If you are a regular reader of The Times-News, you know that keeping up with local justice issues is a top priority for our community. Whether you are looking for updates on Twin Falls County judicial proceedings or tracking local crime news in MagicValley, our digital platform is designed to house that information in a central location. As a producer here at MagicValley.com—part of the Lee Enterprises family—I spend my days managing the backend of our site. I know firsthand that getting to the information you need shouldn't feel like a digital scavenger hunt.
In this guide, I’m going to cut through the corporate jargon and show you exactly how to find our times-news courts section, troubleshoot access issues, and ensure your browser isn't preventing you from reading the stories that matter.
Where to Find Crime and Court Reports
We organize our investigative journalism and daily police blotter updates through specific URL taxonomies. Our editors use the TownNews/TNCMS admin editorial-asset pathways to tag stories so they flow automatically into the "News" section of the site.
To find the most recent coverage:
Navigate to the homepage of MagicValley.com. Locate the "News" drop-down menu in the primary navigation bar. Select "Crime & Courts" from the sub-menu.If you are looking for something specific, the search icon (the magnifying glass in the top right corner) is your best friend. Use specific keywords like "Twin Falls District Court" or the name of a local agency to narrow your search. There's more to it than that. We use a sophisticated search index, but it works best when you use phrases rather than single words.
The "Scrape" Problem: Why Your Article Looks Like a Mess
I get a lot of support tickets from readers saying, "The article looks like it’s broken—it’s just a list of navigation links and a banner." If you see the site's header, a grayed-out background, and the cookie banner text instead of the actual body text, you aren't actually looking at the article. You are looking at a "scrape" of the page's metadata.
This happens when your browser’s cache holds onto a previous session where the paywall was active, or when a third-party script gets "stuck." Instead of just telling you to "clear your cookies" (which is annoying and wipes your saved passwords), follow this specific sequence to fix the render:
Browser Action Chrome/Edge Click the "Lock" icon in the address bar -> "Site Settings" -> "Clear Data." Safari Preferences -> Privacy -> Manage Website Data -> Search for "MagicValley.com" and remove.Troubleshooting Your Subscriber Access
If you are a print or digital subscriber, you should never be staring at a paywall. When our paywall acts up, it’s usually because the referer_url parameter passed from our authentication server is being blocked by a privacy extension or a VPN.
Step 1: Check your subscription status
If you’ve moved or recently changed your payment method, your account might be in a "grace period" or suspended. You can check your account status directly at the subscriber services payment page at subscriberservices.lee.net. If your access isn't active there, it won't work on the article page, regardless of what your browser says.
Step 2: The Login Redirect Loop
If you click "Sign In," enter your credentials, and get sent right back to the page you were just on without actually being logged in, you likely have an issue with "Cross-Site Tracking."
- For iPhone/Safari users: Go to Settings > Safari > Advanced > Turn off "Block All Cookies." Note: You only need to turn off "Prevent Cross-Site Tracking" temporarily to let our authentication handshake complete. For Desktop users: Ensure you aren't using an Incognito/Private window that has disabled third-party cookies, as our Lee Enterprises login portal requires these to confirm your token.
Cookie Consent and Privacy
I know the pop-ups are a nuisance. However, the "Cookie Consent" banner isn't just there to be annoying; it’s a legal requirement magicvalley.com for the site to function correctly. If you don't click "Accept" or "Agree," the tracking scripts that verify your subscription identity may be blocked from running. If you find the banner keeps reappearing, check your browser's "Ad-Blocker" settings. Sometimes, an aggressive ad-blocker will treat the cookie banner like an advertisement and hide it, but it also stops the banner's "hidden" functional code from registering that you've already clicked "Accept."
E-Edition and Archive Access
Many of our long-time readers prefer the E-edition (the digital replica of the print paper) to find court records that aren't featured as individual web articles. You can access this via the "E-Edition" button on the top-left of the MagicValley.com homepage.
I'll be honest with you: if you are searching for court records from years ago:
- The E-Edition has an archive calendar icon in the top toolbar. The web archives are searchable via our site's search function, but keep in mind that content prior to our move to the current TownNews platform may be indexed differently.
Still Stuck? What to tell Support
When you reach out to our support team, skip the "it’s broken" email. To get an answer in under 24 hours, include these three things:
We take pride in the local crime news in MagicValley we produce. It’s important work, and we want to make sure it reaches you every morning. If you’ve followed these steps and are still hitting a wall, it’s likely an account-sync issue on our end at Lee Enterprises—and that’s a ticket I’m happy to look into personally.