Judge Donald Daughton--liberal activist, Obama supporter

There is a disturbing trend in Maricopa County Superior Court by Presiding Judge Barbara Mundell to pick and choose judges at will in order to ensure that the most liberal judges handle important political cases. She is essentially picking how justice will turn out. Her latest trend is to pluck judges out of retirement and put them on key cases to ensure politically liberal outcomes.

Most recently, she assigned retired judge Donald Daughton, a Democrat, to hear the challenge by abortion provider Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights to Arizona's recently passed prolife laws. The challenge was also filed at the same time in Arizona's federal court. Since the laws were to go into effect Tuesday, the suits asked for an emergency temporary restraining order (TRO) to halt them from going into effect until the issue could be fully litigated - which could take years. The federal court judge denied the request for a TRO.

Judge Daughton granted the TRO.

This is not the first time Judge Daughton has been pulled from retirement by Mundell in order to ensure a liberal outcome on a high-profile political case. Mundell apparently didn't like the outcome she was getting in a dispute between the County Attorney's Office and her political allies at the Board of Supervisors (who have bought her off by ensuring she will get a $340 million state of the art court tower), so she replaced the assigned judge with - Judge Daughton. Sure enough, Daughton ruled that the Board of Supervisors has the authority to gut the County Attorney's Civil Division and set up their own shadow County Attorney's Office.

Not surprisingly, Judge Daughton is a big supporter of Obama and Democrat U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell, as evidenced by his contributions below from the FEC website. With a history this biased, he is not fit to sit on this case. He should have disclosed up front his political contributions to left wing politicians.

How long is Judge Mundell going to continue picking and choosing judges as she pleases including ones who are retired to predetermine the outcome of cases? What's wrong with using our existing judges, and picking them by lottery? We will continue to document these outrageous preferences of justice.

Presented by the Federal Election Commission

Individual Contributions Arranged By Type, Giver, Then Recipient

Contributions to Political Committees

DAUGHTON, DONALD
PHOENIX, AZ 85018
N/A/RETIRED

MITCHELL, HARRY E. VIA HARRY MITCHELL FOR CONGRESS
	10/23/2008	500.00	28934600636

DAUGHTON, DONALD
PHOENIX, AZ 85018
NOT EMPLOYED/RETIRED

OBAMA, BARACK VIA OBAMA FOR AMERICA
	11/01/2007	500.00	28930538381
	03/31/2008	250.00	28931257229

Total Contributions: 1250.00

The effect of AZ Judges Review on the 2008 retention elections

Lighthouseblog has posted an analysis of the effect this site had on this year's retention elections.

Coming in next couple of days: Analysis of how this site influenced the elections

Please check back in a day or two when we will post an analysis of how this site influenced the retention election of judges. Unfortunately, every single judge was retained. But there was a significant decrease in approval votes for them.

Also, our next project will be obtaining real figures and numbers on judicial decisions, so we can provide hard evidence to back up our information for skeptics.

Judge McClennen's side of things (the only judge not recommended by the commission)

We are fortunate to have Judge McClennen's input regarding why he should be elected. We strongly disagree with the Judicial Performance Commission's recommendation not to retain him, as we have discussed in the post listing Superior Court judges.

Personal Statement of Judge Crane McClennen

In my legal career, I have dedicated myself to public service. Prior to becoming a judge, I served for 21 years as an Assistant Arizona Attorney General working in the Criminal Appeals Division. There I represented the State of Arizona in the state appellate courts, and the federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court.

I have been a judge for 11½ years, having been retained by the voters in 2000 and 2004. I have been on the juvenile court assignment for the last 2 years, and prior to that, I was on the criminal assignment for 6 years, the family court assignment for 2 years, and the civil assignment for 16 months. As a judge of the juvenile court, I have sought to take the necessary amount of time in each case to understand what each juvenile needs, and then do what I can to have the court system provide those services to the juvenile and the juvenile’s family. Many times at the conclusion of the case, the parents have thanked me for what I have done for their family, which I feel that is one of the most rewarding parts of this job. If any of you would like to see for yourself how I conduct myself as a judge, I invite you to come to my courtroom at any time and watch as I handle my daily calendar of cases.

