Arizona Supreme Court Decisions 2012
Date: September 12, 2012
Docket Number: WC-11-0001
Justia Opinion Summary: The State of Arizona filed an interlocutory appeal from an order issued in the general stream adjudications of the Gila River System and Source and the Little Colorado System and Source. At issue was whether federal…
Date: September 7, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0351
Justia Opinion Summary: This case involved the intersection of municipal zoning regulations and the right of tattoo artists to ply their trade. After the City of Mesa denied Plaintiffs a permit to operate a tattoo parlor, Plaintiffs filed this…
Date: August 17, 2012
Docket Number: CR-10-0138
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury found Defendant guilty of felony murder and other crimes. Defendant was sentenced to death for the murder and to prison terms on the other convictions. The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions and…
Date: August 17, 2012
Docket Number: CR-10-0177
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury found Defendant guilty of one count of first degree burglary, four counts of aggravated assault, four counts of kidnapping, one count of theft, and one count of first degree murder. After a mistrial in the penalty…
Date: August 17, 2012
Docket Number: CV-12-0039
Justia Opinion Summary: On January 27, 2012, the Yuma County Superior Court disqualified Alejandrina Cabrera under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 38-201(C) from appearing on the ballot as a candidate for the San Luis City Council. Concluding that section…
Date: August 16, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0224
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury found Defendant guilty of first degree burglary, kidnapping, and two counts of first degree murder. Defendant was sentenced to death on both murder counts and to prison terms on the other counts. The Supreme Court…
Date: August 15, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0322
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2009, Defendant was sentenced to death for first degree murder of a fellow inmate. The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence, holding, among other things, (1) the trial court did not abuse its…
Date: August 14, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0342
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury found Defendant guilty of the first degree murder of his girlfriend. Defendant was sentenced to death. The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence, holding, among other things, that the trial…
Date: August 8, 2012
Docket Number: CV-12-0221
Justia Opinion Summary: Joseph Lodge was a judge of a county superior court who sought to run for election to a new term in that office. To qualify for the primary election ballot, Lodge needed to obtain 525 valid signatures on his nominating…
Date: July 27, 2012
Docket Number: CV-12-0226
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerned a challenge to the nomination of Lois Jean McDermott, a Democratic candidate for the Arizona House of Representatives. McDermott appealed from a superior court judgment striking her from the primary…
Date: July 26, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0266
Justia Opinion Summary: This automatic appeal arose from Defendant's 2009 death sentences for the 1996 murders of Thomas Hardman and Carol Lynn Noel. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding, inter alia, that (1) the trial court did not err by…
Date: July 11, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0115
Justia Opinion Summary: These consolidated cases involved two properties purchased by John Hogan. Each parcel became subject to a deed of trust when Hogan took out loans from Long Beach Mortgage Company. Hogan was delinquent on both loans,…
Date: July 10, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0077
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Dale Hausner was convicted and sentenced to death for six murders. Defendant was also convicted and sentenced for seventy-four non-capital offenses. The convictions stemmed from a series of random shootings in…
Date: July 9, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0273
Justia Opinion Summary: In this case, the Supreme Court addressed whether an employer can be held vicariously liable for an after-work accident caused by an employee who was on an extended away-from-home assignment. The accident occurred when…
Date: July 3, 2012
Docket Number: CR-11-0180
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was detained by police during a stolen vehicle investigation. Defendant moved to suppress statements he made confessing to the crime, arguing that his initial detention was not supported by reasonable suspicion…
Date: July 3, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0072
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs leased state trust land and owned all structures and improvements on the land. Under the terms of the lease, the improvements that existed on the land would become the state's property upon lease termination.…
Date: June 27, 2012
Docket Number: CR-11-0314
Justia Opinion Summary: The issue presented here was whether the superior court must hold an evidentiary hearing when the results of a postconviction DNA testing conducted under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 13-4240 are favorable to the petitioner. A jury…
Date: June 27, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0344
Justia Opinion Summary: Ariz. Rev. Stat 8-238 requires juveniles charged with certain offenses and summoned to appear at an advisory hearing to submit to the investigating law enforcement agency a sample of buccal cells or other bodily…
Date: May 31, 2012
Docket Number: CR-11-0282-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was indicted for first degree murder, illegal discharge of a firearm, and aggravated assault. At trial, the judge sua sponte instructed the jury on second degree murder over Defendant's objection and on…
