by Staff Reporter | Mar 30, 2026 | News
By Staff Reporter |
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO) is investigating over 200 individuals for noncitizen voting.
The MCAO notified the public in a press release of the investigation.
The Maricopa County Recorder’s Office referred the names of over 200 individuals to the MCAO between last week and this week. Out of that population, 60 have reportedly cast votes in the past.
MCAO limited the amount of information given to the public about their investigation.
“This investigation is in its very early stages, and in order to protect the integrity of the investigation, we will not comment further. When more information is available for release, we will make that public,” stated the MCAO.
Last month the recorder’s office notified the public of those 60 individuals they determined were noncitizens and had voted in prior elections.
Those 60 noncitizens with a voting history were uncovered following the recorder’s review of nearly 61,700 voters affected by the Motor Vehicle Division oversight that failed to acquire documentary proof of citizenship. At the time of the press release in February, the recorder’s office found a total of nearly 140 noncitizens under that classification who had registered to vote.
The recorder’s office relied on the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database to confirm the citizenship of the registered voters.
Last October, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expanded authorization use within the SAVE database to enable states to verify citizenship on its voter rolls.
The updated authorization allowed for additional identifiers beyond the last four digits of Social Security numbers to include full Social Security numbers as well as driver’s license and passport numbers.
Along with the SAVE database expansion, former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem came to Arizona in February as part of a promotional tour on the SAVE Act.
That visit by Noem advanced more than just public awareness of the SAVE Act.
Arizona lawmakers revealed during a committee hearing earlier this month that the former recorder of Maricopa County, Stephen Richer, was being investigated for possible obstruction.
The revelation occurred as part of discussions by the House Federalism, Military Affairs, & Elections Committee on a criminal investigation package delivered to DHS and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence by the committee chair, State Rep. John Gillette (R-LD30).
“Stephen Richer telling recorders not to comply with the legislative public records request. That is not a glitch. That’s on purpose,” said Gillette. “There appears to be some obstruction or intent to obstruct other recorders from doing their job because they have an association, he was president of the association at the time, but he was instructing other elected officials that are not of Maricopa County how to comply or not comply in this case with a lawful public records request from the House. That is being looked at, and thus we’ve had a subpoena issued since.”
Although the MCAO announced they were investigating the alleged noncitizen voters, they weren’t the only agency notified of the problematic registrations.
The recorder’s office also referred the alleged noncitizen voters to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.
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by Staff Reporter | Mar 30, 2026 | Education, News
By Staff Reporter |
The Arizona Department of Education’s leader admonished one party for rejecting a new mandate on schools to report deadly on-campus incidents.
Democratic lawmakers opposed HB 4109 during a Wednesday vote in the Senate Education Committee, even though one of their own, State Rep. Lydia Hernandez (D-LD24) sponsored the bill. Republicans on the committee voted in favor of it.
HB 4109 would require school boards to adopt a structured safety policy with certain, detailed implementation responsibilities imposed on school district superintendents.
Among those responsibilities of the superintendent included in the bill: written notification to students’ parents and school employees within 24 hours of any incidents or threats involving life-threatening violence or violence involving a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument; immediate notification to a law enforcement officer of observed or notified incidents involving the aforementioned situations concerning violence, and any confiscations of dangerous instruments or deadly weapons; and confiscation, or designation of confiscation to administrators, of any dangerous instrument or deadly weapon possessed by any person on school property.
School districts would also need to publish annual public safety reports detailing the number of lockdowns, shelter-in-place events, and evacuations; incidents involving a deadly weapon or dangerous instruments; incidents referred to law enforcement officers; and a summary of the school district’s adopted public safety policy and its implementation.
The bill would prohibit school districts from taking retaliatory action against employees, parents, students, state agents, or any other individuals for reporting a violation of the public safety policy requirements.
Failure to adhere to the legislation would result in school leaders facing a class one misdemeanor charge.
State Superintendent Tom Horne published a press release the day after the committee hearing accusing the Democrats on the Senate Education Committee of “reckless and irresponsible” behavior: flippant of school safety and willfully ignorant of the present safety problems plaguing school campuses.
“The bill requires notice to parents and staff within 24 hours of a life-threatening incident on campus. That is a perfectly reasonable requirement that schools should be doing anyway,” said Horne. “It is ironic that the bill is sponsored by Democrat Representative Lydia Hernandez. She deserves credit for this effort. I am pleased the bill passed out of committee even with the opposition from members of her own party.”
State Rep. Hernandez explained that the murder of Michael Montoya, 16, in Maryvale High School last August was the motivator behind the bill. Montoya was stabbed to death in a classroom by another student.
“This was a constituent bill brought to me by my neighbors, families that were so traumatized by what happened. But it’s not just limited to this one incident, but a series of incidents that keep taking place,” said Hernandez. “It’s not about politics, it’s about protecting the safety of our kids. You and I would do it, and I hope it never has to be one our children that are the victims.”
