By Stfaff Reporter |
A former Arizona Supreme Court justice will be leading the pay-to-play investigation into Gov. Katie Hobbs.
ArizonaSenate Republicans announced on Monday that it had appointed Andrew Gould, a justice on the Arizona Supreme Court from 2016 to 2021, as part of the next phase of their investigation regarding allegations that Hobbs arranged for Sunshine Residential Homes, a group home operator and one of her top donors, to receive a special rate increase from the Arizona Department of Child Safety.
As a result of the transfer to another committee, Senate Republicans postponed the hearing for an indeterminate date in the future. The hearing was scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, at 11 a.m.
Gould also served on the Arizona Court of Appeals and Yuma County Superior Court, and served as a prosecutor in Maricopa and Yuma counties.
In a press release, Gould pledged to carry out an impartial and dispassionate investigation into the matter.
“My responsibility will be to help the committee establish a complete factual record, evaluate testimony and documents objectively, and ensure its work is thorough, fair, and legally sound,” said Gould. “No factual or policy conclusion should be predetermined. The evidence will determine where this investigation leads, and which reforms if any are ultimately recommended to the Committee.”
The Senate GOP also transferred the investigation from the Senate Government Committee to the Senate Committee on Appropriations. State Sen. Jake Hoffman (R-LD15), the chair of the Government Committee, said the media was to blame for the transfer.
During a press conference last week announcing a special hearing and subpoenas concerning the pay-to-play allegations, Stacey Barchenger, the Arizona Republic reporter who first reported on the alleged connection between Hobbs and Sunshine Residential Homes, asked Hoffman about the more than $1 million his advertising agency received from Turning Point PAC in support of Republican gubernatorial nominee Andy Biggs’s candidacy.
In this latest press release, Hoffman said the transfer of the investigation to another committee was necessary to keep the focus on the allegations against Hobbs.
“The crooked political media decided what this investigation was before it even began, because running cover for Katie Hobbs and Kris Mayes is more important to them than exposing potential corruption,” said Hoffman. “Transferring the proceedings and placing former Justice Andrew Gould at the center takes away their excuses for non-cooperation, strengthens the investigation, and ensures the evidence, not their predetermined political narrative, drives any resulting legislative reforms.”
Sen. David Farnsworth (R-LD10), chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, stated in the same press release that the scope of the investigation enabled it to fit comfortably within his committee.
“This transfer does not narrow the issues under investigation or diminish the Senate’s resolve. It places the investigation where the money can be examined directly and adds an experienced former prosecutor and Supreme Court justice to lead that work,” said Farnsworth. “We will follow the evidence, examine how these decisions were made, and give every witness a fair opportunity to explain the events at issue. Only after that process is complete can we reliably identify gaps in current Arizona law and determine which statutory changes are most appropriate to help prevent future misappropriation of taxpayer dollars.”
Along with Hobbs, the Senate subpoenaed Sunshine Residential Homes CEO Simon Kottoor and his wife, Elizabeth; Attorney General Kris Mayes; Christian Slater, Hobbs’ communications director; Hobbs’ inaugural and defense funds; Dan Barr, Mayes’ chief deputy attorney general; Bill Mundell, Mayes’ chief deputy of police and administration; Nicholas Klingerman, Mayes’ criminal division chief; Michael Faust, former DCS director and current city of Peoria manager; Shalom Jacobs, former DCS deputy director and current CGI director; Alex Ong, DCS deputy director; Robert Navarro, former DCS deputy director; and David Lujan, former DCS director.
