During the height of the Cold War, UCLA and the U.S. Veteran's Administration dumped radioactive waste underneath a field where kids now play and Brentwood residents walk their dogs, reporter Michael Collins revealed in articles published May 18 and May 25 in CityBeat. Relenting to community concerns that were rekindled by the CityBeat articles, the federal government announced this week that it will test both sites, reports the Los Angeles Times.
A member of the Arizona Senate's Ethics Committee has filed a formal complaint against Sen. Jack Harper (R-Surprise), arguing that Harper acted improperly when he issued a subpoena requiring that voting machines be released to a consultant hired by Phoenix New Times. Harper said he agreed to allow New Times to fund consultant Douglas W. Jones, a computer-science expert, after the Senate refused to pay for an investigation into a contested 2004 election. On Dec. 21, a judge refused to enforce a second subpoena for the individual ballots to be released to Jones, whose report on the machines is expected in a week. It is unclear whether Jones' report will be made public, or if it will be published first in New Times. According to the Arizona Daily Star, New Times Editor Rick Barrs "said he is not sure whether he will even give a copy of the consultant's report to Harper."