State Sen. Eva Diaz (D-LD22) said it concerned her that the bill would criminalize noncompliant school board members and superintendents.
State Sen. J.D. Mesnard (R-LD13) countered that it wasn’t unprecedented to hold school officials accountable through criminal penalties in the context of public safety.
“I understand the logic when you’re talking about public safety, at some point there has to be some oomph behind it because we’re talking about fundamental student safety,” said Mesnard.
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by Staff Reporter | Mar 29, 2026 | Education, News
By Staff Reporter |
A Paradise Valley Unified School District (PVUSD) teacher committed suicide while fleeing arrest for the sexual abuse of a minor.
Steven Charles Mitten III, a history teacher at Shadow Mountain High School, fled from police on Wednesday shortly before taking his own life, according to a media advisory issued by the Phoenix Police Department (PPD) on Thursday.
Mitten, 65, previously worked at Cactus Shadows High School within the Cave Creek Unified School District (CCUSD). CCUSD awarded Mitten their Excellence Award in May 2018, given to one teacher in the school for outstanding contributions to students.
Per PPD, an unnamed adult female reported to law enforcement on Monday that Mitten initiated a sexual relationship with her when she was 16 years old. That relationship purportedly lasted for approximately three years.
The Crimes Against Children Unit (CACU) immediately investigated the woman’s claim and found probable cause to arrest Mitten.
The media advisory explained that Mitten fled from the Fugitive Apprehension and Investigations Detail (FAID) in his vehicle with a firearm. After law enforcement used a grappler to stop Mitten’s vehicle, Mitten turned his gun on himself and shot himself in his vehicle.
Detectives and the Special Assignments Unit (SAU) apprehended Mitten, and the Phoenix Fire Department transported him to a hospital. Mitten later succumbed to the self-inflicted gunshot wound.
PPD advised that other details were omitted from public communications given the ongoing nature of the investigation.
“This case reflects the unwavering dedication of our detectives, who work tirelessly on behalf of survivors, especially in cases involving crimes against children,” stated the advisory. “We recognize the lasting impact these incidents have on survivors and their families, and we remain committed to seeking justice while handling these sensitive investigations with care and professionalism.”
The Arizona State Board of Education (AZSBE) does not have any disciplinary records pertaining to Mitten.
Arizona Department of Education records reflect Mitten received a standard professional secondary certification covering history, political science and American government, and social studies for the sixth through twelfth grades in April 2021. Mitten also had a full endorsement for structured English immersion covering preK-12.
Another Arizona teacher was arrested this week for sexual exploitation of a minor. An elementary school teacher and high school coach, Timothy James Sonier, 48, was arrested on Thursday for uploading child sexual abuse materials. Sonier faces 10 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.
Sonier taught at Dodge Traditional Magnet School and coached girls’ junior varsity basketball at Salpointe Catholic High School. Sonier has lived in Tucson for nearly 30 years; he passed a background check by Tucson Unified School District.
Prior to Dodge and Salpointe, Sonier worked at Dietz K-8 School, Catalina High School, and Sabino High School.
The AZSBE latest enforcement action report reflected that enforcement actions increased nearly eightfold from 2014 to 2024. AZSBE attributed this increase to the increased staffing and efficiency of case processing, not an upward trend of immoral or unprofessional misconduct in schools.
Although males comprise only 24 percent of total educators, they represented 61 percent of all enforcement actions.
A majority of enforcement actions since 2012 have come from sexual offense cases (671 out of 1,876 cases, or 36 percent). These cases are not distinguished between offenses against minors versus adults. In 2024, 29 percent were associated with sexual misconduct behaviors.
AZSBE has not published its enforcement action report for 2025 as of this report.
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by Staff Reporter | Mar 29, 2026 | News
By Staff Reporter |
The city of Phoenix approved a resolution that will limit Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations despite a warning from Arizona Senate Majority Leader John Kavanaugh (R-LD3) against taking such an action.
The resolution by the Phoenix City Council will effectively prohibit immigration-related law enforcement operations on property owned or controlled by the city. In order for federal law enforcement to do their job, the resolution declares they will need to obtain permission from the city — specifically, Phoenix Police Chief Michael Giordano.
Kavanagh called the resolution “meaningless” in an interview with The Center Square, stating that both Arizona and federal law require cooperation with immigration enforcement. The majority leader accused city of Phoenix leadership of “pandering for votes” disguised as policy.
“ICE is not going to listen to them. They have no control over what ICE does in public places, so they can’t even prevent that,” said Kavanagh.
Even after Kavanagh’s warning, Phoenix City Council voted 8-1 to restrict ICE from using city property in its approved resolution on Wednesday.
“Prohibited uses include, but are not limited to, using City property as a staging area, processing location, or operations base for civil law enforcement actions, unless approved by the City Manager or their designee,” stated the resolution.
