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High profile cases involving law enforcement officials undergoing 'thorough vetting'
Several high profile cases in Maricopa County, including the deadly shooting of a Mesa mother involving a special agent with the AG's office and the suspects in a child murder trial released following evidence tracking issues, are undergoing review. FOX 10's Steve Nielsen learns what the county attorney has to say.
MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. - The Maricopa County Attorney is weighing in on the near decade-long case involving the death of a 7-year-old girl. On Tuesday, the couple charged were released mid-trial because of evidence concerns, but that's not all the county attorney spoke about on Wednesday.
Mesa:
According to internal documents surrounding the Kinetic Drive shooting involving a special agent at the Attorney General’s Office, a Mesa neighbor of Maria Lewis heard yelling around 2:15 in the morning.
Documents reveal Lewis was arguing with her husband and went to the doorstep of Special Agent Dulance Morin’s house where she was shot and killed. Mesa Police recommended negligent homicide charges against Morin. He claims Lewis was banging on his door and, when he warned her he had a gun, she claimed she had one too.
Mom of 7 killed on neighbor's doorstep in Mesa identified
Maria "Mia" Lewis, a mother of seven, was killed early Saturday morning on a neighbor's doorstep in a Mesa neighborhood.
Morin told detectives he doesn’t remember the door opening or pulling the trigger, but admitted the shot was fired from his hand and called it an accident.
What She's Saying:
Mitchell was asked if she would file charges against him.
"I’ve assigned it to attorneys to look at," said Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. "And once their review of it is done, and when I say review, I mean, you know a thorough vetting of the case, then we will staff at the highest levels and I will be involved in that. We’re not there yet because we’re doing a thorough review."
To ensure the special agent would not receive special treatment, she said no one in her department working on the case knows him.
Goodyear:
In the Cunningham trial, Germayne and Lisa Cunningham are accused of murdering Germayne’s 7-year-old daughter in 2017. An autopsy revealed physical injuries consistent with abuse.
The couple have spent nearly a decade in custody, but were released on March 24 during the trial after evidence tracking issues with the Goodyear Police Department came to light.
Child murder suspects released amid evidence tracking issues
A high-profile child murder trial is on hold following major evidence tracking failures by Goodyear Police, with legal experts suggesting the issues could lead to a mistrial or a complete dismissal of the case.
What She's Saying:
Mitchell was asked about the evidence issues and how it might impact the case going forward, but she held back on revealing much.
"Obviously, it’s a very serious case involving a seven-year-old girl and I want to respect that," Mitchell said. "I wanna be cautious about what I say so I’m gonna let that play out in court and then we’ll go from there."
What's next:
Goodyear Police responded to the evidence tracking accusations on March 25, saying the lead detective on the case found concerns over evidence procedures. Goodyear says they brought in Chandler Police and an external firm to conduct a comprehensive review of their procedures to begin in April. They also said an internal audit found 99.99% accuracy across all the evidence in their possession.
The Source: Maricopa County Attorney's Office and previous FOX 10 reports