Superior Court Judge Hugh Hegyi just issued a ruling in state Senate President Russell Pearce's legal challenge to his recall, dismissing the complaint brought by the legal beagle working on his behalf, Lisa Hauser.
Hegyi agreed with the defendants -- the Arizona Secretary of State, Maricopa County Elections, and Citizens for a Better Arizona -- that Lisa Hauser's arguments didn't hold, save on one tiny matter that doesn't affect the outcome -- one dealing with the timeliness of the complaint.
You can read Hegyi's decision for yourself, here.
This outcome is no great surprise to anyone who has been following my coverage of this challenge.
Oral arguments were held Monday in the case. Even Hauser agreed with opposing counsel that for Hegyi to rule in favor of the plaintiff, a Pearce shill by the name of Franklin Bruce Ross, the judge would have to overturn 90 years of precedent.
That's something Hegyi cannot do in his capacity as a superior court judge. Hauser was laying the groundwork for an appeal. Expect that appeal to follow shortly.
This is the second bit of good news today for the anti-Pearce forces. The first came this morning when Pearce challenger Tommy Cattey pulled out of the Legislative District 18 recall, leaving only Pearce, challenger Jerry Lewis and possible spoiler Olivia Cortes as candidates in the upcoming November 8 election.
Congrats to CBA and to Chandler attorney Thomas Ryan, who was the lead counsel on the defense side, representing CBA.
Interestingly, Ryan told me the ruling was so strong that he now doubts if Hauser will file appeal to the Arizona Supreme Court, even though she mainly seemed to be going through the motions on Monday, almost as if she anticipated this result.
Personally, I think she's just picking up a check. Probably one signed by Pearce's puppet master Chuck Coughlin, or one of his legion of proxies.
