JUSTICE BERCH (Retired), opinion of the Court. 1 Vincent Joseph Guarino was convicted of the kidnapping, assault, and murder of Chad Rowe, among other crimes. This automatic appeal follows the imposition of the death penalty. Ariz. R.Crim. P. 31.2(b). We have jurisdiction under Article 6, Section 5(3) of the Arizona Constitution and A.R.S. 13-4031. I. BACKGROUND 1 2 To secure membership in the Aryan Brotherhood, a criminal gang, Defendant Vincent Guarino ("Guarino") sought to...
Vice Chief Justice PELANDER , opinion of the Court. 1 Under A.R.S. 28-8424(A)(3), a non-profit corporation that leases airport property from a county "[p]erforms an essential governmental function as an agency or instrumentality" of the county. We here address whether, based solely on that statutory language, the Yuma County Airport Authority ("YCAA") is an agent of Yuma County, making the County liable as principal for YCAA's alleged breach of its sublease with Plaintiffs (...
Chief Justice BALES , opinion of the Court. 1 Under Arizona law, a right to use surface water may be acquired by appropriation. This right may be severed from the land to which it is appurtenant and, subject to the approval of the Director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources ("ADWR") and other conditions listed in A.R.S. 45-172, may be transferred without losing its priority. "Interested persons" may file objections with ADWR to a proposed severance and transfer, and they may...
MEMORANDUM DECISION CHIEF JUSTICE BALES . 1 Under Arizona law, a right to use surface water may be acquired by appropriation. This right may be severed from the land to which it is appurtenant and, subject to the approval of the Director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources ("ADWR") and other conditions listed in A.R.S. 45-172, may be transferred without losing its priority. "Interested persons" may file objections with ADWR to a proposed severance and transfer, and they may...
JUSTICE BRUTINEL , opinion of the Court. 1 Shawn Patrick Lynch was convicted of first-degree murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and burglary. He was sentenced to death for the murder and to twenty-one years' imprisonment for the other offenses. We remanded for a new penalty-phase proceeding on the murder conviction in State v. Lynch ( Lynch I ), 225 Ariz. 27 , 43 89, 234 P.3d 595 , 611 (2010). On resentencing, the jury again returned a death verdict. We have jurisdiction over this...
Justice BRUTINEL , opinion of the Court. 1 Shawn Patrick Lynch was convicted of first-degree murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and burglary. He was sentenced to death for the murder and to twenty-one years' imprisonment for the other offenses. We remanded for a new penalty-phase proceeding on the murder conviction in State v. Lynch ( Lynch I ), 225 Ariz. 27 , 43 89, 234 P.3d 595 , 611 (2010). On resentencing, the jury again returned a death verdict. We have jurisdiction over this...
Chief Justice BALES , opinion of the Court. 1 This automatic appeal arises from Andre Michael Leteve's convictions and death sentences for murdering his two young sons. We have jurisdiction under Article 6, Section 5(3) of the Arizona Constitution and A.R.S. 13-4031 and 13-4033(A)(1). BACKGROUND 2 Leteve married Laurie in 1998. They had two sons: Alec in 2004 and Asher in 2008. After Leteve revealed a series of marital infidelities, Laurie moved out of their home in August 2009...
Justice BERCH , opinion of the Court. 1 We granted review to determine whether Homer Ray Roseberry should receive a new penalty phase hearing based on his claim that his appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to timely raise the issue of an unconstitutional jury instruction. Because Roseberry was not prejudiced by the alleged deficiency in counsel's representation, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying his petition for post-conviction relief. I. BACKGROUND 2...
Chief Justice BALES , opinion of the Court: 1 Although Arizona's Workers' Compensation Act does not mandate the payment of interest on benefits not timely paid, this Court has held that the general interest statute, A.R.S. 44-1201, applies to workers' compensation awards. Today we hold that death benefits under A.R.S. 23-1046 are liquidated, and interest on them accrues from the time a carrier receives notice that a survivor has filed a claim with the Industrial Commission pursuant...
Vice Chief Justice PELANDER , opinion of the Court. 1 Under A.R.S. 12-820.02(A)(7), public entities and employees enjoy qualified immunity from liability for an injury to a motor-vehicle driver that is attributable to the driver's violation of statutes prohibiting reckless driving and driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Today we hold that 12-820.02(A)(7)'s qualified immunity applies only when the driver was injured while driving or in actual physical control of a...
