Latest news with #RichieTaylor
Axios
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Lawsuit challenges Arizona abortion limits
A new lawsuit seeks to overturn a trio of abortion restrictions based on the sweeping reproductive rights measure Arizona voters approved last year. The big picture: Voters in November overwhelmingly passed Proposition 139, which guarantees the right to an abortion through fetal viability, which is generally around 24 weeks. The amendment to the Arizona Constitution also prohibits any law that "denies, restricts or interferes" with abortion access before fetal viability, unless it's justified by a compelling state interest and "achieved by the least restrictive means." Yes, but: The abortion rights guaranteed by the measure don't go into effect automatically, and laws restricting abortion rights must be challenged in court before they can be struck down under Prop. 139. Why it matters: Abortion rights advocates have long argued that many state laws are unnecessarily restrictive and needlessly make it more difficult to get an abortion. Catch up quick: Under Prop. 139, abortion rights advocates quickly targeted the state's 15-week abortion ban, which a judge struck down in March, and pledged future lawsuits against other restrictions that Arizona enacted through the years. Driving the news: A lawsuit filed in Maricopa County Superior Court on Thursday by two doctors and the Arizona Medical Association argued that various laws and sets of restrictions are in violation of Prop. 139. Those laws: Prohibit abortions because of nonfatal genetic abnormalities in the fetus Require patients to get an ultrasound at least 24 hours before an abortion, which forces them to make multiple trips to a provider, and require doctors to provide information about abortion alternatives Ban telehealth for abortion and prohibit the mailing of abortion pills What's next: The Arizona Attorney General's Office is reviewing the new lawsuit and hasn't decided yet whether it will defend the laws, spokesperson Richie Taylor told Axios. The Center for Arizona Policy (CAP), a conservative nonprofit that champions anti-abortion laws, also has not yet determined whether it would intervene in the lawsuit if Attorney General Kris Mayes declines to defend the laws, president Peter Gentala told Axios. The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative group that recently defended the genetic abnormalities law and a fetal personhood law in court, couldn't immediately be reached for comment. Mayes agreed the 15-week ban violated Prop. 139. What they're saying: "Arizona voters took back the power to make their own reproductive health care decisions. Yet they still must jump through hoops to get abortion care," Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights which represents some plaintiffs in the case, said in a press statement. "These burdensome restrictions have been in place for far too long, so we're going to court to strike them down once and for all."
Associated Press
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Arizona prosecutors ordered to send fake elector case back to grand jury
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona prosecutors pressing the case against Republicans who are accused of trying to overturn the 2020 election results in President Donald Trump's favor were dealt a setback when a judge ordered the case be sent back to a grand jury. Arizona's fake elector case remains alive after Friday's ruling by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sam Myers, but it's being sent back to the grand jurors to determine whether there's probable cause that the defendants committed the crimes. The decision, first reported by the Washington Post , centered on the Electoral Count Act, a law that governs the certification of a presidential contest and was part of the defendants' claims they were acting lawfully. While the law was discussed when the case was presented to the grand jury and the panel asked a witness about the law's requirements, prosecutors didn't show the statute's language to the grand jury, Myers wrote. The judge said a prosecutor has a duty to tell grand jurors all the applicable law and concluded the defendants were denied 'a substantial procedural right as guaranteed by Arizona law.' Richie Taylor, a spokesperson for Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat whose office is pressing the case in court, said in a statement that prosecutors will appeal the decision. 'We vehemently disagree with the court,' Taylor said. Mel McDonald, a former county judge in metro Phoenix and former U.S. Attorney for Arizona, said courts send cases back to grand juries when prosecutors present misleading or incomplete evidence or didn't properly instruct panel members on the law. 'They get granted at times. It's not often,' said McDonald, who isn't involved in the case. In all, 18 Republicans were charged with forgery, fraud and conspiracy. The defendants consist of 11 Republicans who submitted a document falsely claiming Trump won Arizona, two former Trump aides and five lawyers connected to the former president, including Rudy Giuliani . Two defendants have already resolved their cases, while the others have pleaded not guilty to the charges. Trump wasn't charged in Arizona, but the indictment refers to him as an unindicted coconspirator. Most of the defendants in the case also are trying to get a court to dismiss their charges under an Arizona law that bars using baseless legal actions in a bid to silence critics. They argued Mayes tried to use the charges to silence them for their constitutionally protected speech about the 2020 election and actions taken in response to the race's outcome. Prosecutors said the defendants didn't have evidence to back up their retaliation claim and that they crossed the line from protected speech to fraud. Eleven people who had been nominated to be Arizona's Republican electors met in Phoenix on Dec. 14, 2020, to sign a certificate saying they were 'duly elected and qualified' electors and claimed Trump had carried the state in the 2020 election. President Joe Biden won Arizona by 10,457 votes. A one-minute video of the signing ceremony was posted on social media by the Arizona Republican Party at the time. The document later was sent to Congress and the National Archives, where it was ignored. Prosecutors in Michigan , Nevada , Georgia and Wisconsin have also filed criminal charges related to the fake electors scheme.
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arizona to join lawsuit to block Trump's federal spending freeze
Photo by Getty Images Arizona is joining with other states to sue President Donald Trump over his sweeping federal grant freeze that is set to go into effect Tuesday evening, according to the Attorney General's Office. State and local government leaders, as well as those who run or rely on federally funded programs, were scrambling on Tuesday to find out exactly how the payment freeze would impact them. The Grand Canyon State will join New York, California, Illinois and other states in a lawsuit to block the spending freeze, Richie Taylor, a spokesman for Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, told the Arizona Mirror. The legal challenge is expected to be filed in the Southern District of New York. 'Children could miss out on school lunches, victims of crime could lose critical assistance, and law enforcement agencies could be defunded across the country if it stands,' Mayes wrote in a statement on social media Tuesday. 'This is a blatant violation of federal law and we will not allow it to stand.' The impact of the payment freeze could be monumental, according to figures from The Pew Charitable Trusts. 'The federal government gave $1 trillion in grants to states in fiscal year 2022, the most recent year U.S. Census grants data is available. That was a record high, representing 36.4% of states' total revenue,' Rebecca Thiess, manager at The Pew Charitable Trusts, said in a statement. 'Federal grant funding helps states pay for public services, such as health care, education, transportation, and infrastructure. States are currently facing tighter budgets than in recent years due to the expiration of federal pandemic aid and stagnating tax collections, among other challenges.' Some of the programs that are set to be paused temporarily while Trump's Office of Management and Budget reviews which federal spending it deems appropriate include: Department of Agriculture's tribal food sovereignty program Head Start, a program that helps prepare young children from low-income families for school Veterans' Affairs Department's suicide prevention and legal services grants Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Numerous sexual assault prevention programs within the U.S. Department of Justice. 'We are still evaluating the full impacts of this reckless action, but one thing is clear: this is creating chaos for Veterans, law enforcement, domestic violence shelters and the children of working families,' Gov. Katie Hobbs posted on social media. 'I will not stand by while everyday people in my state are harmed.' The city of Phoenix alone relies on $3.255 billion in federal grants, according to Mayor Kate Gallego, with more than $1.6 billion of that still outstanding. Phoenix's police and fire departments could lose more than $35 million. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