In addition to the time I spend with the cases before me, I have done the following to improve the court system and to provide continuing legal education materials and opportunities to judges and attorneys in Arizona, and have received the following awards and certifications:

Awards and Certifications

· State Bar of Arizona, Outstanding Member, 1995.

· State Bar of Arizona, Outstanding Public Lawyer, 1991.

· State Bar of Arizona, Outstanding Contribution to Continuing Legal Education, 1986 & 1989.

· Founding Fellow, Arizona Bar Foundation.

· Certified Criminal Law Specialist, 1985–present.

Arizona Office of the Courts

· Instructor, New Judge Orientation, 1997–2005

Maricopa County Superior Court

· Chair, Juvenile Court Forms Committee, 2007–present.

· Chair, Juvenile Court New Judge Rotation Training, 2007.

· Chair, Committee To Draft Criminal Department Minute Entry Forms, 2001–2002.

· Chair, Committee To Draft Family Court Rules of Procedure, Maricopa County, 1988–2000.

Continuing Legal Education

· Chair & Speaker, Criminal Year Seminar, 1991–2008

· Chair & Speaker, Year in Evidence Seminar, 1987–2008

Books and Publications:

· Arizona Legal Forms, Criminal Procedure (2005)

· Arizona Courtroom Evidence Manual (3rd Ed. 1997).

· (Co-author) Chapter 4, Criminal Appeals, and Chapter 24, Justice Court Appeals,

Arizona Appellate Handbook (1992).

· Frye, Daubert, and Logerquist: Is Arizona Moving Ahead or Going in Circles? 34 Ariz. St. L.J. 571.

· Custody Under Miranda v. Arizona: Is Arizona Using the Wrong Focus? Arizona Attorney (7/00).

· Rule 404(B) and 404(C): New Definitions; New Tests; and New Rules, Arizona Attorney (6/98).

· Eliminating Appeals From Guilty Pleas: Making the Process More Efficient, Arizona Attorney (11/92).

· Capital Punishment in Arizona: Past, Present, and Future, Arizona Attorney (10/92).

· Admission of Evidence of Other Crimes, Wrongs, or Acts, Arizona Attorney (6/90).

· Impeachment and Rehabilitation of Witness Under Arizona Rules of Evidence, Ariz. Bar J. (6/83).

· Death Penalty Debated, Maricopa Lawyer (4/82).

· Arizona Divorce Law: Time for a Better System, 1970 Law and the Social Order 641.

In the Judicial Performance Review survey, I feel honored to receive high marks from the litigants and witnesses, including a 100% rating for Integrity. Although not reported in this Voter Guide, the Commission did survey Court Staff, and from them I received ratings of 100% for Integrity, 88% for judicial temperament, and 85% for Administrative Performance. It is now, and has always been, my belief that I should seek to improve the court system, and most importantly, serve the litigants and witnesses who appear before me. I have done so for the litigants and witnesses who came before me in the past, and I ask you to retain me in office so that I can continue to do so for litigants and witnesses in the future.

Judge Crane McClennen

Due to threats, GOP forced to remove its name from this blog

Due to threats from the spouse of a judge who would actually attempt to have county GOP leadership and LD4 GOP leadership removed from their positions in order to suppress free speech about their spouse, we are removing their names as sponsors and contributors to this blog and Lighthouse Blog will continue to shine the light on the judges!

The inside scoop on the only judge the Judicial Performance Review Commission did not recommend for retention

We've got the full story - and we've upped our ranking of Judge McClennan to a 9. Figures the one judge the Commission would try to remove would be the smartest judge on the bench, which tilts their decisions toward conservatives.

We've also updated info on a few more Superior Court judges, including Judge Keppel.

Read the updated info on both judges in the Superior Court judge section.

