1 Arizona judge on the November ballot didn't meet performance standards

Published: Wednesday, April 27, 2022 - 9:36am
Updated: Friday, June 3, 2022 - 3:07pm
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Arizona voters will decide in the November election whether to keep certain judges at the end of their terms.

A state panel found that a judge connected to an execution scheduled for next month has not met performance standards.

Of 72 Arizona judges set to face voters this fall, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Stephen Hopkins was the only one who did not meet performance standards, according to the state Commission on Judicial Performance Review.

Hopkins did not reply to a message from KJZZ requesting comment on the commission’s finding.

In 2020, Hopkins was publicly scolded about his courtroom behavior by another commission on judicial conduct.

This month Hopkins rejected a challenge to the makeup of the state clemency board, which is set to hear from Clarence Dixon, who faces execution on May 11 for the 1978 murder of a college student.

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