Arizona House revives bill criminalizing ‘stolen valor' claims after Senate obstruction

Yahoo

09-04-2025

Rep. Walt Blackman, R-Snowflake, speaks at a March 19, 2025, press conference about his legislation to criminalize some stolen valor claims. Photo by Jerod MacDonald-Evoy | Arizona Mirror
A bill to impose criminal penalties against people who falsely claim military service or honors that has become a political football once again cleared the Arizona House of Representatives, but its fate in the Senate still remains unclear.
The chamber had previously unanimously passed House Bill 2030 by Rep. Walt Blackman, a Republican from Snowflake and U.S. Army veteran, which would have made it a class 4 felony to impersonate a veteran to obtain employment, government contracts or benefits.
But that bill died in the state Senate after it was assigned to the Judiciary and Elections Committee and its chairwoman, Sen. Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff, refused to hear it. Although Rogers and Blackman represent the same northern Arizona district, they are political enemies — Rogers endorsed Blackman's opponent in the GOP primary last year and the two feuded openly on the campaign trail.
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Blackman defeated Rogers' chosen candidate, Steve Slaton, who owns the Trumped Store in Show Low, a popular campaign spot for the MAGA faithful. Slaton falsely claimed to be a Vietnam veteran, and even allegedly altered his DD214, a document given to veterans upon their retirement that includes a record of their service and awards, to show service in Vietnam. In reality, Slaton was stationed in Korea between January and December 1974 as a helicopter repairman and he was never deployed in Vietnam.
Rogers and Blackman have traded barbs over the legislation in recent weeks, with Blackman claiming Rogers killed the legislation to protect Slaton and Rogers claiming the legislation does not pass constitutional muster.
In 2005, a similar bill was passed by Congress, though parts of it were deemed unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment. Blackman has said he aimed to avoid that by focusing solely on those who impersonate veterans for benefits that they would otherwise not be entitled to receive and adding that to Arizona's existing laws outlawing fraud.
On Wednesday afternoon, the House approved a strike-everything amendment to a bill that had already been voted out of the Senate. But while the original bill had unanimous support, it earned a single opposing vote this time.
'This bill, for the first time in Arizona law, makes lying in the context of an election a criminal offense,' Rep. Alex Kolodin, R-Scottsdale, said when explaining his no vote. 'We cannot open the door to allowing our courts to judge political speech within the context of criminal law.'
Kolodin said that, while he supported Blackman's original bill, the new version includes a provision that greatly expands its scope: It says that any person convicted of the offense outlined in the bill would be disqualified from public office.
Blackman, in a fiery response to Kolodin, said that the bill has nothing to do with politics or political speech.
'This has nothing to do with political speech. This has to do with blood, sweat and tears men and women left on the battlefield,' Blackman said, at times yelling. 'The next time we have a conflict, I'd like to see whoever says 'no' on this board or in the Senate to jump in a Humvee and get shot at and tell me the service didn't matter.'
Kolodin's other Republican colleagues also appeared to take jabs at him for voting against the legislation.
'You can explain this vote all you want, but if you are not voting (yes), you are not voting for the right cause,' Rep. Justin Wilmeth, R-Phoenix, said.
The bill will head to the Senate next for a final vote. Blackman and Sen. Shawnna Bolick, the Phoenix Republican whose bill was amended in the House, have said that Senate President Warren Petersen has pledged to let the bill receive a final vote. If it passes the Senate, it will go to Gov. Katie Hobbs for her signature or veto.
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