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

• Peter Herzog, Lake Forest City Councilman, Busted for DUI

  published Dec 04, 2012

  If you were a celebrity, child molester or alternative news journalist busted from driving drunk, it'd be splashed all over the Interwebs before you emerged from the drunk tank.But if you are an elect... More >>

• Pinkney Harold Badgett Gets 64 Years for Molesting Kids Ages 1-11, Holding Kiddie Porn

  published Dec 04, 2012

  With a name like Pinkney, he has to be heading to prison for the rest of his life.Yes, 68-year-old Santa Anan Pinkney Harold Badgett, who pleaded guilty Friday to molesting children ages 18 months thr... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Lenny Dykstra, Former Pro Baseball Player Out of OC, Gets 6 1/2 More Months in Prison

  published Dec 04, 2012

  Santa Ana-born pride of Garden Grove High, pro baseball warrior, Orange County car wash king, crony of CNBC Mad Moneyman Jim Cramer and convicted thief, druggie, conman and sex offender Lenny Dykstra ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Christopher Polovina, Newport Beach Pro Surfer, Faces Prison for Threatening Ex-Wife

  published Dec 04, 2012

  Newport Beach pro surfer Christopher Polovina could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison Jan. 15 after pleading guilty in New Jersey to multiple counts related to threats he made against his ex... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones Prepare to Breathe In Sundance Film Fest Again

  published Dec 04, 2012

  Home is swell, but if Orange County-raised filmmakers Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones really want to feel the love, they go to Utah--Park City to be more precise and the Sundance Film Festival to be ... More >>

• Jeamy Beatriz Melendez, Issac Angel Martinez, Ricardo Alcala Held in Edgar Omar Sura Killing

  published Dec 03, 2012

  Three people have been arrested for the Oct. 19 murder in Santa Ana of Edgar Omar Sura, 20, of Anaheim.That's not all: Jeamy Beatriz Melendez, 23, Ricardo Alcala, 23, and Issac Angel Martinez, 25, are... More >>

• Alejandro Arias, Nurse's Assistant, Gets 21 Years for Sex Assaults on Two Older Lady Patients

  published Nov 30, 2012

  Make it two-for-two today in sentences for male health care workers guilty of sexually assaulting older ladies in their care. Nurse's assistant Alejandro Arias, 40, of Cypress, was sent to state priso... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Orly Taitz Loses in Court Again, This Time to Trump Barack Obama Via College Records

  published Nov 30, 2012

  Rack up another loss in court for Aliso Viejo lawyer/dentist/real estate saleslady/wingnut Orly Taitz, unsuccessful this time not in getting her press-on nails on Barack Obama's long-form birth certif... More >>

• Narcisco Romanes Blando, Hospital Patient Care Assistant, Gets 4 Years for Rubbing Ladies

  published Nov 30, 2012

  You know when prosecutors say of a patient care assistant accused of getting too handsy with female patients, "There was no medical reason or necessity for the defendant to touch the victim's vagina,... More >>

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  [UPDATED with DA, Public Defender Interpretations:] Orange County Pervs-in-Parks Ban Violates State Constitution: Judicial Panel

  published Nov 30, 2012

  See Update No. 2 on page 2, where DA Tony Rackauckas maintains the three-judge panel ruling pertains to the Godinez case and not pending or future cases involving the county sex offender ordinance. Pu... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Derek Christopher Adams Gets 46 Years to Life for White Trash Tantrum, Murdy Park Murder

  published Nov 30, 2012

  Derek Christopher Adams, a Huntington Beach 24-year-old convicted in August of murdering a man after a day of rage directed at a different man dating a woman the defendant pined for, was sentenced tod... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Jenna Milburn-DiPasquale, OC Cybersitter Marketer, Sees Red Thanks to China's Hackers

  published Nov 30, 2012

  Jenna Milburn-DiPasquale was working on the computer in her Orange County home office in June 2009 when she received an email from her father. There's nothing strange about that since she does all the... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Mike Tracy, Animation Professor Fired for Rants Against e-Books, Sues Art Institute of OC

  published Nov 30, 2012

  A veteran professor at The Art Institute of California-Orange County is suing that for-profit college and its owners for allegedly firing him because he objected to a mandatory e-book policy that cha... More >>

