaves, Coconino and Prescott national forests. The same goes for the public lands within the B-L-M's Gila District, as well as Grand Canyon National Park, Saguaro National Park, Coronado Memorial and Chiracahua National Monument.

       

Another "Beer Run" theft at the Circle K on Relation Street in Safford, happened Tuesday night at around 11:30pm.

Safford Officers and detectives were dispatched to Circle K # 419. Marlene Ohare, a clerk at the Circle K told investigators that two young male were at the counter when another thin male ran into the store, grabbed three 30-packs of beer and quickly ran out.

Ohare was not able to describe any of the suspects and she told officers that she felt that she was being distracted by the two boys at the counter.

Ohare said she would contact the Circle K manager and try and provide a video of the theft from the stores video security camera.

The same store was "hit" with another beer run just a few weeks ago.

The cost of the stolen beer was $68.39. Safford Police have no leads at this time.

       

According to Zale, the Forest Service has assigned two to three fire fighters to oversee the fire as they let it burn as a natural occurring controlled burn.

Apparently, there is a lot of unnecessary fuel on the ground in the fire area along with high humidity, no high winds, and with more "monsoon" rains expected soon in the Gila Valley, fire management personnel feel that they can let the fire burn on its own - keep and eye on its progress, and hopefully the rains will extinguish it naturally.

No structures or power lines will be affected by the fire.

Zale said that as of Tuesday afternoon, the two fires had merged into one, burning about 40-acres. As of Wednesday, the fire had burned approximately 100-acres.

Because of the high humidity in the area, the fire is burning at a low intensity.

       

Women hoping to prevent a return of breast cancer don't need to go overboard on fruits and vegetables.

A government study released on Tuesday shows there's no advantage to extra servings of fruits and vegetables compared to the recommended five a day.

The seven-year-study included more than three-thousand breast cancer survivors. But researchers say none of the women lost weight on either diet.

Some experts now think weight loss and exercise should be the next frontier for cancer prevention research.

Researchers say the study results should "really lift some of the guilt" from women who felt they weren't doing enough to fight breast cancer. Earlier research on whether a healthy diet prevents breast cancer has shown mixed results.

       

Campaign money for District 1 Representative Rick Renzi is dwindling according to an Associated Press report.

A report filed on Sunday by the Renzi campaign with the Federal Election Commission, shows Renzi has spent $126,388 and owes 456,024.

Since April, Renzi has raised $41,664, taking in $15,500 from political committees.

By comparison, during the same period in 2005, Renzi had raised more than $308,000.

Renzi has been instrumental in helping to coordinate the Phelps Dodge land exchange in Graham County to begin work on the new Phelps Dodge mine, North of Safford, he helped target federal money to begin construction on a new Safford Bridge on 8th Avenue, and has provided federal money to help the Graham County Sheriff's Office and other programs in the Gila Valley.

Renzi has been dogged by ethical questions since he was elected, but they seemed to come to a head in mid-April when federal officials investigating a multimillion dollar land deal, raided his wife's insurance business in Sonoita, Arizona, looking for any information involving Renzi.

Renzi has not responded to phone and e-mail requests since Monday, for comment requests from the Associated Press.

       

The American Red Cross is announcing that the blood supply in Arizona has fallen dangerously low, and in some cases has run out.

"As soon as we get any blood in, it has to go out right away, so we're looking for a lot of blood donations over a few days," says Debra Deininger, a spokesperson for the Red Cross Blood Services, based in Tucson.

According to Deininger, " We have had one hospital cancel an open-heart surgery in anticipation that we won't be able to give them enough blood for the operation."

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Red Cross has no O-negative blood on its shelves.

The Red Cross needs to increase the supply of each blood type to about three to five days worth before each supply is considered "safe". The Red Cross Arizona Region supplies 25 hospitals across Arizona and currently has 63-units of O-positive blood on back order.

       

Nearly 90-percent of newborn babies were now being tested for a host of rare but devastating genetic disorders.

Since 2004, specialists have urged that every U.S. newborn be checked for 29-genetic problems to try and find the few thousand babies who will need early treatment to avoid death, retardation or other serious problems.

As of June 1st, 40-states require testing for more than 20 of those disorders, according to a March of Dimes report, issued Wednesday.

The report marks steady progress: Just 38-percent of babies were born in states with intensive screening when the March of Dimes counted in 2005.

That increased to 64-percent last year.

This year, that number rose to 87.5-percent of newborns, or about 3.6-million babies

       

Graham County Deputies and a County Animal Control Officer were called to a home at 7515 East San Jose Road, to a report of a rattlesnake in a bedroom.

