Legislative immunity is a privilege in most states. A speeding ticket could change that in Arizona
That's because the Arizona Constitution shields state lawmakers from any civil process and arrest for anything but treason, felony and breach of peace during legeslative sessions and the 15 days before. Legislative immunity exists in most states and allows lawmakers to brush aside lawsuits and low-level infractions like traffic tickets.
Legal experts say the privilege is a form of separation of powers. It originated centuries ago in the English Bill of Rights as monarchs tried to intimidate legislators and it's been invoked over the years in a variety of situations, not always with success.
In 2019, a politician in West Virginia invoked immunity after having a violent outburst. In 2022, a Wisconsin lawmaker argued he didn't have to comply with a subpoena ordering him to testify about a conversation he had with President Donald Trump about overturning the 2020 election. And last year, it shielded Kansas lawmakers who shared social media posts that falsely accused a man of being among those who opened fire at a rally celebrating the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory.
In Arizona, the perk doesn't have unanimous support in the Legislature. Republican Rep. Quang Nguyen has introduced a resolution to end immunity for traffic violations. If passed, it would become a ballot measure for voters to decide in 2026.
'The people we serve are expected to follow traffic laws, and legislators should be no different," Nguyen said in a statement. "If a lawmaker is caught speeding, running a red light, or committing any other traffic violation, they should face the same consequences as everyone else.'
Nguyen represents a legislative district two hours north of Phoenix that includes the city of Prescott, the same district that Finchem represents and where he was cited on a recent Saturday by an officer who said he was driving 48 mph (77 kph) in a 30 mph (48 kph) zone.
Finchem wrote to Prescott's police chief two days later, asking for the citation to 'be voided and stricken from the record.' It was dismissed Feb. 4 without prejudice, meaning it can be refiled, court records show.
Finchem declined to comment through a spokesperson.
Immunity generally falls into two categories, one protecting speech and debate and the other protecting lawmakers from arrest, according to the nonpartisan National Conference of State Legislatures.
In the U.S., 43 state constitutions offer protection to lawmakers for speech and debate, and about 45 provide legislative immunity from arrest related to legislative service. However, the specific provisions can vary significantly, said Mick Bullock, a spokesperson for the group.
In New Mexico, for example, the constitution says lawmakers are protected from arrest when they commute to and from the Legislature. Arizona doesn't have location restrictions.
Members of Congress also have legislative immunity but courts have narrowly interpreted it. Former Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey tried to claim immunity in his bribery case last year, but ended up being sentenced to 11 years in prison.
In a speech Tuesday on the House floor, Republican U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina accused her ex-fiancé of assaulting her and raping others. She argued she had immunity through the 'speech and debate' clause, providing her protection from any civil lawsuits.
While it's unclear how many times legislative immunity has been invoked since it was written into the Arizona Constitution in 1912, Finchem is far from the first to claim it.
In 2012, then-state Sen. Scott Bundgaard invoked it after he and his girlfriend were pulled over on a Phoenix freeway amid a violent domestic dispute. Bundgaard was allowed to go home while his girlfriend spent a night in jail. Bundgaard was later prosecuted and pleaded no-contest to a misdemeanor charge.
In 2018, then-state Rep. Paul Mosely was caught on camera bragging about going as fast as 140 mph (225 kph) to a sheriff's deputy who said he pulled him over because he was speeding. Mosely later apologized. Finchem was serving in the House at the time and filed an ethics complaint, asking the committee to take whatever action it deemed necessary.
Past efforts to repeal legislative immunity in Arizona have failed. Former Republican Gov. Doug Ducey supported a repeal in 2019, but it lacked traction among lawmakers. Steve Gallardo, a former state lawmaker, introduced a bill to do the same in 2012, but it met the same fate.
Gallardo, a Democrat who now serves on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, said he understands the thinking behind legislative immunity during the early days of statehood. He doesn't believe it's needed today.
'Anyone who is utilizing that type of privilege is really doing a disservice to the institution, and really a big disservice to his constituency," Gallardo said. 'They're telling the greater public that they are above the law."
