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

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  [VIDEOS:] Fashion Island Shooting Horror Captured; More on Suspect Marcus Gurrola

  published Dec 17, 2012

  Click here for charges filed by the DA against the suspect that could result in 115 years in prison.Marcus Sarinana Gurrola, the Garden Grove 42-year-old accused of firing more than 50 semiautomatic g... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Matt Bors, Cartoonist Featured in the Weekly, Gets Targeted by Sandy Hook Shooting Trolls

  published Dec 17, 2012

  The evils of social media dragged an OC Weekly contributor into the middle of Friday's mass shootings in Newtown, Connecticut.Portland, Oregon-based Matt Bors, whose cartoons you may recall from our H... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Newport Beach City Councilman Rush Hill Catches Shit for Saying Shit

  published Dec 17, 2012

  Newport Beach City Councilman Rush Hill caught shit last week for saying shit at a City Council meeting.The word that network television doesn't even bleep anymore reportedly left audience members "ga... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Joyce Keyak, UCI Researcher, Helps NASA Understand Hip Bone Stress on Astronauts

  published Dec 17, 2012

  A UC Irvine researcher is helping NASA understand more about bone density loss experienced by astronauts who spend long stretches at the International Space Station. Joyce Keyak, professor in residenc... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Rodney Alcala, Serial Killer Convicted in Orange County, Pleads Guilty to 2 Murders in New York

  published Dec 14, 2012

  Rodney Alcala vehemently denied killing Robin Samsoe as he defended himself in the trial that preceded his 2010 conviction for slaying the Huntington Beach 12-year-old and four young Los Angeles Count... More >>

• Sheriff Sandra Hutchens Beefs Up Deputies' Presence at Schools After Connecticut Tragedy

  published Dec 14, 2012

  Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens announced today she increased the law enforcement presence around local schools in wake of the worst school shooting spree in U.S. history."While the tragic event... More >>

• Anaheim vs. Irvine Schools as Judged by George W. Bush Institute's Global Report Card

  published Dec 14, 2012

  Under George W. Bush, federal funding for education increased 59.8 percent from 2000 to 2003. I don't know if American schools performed better than they had before during those years, but a "Global R... More >>

• Angels Press Box Move Has Baseball Writers Shouting "Foul!"

  published Dec 14, 2012

  One perk of this job is catching Angels games from the press box, where for nothing more than unreadable team coverage you get to enjoy the best seats in Angel Stadium, pluck free hot food from an all... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Torii Hunter Tweets:] Josh Hamilton Bringing His Big Stick to Loaded Anaheim Angels of Anaheim Outfield

  published Dec 14, 2012

  See the update at the end of this post where fan favorite Torii Hunter first accuses Angels owner Arte Moreno of lying to him about having no money to re-sign him, then changing his tune.ORIGINAL POST... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Seal Beach, Laguna Hills, Los Alamitos DUI Checkpoints Tonight, Tustin on Saturday

  published Dec 14, 2012

  The multi-agency "Avoid the 38" Anti-DUI Task Force has released its winter schedule, which includes DUI checkpoints from 7 tonight through 3 a.m. Saturday in Seal Beach, Laguna Hills and Los Alamitos... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Loretta Sanchez No Longer Pussies Around with Her Holiday Card

  published Dec 14, 2012

  Some may be taken aback by Rep. Loretta Sanchez's latest controversial holiday card, finding it especially snarky of a tax-and-spender to poke fun at the fiscal cliff's draconian social spending and d... More >>

• Mark Alan Jarosik Gets 31 Years for Raping, Trying to Kill Ex-G.F. and Recruiting Killer

  published Dec 13, 2012

  Please see the correction on the next page.Mark Alan Jarosik, who was awaiting a court hearing for attacking his ex-girlfriend in 2009 when he tried to break into her Ladera Ranch home and then later ... More >>

