RSS FeedMaricopa County Officer Refuses to Apologize
By now, regular readers are very familiar with this ongoing saga out of Maricopa County, Arizona: it all began back in October when, during a sentencing hearing, Maricopa County Sheriff’s Officer Adam Stoddard stepped up behind defence attorney Joanne Cuccia, searched through her file, and retrieved a document – all while she was making arguments and her back was turned.
In a highly anticipated decision, Judge Gary Donohoe later ruled Stoddard had not acted with reasonable justification, despite the officer’s argument that his suspicion had been triggered by his glimpse of certain “keywords.” He had also argued that a heightened state of alert was required due to incidents where defence attorneys had helped smuggle contraband and other items to their defendants. Nevertheless, Judge Donohoe had rejected these arguments and had ordered Stoddard to publicly apologize before December 1, or face jail time.
Last night, Stoddard did indeed hold a news conference. At 8:30 pm, down to the very end of Judge Donohoe’s deadline, a defiant Stoddard refused the judge’s order.
Court officer ordered to apologize
In the latest developments of this bizarre case in Maricopa County, Arizona, Judge Gary Donohue has ruled that detention officer Adam Stoddard acted inappropriately when he removed and photocopied a document from the file of defence attorney Joanne Cuccia. Judge Donohue has ordered Stoddard to apologize, however Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has responded that such an apology is unlikely to happen.
The case began when, during a sentencing hearing, the defendant alerted his attorney to the fact that court officers had removed a document from her file, behind her back while she was making arguments.
Bailiffs behaving badly: Detention Officer Adam Stoddard (officer on the right)
Previously, Stoddard had argued that he was justified in searching the file and removing the document because certain keywords had made him suspicious. It has been revealed that those keywords were “going to”, “steal”, and “money”.
In his ruling, Judge Donohue held that Stoddard had no reasonable justification for believing a crime was taking place. He found:
At issue was also the effect that Stoddard’s argument had on the reputation of defence attorney Cuccia. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office had issued multiple public statements in which they claimed to have been on “high alert” because of two incidents where defence attorneys had helped smuggle drugs and other items to their defendant – a member of the Mexican Mafia. Since Cuccia’s defendant was also a documented member of the same organization, Stoddard felt he needed to be on “high alert”.
However, absolutely no evidence has been presented that Cuccia – a ten year member in good standing with the Arizona state bar – has ever committed or been associated with any such wrongdoing. Cuccia was therefore concerned that her professional reputation would be unduly tarnished; she felt she was herself being accused of a crime.
In his ruling, Judge Donohue agreed. He found false suspicion had been cast on Cuccia, and he framed this as the central issue. “This case is not about disobeying a court order. It is about protecting a defence attorney from misbehaviour and harassment by another officer of the court.”
As a result, he ordered that Stoddard would be required to hold a press conference where he would publicly apologize to Cuccia. The press conference is required to take place before Dec. 1, and must contain a “sincere verbal and written apology for invading her defence file and for the damage that his conduct may have caused to her professional reputation.”
The ruling threatens jail time if Stoddard does not apologize, or if Cuccia determines that Stoddard’s apology is insufficient.
Sheriff responds defiantly
Yesterday, however, Maripoca County Sheriff Joe Arpaio sounded defiant, stating that he “stands behind” his officer.
“Superior Court judges do not order my officers to hold press conferences. I decide who holds press conferences and when they are held.”
Whether this issue will be put to rest therefore remains to be seen. Sheriff Arpaio’s statement suggests Stoddard may defy Judge Donohue’s order. As for the original defendant, Antonio Lozano, his sentencing hearing has been pushed back to Dec. 14, and he is now represented by new counsel.
Heat City article on ruling
Original video of Stoddard
Bailiffs behaving badly…
…Well, maybe not so much a bailiff, but a courtroom deputy. A report out of Maricopa County, Arizona amazingly shows Detention Officer Adam Stoddard taking a document from defence counsel’s files while she argues during a sentencing hearing.
While defence attorney Joanne Cuccia addresses the judge, the officer can be seen rifling through her file on the defence table. He then calls over another officer – again, still while Cuccia’s back is turned – to whom he passes a document from the file. Amazingly, this happens with neither Cuccia’s knowledge nor the judge’s, until the defendant himself speaks up!
As Cuccia attempts to assert her attorney-client privilege, the judge appears to want to defer to the officer’s discretion as to the extent of his duties. As reported by Heat City, the officer justified his search of the file and the taking of the document by the presence of certain “keywords” that led him to believe the defendant was a security risk. In a hearing that continues this week, the judge deciding the matter, has refused to consider potential contempt of court charges against the officers unless the contents of the document are revealed to evaluate any “keyword” – i.e. unless the defendant waives attorney-client privilege. The very privilege the officers are accused of violating. Bailiffs behaving badly? Attorney-client catch-22? In Maricopa County, Arizona I guess we’ll find out this week…
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