On Wednesday, November 10th at 6:27 a.m. a Pinal County Sheriff’s Deputy was traveling northbound on Standfield Road from Interstate 8 behind a 2002 Chevy Malibu passenger car. The vehicle was exceeding the posted speed limit of 50 mph. The deputy attempted a traffic stop on the vehicle but it quickly accelerated. The vehicle went through the school zone at Standfield Elementary School in excess of 75 mph. The vehicle ran the stop sign at Highway 84. The vehicle turned onto Apache Drive at which point came to an abrupt stop. The driver’s side rear passenger door opened and two Hispanic males ran northbound into the residential neighborhood.

On November 1st, 2010 at 6:40 a.m. the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office received a call regarding a delayed burglary of “Kalamazoo Materials” in Superior. The burglary occurred sometime between October 29th at 5 p.m. when the business closed and November 1st at 6 a.m. when they reopened following the weekend.

Employees discovered the padlock on the front gate to the business had been cut off. The suspects stole tools and power cables used to run the businesses heavy equipment. Over 80 feet of 2” thick electrical cable and 240 feet of 1” thick electrical cable were cut from equipment and then taken by the suspects. The suspects also cut the padlock on the outside of a box trailer and stole additional tools.

On November 8th, 2010 at 3:59 a.m. the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office received a 9-1-1 call reporting a residential fire in the 5900 block of North Snapdragon Lane, Casa Grande. When deputies arrived on scene, a single wide manufactured home was fully engulfed by the fire. The fire was put out by Regional Fire and the Casa Grande Fire Department. Nobody was inside of the home or injured during the fire.

Congratulations to the parents of Elisa Annalise Galindo, the first baby born at Banner Ironwood Medical Center!

Little Elisa came into the world at 11:40 p.m., more than 15 hours after Banner Ironwood officially opened to the public. Elisa weighed in at 7lbs, 6oz and measured at 19 inches long and was delivered by Dr. Lino  A.Ossanna., MD, the Medical Director of Women's Health Now, the first full time Ob.Gyn practice in Queen Creek.

Combs Traditional Academy, a new K-5 “back to basics” school in the J.O. Combs Unified School District, will hold a special ceremony on November 12th, 2010 in honor of Veteran’s Day. The ceremony will begin at 8:20am around the Combs Traditional Academy’s flagpole as students bring out the flag and raise it, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence. Students, staff, and the community will then be invited into our gym for presentations by a Veteran, students, and our choir. Students in all grade levels will be putting together a writing activity around Veteran’s Day, which will be displayed in our hallways and selected writings will be recited at the ceremony as the grade level presentations.

A criminal-justice watchdog group has called on state leaders to cancel a contract for 5,000 private-prison beds and launch an investigation into the private-prison industry's "lack of accountability" and influence on state politics.

The Arizona office of the American Friends Service Committee, a national Quaker non-profit group that focuses on human rights, held a news conference Monday announcing their concerns.

For the first time in history, Republican state legislative candidates swept Pinal County.

Relative newcomer and self-proclaimed "tea party" candidate Steve Smith beat incumbent Democrat Rebecca Rios for the Senate seat. The Rios family had represented Pinal County in the Legislature for 26 years.

Republican Frank Pratt retained his House seat while Republican John Fillmore beat incumbent Democrat Barbara McGuire for the other House seat.

Trader Joe's has alerted its customers about the recall of products with a cilantro ingredient that may cause a serious foodborne illness.

In some cases, the affected items are specific to certain states. For example, the 12-ounce, Spicy Thai Style Pasta Salad (sku 74441), was recalled by APPA Fine Foods, which supplied the product to California Trader Joe's, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department.

After years of being one of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport's biggest cheerleaders, Mesa Mayor Scott Smith had the opportunity to actually use it for the first time recently.

He was not amused.

The airport parking shuttle broke down, and he had to wait a long time in a remote overflow parking lot for a replacement shuttle.

Arizona and four other states reported cases of E. coli in cheese products sold in Costco stores in October, officials said.

Twenty-five cases of Escherichia coli were confirmed by officials, 11 in Arizona alone, according to a statement issued Thursday by the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Florence Unified School District is pleased to announce that a new program will be implemented district-wide starting on Monday, November 8th called Beyond Textbooks.

This program focuses on teaching the essential standards measured by state testing.

FLORENCE – The Arizona chapter of the American Planning Association today announced that the Pinal County Comprehensive Plan has been recognized as the best General/Comprehensive Plan for a place with a population greater than 50,000.

Adopted by the Board of Supervisors in November 2009, the Comprehensive Plan is a tool to implement Pinal County’s vision and expectations for land use, quality jobs, effective transportation and protection of open spaces.

FLORENCE – Arizona continues to see sporadic flu activity.  There were five new cases that the state identified last week.  So far, there is only one confirmed case in Pinal County but medical professionals say there is no doubt that flu season is on its way.

Flu shots through the Pinal County Public Health Services District are just $15, a bargain compared to the cost of cold and flu medicines or trips to the doctor's office and missed work.

Today, I had the privilege to perform the first cesarean section and to deliver the first bouncing baby boy at Banner Ironwood Medical Center in San Tan Valley.

Moreover, I got to experience firsthand and thereby confirm the aspirations and expectations I once blogged about Banner Ironwood nearly 6 months ago, which definitely were met, even surpassed, today.

As all of you have probably heard by now, I was not re-elected to our amazing School Board, so I would like to take a minute to thank each and every one of you.  Thank you for your hard work and dedication, for without each of you, we would not be the district that we are today.  Thank you for your commitment to kids, for we are all here because of the kids.  Thank you for your trust in our administration, district and board, for it is your trust that is the glue that binds us all together.

Finding time for fitness can be tough. The key is making it convenient. Consider these practical suggestions.

You know fitness is important for your health and well-being. And you want to get more active, but your days are a blur of work, household chores, errands, and time with family and friends. Setting aside enough time to sleep — let alone exercise — can be tough.

On Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010 Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu presented Florence residents Christopher Mariscal and Houston Salazar with “Certificates of Recognition” for their heroic efforts to save a man from a fiery accident.

On Friday, October 1st, 2010 at 12:01 p.m. the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office received a call regarding a single vehicle serious injury accident at Cactus Forest Road, approximately 1.5 miles west of Highway 79.

Without proper maintenance your battery can loose power and fail to deliver the necessary cranking Amps (power) your car requires. Cleaning your battery connections will help keep your battery from needing to be replaced before it’s time. Here are secrets to keep your battery perform at it’s peak.

FLORENCE – A celebration was in order as Pinal County leaders, staff, member representatives and service providers gathered to recognize Long Term Care’s two decades of service to communities in Pinal and Gila counties.

The short ceremony was held at Long Term Care’s administrative offices in Florence.  Lisa Garcia, Assistant County Manager for Health and Human Services, recognized the efforts of the case workers and managers within the Pinal/Gila Long Term Care system.

On Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010 at 6:49 p.m. the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office received a 9-1-1 call from a citizen who was at the “Christ the Victor” church located at 6173 East Arizona Farms Road, Florence regarding shots fired. As deputies were responding to the call, it was updated with information saying a female had been shot in the parking lot.