Councilmembers said the vote represented their commitment to protecting all Phoenix residents.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego said mass deportations had no positive impact on public safety were “un-American and shameful.” Gallego accused ICE of violating civil rights and committing crimes.
Last month, Gallego and the city council promised to frustrate federal immigration enforcement efforts in a joint press release. They met with residents and sought counsel to determine a pathway for resisting ICE.
Out of these meetings, city leadership developed a response framework, which included the policy framework to allow a restriction on immigration enforcement activities on city property.
Other aspects of the framework included the city’s decision to employ local law enforcement resources to investigate and prosecute federal immigration enforcement.
The city will create an online public complaint portal to document and track allegations of criminal and civil rights violations by federal immigration enforcement, with the intent to submit the reports as criminal referrals to the attorney general’s office. This portal will be connected to one created by the attorney general.
The city will also collect data on immigration enforcement impacts to businesses and city services such as police, fire, the community assistance program, and the office of accountability and transparency.
Along with the portal, the city will create a website detailing the civil rights that immigrants have and sharing data related to community transparency initiative directives. This site and others, including the complaint portal, will have translation capabilities.
The city will require employees to undergo training on how to respond to federal enforcement actions.
In all these efforts, the city of Phoenix will work closely with the attorney general, Tucson, and Flagstaff, and share information with congressional representatives and community-based organizations.
On Monday ICE agents began assisting TSA agents with processing Phoenix Sky Harbor passengers at security checkpoints.
Most travelers expressed support for the ICE presence.
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by Staff Reporter | Mar 28, 2026 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Protests against President Donald Trump over his mass deportation policies are scheduled to take over the streets across dozens of Arizona cities this weekend.
The protests were coordinated through the national “No Kings” organization. “No Kings” refers to the belief that Trump has overreached in his powers, much like a monarchy, based on the drastic increase in federal immigration enforcement actions. The organization coordinated protests last spring, summer, and fall.
Over 7 million activists attended over 2,700 protests across the nation during the latest designated No Kings protest day last October.
Last year’s No Kings protests presented problems as some devolved into looting and rioting.
Some who hit the streets under the pretense of protest committed crimes that targeted law enforcement and local businesses.
Activists on the lookout for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have targeted local law enforcement under suspicion of their affiliation with the federal agency. Officers conducting operations and arrests for crimes other than immigration have faced off against violent rioters attempting to disrupt what they believe to be deportation proceedings.
Such was the case in one incident last summer when anti-ICE activists assaulted a Peoria police officer participating in a narcotics raid.
Saturday’s No Kings protests are scheduled to occur in Ajo, Anthem, Apache Junction, Arivaca, Bisbee, Bullhead City, Casas Adobes, Casa Grande, Chandler, Cottonwood, Douglas, Flagstaff, Florence, Fountain Hills, Gilbert, Glendale, Globe, Goodyear, Green Valley, Kingman, Lake Havasu City, Marana, Maricopa, Mesa, Nogales, Oro Valley, Patagonia, Payson, Phoenix, Prescott, Quartzsite, Queen Creek, Safford, Sahuarita, Scottsdale, Sedona, Show Low, Sierra Vista, Sun City, Sun City West, Superior, Surprise, Tempe, Tubac, Tucson, Tucson Estates, Vail, Willcox, Winslow, and Yuma.
The No Kings coalition has over 200 partners backing it, including: Accountable.Us, American Federation of Teachers, American Federation of Government Employees, ACLU, Bernie Sanders campaign, College Democrats of America, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Greenpeace, Human Rights Campaign, Indivisible, NextGen America, Planned Parenthood, and Sierra Club.
The primary coordinators behind the initial formation of No Kings were the organizations Indivisible and 50501.
The 50501 movement has a chapter in Arizona, which has a private Facebook group containing over 6,500 members. This chapter’s online administrators include Tucson resident Scott Jackson; Erica Connell, a Phoenix drag performer who goes by the name “Weird Violet”; and Gilbert resident Kristin Clement.
Activists aligned with the 50501 movement attempted to breach the Arizona Capitol last February.
Other local activist organizations have played a role in organizing No Kings protests as well. Among these are the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Phoenix, East Valley Unite AZ, Gilbert Good Trouble, Mesa Valley Indivisible, Rural Arizona Action, Instituto Power, Progress Arizona, LUCHA Arizona, AZ Resistance Front, and United Campus Workers of Arizona.
Earlier this month, anti-ICE activists disrupted proceedings in the Arizona legislature to protest deportations.
In addition to educating illegal aliens on avoiding immigration enforcement, these organizations have encouraged the use of hotlines to report and track the whereabouts of federal agents. One hotline, “Migra Watch,” has dedicated caller hotlines for Phoenix, Flagstaff, Tucson, and rural areas, and a text hotline as well.
Financial data revealed tens of millions of federal dollars flowing into the organizations throwing their support behind No Kings protests.
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