Arizona Senate President: Maricopa County Gaslighting, Engaged In Massive Cover-Up Over 2020 Election

Arizona Senate President: Maricopa County Gaslighting, Engaged In Massive Cover-Up Over 2020 Election

By Corinne Murdock |

Arizona Senate President Karen Fann (R-Prescott) accused Maricopa County’s top election officials of gaslighting Attorney General Mark Brnovich as part of an ongoing massive cover-up of their alleged mistakes in the 2020 election. She asserted that Brnovich was doing his job, even at the risk of facing media attacks that could undermine his senate campaign. 

Fann noted that Recorder Stephen Richer had no reason to participate in the alleged cover-up because he didn’t assume his role until January 2021. 

“It still goes beyond me that they are still denying the mistakes that happened,” said Fann. “[Richer] joined up with the board of supervisors to do this massive coverup. Mind you, they kept saying everything was fine and perfect. No it wasn’t.”

The senate president appeared on “The Conservative Circus” with host James T. Harris. She brought up past admissions by the county as evidence of a massive cover-up. 

Fann gave one example of the county’s admission that one 2020 election poll worker double-counted 50 ballots. She said that although that amount didn’t seem like a lot in the context of a presidential election, it would’ve mattered in the 2016 primary election between Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) and opponent Christine Jones. Their race necessitated a recount; Biggs ultimately won by 27 votes. 

As an example of the county contradicting its claims on the nonexistence of widespread fraud, Fann cited Richer’s emails. She read aloud from one, in which Richer wrote of the existence of “plenty of instances of actual, prosecuted and convicted election law violations [from] both administrators and normal citizens,” some of which he asserted were recent.

Additionally, Fann revealed that Richer’s emails identified major issues with chain of custody and signature verification. 

“But now? Nope. He’s part of the cover-up by saying, ‘Oh no, everything is fine,’” said Fann. “The Arizona Senate was the only body in the entire nation to step up and actually say, ‘Let’s get to the bottom of these rumors. Let’s get to the bottom of these allegations.’ The Senate has been attacked from day one — before the auditors were selected, before anything happened.”

Fann’s remarks on Thursday were in response to the actions of the Maricopa County election officials this week. 

On Wednesday, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and Richer presented a unified front against Brnovich’s interim report on the 2020 election. The officials accused Brnovich of lying and using the election controversy to score “cheap political points.” 

They lobbed their accusations against Brnovich in a press conference on Wednesday during their special and formal meeting, as well as in a public letter.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Maricopa County Accuses Attorney General of Lying, Using 2020 Election to Score ‘Cheap Political Points’

Maricopa County Accuses Attorney General of Lying, Using 2020 Election to Score ‘Cheap Political Points’

By Corinne Murdock |

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and Recorder accused Attorney General Mark Brnovich of executing a dishonest investigation into the 2020 election. In a public letter, the election officials claimed that Brnovich’s interim report on the 2020 election released last month was nothing but misinformation intended to “score cheap political points.” Brnovich is a candidate in the upcoming U.S. Senate race.

“Rather than being truthful about what your office has learned about the election, you have omitted pertinent information, misrepresented facts, and cited distorted data to seed doubt about the conduct of elections in Maricopa County,” read the letter.

The election officials then refuted claims made by Brnovich: that up to 200,000 ballots lacked proper chain of custody, that Maricopa County didn’t cooperate fully with Brnovich’s investigation, that the county relied on artificial intelligence to execute signature verification, and that the number of rejected ballots were too low. They also challenged Brnovich on his decision to publish an unprecedented interim report, characterizing it as improper commentary on an ongoing investigation.

On Wednesday morning, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors held a press conference during their special and formal meeting. Chairman Bill Gates said that Brnovich’s interim report was backing fraud and necessitated a response from the board. 

“We’re all Republicans who actually have the statutory responsibility to run these elections, and we’re saying these allegations are false, that there’s no systemic fraud,” said Gates. “Our democracy is on the line here.”

On Wednesday afternoon, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer reiterated one of the promises made in their letter: that the county would submit public records requests of all of the public records requests sent to the attorney general’s office for the last two years. 

Richer explained that the goal of the massive undertaking was to see how many of those requests Brnovich’s office fulfilled. He accused Brnovich of living in a glass house.

Brnovich called the county’s response “disappointing.” He accused Maricopa County officials of casting stones instead of working alongside his office to resolve election integrity concerns. 

“The reality is we issued an interim report that identified several issues that need to be addressed,” said Brnovich.

Brnovich held that up to 200,000 ballots lacked proper chain of custody. Brnovich also challenged the supervisors’ office to offer a clear, consistent answer on signature verification processes, pointing out the range of times they estimated it took to verify a signature. 

Richer called Brnovich’s statement “nonsense.” He said that Brnovich wasn’t being impartial about the 2020 election, referencing the attorney general’s interview with right-wing talk show host Steve Bannon.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

$6.8 Million ‘Medical Respite Center’ for Homeless to Open in Tucson

$6.8 Million ‘Medical Respite Center’ for Homeless to Open in Tucson

By Corinne Murdock |

On Tuesday a groundbreaking occurred for Tucson’s first forthcoming $6.8 million “medical respite center” exclusively for the homeless. Medical respite centers are short-term residences and caregiving locations for the homeless that are ill or injured enough to warrant assistance but not hospitalization. 

As of mid-March, the initiative raised just under $3.5 million. Major funders include the Diane & Bruce Halle Foundation, St. Joseph Catholic Healthcare Endowment Fund, Connie Hillman Foundation, Southwest Catholic Health Network, Ginny L. Clements and Tom Rogers, O’Rielly Family Foundation, Del E. Webb Foundation, Jim and Vicki Click, William and Mary Ross Foundation, Margaret E. Mooney Foundation, PetSmart Charities, Union Pacific, Raskob Foundation, and the Sundt Foundation. 

