Gila County Superior Court Judge Robert Duber has announced
that he is not running for re-election because of “bullying” and “political
self-interest” by the Gila County Attorney’s Office.
The Payson Roundup reports that there has been an increasingly bitter confrontation between the Superior Court judges and
prosecutors working for Gila County Attorney Bradley Beauchamp.
The newspaper
reports that the dispute started with complaints by prosecutors that Judge
Peter Cahill rejected some proposed plea bargains. The prosecutor’s office has
been routinely requesting a new judge anytime a criminal case is assigned to
Cahill, which means Judge Duber has been taking the majority of criminal cases.
This has led to a huge backlog.
Judge Duber also told the Roundup that the current county
prosecutor’s office has skirted the the ethical edge when it comes
to key rules—like disclosing evidence.
Duber says that in his 28 years on the bench, he has never
encountered such a toxic and confrontational atmosphere.
Meanwhile, Chief Deputy Gila County Attorney Shawn Fuller faces
charges filed by the State Bar disciplinary council for a series of incidents in
which he walked out of the court in a dispute with Judge Cahill or interrupted
defense attorneys. Fuller has apologized to Judge Cahill.
Who is paying for Fullers lawyer? I ask because I have heard he is using the most expensive lawyer in the state.
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