Email Author MATT COKER

Awards

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

  "Douchebag Does Sundance"

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2010 Stories by MATT COKER

• Fung Yoon, OC Homicide No. 62: Killed by Girlfriend's Ex-Husband, Who Later Killed Himself

  published Dec 20, 2010

  A wild, cross-county shooting rampage Sunday morning ended in Los Angeles' Koreatown, where gunman Young Choi shot and killed himself.Shortly before that, the 54-year-old LA resident shot and wounded ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED:] Gregory Scott Turner, UCI Criminology Student Wanted For Wife's Attempted Murder, Dead

  published Dec 20, 2010

  Update, December 20, 10:14 a.m.: UC Irvine criminology student Gregory Scott Turner, who was wanted for the attempted murder of his wife last week, was found dead in San Juan Capistrano Friday afterno... More >>

• Omar Alirio Guzman, Housecleaner Charged With Molesting 3 Girls, May Have Preyed on Others: DA

  published Dec 20, 2010

  County prosecutors and Orange County Sheriff's Department investigators have tied Omar Alirio Guzman to three molestations of little girls, but there are fears the 43-year-old Mission Viejo houseclean... More >>

• Akaninyene Efiong Akan, San Clemente Resident, Tied to Rape in Oakland. No, the Other Oakland

  published Dec 20, 2010

  A San Clemente man is being held for a rape in Oakland.No, not the Oakland of A's, Raiders, Oak Town, Jerry Brown and Epic Beard Man fame, but the Oakland section of Pittsburgh. Pennsylvania. Akaninye... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Overturned in Senate

  published Dec 18, 2010

  This morning will be known as the day the DREAM Act died in the U.S. Senate but "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was overturned there.By a bipartisan vote of 63 to 33, the Senate voted to end the debate on a b... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  DREAM Act Dies in Senate, Maybe Forever

  published Dec 18, 2010

  The dream is over, possibly forever, possibly until some time after the 2012 election--if and when the political climate changes in Washington.Once again, the DREAM Act that would provide a path to ci... More >>

• [UPDATED:] Guillermo Rodriguez Gets 110 Years in Prison for Killing Woman He Caught in Bed With His Adult Son

  published Dec 17, 2010

  rUpdate, December 17, 5:18 p.m.: 43-year-old Guillermo Rodriguez of Fullerton was sentenced to 110 years in state prison for murdering his neighbor Donna Dutton, also 43 and a multiple sclero... More >>

• Will Michael Steele Still Be RNC Chairman When He Keynotes Financial Forum in Irviner

  published Dec 17, 2010

  rDespite Republicans gaining 63 House seats and six Senate seats in the November elections, its National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, the USA Today says, had a worse year than President... More >>

• [UPDATED:] Family Questions Santa Ana Police Killing of TOY Gunman

  published Dec 17, 2010

  rUpdate, December 17, 3:12 p.m.: The case of a man killed in his apartment early Thursday is getting curiouser and curiouser. Santa Ana Police now say the dead man, identified as Elmer Alexan... More >>

• [UPDATED:] Tustin, Cypress, La Habra, Costa Mesa, Dana Point and Garden Grove Hold DUI Checkpoints Tonight, a Bunch More Follow Through the Holidays

  published Dec 17, 2010

  rUpdate, December 17, 2:46 p.m.: Irvine Police announce a DUI checkpoint for Saturday night (weather permitting). Details on next page.Update, December 17, 12:11 p.m.: Two more DUI checkpoints wil... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Hooters in Anaheim and Costa Mesa Play Legal Bait and Switch With Sex and Kids, NOW Complains

  published Dec 17, 2010

  Hooters restaurants in Anaheim and Costa Mesa routinely violate local and state laws regarding sexual entertainment and children, alleges the National Organization for Women (NOW).Orange County's NOW... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Prop 8 Backers Want Their Rainbow Flags Back

  published Dec 17, 2010

  When Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, an anti-gay/pro-straight marriage proponent with the San Diego-based Ruth Institute made her way into a recent Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals hearing on Prop 8, sh... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Hooters Has It Both Ways With Sex and Children, NOW Complains

  published Dec 17, 2010

  Hooters restaurants in Anaheim and Costa Mesa routinely violate local and state laws regarding sexual entertainment and children, alleges the National Organization for Women (NOW).Orange County's NOW ... More >>