• Laguna Niguel and Costa Mesa DUI Checkpoints Tonight, Garden Grove on Saturday Night

  published Nov 30, 2012

  Anyone taking that weird Laguna Niguel to Costa Mesa route this evening, with an overnight stop before heading on to Garden Grove Saturday night, will want to take extra care as three law enforcement ... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Wayne Martin Fong, Ex-Cop, Lawyer and Title Insurance Co. Veep, Stole $469k to Gamble: DA

  published Nov 30, 2012

  A former New York cop who somehow parlayed that experience into a role on this coast as vice president of and associate counsel to an Irvine title insurance company is scheduled to be arraigned in San... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Angus Brown and Arman Sharopetrosian Ran I.D. Theft Ring from Prison, Get to Stay Longer

  published Nov 29, 2012

  Federal Judge David O. Carter had a wild case in his Santa Ana courtroom this week, one involving Armenian Power gang members in prison, African-American gang members on the outside, bank insiders, uh... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  Joseph Manuel Orduna, NFL Player-Turned-Teacher, Has Child Annoyance Case Dismissed

  published Nov 29, 2012

  Two days after a jury deadlocked 8-4 in favor of acquittal, a judge dismissed the misdemeanor child annoyance case against Joseph Manuel Orduna, the former NFL running back who was teaching at Godinez... More >>

• [CORRECTION:] Perv-in-Park Case Dismissed Against Jean Pierre Nguyen

  published Nov 29, 2012

  UPDATE, NOV. 29, 3:26 P.M.: Based on corrected information from the Orange County Public Defender, this post has been corrected throughout.ORIGINAL POST, NOV. 28, 4:44 P.M.: Jean Pierre Nguyen holds t... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Wife's (r) Defense:] Lawrence and Kristina Dodge, (Formerr) OC Power Couple, Open Up About Financial Woes

  published Nov 29, 2012

  UPDATE, NOV. 29, 1:15 P.M.: See the remarks in the Comments section from someone claiming to be Kristina Dodge, who goes into greater detail about the latest controversy swirling around her and husban... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Hearing Postponed:] Ivan Von Staich, Killer of Ex's Husband and Near-Killer of Her, Seeks Parole Again

  published Nov 29, 2012

  See the update at the end of this post on the parole hearing being delayed. ORIGINAL POST, NOV. 27, 3:49 P.M.: He's baaaaaaack!Ivan Von Staich--who twice escaped from jail, threatened to kill a judge... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with Charges, Arraignment Details:] Rachel Mae Buffett, Ex-Fiancee of Double-Murder Suspect Daniel Wozniak, Held

  published Nov 29, 2012

  See the update at the end of this post with details on Rachel Mae Buffett's arraignment and the case against her.ORIGINAL POST, NOV. 20, 5:06 P.M.: The former fiancee of community actor-turned-suspect... More >>

• Doug DeCinces, Former Angel Who Paid $2.5 Million to Settle Insider Trading Suit, Now Faces Possible Prison Time After Indictment

  published Nov 29, 2012

  Los Angeles Dodger and Baltimore Oriole Hall of Fame first baseman Eddie Murray agreed in August to pay $358,151 to settle a federal lawsuit tied to an insider-trading tip he received from his buddy a... More >>

• Coopy Boyer Accused of Posing as Model Photographer to Snare Teen Girls

  published Nov 28, 2012

  I'd heard that a photographer had been arrested for sending sexy texts to two teen girls he'd met on the street and asked to model for him, but I resisted writing about it.Then I saw his smirky police... More >>

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  [UPDATED with 300 Groups Demand Closure:] Theo Lacy Facility Outed as Among the Worst Immigration Detention Centers in the U.S.

  published Nov 28, 2012

  See the Update No. 2 at the end of this post on 300 groups calling on the president to close troubled immigrant holding facilities, including Theo Lacy's.See Update No. 1 on the ACLU of Southern Calif... More >>

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  FEATURED STORY

  [UPDATED with ASUCI Supporting Divestment:] UCI Student Panel Calls for Divesting from Firms Aiding Israeli "Apartheid"

  published Nov 28, 2012

  See Update No. 3 at the end of page 3 of this post on leaders of UCI's Associated Students signing the resolution urging the university to divest from named companies for human rights abuses in Palest... More >>