Judge pushes Justin Heap, Maricopa County supervisors toward mediation in election fight

A Maricopa County Superior Court judge said he would order Recorder Justin Heap and members of the Board of Supervisors to try to resolve their election control dispute outside the courtroom, even as he scheduled a contempt hearing for later this month.

Judge Scott Blaney said during a Monday hearing that he would issue an order either directing the elected officials to meet or arranging a judicial settlement conference.

“The last place this court wants to be is standing between elected officials right before an election,” Blaney said. “The parties should be able to work this thing out as elected officials, but it’s just not happening.”

The push for mediation began when attorney Corey Langhofer, representing the board majority, proposed that Board Chair Kate Brophy McGee, Vice Chair Debbie Lesko and Heap sit down for a recorded conversation without lawyers leading the discussion.

“I think the counsel is getting in the way of this one,” Langhofer said. “The electeds need to be deciding this between them.”

James Rogers, an attorney for Heap, pushed back, saying the recorder had declined similar invitations because of past public meetings.

“Recorder Heap has declined those requests because generally, public meetings in front of the board have turned into situations where the board grandstands,” Rogers told the judge. “The board appears to be performing for the public rather than trying to resolve anything.”

He said Heap preferred formal mediation.

Rogers proposed national election attorney Cleta Mitchell as a mediator, but Langhofer objected.

“I think Cleta Mitchell has said on the record that Maricopa County election should be raided by the FBI,” Langhofer said. “She said that while this case was pending. It’s not a great start for a mediator.”

Both Langhofer and Rogers expressed tentative agreement on mediation but said they needed to ask their clients.

Judge to hear election fight details in June 30 hearing

The mediation effort will run on a parallel track with the contempt case.

Blaney scheduled a four-hour evidentiary hearing for June 30, with a joint pretrial statement due June 25.

Early ballots for the July 21 primary are set to go out in the coming days.

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