The Medical Respite Center for Men and Women Experiencing Homelessness will be 15,000 square feet and include housing for 10 women and 36 men, a small group therapy space, activity areas, a cafeteria, a kitchen, a pet play area, and a chapel. 

The nonprofits behind the medical respite center are Catholic Community Services (CCS) of Southern Arizona and the H.S. Lopez Family Foundation Center of Opportunity. CCS has been involved in housing illegal immigrants under federal contracts over the last year. 

In September, AZ Free News reported that an undisclosed number of Haitian illegal immigrants and refugees were bussed or flown into Tucson. CCS ran a shelter in Tucson called Casas Alitas. 

Also behind the medical respite center is El Rio Health Center, a dental and medical center that receives federal funds from Health and Human Services (HHS) and is has federal status under the Federal Public Health Service (PHS). 

According to the Tucson Housing and Community Development, there were an estimated 1,660 homeless people on any given night in Pima County in 2020. Those experiencing chronic homelessness in the county were estimated to be around 380. 

Tucson is plagued with a homelessness crisis currently. Councilman Steve Kozachik said that the current number of homeless people are beyond past trends. Those rising numbers correspond with an increase in homeless deaths, as reported by the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office. 

In a statement to KGUN9, Kozachik said that he was attempting to convince the rest of the council to establish controlled encampments to counteract the masses of temporary encampments occurring naturally where the homeless congregate and settle. 

“I think the rest of the council simply does not like the optics, and they believe allowing an encampment to exist constitutes a failure,” said Kozachik. “I have a different perspective. Squeezing the balloon and moving people around from camp-to-camp week to week is the failure.”

Controlled encampments have begun to pop up in the major cities experiencing homelessness crises in other states, such as Denver, Colorado and Albuquerque, New Mexico. Denver launched its first controlled encampment last November. In April, the city and county asked federal appeals judges to rescind court-ordered standards on homeless encampment cleanups intended to preserve public health and safety.

Albuquerque hasn’t established controlled encampments yet, but it’s likely they will soon. Their city council is looking to amend its zoning code to allow for encampments managed mostly by churches or nonprofits: tents with facilities like restrooms called “safe outdoor spaces.”

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Pima County Attorney Pledges to Break Law if Arizona Bans Abortion

Pima County Attorney Pledges to Break Law if Arizona Bans Abortion

By Corinne Murdock |

Pima County Attorney Laura Conover promised to break Arizona law if the Supreme Court overrules Roe v. Wade and the state outlaws abortion. Conover vowed that those seeking or assisting in abortions wouldn’t receive any jail time on her watch. 

“We will do everything in our power to ensure that no person seeking or assisting in an abortion will spend a night in jail,” said Conover. 

Arizona’s latest abortion restriction, SB1164, banned abortions after 15 weeks. Governor Doug Ducey signed it into law in March. 

However, if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade’s legalized abortion in deciding Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Arizona may revert to its original outright ban on abortion dating back to the beginning of its statehood. SB1164’s language reflected support of that outcome.

“This act does not: […] Repeal, by implication or otherwise, section 13-3602, Arizona Revised Statutes, or any other applicable state law regulating or restricting abortion,” reads the law. 

From 1901, before Arizona achieved statehood in 1912, to the Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973, Arizona outlawed abortion completely. Later versions of the law retained the majority of the original language but modified punishments — up until the 1973 Supreme Court ruling, anyone who performed abortions received two to five years’ prison time.

If the Supreme Court overturns the precedents established by Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, then the state may return to its total ban, which some legislators have identified as a “trigger law”: A.R.S. 13:3603.

Conover wouldn’t be the only county attorney to defy an Arizona law banning abortion. Democratic candidate for Maricopa County Attorney Julie Gunnigle pledged to disregard any restrictions or bans on abortion if she wins. Her promise focused on the latest law prohibiting abortions after 15 weeks.

Wednesday night, pro-abortion activists gathered outside the Arizona State Capitol to protest SB1164 and the Supreme Court’s draft majority opinion. 

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Thousands of Abortion Activists Protest Supreme Court Draft Ruling at Arizona State Capitol

Thousands of Abortion Activists Protest Supreme Court Draft Ruling at Arizona State Capitol

By Corinne Murdock |

On Wednesday, less than a day after Politico leaked the Supreme Court draft opinion overturning abortion rights, abortion activists protested at the Arizona State Capitol.

Multiple attendees and reporters present estimated that thousands descended on the capitol. 

Pro-life protestors also appeared at the Arizona State Capitol to challenge the pro-abortion activists. 

Protestors also rallied in downtown Tucson and Flagstaff. 

Arizona Department of Public Safety reported that two men were arrested. One allegedly engaged in disorderly conduct, the other allegedly committed an assault. 

If the Supreme Court maintains a ruling matching the leaked draft opinion, then Arizona would likely ban abortion completely. 

From the time Arizona became a state to the Roe v. Wade ruling, Arizona outlawed abortion completely, excepting life-threatening pregnancies, and punished anyone who performed abortions with prison time. If the Supreme Court overturns the precedents established by Roe v. Wade and Casey v. Planned Parenthood, then the state may return to a total ban. The ban exists still within the Arizona Revised Statutes under Title 13, Chapter 36.

In March, Governor Doug Ducey signed a ban on abortions after 15 weeks’ gestation, SB1164. The law would go in effect 90 days after the current legislative session ends. 

Elsewhere, pro-abortion protests turned into riots. In Los Angeles, California rioters attacked policemen and vandalized the city. In Portland, Oregon, riots incited by Antifa broke out. 

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.