Relentlessly local coverage of Southern Chandler
March 1, 2020 | www.santansun.com
An edition of the East Valley Tribune
Possible serial killer lived strange life here BY KEVIN REAGAN Staff Writer
The residents of Maplewood Street in central Chandler looked out their windows to find a suspicious man standing in their neighbor’s driveway. He seemed dazed, confused and possibly in need of medical attention. It was March 19, 2016 – two days after the suspicious man was reported missing from a nearby group home specializing in behavioral health. Chandler Police was notified and officers later found the man wandering near Willis Road and Karen Drive. Before he was transported to the hospital, the man was identified as Samuel W. Legg III. His caretakers at the group home were notified Legg had been found. They advised Chandler Police that Legg’s psychological condition appeared to be
Onetime Chandler resident Samuel W. Legg III appears in coiurt in Ohio for a hearing. (Special to SanTan Sun News)
“worsening” and that he may have to be transferred to another facility. Over the next three years, Chandler Police received several more calls about Legg going missing in the city. The incidents followed a similar pattern; the group home reported him missing, he’d be found somewhere in Chandler and officers returned him to the home. But the last call Chandler Police got about Legg was notably different. Authorities in Ohio wanted to question him in connection with several unsolved murder and rape investigations. Aside from a few petty crimes, Legg’s criminal history hardly fingered him as the likely suspect for a series of heinous felonies. Warrants were filed authorizing Chandler detectives to extract blood samples from Legg for DNA testing – the results of which prompted officials in Ohio to label the 50-year-old a possible
serial killer. In February 2019, Legg was extradited to Ohio and indicted for raping a 17-yearold girl in 1997. He was then charged with the 1992 murder of 43-year-old Sharon Kezierski, who was found beaten to death behind a truck stop near the OhioPennsylvania border. Authorities in Ohio have said Legg is suspected in three other murders – one of them involving Legg’s teenage stepdaughter. Since his arrest last year, Legg has not been charged with any more crimes and has yet to stand trial for the others. Judges in Ohio have declared him mentally incompetent to appear before a jury and gave prosecutors until this summer to restore the defendant’s health. Public records paint a tumultuous picture of Legg’s journey from the See
KILLER on page 4
$994M plan stresses transit in Chandler BY KEVIN REAGAN Staff Writer
Chandler’s latest transportation master plan encourages city planners to place more of an emphasis on modes of transport that go beyond private automobiles. More than $192-million worth of improvements are recommended in Chandler’s updated plan to make the city more accommodating for residents relying on public transit to get around the city. Over the next 20 years, the master plan suggests revising bus routes, building transit centers, and exploring the possibility of large-scale ventures like constructing a light rail route. Chandler last revised its master plan back in 2010, when the city’s population had about 26,000 fewer residents. The total cost of all the road, transit, and technology recommendations in the plan is valued at $994 million. Available funding will determine whether any of these recommendations are ever executed. The continual growth and urbanization of the city has changed how Chandler envisions transit in the near future, said Jason Crampton, the city’s transportation planning supervisor. The rate of Chandler residents who are willing to utilize public transit has grown from 2 to 18 percent since the master plan was last updated. More residents imagine themselves utilizing multiple modes of transportation, Crampton said, so Chandler needs to plan for a city where residents don’t exclusively depend on private vehicles to move around. “We can’t continue to rely on having 98 percent of people driving in their own car
to get around the city without expecting significant congestion,” Crampton said. As younger generations become less interested in car ownership – the rate of 16-year-olds with driver’s licenses has been dropping since the 1980s – cities like Chandler are preparing for a future that will need a multi-modal transportation system. “Students and younger working population are not inclined toward driving,” the master plan states, “and need demand-responsive mode alternatives like carpool, micro-transit, and ride-hailing services.” The master plan recommends deploying more “flexible” modes of transit, like Uber’s ride-sharing application, that can connect residents to drop-off sites around Chandler. One concept explored thoroughly in the plan involves “mobility hubs,” a futuristic transit center where different types of services converge together in one place. Pedestrians, cyclists, and commuters would ideally travel to these hubs and wait there for their next mode of transit. Planners envision these hubs with cafes or restaurants to keep travelers occupied as well as storage lockers and charging stations for electric cars. “Because of the diverse destinations and travel needs throughout Chandler, there is not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution for transportation throughout the city,” the updated master plan states. “Each physical and virtual hub could be designed specifically for the area of Chandler that it serves.” The proliferation of new technology is changing how cities approach See
TRANSPORTATION on page 10
There still will be some of these funny looking birds at the Ostrich Festival, but Chandler's biggest event of the year offers a lot more to see and do. (File photo)
Ostrich Festival not so much about the birds
BY KEVIN REAGAN Staff Writer
“Over 6,000 Ostriches in Salt River Valley” was the headline splashed across the Chandler Arizonan’s front page in February 1914.
The market for fashionable ostrich feathers was growing, the newspaper reported, and Chandler was becoming home to several owners of the large African bird. Dr. A.J. Chandler, the city’s founder and namesake, kept a herd of ostriches
F E AT U R E STO R I E S Chandler ministry targets school lunch debts . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Community . . . . Page 14 Chandler Airbnb a big hit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Business . . . . . . . Page 25 Podcasts bring counselors, parents closer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Neighbors . . . . . Page 42 Still time to see Chandler thespians. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 51 Popular downtown steakhouse moving up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Eat . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 61
STFF .............................................................. Center Section
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OSTRICH on page 6
More Community . . . . . 01-24 Business . 25-28,37-38 Sports . . . . . . . . . .39-40 Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . .41 Neighbors . . . . . .42-50 Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . 51-55 Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Directory . . . . . . . 57-58 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 59 Where to Eat. . . . 61-62