According to Graham County Deputies, Francis Saiz was living in the older adobe and wood home with some of her grandchildren, in San Jose, and had been hearing "buzzing" noises in one of the bedrooms for several days.

Apparently, one of the grandchildren discovered the rattlesnake and told Animal Control Officer, Charlie Payne, that he saw another rattlesnake inside the house and called the deputies.

When Animal Control arrived, a grandson had already removed one snake from the bedroom but Animal Control was not able to find the other one.

The home apparently had a few holes in some of the walls and an evaporative cooler was providing a water source to the outside of the house.

Officer Payne suggested that the family close up the holes in the walls to try and keep the snakes out.

       

Department of Public Safety officers seized over 10,000-pounds of marijuana during the month of June.

DPS patrol officers and detectives seized over 10,400-pounds of marijuana during traffic stops throughout Arizona, according to a statement released from Bart Graves, a DPS spokesman.

DPS reportedly seized 6,500-pound of marijuana in May.

DPS Director, Roger Vanderpool credited the increase in drug seizures to the Officer's vigilance.

The majority of the marijuana seizures involved DPS or Border Patrol canines searching vehicles during traffic stops.

DPS officers seized over 3,000-pounds of marijuana on June 27, during a traffic stop on I-10, making it the largest single seizure of the month.

       

With all of their scientific knowledge, education, and weather predicting machines, weather scientists are still trying to figure out how they can predict when the monsoon is going to begin in Arizona.

It wasn't until after the Vietnam War that weather scientists started calling the "Rainy Season", a "Monsoon".

Weather scientists are studying a plan to set a specific date for the start of Arizona's thunderstorm season.

Weather people say that the rule is that the monsoon doesn't start in Arizona until the dew point reaches 55-degrees for three straight days.

That rule apparently is not always correct.

In the Gila Valley, the dew point hit above 55-degrees, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, and as of Tuesday afternoon...still no rain.

According to National Weather Service Chief Meteorologist in Phoenix, Tony Haffer, "the three day rule seems to confuse the situation."

Haffer says, the 55-degree rule isn't a scientific law. By definition, a monsoon starts with a shift in wind direction.

If the Gila Valley does receive the rainy season this summer, let's hope it's a good one.

       

The City of Safford is announcing to its property taxpayers of the city's intention to raise primary property taxes over last years level.

The proposed tax increase will cause Safford's primary property taxes on a $100,000 home to decrease from $46.39 to $44.74.

This proposed increase is exclusive of increased primary property taxes received from new construction. The increase is also exclusive of any changes that may occur from property tax levies for voter approved bonded indebtedness or budget and tax overrides.

All interested citizens are invited to attend a public hearing on the tax increase that is scheduled to be held on July 30th, at 7:00pm, in the Phelps Dodge Room of the City of Safford-Graham County Library in Safford.

The adoption of the proposed tax levy will take place on August 13th, at 7:00pm.

       

Officials from Forest Service Firefighting crews say that the Chitty fire could possibly 100-percent contained by this weekend.

The fire started in the Chitty Canyon, June 30th, due to a lightning strike.

The fire has burned to the top of the Mogollon Rim, in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest of Eastern Arizona, where crews have used Forest Service road 54 and Highway 191 as containment lines.

The fire is 27-miles south of Alpine and so far has cost about $1.7-million to fight.

As of Monday, the fire had burned 14,200-acres.

The Forest Service is also monitoring two other fires in the area; the Squaw Fire and the Lamphere Fire, that started near the same area as the Chitty Fire.

Both fires are burning in the the Blue Range Primitive Area in Greenlee County, an area designated as wilderness. These two fires have burned an estimated 4,000 acres combined.

       

Containment is now 75 to 80 percent on the Chitty fire burning in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest, South of Alpine.

The fire has so far burned a little more than 14-thousand acres in ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, spruce, and white fir vegetation on steep southwest facing slopes.

In the southern portion of the fire, the flames are burning in pinion and juniper trees.

Meanwhile, Highway 191 has opened for public travel. Drivers should proceed with caution throughout the fire area because of smoke from the fire and firefighters working along the roadway.

Hannagan Campground and Hannagan Meadow Lodge remain open as are Upper and Lower Juan Miller and Honeymoon campgrounds. The campgrounds in the Black River area are all open.

       

Alzheimer's patients soon may be able to take medication for the condition through a skin patch.

The patch's maker, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, says it has received federal approval for the patch.

The drug contained in the patch -- Exelon -- is the same as one now available in capsule form. But the company says the patch may be better for patients, providing a regular and continuous dose of the drug throughout the day. It also says since the drug enters the bloodstream directly, some of its gastrointestinal side effects would be eliminated.