• What Do the NHL Lockout and Chapman University's Undie Run Have in Commonr

  published Dec 13, 2012

  Good lord, tuition is so high and the economy is so bad that strapped parents are send their kids to college with clothes!Or, in the case of Chapman University in Orange, it's just the winter installm... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Lorenzo Oliver, Who Sued Anaheim Over Opossum Killing Arrest, Settles for $400k

  published Dec 13, 2012

  The City of Anaheim can pretend all it wants that it is dead, but that will not disappear a $400,000 settlement with a father and son city cops arrested and detained respectively for the shovel killin... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Adam Randy Baker Guilty of Orange County's First Murder of 2011

  published Dec 13, 2012

  A jury Wednesday found Adam Randy Baker guilty of fatally stabbing one man and trying to murder a second who tried to stop the attack outside a Costa Mesa hotel's 2011 New Year's Eve party.The Dana Po... More >>

• Playing Stanton Gang Roulette as District Attorney Announces New Gang Injunction

  published Dec 12, 2012

  The Orange County District Attorney's office (OCDA) is today heralding the 11th injunction brought against an unnamed "multi-generational gang" in Stanton that is "one of the oldest in Orange County, ... More >>

• Charles Anthony Murphy Jr. Found Guilty in Third Re-Trial in Burned Bodies Murder Case

  published Dec 12, 2012

  Charles Anthony Murphy Jr. was found guilty today of murdering a father and daughter, trying to murder the man's wife and conspiring to murder the parents in a grisly 2007 case that included the bodie... More >>

• Dr. Pete Thomas, Santa Ana Podiatrist, Accused of Possessing Tons of Kiddie Porn

  published Dec 12, 2012

  It turns out a Santa Ana podiatrist has been looking at more than feet, according to police.Dr. Pete Thomas was arrested Tuesday for allegedly possessing more than 1,000 images of child pornography on... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Alex Bassinne, Ex-School Teacher, Gets Year in Jail After Copping to Molestin' & Kiddie Pornin'

  published Dec 12, 2012

  Alex Bassinne has accepted a plea deal that has the 50-year-old former math teacher in Santa Ana schools pleading guilty to molesting two teen girls and possessing child porn in exchange for a one-yea... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  University Synagogue's Jewish Film Festival Rolls on with Jewish Soldiers in Blue and Grey

  published Dec 12, 2012

  The expansive Jewish Film Festival continues tonight at University Synagogue of Irvine--and, yes, that's continues as your humble servant was slow on the uptake to promote the full schedule of movies ... More >>

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  [UPDATED with Artist Clarifying Work's Value:] Igor Olenicoff, Laguna Beach Billionaire, Sued by Sculptor Over Chinese Knock-Offs of Art

  published Dec 11, 2012

  See the update at the end of this post where the artist claims the value of one piece cited in the original post is nearly triple what was reported. ORIGINAL POST, DEC. 10, 11:07 A.M.: The last time ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  U.S. Innovation, Chinese Start-Up Money and Death by China Mix at UC Irvine

  published Dec 11, 2012

  UC Irvine Economics Professor Peter Navarro famously authored with Greg Autry the book Death by China, which argues the People's Republic's "ruthless and corrupt" Communist government threatens global... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Dave Hester, ex-Costa Mesa Thrift-Store Mogul, Sues TV's "Fake" Storage Wars for Firing Him

  published Dec 11, 2012

  During a recent Nerdist podcast interview, Tom Hanks went on and on about how A&E's Storage Wars is his favorite reality TV show.Actually, the Academy Award-winning actor should refer to Storage W... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Tony Angulo Jr., Already Popped for Thefts, Linked to Another Due to 5 y.o.'s Missing Poster

  published Dec 11, 2012

  It's a Festivus miracle!A 5-year-old Corona boy has been reunited with his missing bike thanks to some dot connecting by Irvine Police Department investigators. Irvine Police received a call around 9:... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Making Home Affordable, Costa Mesa Loan Mod Firm, Allegedly Deceived Ohio Customers

  published Dec 11, 2012

  Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine is going after a Costa Mesa loan modification firm accused of charging "significant fees" and then doing little or nothing for customers.The company, Making Home Affo... More >>