Email Author MATT COKER

Awards

• 2011 - Southern California Journalism Awards/LA Press Club, published February 4, 2010

  "Douchebag Does Sundance"

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2012 Stories by MATT COKER

• Michael Burgin, One of Two Final Defendants in Crime Ring That Hit OC Jewelers, Gets 90 Years

  published May 25, 2012

  The final two North San Diego County gang members who were part of a crime ring that robbed Tustin Village Jewelers and Baca Jewelers of Laguna Beach in 2009 received their sentences today--and one wa... More >>

• Gabriela Mariana Morales Gets 25 Years to Life for Beating Murder of 4 y.o. Son

  published May 25, 2012

  Gabriela Mariana Morales, a Santa Ana 29-year-old convicted by a jury last month of murdering her 4-year-old son by repeatedly hitting the boy's head, was sentenced today to 25 years to life in state ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Booking Photo, 9-1-1 Call, Best Head:] Jenna Jameson Arrested for DUI Crash as Patrols Heightened for Boozy Ex-Porn Stars

  published May 25, 2012

  UPDATE, MAY 25, 3:11 P.M.: At right is the booking "money shot" Jenna Jameson took after being hauled in for allegedly being drunk when she plowed her Range Rover into a Westminster pole early today. ... More >>

• Fernando Nanda Torres Guilty of Murdering Michael Barragan as He Left 2010 House Party

  published May 25, 2012

  A jury has convicted gang banger Fernando Nanda Torres, 31, of Santa Ana, for the 2010 murder of a man shot in the head while walking away from a house party.That sets Torres up for a possible sentenc... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  The Hoff Hassel-Hearts Surf City Beaches

  published May 25, 2012

  Beach season unofficially begins Memorial Day weekend, and when it comes to the best beach on this blue planet, Huntington Beach has been Hasselhoffed.See what former Baywatch star David Hasselhoff ha... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Fernando Sanchez and Jessica Gascon Allegedly Posted Facebook Threats, Conspired to Murder

  published May 25, 2012

  As if Facebook isn't having enough problems this week, the social networking site is being dragged into a teen murder conspiracy case in Costa Mesa.Fernando Sanchez, 17, of Santa Ana, is facing charge... More >>

• 5 Examples of Moonrise Kingdom Being a Wes Anderson Homage to Wes Anderson

  published May 25, 2012

  Click here for the review of Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom, which has Karina Longworth of our big sistah paper LA Weekly astutely pointing out the similarities with the 43-year-old auteur's The... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Albert Pujols' Homer Drought Begins at Home

  published May 25, 2012

  So maybe it isn't a new team, unfamiliar American League pitching and/or since-fired batting coach Mickey Hatcher that are preventing Albert Pujols from hitting out of his $250 million Angels cap.Perh... More >>

• Osiel Ruvalocaba-Azpeitia, Subject of Utah's Biggest Meth Bust, Wins Ugly Police Mugshot of the Week (But It Was Damn Close!)

  published May 25, 2012

  Before Anaheim's Osiel Ruvalcaba-Azpeitia was indicted in what's reportedly Utah's biggest-ever methamphetamine bust--and considering the tweakers in desolate trailers out there, that's saying somethi... More >>

• [BREAKING:] Orange County OK's Domestic Partnerships

  published May 24, 2012

  Who would have thunk itrIn a state that currently does not allow gay marriage, a county has just approved domestic partnerships.It's Orange County, which is incredible considering the political makeup... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Why the Orange County Republican Central Committee Chose Now to Dump Deborah Pauly

  published May 24, 2012

  How ucked fup is the Orange County Republican Central Committeer The committee did nothing when its vice chairwoman and Villa Park City Councilwoman Deborah Pauly called for the death of Islamic men, ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with YOU Get Paid:] Secret Factory Farm and Slaughterhouse Video Rolls in OC

  published May 24, 2012

  UPDATE, MAY 24, NOON.: Perhaps it was the lingering effects of my midnight pork chop/chicken gizzard/butt roast sandwich, but I really screwed the tofu dog on this item. Actually, FARM will pay you th... More >>

