Phoenix New Times Charges Dropped

PHOENIX — Phoenix New Times owners Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey were released Oct. 19, less than 24 hours after being arrested for publishing details of a grand jury subpoena that had demanded the Internet records of every person who had visited the New Times website since 2004.

This occurrence of events underscores the role the Internet plays in the invasion of privacy and free speech rights. Public backlash against the arrests came from across the political spectrum, with the conservative Goldwater Institute among the supporters of the New Times.

"The subpoena against the New Times is possibly the broadest invasion of privacy and free speech rights that I've ever seen," said Clint Bolick, director of the Goldwater Institute's Center for Constitutional Litigation. "The notion that thousands of readers of the New Times website would have their own Internet browsing investigated is absolutely appalling … This is a huge deprivation of personal privacy and involves tens of thousands of innocent people."

Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas dismissed all charges Oct. 19 after the arrests, just hours after Arizona's State Bar Association launched an internal investigation into Thomas and special prosecutor Dennis Wilenchik for their actions in the New Times case and an unrelated one.

Thomas claimed he had no prior knowledge of the arrests or the demands in the subpoena that had been issued from his office.

"It has become clear to me that this investigation has gone in a direction that I would not have authorized," Thomas said. "There have been serious missteps in this matter. I am announcing that Mr. Wilenchik will no longer serve as special prosecutor."

New Times has battled the County Attorney's office for years over charges that reporters and editors broke the law when they published the home address of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio online.

The case dates back to a New Times investigation of Arpaio's real estate holdings in 2004, which alleged the sheriff had abused a law that allows peace officers to keep their addresses from being made public. It said Arpaio used the law to hide nearly $1 million in cash real estate transactions while leaving his actual home address on public rolls.

Larkin and Lacey were arrested on charges that they broke the law by publishing details of the subpoena in the Oct. 19 issue. In the article, titled "Breathtaking Abuse of the Constitution" Lacey and Larkin acknowledged that they risked prosecution but said the issues were too important to keep from the public.

Also on Oct. 19 the Arizona Republic went to court requesting that all court filings in the case that led to the arrests of Larkin and Lacey be unsealed and that all future proceedings be opened to the public. In an editorial published Oct. 21, the Republic said attorneys for Phoenix Newspapers Inc., its publisher, and Channel 12 (KPNX-TV) filed a motion seeking access to transcripts and court filings.

In the editorial, the Republic said it "often is leery of New Times' style of free-for-all journalism. But, in this appalling overreach of government intrusion, both the New Times and the public were grievously wronged."

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More