AZ Bar magazine features article on judicial retention

Was quite amused to see the front page cover of Arizona Attorney magazine this month, "Judicial Retention: The Verdict after 30 Years." To its credit, the article admits that it is virtually impossible to vote a judge out under a retention election system, and the Judicial Performance Review Commission rubberstamps every judge - in 2006, the last year recorded, all 64 judges up for retention received an average mean score of 99.6%! Not a single judge scored below 75. Judges only need a 50% approval vote among those who cast votes in their race in order to be retained.

The JPR Commission used to rate more judges poorly, back when judges were elected, not appointed like they are now. That was because the Commission actually knew more about the judges, based on their campaigns for office - the judges had opponents who could do opposition research on them and get it out publicly. Now the Commission knows very little about the judges when they come up for retention.

This article reinforces our opinion - as well as most conservatives' opinions - that the reviews provided by the Commission aren't worth your time reading.

In the future, until we move to a system of electing judges or at least requiring legislative confirmation, we recommend that the Voter Information Pamphlets include links to websites like this which provide reviews of the judges - not just the JPR Commission's fluff review.

We find it amusing that AZ Attorney didn't even bother mentioning this website. Even though AZ Judges Review is the only website in Arizona comprehensively reviewing the judges, and even though AZ Attorney's own article acknowledges the JPR Commission's review is worthless since judges receiving 99.6% scores, and even though it's pretty obvious to us the reason the AZ Bar decided to run a piece on judicial retention is because of the stir this website is creating (we're well over 1000 unique visitors per day thanks to J.D. Hayworth), the AZ bar is so biased they refuse to provide information to educate voters if it goes against their politically correct agenda.

(the AZ Attorney article will be available shortly here)

Liberal blog rates the judges

Thanks to the far left liberal blog Netroots for rating the judges, providing us with more input on who to vote for - so we can do precisely the opposite of what they recommend. We've incorporated their information, as noted, into our guide.

Stay tuned - we're supposed to be getting information any day now about the judges' illegal immigration decisions. We're also going to see if we can figure out how to make a printable sheet of just the judges on the ballot.

Information on retention of judges

We have been asked about how difficult it will be to oust a judge from office through a retention election. A judge simply needs to receive a majority of yes votes cast in his/her race in order to be retained. According to the AZ Commission on Judicial Performance Review, there would need to be a 127,500 vote difference (127,500 voters who vote yes for the average judge would need to change their vote to no).

For an excellent summary of the problem with retention elections, see the Center for Arizona Policy's analysis. Also, the nobadjudges.com website targeted two judges in 2004, but had little success, swaying only 23,000 votes. Unfortunately it was not launched until after early ballots had gone out in the mail. This website was launched prior to that, although we haven't fully obtained all of the information we'd like to provide, the attorneys we talk to are terrified of the Arizona State Bar investigating them if they criticize judges.

Look at the criteria used by the commission to rate judges. It's incredulous that there is nothing about judicial philosophy or judicial activism, the most important issues to most voters. (this link goes to the commission's review of Judge Crane McClennan, the only judge they chose not to recommend retaining). They may as well rate a judge's "friendliness" and "personal hygiene," those shallow criteria could be slipped into the list without anyone noticing.

Does anyone have any information on judges outside of Maricopa County?

We've been getting numerous requests for information on judges outside of Maricopa County. If you have any knowledge of their political views/rulings, please email us at azjudgesreview-at-gmail.com.

Maricopa County Superior Court judges has been updated significantly

We're almost done, just a few more updates within the next day or two.

AZ Supreme Court justices

Andrew Hurwitz
Extremely liberal.
Napolitano appointee - 2003
FOJ (Friend of Janet) - co-chair of her transition team to Governor's office.
Chief of staff to Democrat governors Bruce Babbit and Rose Mofford.
Worked at criminal defense firm Osborn Maledon.
On board of directors of left wing Children's Action Alliance.
On board of directors of left wing Center for the Public Interest.

Rebecca Berch
Moderate.
Hull appointee - 2002

Ruth McGregor
Extremely liberal.
Hull appointee - 1998

Michael Ryan
Conservative.
Hull appointee- 2002
Former prosecutor and Marine.