The drug isn't a cure for Alzheimer's, but it is intended to treat symptoms of mild to moderate dementia. The ultimately fatal disease robs patients of their memory and also changes how they think and behave.

Novartis says the prescription patch will be available soon.

       

Arizona's who go from doctor to doctor looking for prescription painkillers will soon be monitored by a state data base.

A new law signed last week by Governor Napolitano sets up a computerized monitoring program linking every pharmacy in the state.

Druggists will be filing reports every time they fill a prescription for certain controlled substances. All those reports will end up in a data base.

Depending on rules yet to be enacted, any person who has been going to multiple doctors will be brought to the attention of the State Board of Pharmacy.

Those who are caught breaking the rules could be asked to come in and explain the need for all of the drugs.

This is the first time that information will be made available to the state.

It will include those who are not billing the drugs to their insurance companies.

       

A 19-year-old New Mexico man was killed in a roll-over accident on Highway 191 near Safford at around 3:30am, Saturday.

Erik Chairez, of Salem, New Mexico, was traveling northbound on Highway 191, when his 1994 Chevrolet station wagon apparently drifted off the road, re-entered the road, and rolled over several times.

Chairez was found dead at the scene.

       

The "Live Earth" 24-hour music marathon that was broadcast world-wide wasn't the only musical event going this past weekend.

The Gila Valley had it's own musical extravaganza.

The Fourth Annual McMurray Communications Nickel Picnic and Battle of the Bands also took place this weekend at the Graham County Fairgrounds in Safford.

A few thousand people came out to the Fairgrounds and took advantage of nickel hotdogs and live music featuring 16-different bands.

The winning band was a local Graham County group called "Igby", that took home the $1500.00 first prize.

The best guitarist of the day was young man named Patrick Duffy.

A Country-rock group from Silver City, New Mexico, - "Friends and Whiskey" were awarded second best band of the day.

Third place was given to a Flagstaff trio - "Sizzor Lift".

And fourth place went to a local heavy metal band - "Kudegra".

Trophy plaques, prize money, and musical equipment was also presented to individual winners who were voted as best on their musical instruments and vocals.

       

An experimental aircraft and a pilot who was still taking flying lessons crashed Wednesday morning, while landing at the Flying J Airpark, Southwest of Pima.

According to a Graham County Sheriff's Office report, a pilot identified as Russell Cox of Thatcher, was coming in for a landing in an experimental aircraft when a strong cross-wind caught the plane and crashed.

Upon investigation, it appears that when the plane touched down on the landing, the left tire snapped and broke off causing the plane to drag and run off the landing strip and go into a dirt embankment where it came to rest.

Cox was taking flying lessons in Willcox and had landed at the Flying J Airpark several times.

Cox was flying an aircraft that is similar to an ultra-lite plane.

He was flown to University Medical Center in Tucson for treatment of his injuries.

Cox was in stable condition but did sustain scratches and bruises and possible spinal injuries.

       

On July 4th, the Safford Fire Department did not receive one call out, according to Safford Fire Chief, Mike Rhodes.

Graham County Dispatch received a lot of calls on July 4th , referring to illegal fireworks being fired off in Safford, Thatcher, Central, Solomon, and Pima, but Safford Fire was not called out.

According to Chief Rhodes, a portion of his firemen were working at the 4th of July celebration at the Graham County fairgrounds and others, like himself, were standing by incase of a call out.

Luckily that call never came.

Rhodes also mentioned that Department of Public Safety officers brought approximately 400-pounds of confiscated illegal fireworks to the Safford Fire Department to be destroyed.

Apparently, the 400-pounds of fireworks were confiscated by DPS officers during several traffic stops from motorists coming from New Mexico.

       

A little rain and higher humidity helped firefighters Wednesday trying to rein in a 57-hundred-acre wildfire burning in the White Mountains in eastern Arizona.

The Forest Service says the Chitty fire -- started by a lightning strike last Friday -- is now 25 percent contained. Nearly 400 firefighting personnel are working the fire, which is burning 27 miles south of Alpine.

No structures are being threatened.

But heavy smoke from the forest fire continues to keep Highway 191 closed. The smoke is affecting only a four-mile section of the roadway. However, the entire 37-mile stretch between Alpine and Clifton is closed, forcing people traveling between the two communities to use Highway 180 in adjacent New Mexico as an alternate route.

The Forest Service says it's uncertain when Highway 191 will be reopened.

       

County officials in Reserve, New Mexico, say a Mexican gray wolf has killed a third cow.

That automatically requires the wolf be removed from the wild because she killed two cows before being released in the county in late April.

County officials tried to prevent the wolf from being turned loose because of her history.

