Pinal County Attorney clears Mark Lamb of criminal wrongdoing, closes investigation

The Pinal County Attorney’s Office has concluded its review of allegations against former Sheriff Mark Lamb and found that the evidence does not establish any violation of Arizona criminal law.

County Attorney Brad Miller released a preliminary inquiry Monday finding “no evidence that Lamb acted in a criminal manner.”

Miller said the matter is closed.

The review examined materials originally submitted to the Pinal County Board of Supervisors in 2020 as well as more than three gigabytes of additional audio, video, documents and social media materials provided by an individual who came forward on June 3.

“Public officials are entitled to the same due process and the same scrutiny as every other citizen. Not more. Not less,” Miller said in the announcement. “When allegations are presented to this office, our responsibility is to determine whether a crime occurred, not whether a narrative is politically convenient. This office does not prosecute rumors, politics, social media campaigns or headlines. We prosecute crimes.”

No trace of prior investigation

The findings also confirmed what Miller’s office reported earlier this month, that former County Attorney Kent Volkmer appears never to have conducted the investigation he publicly claimed to have performed.

Volkmer told the Arizona Republic in May that Lamb approached his office not to invite scrutiny of himself, but to ask prosecutors to explore criminal harassment charges against two women who had posted about his conduct on social media.

Miller’s review found no evidence that request was ever made and no reports, summaries, interviews or findings of any kind.

“Not a single investigator at the Pinal County Attorney’s Office, including the former Chief of Investigations, could recall that such an investigation had ever been conducted,” the report states.

What Lamb was accused of

The determination arrives two days before early voting begins and less than a month before the July 21 Republican primary in the 5th Congressional District, where Lamb is running to succeed Rep. Andy Biggs.

An Arizona Republic investigation found women alleged Lamb sent explicit photos and sexually charged messages from his personal phone and campaign social media accounts.

One woman said Lamb, while serving as sheriff, threatened her with felony revenge porn charges and said he would contact state police to stop her from posting about their alleged relationship.

KTAR News 92.3 FM independently verified many of those messages, which are public records with Pinal County.

Scrutiny intensified last week after former longtime friend and employee Matt Hilsabeck publicly confirmed reports of sexting and other conduct outside Lamb’s marriage.

Lamb, who has President Donald Trump’s endorsement, has largely declined to comment on the allegations. Most of his recent social media posts are about his family’s new ranch in Tennessee, rather than his congressional bid.

His wife, Janel Lamb, dismissed the reports as a “massive smear campaign” in a Facebook post.

Political fallout continues despite legal clearance

While Miller’s finding removes the specter of criminal charges, the political damage may already be done. Multiple prominent Republicans have called on Lamb to address the situation or exit the race.

U.S. Rep. David Schweikert, now running for governor, told KTAR News 92.3 FM Lamb’s silence “borders on immoral.”

Former U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake called the alleged threats against accusers “an abuse of power” and “disqualifying.”

Earlier this month, Lamb’s primary opponent, Daniel Keenan told a Clean Elections Commission audience that Lamb is “unfit for office.”

“If Mark Lamb is going to abuse his power as sheriff, imagine how corrupt he will be in Washington,” Keenan said on June 3. “Mark Lamb is an embarrassment on the Republican Party and only puts our Republican ticket at risk in the midterms. He’s unfit for office, and he can’t be trusted.”

What happens next

Miller’s inquiry was limited to whether Arizona criminal statutes were violated. It did not address the underlying allegations of personal misconduct that have been reported by the Arizona Republic.

“We follow the facts, we follow the law and we follow the evidence. In this case, the evidence does not establish that any law was broken,” Miller said.

KTAR News 92.3 FM reached out to the Mark Lamb campaign for comment. He has not responded.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Kevin Stone contributed to this report.

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