Scott Bales*
Extremely liberal.
Napolitano appointee - 2005
FOJ (Friend of Janet), worked with her at the AG's office and at her law firm Lewis & Roca
Active in the left wing Arizona Foundation for Legal Services and Education, won the criminal defense Foundation for Justice award.

AZ Court of Appeals judges

There are only three conservatives on the AZ Court of Appeals, Division 1, out of 14 total (northern half of Arizona including Phoenix). If a judge isn't listed, they are somewhere between moderate to liberal.

Dan Barker
Conservative.
Appointed by Governor Hull in 2001.
Former attorney in private practice and Superior Court judge.

Phil Hall
Conservative.
Appointed by Governor Hull in 2001.
Former prosecutor and Superior Court judge.

Jon Thompson
Conservative.
Appointed by Governor Symington in 1995.
Former prosecutor and Superior Court judge.

John Gemmill
Moderate.
Appointed by Governor Hull in 2001.
On the board of directors for Moon Valley Bible Church and Christian Family Care Agency.
Chief Judge of the division.

Michael Brown
Moderate.
Appointed by Napolitano in 2007

*Diane Johnsen, Patricia Orozco, and Ann Scott Timmer are all up for reelection this year. None of them are conservative.

AZ Court of Appeals, Division 2 (southern half of Arizona)

Peter Eckerstrom
Appointed by Napolitano
Former criminal defense attorney and public defender

Garye Vasquez
Appointed by Napolitano

Maricopa County Superior Court judges

Almost complete - we hope to have every judge in a red or blue category within the next couple of days (by Oct. 10).

MUNDELL, Barbara Rodriguez Presiding Judge

ABRAMS, Helene* Criminal

Most likely a Democrat

Napolitano appointee - 2007

Former criminal defense attorney - public defender

Appointed to Supreme Court Commission on Minorities
The left wing blog Netroots praised her for suppressing a confession in a child molestation case, allowing a high school teacher to get off scot-free

Rating: 0

ACETO , Mark F. Presiding Civil Symington appointee - 1995 Former prosecutor Conservatives have a very favorable opinion of this judge Rating:

AKERS , Linda A.* Juvenile Symington appointee - 1996 Former prosecutor Member of U.S. District Court Gender Equity Task Force Considered a mediocre attorney by reputable attorneys, but a tough sentencer, even the left wing blog Netroots considers her tough on crime Considered difficult to deal with in court Rating: 7

ANDERSON, Aimee Juvenile Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former criminal defense attorney and prosecutor Rating:

ANDERSON, Arthur Criminal Hull appointee - 1999 Former civil litigation attorney This judge can be gruff to appear in front of Considered fair by reputable attorneys, but slightly soft on crime Rating:

ARANETA, Louis A.* Civil Symington appointee - 1993 Former prosecutor & criminal defense attorney Reputable attorneys say he is fair, but not particularly tough on crime, moderate Rating:

ARELLANO, Silvia R.* Criminal Mofford appointee - 1990 Former labor lawyer Chair of Minority Judges Caucus The left wing blog Netroots said she throws out a lot of Sheriff Arpaio cases claiming the wiretaps were done improperly, and is an active member of the liberal Hispanic group Los Abogados Considered a tough sentencer Rating:

BACA, Anna M.* Presiding Criminal Judge Symington appointee - 1994 We are told she is a Republican, not a Democrat, but her record is clearly extremely liberal Formerly attorney with Equal Opportunity Commission Past Chair, Arizona Minority Judges Caucus Mentoring Program Lawyers have reported this judge has a strong liberal bias One of the judges who had a problem enforcing Prop. 100, no bail for illegal immigrants who commit serious crimes Rating: 0

BALLINGER, Eddward Jr.* Civil Republican Hull appointee - 1998 Former tax attorney Note - although was formerly Criminal Presiding Judge, was not member of any criminal defense leaning organizations Reputable attorneys say that if doesn't like your case, he's terrible. Considered moderate on sentencing crime. Rating:

BARTON, Janet Criminal Hull appointee - 2000 Former commercial litigation attorney Rating:

BASSETT, Edward Family Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2008 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender Rating:

BERGIN, Dawn Juvenile Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former attorney at Napolitano's old firm, Lewis & Roca Rating:

BLAKEY, II, A. Craig* Civil Republican Symington appointee - 2002 Formerly in private practice Everyone who appears in front of this judge loves him and say he's fair Solid conservative Rating: 10

BRODMAN, Roger Juvenile Republican Formerly in private practice Symington appointee - 2002

BROTHERTON, William Family Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2007 Formerly a far left legislator Inductee in Sierra Club Hall of Fame, member of Attorneys for Criminal Justice Rating: 0

BUDOFF, Robert Civil Democrat Symington appointee - 2000 Formerly in private practice Have heard that he is biased against fathers in divorce/custody cases Very liberal Rating: 0

BURKE, Edward O. Civil Considered soft on crime. Symington appointee - 1999 Formerly in private practice Rating: 0

BUTTRICK, John A.* Spec. Assgn. Civil Libertarian, very well-liked by conservatives too Symington appointee - 2001 Formerly in private practice Graduated from Harvard Law School Rating: 10

CHAVEZ, Harriett Presiding Northwest/Family Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2003 Rating:

COHEN, Bruce* Family appears to be a RINO Napolitano appointee - 2005 Formerly in private practice & a prosecutor Rating:

CONTES, Connie* Criminal Hull appointee - 2002 Formerly worked for the Office of the Public Defender Rating:

DAVIS, Glenn* Civil Democrat Napolitano - 2006 Former attorney to the Democrats in the legislature Contributed to AZ State Democrat Party Rating: 0

DAVIS, Norman J. Juvenile & Associate Presiding Judge Republican Symington appointee - 1995 Formerly an attorney in private practice Rating:

DITSWORTH, John* Criminal Republican Hull appointee - 2001 Former prosecutor Reportedly an even-tempered, competent, and fair judge Rating: 8

DONAHOE, Gary Criminal Hull appointee - 2000 Former attorney in civil litigation Held the Sheriff's Office in contempt for its inability to bring inmates to court on time, even though the problem was due to the Board of Supervisors slashing the Sheriff's budget by 15%. (the court has a cozy relationship with the Supervisors, and will not rule against them in cases because the Supervisors have promised the judges a brand-new $340 million court tower with penthouse offices). He also removed the County Attorney's Office from prosecuting Supervisor Stapley, saying there was a conflict, but ignored the real conflict which was that the Supervisors' attorney Tom Irvine (a former attorney for the Democrat Party) is also the attorney for the Court. Rating: 2

DOWNIE, Margaret H. LCA Democrat Hull appointee - 1999 Former chief bar counsel & disciplinary counsel for the AZ State Bar Rating: 0 Has just been appointed to the Court of Appeals

DUNCAN, Sally Criminal Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2004 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender Reputed to be a very lenient criminal judge except on domestic violence crimes Rating: 0

DUNEVANT, III, Thomas* Presiding Tax Court/Civil Democrat Mofford appointee - 1989 Former prosecutor Reputable attorneys have a negative opinion of him Rating: 2

FENZEL, Alfred Family Republican Hull appointee - 1999 Reputable attorneys have a good opinion of him, but he's considered a little soft on crime Former prosecutor

FINK, Dean Family Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2006 Former attorney at Napolitano's Lewis & Roca firm Rating:

FLORES, Lisa* Family Napolitano appointee and FOJ (Friend of Janet) - 2005 RINO Former General Counsel for Governor Hull, where she was responsible for many of Hull's bad judicial picks, including Ruth MacGregor Rating: less than 0

FOSTER, George H. Criminal Considered somewhat liberal, but is one of the most pleasant judges. Democrat Hull or Napolitano appointee - 2003 Former managing attorney with Wilenchik & Bartness Past instructor, Project Business – teaching free enterprise to middle school children Rating:

GAINES, Pendleton Criminal Hull appointee - 1999 Formerly in commercial litigation Rating: 10

GAMA, J. Richard Juvenile Hull appointee - 2000 Democrat but considered tough on crime Considered liberal Former trial attorney Rating: 2 (recently lowered his ranking)