___
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Trump's top lieutenants pour millions into their campaign to vanquish MAGA nemesis after attempted truce is left in tatters
President Donald Trump 's top lieutenants are coming for the seat of Republican Rep. Thomas Massie. Massie, a libertarian-leaning Republican from Kentucky, was one of two no votes on Trump's 'big, beautiful bill,' which the president signed into law on the Fourth of July. More recently, Massie joined forces with Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna on a bill that would force the public release of the Epstein files. For months, Trump has expressed his ire with Massie publicly, throwing punches at him on social media. Last week Axios reported that at Massie's request, House Speaker Mike Johnson had negotiated a truce with Trump. But Massie broke the truce days later, by tagging Johnson in an X post and asking: 'why are you running cover for an underage sex trafficking ring and pretending this is a partisan issue?' 'MAGA voted for this,' Massie also said. On Monday, MAGA Kentucky - a super PAC helmed by Trump 2024 campaign guru Chris LaCivita and Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio - put out a new anti-Massie ad, signaling their serious about dislodging the rabble-rousing congressman from his northern Kentucky seat. LaCivita - and Fabrizio - remain in Trump's inner circle, with LaCivita spotted on board Air Force One Friday, as the president flew to spend the weekend at his Bedminster, New Jersey golf resort. The new ad - first reported by NOTUS - was a six-figure television ad buy. MAGA Kentucky has already amassed more than $2 million in donations, Federal Election Commission data showed. 'Who's Thomas Massie fighting for?' the ad asks. 'Not the single moms who no longer pay taxes on their tips, not the police officers who no longer pay taxes on their overtime, not the seniors who no longer pay taxes on Social Security,' it continues. 'President Trump passed those working-class tax cuts, but Thomas Massie joined the Democrats and voted no,' it says. 'Let's fire Thomas Massie.' Massie had put out his own campaign ad where he played up his no vote against the 'big, beautiful bill,' blasting it for adding $4 trillion to the national debt. 'And now I'm leading the charge to force a vote to release the complete Epstein files,' Massie touted. Massie has already attracted one challenger for next year's race - a registered nurse named Nicole Lee Ethington. Late July polling from Kaplan Strategies found that Ethington leads Massie 31 percent to 19 percent in a district where Trump enjoys 89 percent favorability. The poll was of likely GOP primary voters in Kentucky's 4th Congressional District and had a margin of error of plus or minus 5.1 percent. But Massie shouldn't be counted out yet. In the second quarter of 2025, the Kentucky Republican raised $584,000 and had $1.7 million on hand, NOTUS reported. Amid Trump's fight with Elon Musk, the Tesla head also vowed to financially support Massie's reelection bid. Massie's team has stayed tight-lipped so far on whether Musk is making good on that promise.
The Independent
7 hours ago
- The Independent
America's Most Wanted: Texas senator calls on FBI director Kash Patel to hunt down ‘fleeing' Democrats
Republican Senator John Cornyn is calling on the FBI to track down and arrest Texas Democrats who left the state to derail a vote on new congressional districts explicitly designed to elect more Republicans to Congress. In a letter to FBI Director Kash Patel on Tuesday, Cornyn requested the agency's help to 'locate the out-of-state Texas legislators who are potentially acting in violation of the law.' 'The FBI has tools to aid state law enforcement when parties cross state lines, including to avoid testifying or fleeing a scene of a crime,' he added. Democrats did not break the law by denying the Texas House of Representatives a quorum. Texas House rules allow lawmakers to issue civil arrest warrants to force members back to the capitol, but leaving the chambers is not a criminal offense, and federal law enforcement does not have authority to compel lawmakers to come back to Texas. But Cornyn, echoing claims from Texas Republicans, has accused Texas Democrats of 'potential criminal acts' — including bribery or 'other public corruption offenses' — for allegedly receiving monetary support to leave the state until the end of a 30-day legislative session. The senator's allegations have escalated law enforcement threats against Texas lawmakers who are protesting a GOP plan, requested by Donald Trump, to redraw political boundaries in the hopes of electing five more Texas Republicans into the House of Representatives in next year's midterm elections. Trump on Tuesday claimed he is 'entitled' to those seats. The office of Governor Greg Abbott, who launched the legislative session to explicitly approve the new congressional maps before 2026 midterm elections, said he supports Cornyn's move. The governor has said that the use of campaign funds to help pay for hefty fines for 'truancy' amounts to bribery. On Monday, he called on the Texas Rangers to investigate his allegations as well as 'potential legal violations connected to their refusal to appear for a quorum, conduct business, and cast votes.' Abbot 'fully supports using all necessary tools to discover potential legal violations connected to their refusal to appear for a quorum, conduct business, and cast votes,' his office said in a statement. Texas Republicans failed to reach a quorum a second day in a row on Tuesday while more than 50 Texas Democrats remain in Illinois, New York and elsewhere. 