Governor Doug Ducey signed an Executive Order Friday clarifying that law enforcement officers in Arizona are required to hold elected officials accountable for criminal activity, saying "politicians are not above the law."
Politicians are NOT above the law. Everyone should know that, and the Arizona Constitution is clear -- but regrettably, a reminder is needed.
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) July 20, 2018
After signing the Executive Order, Ducey took to Twitter to share the news accompanied by a series of tweets saying no one has immunity when it comes to putting the community in danger.
This morning I signed an Executive Order making it clear: No one has immunity from breaking our laws and endangering citizens.
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) July 20, 2018
The move comes after state Rep. Paul Mosley was seen on body camera bragging to a La Paz County sheriff's deputy about speeding during a traffic stop.
Mosley, who represents Lake Havasu, was pulled over for speeding in March and told the deputy that he had been going 120 mph and he has gone 140 mph before.
The representative also told the deputy he was going home to Lake Havasu City to surprise his wife.
After the video was made public, Mosley posted the following message on Facebook.
I would like to apologize to my colleagues and constituents, as well as law enforcement, for my conduct on March 27th, 2018, which is shown in the recently-released video. My desire to get home to see my family does not justify how fast I was speeding nor my reference to legislative immunity when being pulled over. Legislative immunity is a serious responsibility and should not be taken lightly or abused. In addition, my jokes about frequently driving over 100 miles per hour during my 3-hour commute to and from the capitol were entirely inappropriate and showed extremely bad judgement on my part, for which I am truly sorry. I have no excuse for any of this, only regret of my actions, a hope for forgiveness and a commitment that it will not happen again.
After signing the executive order Friday morning, Gov. Ducey said it'll provide Arizona officers with the support and protection they need to use their professional judgment regardless of one's political stature.
Our @Arizona_DPS officers will now have the authority and tools to cite any elected official for criminal violations. Period. I hope other law enforcement entities follow our lead.
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) July 20, 2018
The entire executive order can be reviewed here.
In a news release, Gov. Ducey's office alluded to Mosley's case, stating that the executive order clarifies that "legislative immunity" applies to incidents during the legislative session and 15 days prior to the start of a legislative session.