Justice BERCH , opinion of the Court. 1 Arizona Revised Statutes 20-259.01 requires insurers to offer uninsured motorist ("UM") and underinsured motorist ("UIM") coverage to their insureds. Insurers may prove compliance with the statute by having their insureds sign a Department of Insurance ("DOI") approved form selecting or rejecting such coverage. Ballesteros v. Am. Standard Ins. Co. of Wis., 226 Ariz. 345 , 350 20, 248 P.3d 193 , 198 (2011). The issue in this case is whether...
Justice TIMMER , opinion of the Court. 1 We are asked to decide whether Arizona Rule of Procedure for Juvenile Court 103(F) divests the juvenile court of jurisdiction to enter an adoption order during the pendency of a biological parent's appeal from an order terminating his or her parental rights. We hold that it does not. BACKGROUND 2 Roberto F. ("Father") is the biological father of L.F. and I.A. In November 2011, the juvenile court terminated his parental rights, and he appealed (...
Justice BERCH , opinion of the Court. 1 An inherently suggestive one-person show-up identification procedure implicates due process, but such an identification is nevertheless admissible at trial if it is sufficiently reliable. State v. Williams, 144 Ariz. 433 , 439-40, 698 P.2d 678 , 684-85 (1985). We must decide whether an appellate court may make a reliability determination in the first instance when the trial court has failed to do so. We conclude that although the trial court...
Justice TIMMER , opinion of the Court. 1 Agreements between parties or attorneys in civil lawsuits are not binding if disputed unless they are evidenced by a writing or made orally in court. Ariz. R. Civ. P. 80(d). We here consider whether Rule 80(d) makes a written settlement agreement unenforceable because it lacked the written assent of clients who dispute their attorney's authority to make the agreement. Holding that no such written assent is required and that the agreement here...
Vice Chief Justice PELANDER , opinion of the Court. 1 We address in this case whether, in a prosecution for second-degree murder, the trial court may instruct the jury on manslaughter over a defendant's objection if the evidence supports a finding that the killing occurred "upon a sudden quarrel or heat of passion resulting from adequate provocation by the victim" ("provocation manslaughter") under A.R.S. 13-1103(A)(2). We hold that the court may give such an instruction. I. 2...
Justice BERCH , opinion of the Court. 1 Michael Jonathon Carlson was convicted of two counts of kidnapping and two counts of first-degree murder. This automatic appeal follows the imposition of the death penalty. Ariz. R.Crim. P. 31.2(b). We have jurisdiction under Article 6, Section 5(3) of the Arizona Constitution and A.R.S. 13-4031. I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY 2 In the spring of 2009, Michael Carlson moved into a recreational vehicle on a rural property in Pima County....
Justice BERCH , opinion of the Court. 1 The Fourth Amendment guarantees "[t]he right of the people to be secure ... against unreasonable searches and seizures." U.S. Const. amend. IV. An officer's investigatory stop of a vehicle is a seizure and therefore must be based on reasonable suspicion. United States v. Cortez, 449 U.S. 411 , 417, 421-22, 101 S.Ct. 690, 66 L.Ed.2d 621 (1981). We must decide whether, to establish that reasonable suspicion exists, the state must show that the...
Chief Justice BALES , opinion of the Court. 1 The Fourth Amendment generally requires police to obtain a warrant to search a home. Courts have recognized exceptions to this requirement, such as the exigent circumstances and emergency aid exceptions. The State here urges us to extend the community caretaking exception, which applies to certain vehicle searches, to justify the warrantless search of a home. We decline to do so. I. 2 Police officers and paramedics went to Bradley Wilson'...
Vice Chief Justice PELANDER , opinion of the Court. 1 The question presented is whether law enforcement officers assume a duty of care to an accident victim's family by notifying the family of the victim's apparent injury or death. We hold that no duty arises from such notifications alone. I. 2 The material facts, as set forth in the court of appeals' opinion, are undisputed. Guerra v. State, 234 Ariz. 482, 484-85 2-13, 323 P.3d 765 , 767-68 (App.2014). In July 2010, April...
Justice TIMMER , opinion of the Court. 1 Section 12-820.03, A.R.S., provides public entities a "state of the art" affirmative defense against claims for injuries arising out of a plan or design for construction of a roadway. To establish the defense, the public entity must show that the plan or design, when created, conformed to generally accepted engineering or design standards and that warnings of any unreasonably dangerous hazards were given that were adequate to permit the public to...
