Glendale’s Community Newspaper
Vol. 76 No. 8
INSIDE
This Week
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Fans ready for Spring Training BY TOM SCANLON
Glendale Star Managing Editor
NEWS...............5 Woman arrested for killing husband, hiding body
February 20, 2020
As Spring Training, the season of baseball optimism and joy is poised to begin this weekend, there are two words to avoid saying to Los Angeles Dodgers fans: Houston Astros. The dateline last week was Glendale when ESPN.com published an interview with Dodgers superstar Cody Bellinger. The reigning National League MVP trashed the trashcan-pounding Houston Astros, recently busted by baseball officials for an intricate sign-stealing scheme. “Those guys were cheating for three years,” Bellinger said. “Everyone knows they stole the ring from us.” Camelback Ranch-Glendale held a Saturday open house for fans of the Dodgers
and Chicago White Sox, the two teams that call Glendale their Spring Training home. Staff handed out free hot dogs, players signed autographs and kids got to run around the bases. Fans like Jesus Orozco and his two little daughters, Riley and Penny, were sporting Dodgers jerseys. And, beneath the spring ball smiles, many were clutching grudges. Should the Astros be stripped of the 2017 title, and Dodgers named the champions? “Should be,” said Orozco. “But you can’t do anything about it.” Orozco, who lives in Glendale, will be able to share his feelings with thousands of other Dodgers fans. The Dodgers are
SEE BASEBALL PAGE 2
Jeus Orozco brought his daughters Riley, 3, and Penny, 18 months, to Camelback Ranch to support the Dodgers. (Glendale Star photo by Tom Scanlon)
Murders up, most other crimes down BUSINESS ... 16 Spring ball’s $300 million economic impact
OPINION..................... 14 BUSINESS.................. 16 SPORTS ...................... 18 CALENDAR ................ 20 FEATURES.................. 22 RELIGION ................... 26 YOUTH........................ 28 CLASSIFIEDS ............. 30
BY TOM SCANLON
Glendale Star Managing Editor
Preliminary data provided by the Glendale Police Department to the Glendale Star show many violent crimes were down significantly in 2019, compared to 2018. In 2019, 67 rapes were reported in Glendale, down 42% from 117 the year prior. Last year, 558 cases of aggravated assault involving a firearm, knife or other deadly weapon were investigated, it too was down 22% from the 723 in 2018. Burglaries fell from 1,641 in 2018 to
The Glendale
1,420 in 2019. The 2019 burglary number is about half of the 10-year average in Glendale and less than half the 2,847 robberies in 2012. Robberies were also down, from 325 in 2018 to 234 in 2019. The 2019 robbery number was less than half the 481 in 2017 and 476 in 2016. Motor vehicle thefts were also down significantly. In 2019, 801 vehicles were reported stolen in Glendale, down from 1,054 in 2018. This was the first time in more than a decade less than 1,000 vehicles were stolen in the city.
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“I’m proud of the accomplishments of the hard-working men and women of the Glendale Police Department but with that being said, there is always work to be done,” said Glendale Police Chief Chris Briggs. A notable exception to the crime-falling trend: There were 19 people murdered in Glendale last year, up from nine in 2018. Over the last decade, an average of 17 people were murdered in Glendale. And, while all nine of the 2018 Glendale murders are listed as “cleared,” eiSEE CRIME PAGE 6
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