South Carolina Criminal Defense Blog

An Arizona prosecutor/ county attorney is under investigation by the State Bar for numerous complaints, including allegations of:

1) inflammatory public statements to the press about defendants;
2) allowing non-lawyers to act as lawyers;
3) seeking to recuse a judge from all county cases; and
3) ex parte communication with another judge.

The county attorney has filed a petition with the Az supreme court, asking that the disciplinary committee stop investigating him, claiming "executive immunity" among other things.

In the brief the Bar states that “A lawyer who happens to be an elected public officer…cannot simply opt out of the lawyer-regulatory system claiming the privilege of his elected office.”