GARCIA, Jeanne* Civil Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2005 Considered soft on crime Formerly worked at the AG's Office Rating: 0

GENTRY-LEWIS, Jo Lynn* Family Napolitano appointee - 2005 Former government attorney Former tribal attorney, active in Native American causes Rating:

GORDON, Michael* Family Napolitano appointee - 2005 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender Considered soft on crime Rating: 0

GOTTSFIELD, Robert L. Criminal Lawyers refer to him as "crazy Bob" due to his erratic behavior, but he's fast. Soft on drug crimes

GRANT, Larry Criminal Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2003 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender, briefly a prosecutor Very liberal, accuses police officers of racial profiling Rating: 0

GRANVILLE, Warren J. Criminal Republican Reputedly is very liberal in his decisions - as one commenter noted - yes although he is a registered Republican, he has been very liberal in his rulings unfortunately. Hull appointee - 2000 Rating: 0

HALL, Norman (we are sad to report that he recently passed away. He was an excellent judge we are told)

HANNAH, John* Juvenile Napolitano appointee - 2005 Formerly very active in criminal defense, including AZ Capital Representation Project Rating: 0

HARRISON, Cari A.* Criminal Hull appointee - 2001 Formerly worked for the AG's office and in private practice Reputable prosecutors say she is conservative Rating: 8

HAUSER, Brian R. Civil Symington or Mofford appointee - 1991 Former government attorney Reputable attorneys consider him a decent judge, although moderate on crime Rating:

HEGYI, Hugh Family Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former assistant to a Democrat Senator Formerly worked at the AG's office and in private practice Active in State Bar's left wing Legal Services Committee Rating: 0

HEILMAN, Joseph B. Civil Democrat Hull appointee - 1999 Former prosecutor Considered a soft sentencer, but is about as balanced as you're going to find in a Democrat appointee. Is pro-2nd amendment and a hunter. Rating:

HICKS, Bethany G. Civil Hull appointee - 1999 Considered soft on crime and invents laws Former family law practitioner Rating: 0

HILLIARD, Ruth H.* Family Republican Babbitt appointee - 1985 Left wing blog Netroots describes her as "very liberal" Formerly in civil litigation Rating:

HOAG, M. Jean Associate Presiding Juvenile Mofford appointee - 1996 Former prosecutor Reputable attorneys consider her ok Rating:

HOFFMAN, Kristin C.* Criminal Napolitano appointee - 2006 Liberal blog says she's pro-abortion and biased towards women and feminist views Doesn't follow the law Rating: 0

HOLT, Cathy M. Juvenile Hull appointee - 1999 Formerly in commercial litigation Rating:

HOUSER, Robert C. Juvenile Republican Hull appointee - 2002 Considered soft on crime Formerly attorney in private practice Rating: 0

HYATT, Carey Family Republican Former prosecutor Hull appointee - 2000 Rating:

ISHIKAWA, Brian K. Juvenile Republican Symington appointee - 1995 Former attorney in private practice Rating: 10

JONES, Michael D. Criminal Symington appointee - 1995 Former prosecutor Considered lazy & a pushover Rating: 0

KATZ, Paul A.* Family Democrat Mofford appointee - 1989 Reputable attorneys have a poor opinion of him Left wing blog Netroots describes him as "very liberal" Former government attorney Rating: 0

KEMP, Michael* Criminal Most likely a Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2005 Former prosecutor Reputed to be a fair judge, well-liked Rating: 8

KEPPEL, James H. Juvenile Republican Symington appointee - 1996 Former prosecutor and briefly a public defender Rating: 9- we have increased our prior ranking of him

KLEIN, Andrew* Special Assn/Civil Probably a Republican Hull appointee - 2001 Former attorney in private practice Has a reputation for being a fair, level-headed judge Rating: 10

KREAMER, Joseph Civil Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2007 Board of Directors, left wing Arizona Foundation for Legal Services and Education Former chair and active in State Bar's left wing Legal Services Committee Rating: 0