• Brinda Sue McCoy, Wife of Top Oceanside Cop and Former Cypress Mayor, Faces 61 Years as Armed Stand-Off Trial Begins

  published May 24, 2012

  The wife of Oceanside's police chief (and Cypress' former mayor) is scheduled to face a trial--heck, right now--for calling 9-1-1 and initiating an armed stand-off with Cypress police in December 2010... More >>

• Louie Melendrez Should Have, Ahem, Acquired a Working Car Before Alleged Theft from Store

  published May 24, 2012

  An important tip to all you drugstore cowboys out there: If you are going to grab a bunch of items from pharmacy shelves before darting out to your car for your getaway, make sure you're current on ve... More >>

• Thomas House Shelter Tonight Celebrates 25 Years of Success Helping Homeless Families

  published May 24, 2012

  Thomas House Shelter, a Garden Grove facility that provides temporary housing to homeless families, opens its doors to everyone this evening to celebrate its next 25 years.The 25th anniversary "Open H... More >>

• 5 Signs the 2011/2012 Ski and Snowboard Season Was Among the Worst Ever

  published May 24, 2012

  The local resorts have closed, but Mammoth Mountain is gearing up for a Memorial Day weekend of skiers and snowboarders in trunks and bikinis enjoying warm temps, a 12- to 36-inch base and spring cond... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Booking Photo:] Andrew James Jurjaks, Skinhead Brother of Hate Crime Convict, Held in Murder Attempt

  published May 23, 2012

  UPDATE, MAY 23, 2:23 P.M.: The Costa Mesa Police Department has released the booking photo of Andrew James Jurjaks, the 30-year-old local skinhead accused of trying to fatally stab a man early Tuesday... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with DA Charges Shalabh Rastogi:] Jalina George, OC Homicide No. 18: Husband Held for Strangulation Murder

  published May 23, 2012

  UPDATE, MAY 23, 12:31 P.M.: Irvine's Shalabh Rastogi is being held without bail pending a scheduled arraignment in Santa Ana today on charges that he strangled and murdered his wife in the apartment t... More >>

• Sharon Quirk-Silva Hopes Chris Norby's Title IX Comments Will Lose Him Assembly Race Votes

  published May 23, 2012

  Fullerton Mayor Sharon Quirk-Silva is hoping to use Assemblyman Chris Norby's recent remarks about Title IX, the 1972 federal law mandating gender equality in college and high school sports, to help ... More >>

• James Robert Anderson, Phony DEA Agent Who Stole From Tustin Family, Gets 2 Years

  published May 23, 2012

  A South Dakota man who posed as a DEA agent in December to rob a Tustin man and his family pleaded guilty Tuesday to first-degree burglary and impersonating an officer. James Robert Anderson was the... More >>

• John Campbell, Irvine Congressman, Questions Wildlife Agency's Competence, Secrecy

  published May 23, 2012

  Irvine Republican Congressman John Campbell has locked paws with a Democrat to seek a House investigation into the federal government's wildlife damage control program.Campbell and Rep. Peter DeFazi... More >>

• Stephen N. Zack, Past American Bar President, Warns Budget Cuts May Doom Equal Justice

  published May 23, 2012

  "Equal justice does not mean justice for the rich, for the powerful, for the privileged. . . . It means justice for everyone that lives in this country."-Stephen N. Zack, immediate past president of t... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Seven Sins: A True Crime Anthology from Village Voice Media is Out to Slay You

  published May 23, 2012

  Every week, writers for OC Weekly and our parent company, Village Voice Media, produce elegant magazine-style feature writing--a gritty portion of which comes in the form of true-crime stories. Now VV... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Lawyer-Father's Complaint:] Kurt Duncan Naegele Cuts Plea Deal in Fatal DUI Crash Near Hearst Castle

  published May 22, 2012

  UPDATE, MAY 22, 3:40 P.M.: It's safe to say Timothy D. Naegele has juice. He was chief of staff to former U.S. Senator Edward W. Brooke (R-Mass.) and counsel to the United States Senate's Committee ... More >>

• Dana Rohrabacher and Hamid Karzai Spar as Afghanistan Bans Surfin' Congressman

  published May 22, 2012

  "A democratically elected congressman of the United States should not be talking of an ethnic divide in Afghanistan, should not be interfering in Afghanistan's internal affairs, should not be asking t... More >>