• Steven Griego Booked for Alleged Sex Assault of 13-Year-Old Boy . . . Three Years Ago

  published Dec 17, 2010

  According to the charges, Steven Griego, 40, of Lancaster, sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy three times during the summer in Cypress and Garden Grove.That's the summer of 2007.Now 16, the unident... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED:] Verne Joseph Strong Guilty of Swinging Puppy on Leash While Arguing With His Girlfriend at Walmart, But DA is Doggone Mad Over Sentence

  published Dec 16, 2010

  Update, December 16, 4:36 p.m.: Over the barks of prosecutors, a judge today sentenced Verne Joseph Strong to 317 days in jail--essentially time served--for swinging an 8-pound puppy by a leash like a... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  X's Exene Cervenka: Beyond X-Mas

  published Dec 16, 2010

  rToday's Weekly features an interview with X singer-songwriter Exene Cervenka in advance of Friday night's KROQ Presents X-Mas With X at the Anaheim House of Blues, where a 25th anniversary screening ... More >>

• [UPDATED:] You'll Be Disappointed If You Go to the Los Alamitos City Council Swearing-In Tonight

  published Dec 16, 2010

  Update, December 16, 3:45 p.m.: Dean Zarkos, who originally requested a recount of Los Alamitos City Council votes from the Nov. 2 election, this week asked the county Registrar of Voters to end the ... More >>

• [UPDATED:] Alfredo "Freddy" Cruz GUILTY in Murder That Followed Spat Over Girl, Vandalized Car

  published Dec 16, 2010

  Update, December 16, 3:35 p.m.: 24-year-old Alfredo "Freddy" Cruz was convicted today of murdering Luis Rivera outside the young father's Lake Forest home. Cruz could get up to 15 years to life in sta... More >>

• [UPDATED:] Sheryl Lynn Massip, Who Killed and Ran Over Her Baby in 1988, Loses Sanity Bid

  published Dec 16, 2010

  Update, December 16, 3:23 p.m.: A jury today rejected Sheryl Lynn Smith's Restoration of Sanity petition, which would have made all further medical and psychological treatments for the 46-year-old co... More >>

• Megan Miko Wachi Due in Court Today for Sex-Trick Scam Gone Very Bad

  published Dec 15, 2010

  A Huntington Beach woman is due in court this morning for a pre-trial hearing tied to charges leveled against her in alleged sex-trick scam gone bad.Very, very bad.Megan Miko Wachi, 22, allegedly plan... More >>

• Redmond Peter McAneny, Newport Beach Attorney, Accused of Screwing Widow Out of $117,000

  published Dec 15, 2010

  An attorney who practices in Newport Beach and resides in Huntington Beach is accused of stealing $117,000 from a widow after representing her in a case regarding her late husband's life insurance p... More >>

• Exene X's Out Nostalgia

  published December 16, 2010

  To be fair, it was mere hours after Exene Cervenka appeared at a benefit show in Idaho. And during the phone chat, it became clear she gets no... More >>

• Have Yourself a Merry Little Octo-Xmas

  published Dec 14, 2010

  Octomom Nadya Suleman of La Habra has posed for a Christmas card photo that prominently features some of her 14 kids and, even more prominently, her breastices dangling beneath a tight, low-cut top.Do... More >>

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  [UPDATED:] In-Custody Death and Police Killing of Andres Ramirez Put DA's New Disclosure Policy to the Test

  published Dec 14, 2010

  Update, December 14, 11:48 a.m.: The disclosure policy has changed, but the results have not. As with just about every (if not every) police shooting case brought before it, the Orange County District... More >>

• [UPDATED:] Jeffrey Hubbard, Newport-Mesa Schools Chief, Subject of Closed Session Over Beverly Hills Criminal Charges

  published Dec 14, 2010

  Update, December 14, 11:26 a.m.: The Newport-Mesa Unified School District Board of Education emerged from closed session last night and did . . . drum roll, please . . . nothing!Board president Karen... More >>