Late last month, they issued a notice of intent to trap the animal and turn her over to the U-S Fish and Wildlife Service.

A spokeswoman for that agency says it just received a report Monday on the cattle killing from Wildlife Services.

She could not immediately confirm that the investigation found the wolf killed the cow.

       

Safford Officers were called to 9th Street and 6th Avenue, Friday night, to a report of a man passed out behind the wheel of his truck.

When officers arrived they found a male subject, identified as Jackson Worker, passed out in a blue Ford Ranger truck, sitting in the middle of the street.

Worker had his foot on the brake, with the engine running.

An officer opened the driver's door and put the truck into park and turned off the engine.

The officers shook Worker several times and he would wake up and then fall back to sleep.

When they were able to finally wake the intoxicated man, the officers asked him if he new where he was.

Worker said, "Flagstaff."

The officers asked him, on a scale from zero to 10, how drunk was he?

Worker said, "9."

Worker was placed under arrest for DUI, blood was drawn, and he admitted to drinking at least a 12-pack of beer.

He was issued a DUI and it was discovered later that Worker was driving on a suspended license.

       

A Safford Patrol officer was traveling Westbound on Relation Street at around 11:15pm, Saturday night, when he came up behind a red Ford pickup, heading toward 8th Avenue with a broken windshield.

The truck made a left turn on 8th Avenue and the Safford Officer pulled the truck over.

There were three occupants in the truck with the driver identified as Gregory Brown.

Brown said that he had already contacted his insurance company about a replacement windshield for the truck.

The officer then asked to search the vehicle and Brown O-K-ed the request.

The officer found at least a 12-pack of beer in the truck but none were open.

He also found a clear plastic baggie of what was identified as cocaine under the passenger's seat. The quantity was not mentioned in the report.

The officer photographed the truck, the suspects, and the drugs and told Brown that he would be sending his report to the Graham County Attorney's Office for review. All subjects then were allowed to leave the scene.

       

7/03/07 WSP MAN ASSAULTED AT STADIUM CLUB EARLY SATURDAY MORNING Graham County Sheriff's Deputies were dispatched to the Stadium Club in Thatcher, around 1:00am, Saturday morning to a report of a fight in the parking lot.

When deputies arrived they found on man lying on his back, unconscious in the parking lot and another man standing over him, trying to wake him up.

The man who was unconscious and was later revived was identified as Daniel Carr, who was bleeding from his mouth, eyes, and nose. An ambulance was called for Carr and he was taken to Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center.

Car and a friend were drinking inside the Stadium Club and were talking to people. Carr apparently spoke to the wrong woman because according to his friend, they were leaving the club when an unknown male subject approached Carr from the rear and struck him in the back of the head. Carr fell to the ground and the unidentified man hit him again causing Carr to lose consciousness.

Deputies asked witnesses who the unidentified man was but no one could identify him.

Deputies tried to follow up on the assault at the Hospital but Carr was still incoherent.

No further information on the assault was available.

       

Lawmakers took a long look at business and economic legislation during the last session that ended June 21st, after 164 days.

Lawmakers voted to make certain mortgage practices illegal, such as buyers and sellers engaging in "cash-back" schemes in which the true price is hidden from lenders.

They accelerated the pace of already-approved laws to reduce the property tax on businesses and the rate of depreciation for property tax purposes on new equipment.

Employees injured in work-related accidents will get the first increase in benefits in nearly a decade.

Firms that comply with certain drug-testing policies will be allowed to get a 5-percent cut in premiums for their worker's compensation coverage.

Companies who train and hire the disabled were given legal protections against not paying them the new $6.75-per-hour minimum wage approved by voters last year.

Businesses will be banned from selling information they gather when they scan a customer's driver's license to verify age or identification.

And bars that follow certain procedures to check ID's at the door won't face legal trouble if a bartender ends up serving alcohol to a minor.

Most of these new laws will take effect on September 19th of this year.

       

Phelps Dodge in Phoenix has sent out the word through out the state that they need approximately 600 workers in Safford and Morenci.

In an article in the Arizona Republic, Saturday, Phelps Dodge is setting up recruitment offices in Tempe, Tucson, and El Paso, offering inexperienced workers training and in Morenci, free rent, free meals, and a housing per diem.

Phelps Dodge is also offering jobs to women who might be interested. They're also looking for workers who are skilled as mechanics, haul truck drivers, electricians, crane operators, and a variety of other skills.

Phelps Dodge needs 400 workers for its Safford operation and 200 for a new copper processing plant that is being built in Morenci.

Phelps Dodge has had a difficult time finding enough workers for it's new Safford mine, as well as in the Morenci mine and workers to build new facilities.

That is the reason for advertisement in Tempe and Tucson.