'This is not a decision we make lightly, but it is one we make with absolute moral clarity,' Democratic state Rep. Gene Wu said from Illinois on Sunday night after leaving the state with several other Democrats. On Monday, state Republicans voted in favor of their arrest. Republican House Speaker Dustin Burrows said he would immediately sign civil warrants for those missing Democratic members, giving the greenlight to the chamber's sergeant-at-arms and state troopers to make arrests and bring them to the state Capitol. The warrants only apply within state lines, making the legislative threats a largely symbolic maneuver. The House met for roughly five minutes on Tuesday before adjourning. 'It is evident to the chair that [the Department of Public Safety] will need some time to work, and we will try again to make quorum on Friday,' Burrows said. Burrows met with state law enforcement officials on Tuesday morning to discuss how to enforce the warrants. 'The Texas Constitution requires members of the Legislature to show up, and Texans expect us to do our jobs,' Burrows wrote on X. 'I remain fully committed to obtaining a quorum and resuming the business of the Texas House.' Following Monday's vote, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said he is 'prepared to do everything in my power to hold them accountable because these liberal lawmakers are not above the law.' 'It's imperative that they be swiftly arrested, punished, and face the full force of the law for turning their backs on the people of Texas,' he said. Texas Democrats had similarly left the state in 2021 to protest Republican-backed voting restrictions. After nearly five weeks on the road, enough lawmakers returned home to establish a quorum, and the measure passed. Republican lawmakers had similarly tried to force back missing Democrats at the time, though they obtained a court-ordered injunction blocking their arrest. The state's Supreme Court later struck down the injunction, finding that while the state Constitution 'enables 'quorum-breaking' by a minority faction of the legislature, it likewise authorizes 'quorum-forcing' by the remaining members.'
The Guardian
7 hours ago
- The Guardian
Nebraska Republican faces heckles and boos at town hall over Trump cuts and Epstein
A Republican congressman from Nebraska faced boos, chants of 'vote him out' and questions about the Trump administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation files. In what could be a preview of what Republicans up for re-election in the 2026 congressional midterms might face, Mike Flood was consistently heckled throughout the town hall. He also faced questions about immigration, cuts to Medicaid, and Donald Trump's firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner Erika McEntarfer after a July employment report that was worse than expected and job growth numbers that were revised downward by 285,000 for the two previous months. Flood claimed he supports releasing the Epstein case files as well as the effort to subpoena Ghislaine Maxwell – Epstein's convicted, longtime associate – in front of Congress. 'I don't know what the situation was with [McEntarfer]. Neither do you,' Flood said. 'I don't know. I don't know. 'I can tell you – I've been an employer for a lot of years, and there's always two sides to every story, and I don't know what that side was. I will say this, though, if all that person did was get the data out there, if all that – and I don't know that's the case – but if that's all they did, I would not have fired her.' Nebraska's Democratic party had encouraged voters to attend the town hall in the state's capital of Lincoln. In response to a question about the budget bill championed by Trump that cut Medicaid by a historic $1tn, Flood responded: 'I truly believe that this bill will allow America to experience growth, that it will allow our communities to thrive, that it will spark our economy, that it will help farmers and ranchers, that it will take care of the vulnerable. And more than anything, I truly believe this bill protects Medicaid for the future.' He then dismissed calls to 'tax the rich', claiming they create jobs. 'From my standpoint, when I say I protected Medicaid, I feel like it,' Flood said. 'If you have a vulnerable loved one that's on Medicaid, and they find it's harder to continue their services, to get their free healthcare, and they clearly need it, that was not what I voted for. Sign up to This Week in Trumpland A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration after newsletter promotion 'If we have to make tweaks to the implementation to make sure that those who truly need it get it and it is not a burden to their caregiver or them, then we need to make those tweaks.' Those who attended Flood's town hall jeered and criticized him vociferously, including by saying he supported fascism. 'Fascists don't hold town halls with open question-and-answer series,' Flood replied. Flood was first elected in 2022 and won a second term in November. He succeeded Jeff Fortenberry, a Republican incumbent who resigned after a felony conviction for lying to federal authorities about an illegal campaign donation from a foreign national.
