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County Attorney Thomas slams ethnic court

Charges Spanish, Native American DUI programs "race-based"

Rumors had been circulating for months throughout Maricopa County's Superior Court that County Attorney Andrew Thomas didn't like the Spanish-language DUI court program presided over by Judge Barbara Rodriguez Mundell.

Then without warning, on Thursday, Dec. 16, the Republican county attorney launched a public attack on special programs for minorities.

Calling a press conference, Thomas charged that the Superior Court programs for Spanish speakers and Native Americans were "unconstitutional" and "race-based," and that he may file a federal lawsuit to stop them.

Thomas says the Spanish DUI court is "reserved for Hispanics" and that the Native American court is "explicitly racial."

The Superior Court started the program for Spanish speakers in 2002. There are also special courts for teen-agers and domestic violence offenders. Participants enter the programs after they have been convicted for felony DUI. The programs have special requirements, including probation monitoring, monthly appearances before the judge, and deferred jail terms. The programs are funded by a $396,000 federal grant.

Rodriguez Mundell says Thomas had not officially communicated any legal concerns he had about the ethnic courts before the press conference.

"The only time he ever mentioned the topic was during a conference on a unrelated subject," she says. "He only said, 'Did you know some legislators have concerns about the courts?'"

The judge called the attack on the courts "political posturing" by Thomas.

"This is a public safety issue. He has chosen to make it a political issue."

Krystal Garza, director of communications for the Maricopa County Attourney's Office, says, "the bottom line is that the county attorney took an oath to uphold the Constitution, which requires equal justice under the laws,"

Rodriguez Mundell became the first female and Hispanic appointed as Superior Court presiding judge in July 2005.

In September the court accepted a special achievement award from the National Association of Counties for the Spanish DUI program. Program information says that the average Spanish DUI court participant is more likely to graduate than participants in the English-
language DUI court.