LEE, Raymond Criminal Napolitano appointee - 2003 Worked for the AG's office and in private practice On the AZ Bar Commission on Women and Minorities, AZ Ass. of Defense Counsel Rating: 0

MAHONEY, Margaret R.* Criminal Independent Hull appointee - 2002 Former attorney in commercial litigation Rating:

MANGUM, J. Kenneth Civil Mofford or Symington appointee - 1991 Former JAG attorney Reputable attorneys consider him a decent judge Rating:

MARTIN, Daniel Family Court Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former attorney in private practice Rating: 0

MCCLENNEN, Crane* Juvenile Democrat Symington appointee - 1997 Former prosecutor Prolife Wrote books on Evidence, more of an academic Left wing blog Netroots says he is tough on crime The only judge the Commission on Judicial Review recommended not retaining this year Got the full scoop on him. The Judicial Performance Review Commission gave him a poor rating because he received poor reviews from criminal defense attorneys. As an academic expert on trials, he doesn't put up with sloppily prepared attorneys. He takes time to educate them on procedure, which can back up his calendar. Considered possibly the smartest judge on the bench. Ends up ruling tough on crime and conservatively because he rules in favor of the best presented case, not emotional arguments or hastily made decisions not made on the full facts. Rating: 9

MCMURDIE, Paul* Special Assignment Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2006 Former prosecutor We apologize for the reversal in our rating of this judge. On the surface, there had been some negative stories about him - which were deliberately spread to smear him, Unfortunately we don't dare reveal the full story. But we dug and are sure it is now accurate, and can vouch that he is tough on crime. Former homicide prosecutor. Rating: 8

MCNALLY, Colleen* Presiding Family Hull appointee - 2001 Considered soft on crime Former prosecutor and public defender Rating: 0

MCVEY, Michael R.* Family Republican Symington appointee - 1993 Prolife Formerly worked at the AG's office Rating: 9

MILES, Linda H.* Family Hull appointee - 2001 Former attorney in private practice Reputable attorneys have a mixed opinion of her Rating:

MILES, Robert* Family Napolitano appointee - 2005 Reputable attorneys have a mixed opinion of him Former attorney in private practice Rating:

MROZ, Rosa Criminal Napolitano appointee - 2004 Former government attorney Reputable attorneys say she is very liberal Rating: 0

MYERS, Sam Civil Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former legislative intern to Democrat Senator Dennis DeConcini Former prosecutor Rating: 3

NORRIS, Benjamin Juvenile Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2008 Formely in private practice and litigation for the US District Attorney Rating:

O'CONNOR, Karen L. Probate/Mental Health Presiding Judge Hull appointee - 2000 Considered fair Former prosecutor Rating: 10

OBERBILLIG, Robert* Civil Hull appointee - 1998 Formerly on board of directors, Arizona Association of Defense Counsel Fellow, left wing Arizona Bar Foundation Left wing blog Netroots says he turned out to be more liberal than Governor Hull expected Rating: 0

PADILLA, Jose* Family Almost certain he is a Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2005 Active in radical leftist hispanic group La Raza during law school Former nurse Rating: 0

PINEDA, Susanna Family Court Napolitano appointee - 2007 Appears to be a RINO Formerly worked at the AG's office Rating:

POTTS, Karen* Family Napolitano appointee - 2006 Former Vice President, the far left Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest Formerly worked at the AG's office and in private practice Worked on AZ Bar disciplinary issues Appears to be a Republican, prolife, and socially conservative Rating:

RAYES, Douglas Civil Hull appointee - 2000 Considered soft on crime Former JAG attorney Rating: 0

REA, John Associate Presiding Family Court Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2004 Former staff attorney for the AZ Supreme Court Rating:

REINSTEIN, Peter Family Hull appointee - 1999 Former prosecutor Rating: 10

RONAN, Emmet J. Presiding Southeast/Family Democrat Hull appointee - 2000 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender Defended some of the most heinous criminals in the state Rating:

RYAN, Timothy J.* Associate Presiding Criminal Judge Democrat Former criminal defense attorney - public defender, and prosecutor Has a very liberal reputation on the bench Has a poor record of enforcing Prop. 100, no bail for illegal immigrants who commit serious crimes Prolife Rating: 3

SANDERS, Teresa A.* Criminal Democrat Hull appointee - 2001 Former prosecutor Considered tough on crime Rating:

STEINLE, III, Roland J.* Special Assignment/Criminal Republican Hull appointee - 2001 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender Active in criminal defense organizations Left wing blog Netroots says he is biased towards criminal defense Reputable attorneys say he does a lousy job Rating: 2

STEPHENS, Sherry K.* Family Hull appointee - 2001 Formerly worked at AG's office Considered middle of the road when it comes to sentencing, but is pleasant to appear in front of Rating:

SWANN, Peter B. Civil Democrat Napolitano appointee and FOJ (Friend of Janet) - 2003 Active in left wing AZ Foundation for Legal Services Former attorney in private practice Rating: 0 Has just been appointed to the Court of Appeals

TALAMANTE, David M. Juvenile Independent Hull appointee - 1999 Formerly worked for AG's office and left wing community legal services Considered somewhat fair, middle of the road, not biased towards criminal defense but not considered a tough sentencer Rating:

THUMMA, Samuel Juvenile Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former law clerk for liberal Democrat AZ Chief Justice Stanley G. Feldman Member, Diversity Task Force and Ethics Committee, State Bar of Arizona Has a reputation for attacking attorneys and getting them in trouble Rating: 0

TRUJILLO, Richard J.* Civil Democrat Hull appointee - 2001 Former criminal defense attorney Founding fellow, left wing Arizona Bar Foundation Past vice-president, left wing Phoenix Human Relations Commission for the promotion of diversity Rating: 0

UDALL, David K.* Criminal Republican Hull appointee - 2001 Former prosecutor Considered a somewhat tough sentencer Rating:

VERDIN, Maria del Mar Criminal Hull appointee - 1999 Former criminal defense attorney - public defender Rating: 10 - Note: our rating of this judge has gotten confused, please check back later as we figure it out. Fortunately this judge is not up for reelection this year.

WARNER, Randall Family Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former law clerk to liberal AZ Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Zlaket State Bar of Arizona, Editorial Committee, left wing Arizona Attorney Magazine Arizona Association of Defense Counsel Circulated anti-marriage petitions for Napolitano and was rewarded with a judgeship for it Rating: 0

WELTY, Joseph C. Family Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2007 Former prosecutor Rating:

WHITTEN, Christopher* Criminal Democrat Napolitano appointee - 2006 Former prosecutor and private practice Rating:

WILLETT, Eileen Juvenile Presiding Judge Hull appointee - 1999 Former attorney in private practice Rating: 10

Welcome to AZ Judges Review

This blog will provide information on judges in Arizona for voters to make informed decisions on who to vote for. It will attempt to cover as many judges in the state as possible. Because Maricopa County only has retention elections, most voters know very little about our judges. The judges never have to run for initial election since they are appointed solely by the governor, they only run later for retention election in nonpartisan races. Their judicial biographies do not say which party they belong to. The Superior Court bios don't even say which governor appointed them, which would provide some insight into their political persuasions, so we have provided that information.

We hope to provide information on judges that the Arizona Commission on Judicial Review does not, like what a candidate's political views are, and whether they have biases on the bench. For too long the Commission has rubber stamped almost all judges for reelection, which isn't helpful for most voters who would like to know which judges are soft on crime, have been involved in scandals, or are otherwise predisposed. This year, the commission only recommended not retaining one judge, Maricopa Superior Court judge Crane McClennan (who we have a mixed opinion of - he's a lot better than half the other judges). Please email us at azjudgesreview-at-gmail.com if you have any information to contribute. All information will be kept confidential. If you would rather leave us a private comment anonymously instead of an email, please leave a comment after this post. All comments are moderated so if you indicate it's not for publication, we will respect your privacy.

Due to the arguably unconstitutional AZ Bar Rule prohibiting attorneys from criticizing judges, this website is run by non-attorneys.