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The article:

Phoenix kidnapping falsehood rises from ashes

By Louis Jacobson
Published on Tuesday, February 19th, 2013 at 5:45 p.m.

Related rulings:

False
"Phoenix is already one of the kidnapping capitals of the world."

Wayne LaPierre, Wednesday, February 13th, 2013.

Ruling: False | Details

Pants on Fire!
"Phoenix, Ariz., is the No. 2 kidnapping capital of the world."  

Courtney Combs, Friday, July 16th, 2010.

Ruling: Pants on Fire! | Details

False
Phoenix is the kidnapping capital "of the Western Hemisphere."

Helen Glover, Friday, July 9th, 2010.

Ruling: False | Details

False
"Phoenix, Arizona, is the No. 2 kidnapping capital of the world."

John McCain, Sunday, June 27th, 2010.

Ruling: False | Details

False
"Phoenix, Arizona, I'm told, is now the No. 2 kidnapping capital in the world, right behind Mexico City."

David Dewhurst, Friday, June 11th, 2010.

Ruling: False | Details

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The NRA's Wayne LaPierre says in the Daily Caller that Phoenix "is already one of the kidnapping capitals of the world."

The NRA's Wayne LaPierre says in the Daily Caller that Phoenix "is already one of the kidnapping capitals of the world."

The claim that Phoenix has become one of the kidnapping capitals of the world is a falsehood that won't die.

We first checked it in 2010, when Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said it to bolster arguments that the nation needs to be tougher on illegal immigrants. PolitiFact Texas found nothing to back up the Phoenix claim and rated it False.

Since then, it's been repeated many times and kept our Truth-O-Meter busy.

Last week, we heard it again -- this time from the NRA's Wayne LaPierre. We took a fresh look for evidence and found not only is there little to back up the claim, but that investigations have raised questions about the validity of the stats kept by the Phoenix police.

We rated LaPierre's claim False.

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About this article:

Sources:

See Truth-O-Meter item.

Researchers: Bill Adair

Names in this article: David Dewhurst, Wayne LaPierre, John McCain

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