The Arizona Supreme Court says former Attorney General Tom Horne didn't get a fair hearing of his appeal of a finding that he violated campaign finance laws during his 2010 campaign.
The court's unanimous ruling Thursday says Horne's due process rights were violated when Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk acted as a prosecution advocate in an administrative appeal hearing and then made a final decision against Horne.
The justices say current Attorney General Mark Brnovich should decide whether Polk correctly concluded that Horne and former aide Kathleen Winn illegally coordinated campaign spending while Winn ran an outside group backing Horne's campaign.
Horne and Winn deny wrongdoing. He is trying to overturn Polk's decision that he repay $400,000 to donors and pay up to $1.2 million in fines.