Date: May 31, 2012
Docket Number: CR-11-0282-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: Gary Gipson was indicted for first degree murder, illegal discharge of a firearm, and aggravated assault. At trial, the judge sua sponte instructed the jury on second degree murder over Gipson's objection and on…
Date: May 31, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0324-CQ
Justia Opinion Summary: Arizona's Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Act (UMA) requires all insurers writing motor vehicle liability policies to also offer underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage that covers all persons insured under the policy. Any…
Date: May 31, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0324-CQ
Justia Opinion Summary: In the underlying federal court action, an auto insurer (Insurer) sought a declaratory judgment that it had validly denied Insured's underinsured motorist (UIM) claim. Insured was injured while a passenger on a…
Date: May 18, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0115-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: These consolidated cases involved two properties purchased by John Hogan. Each parcel became subject to a deed of trust when Hogan took out loans from Long Beach Mortgage Company. Hogan was delinquent on both loans,…
Date: May 15, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0291-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: Autozone was fined for violating the Pricing Act. The State subsequently sued AutoZone under the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act (CFA), alleging that by violating the Pricing Act, AutoZone had also violated Ariz. Rev. Stat.…
Date: May 15, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0291-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: The Arizona Department of Weights and Measures fined AutoZone, Inc. for violating the Pricing Act, which prohibits mispricing and requires a seller to display prices on merchandise or at the point of display. The State…
Date: May 4, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0308-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerned commercial property that was subject to a deed of trust and auctioned at trustee's sales twice in 2009. Alleging it was the successful bidder at the second sale, BT Capital, LLC sued the trustee and…
Date: April 20, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0313-SA
Justia Opinion Summary: In early 2011, Colleen Mathis was selected as the chairperson of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC). In October 2011, the Governor notified the Commissioners of allegations that they had committed…
Date: April 13, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0198-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: After Jerome Walsh died, Elizabeth Walsh and the couple's four children filed a wrongful death action against Advanced Cardiac Specialists Chartered (ACS) and its employees (collectively, Defendants). Plaintiffs alleged…
Date: April 12, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0343-AP
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Brad Nelson was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. The jury found proven beyond a reasonable doubt the only aggravator alleged under Ariz. Rev. Stat. 13-751(F)(9), that Nelson…
Date: April 11, 2012
Docket Number: CR-11-0127-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: Patrick Ferrero was charged with three counts of sexual conduct with a minor. The trial court admitted evidence of "other uncharged acts" with the minor. The judge did not screen the evidence under Ariz. R. Evid. 404(c),…
Date: April 9, 2012
Docket Number: CR-11-0083-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Pete VanWinkle was found guilty of attempted murder and other offenses. VanWinkle appealed, arguing that the trial court violated his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination by admitting…
Date: April 6, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0150-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2009, the Arizona Legislature amended Ariz. Rev. Stat. 9-821.01, which, as amended, barred a city from electing its city council in partisan elections or in ward-based primaries combined with at-large general…
Date: April 6, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0269-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: Dean and Stacey Norcutt bought a home for cash and satisfied the existing first mortgage held by Zions National Bank. They later discovered the home was also subject to a judgment lien obtained by Sourcecorp, Inc. that…
Date: March 27, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0341-AP
Justia Opinion Summary: Granvil Wallace pleaded guilty and was sentenced to death by the trial judge for three murders. The Supreme Court subsequently reduced the death sentence for one murder count to life in prison because the evidence was…
Date: March 22, 2012
Docket Number: CR-09-0218-AP
Justia Opinion Summary: A jury found Benjamin Cota guilty of two counts of first degree murer, two counts of armed robbery, one count of possession of narcotics, and one count of unlawful flight. Cota was sentenced to death on one first degree…
Date: February 23, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0186-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: Linda Brown sued a common carrier and its driver (SunTran) after sustaining serious injuries from being thrown from her wheelchair when the bus she was riding braked sharply. SunTran requested the judge to instruct the…
Date: February 6, 2012
Docket Number: CV-11-0083-PR
Justia Opinion Summary: The Moras sued Pauline Cosper for damages arising from a car accident. After mandatory arbitration, the arbitrator entered an award in favor of the Moras. The next day, Cosper filed a notice of appeal seeking a trial de…
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