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County attorney defends bringing case against driver charged with killing Phoenix police officer

Miguel Torres, Arizona Republic
·3 min read
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Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell backed her prosecutors after their case against the driver accused of killing a Phoenix police officer fell apart under the weight of faulty evidence.

On Sept. 22, Maricopa Superior Court Judge Joseph Kreamer threw out the negligent homicide case against Nubia Rodriguez in the death of Officer Paul Rutherford.

“I am so sorry for the loss of Officer Rutherford, and I wish I wasn’t here giving the news to his family, but I am. And I’m sorry that’s the case,” Kreamer said. “I’m also sorry for the pain that has continued for others, including Ms. Rodriguez. But I have to rule as best I can on the evidence that is in front of me.”

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The evidence showed that Rutherford, who was crossing four lanes of traffic on March 21, 2019, “appeared from a place he shouldn’t have been” when he was hit, according to Kreamer.

On that day of the accident, Rutherford and another officer investigated a car crash on the eastbound side of Indian School Road just east of the 75th Avenue traffic lights.

They had parked their police SUV across the two lanes closest to the curb to redirect cars around the accident.

Phoenix Officer Paul Rutherford is celebrated at Christ's Church of the Valley in Peoria on March 28, 2019.
Phoenix Officer Paul Rutherford is celebrated at Christ's Church of the Valley in Peoria on March 28, 2019.

This left the left lane and a two-way turn lane open on the eastbound side of Indian School Road.

Rutherford was walking across Indian School Road from the accident to meet with his partner when he was hit crossing the two-way turn lane.

Detective Greggory Gibbs, the crash expert who examined the accident, said in his report, "Rutherford could have also avoided the collision if he had stopped and looked west down the two-way left turn lane prior to entering it.”

The scene at Indian School Road near 75th Avenue in Phoenix on March 21, 2019, where a Phoenix police officer was struck while investigating a crash. He later died from the injuries.
The scene at Indian School Road near 75th Avenue in Phoenix on March 21, 2019, where a Phoenix police officer was struck while investigating a crash. He later died from the injuries.

Video from nearby businesses showed that Rutherford was not wearing a high visibility vest and had passed in front of a black SUV in the left lane, putting himself in a blind spot to traffic traveling down the two-way turn lane.

Neither piece of evidence was shown to the court when the prosecution asked to charge Rodriguez with negligent homicide on Aug. 20, 2020.

In April, Rodriguez’s lawyers asked the court to reexamine faults in the evidence the state initially used to charge her. The case went back to court where a probable cause hearing was used to charge Rodriguez anew and start the criminal case over.

During a news conference on Oct. 15, Mitchell backed her attorneys when questioned about the case.

“We looked at what our prosecutors did in this case, scrutinized it, and didn’t find any wrongdoing on their part.”

According to Rodriguez's lawyer, Armando Nava, the state prosecution misrepresented data to show that Rodriguez had been speeding and hid the crash expert’s opinion that Rutherford should have looked farther down the road before walking into traffic.

They claimed that the evidence presented came from a biased Phoenix Police Department investigation.

“I don’t think Phoenix ever should have been involved in this case,” Nava told ABC15. “It was clear from the day of the event, they wanted a certain result.”

Gibbs told the court during the probable cause hearing that he felt other Phoenix police officers were upset that he had reported that Rutherford could potentially have been at fault in the accident.

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ABC15 reported on text messages between the state’s lead prosecutor, Tiffany Brady, and Detective Michael Davidson, who was a witness in the case.

According to ABC15, Davidson had, in a profanity-laced message to Brady, expressed disdain and contempt for one of the defense lawyers.

Brady messaged back, sarcastically, “You really shouldn’t hold your feelings in.”

During the news conference in October, Mitchell was asked about these messages by reporters.

“Could a prosecutor have responded to that differently? Certainly,” Mitchell said.

Reach crime reporter Miguel Torres at Miguel.Torres@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter @TheMiguelTorres.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: MCAO defends case after it was thrown out due to faulty evidence