The Pinal County Attorney’s Office (PCAO) declined to prosecute former Maricopa County prosecutor April Sponsel, whose license was suspended by the State Bar of Arizona for bringing charges against Antifa. PCAO also rejected charges against several Phoenix Police officers involved in quelling a riot by the gang in 2020. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) had recommended to PCAO to charge the six after the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO) suggested there was wrongdoing.
Initially, MCAO fully supported prosecuting Antifa, but after ABC-15 issued a series of videos critical of how law enforcement handled the incident, the office reversed its position. In February 2021, then-Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel made a decision to dismiss all the charges against Antifa. Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell testified against Sponsel at her bar disciplinary trial.
Retired FBI Special Agent James E. Egelston of Baseline Investigations prepared the 161-page report for PCAO on behalf of MCSO. At the time, MCSO was led by Democrat Paul Penzone. Penzone resigned suddenly about a year ago.
Pinal County Attorney Kent Volkmer said in a response to the investigation, dated September 26, “Based on the information submitted in your Investigative Report dated June 10, 2023, as well as the evidence you gathered since that date and shared with this office, it is the opinion of this Board that none of the individuals listed above committed any acts that warrant criminal prosecution.”
The initial letter from MCAO to MCSO laid out “specific concerns” regarding the “credibility of officers based on the information in police reports and facts testified to under oath in comparison to what was seen in video evidence…” It claimed that prosecutors may have “missed some evidence.” The letter listed “specific instances” that “warrant further investigation.”
The City of Phoenix received a copy of MCAO’s letter, and asked the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) to investigate the five officers. The AGO declined. The City of Phoenix and MCAO also asked several other law enforcement agencies to investigate, in order to avoid a conflict of interest if MCSO investigated; Tucson Police Department, Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office, Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, and Pima County Sheriff’s Office. Each one declined, so MCAO and MCSO agreed to hire an outside contractor, Egelston.
In his report, Egelston acknowledged the behavior of Antifa, who were rioting after the death of George Floyd. “During the march, protesters walked in the streets, blocked traffic, knocked over and dragged construction barricades into traffic lanes, threw smoke bombs in the path of police, repeatedly ignored commands from the police, and resisted arrest,” he said. “One of the protesters was armed with a loaded rifle and a loaded handgun. Another protester carried a brick in a backpack.”
Egleston accused Sponsel (pictured above) of Perjury, a class 4 felony, for asking an officer before the Grand Jury whether one of those arrested, Ryder Collins, was combative towards police. Collins, who said he was merely a photographer taking photos of the sunset, admitted later that he had refused to cooperate with police. His photos were taken in the middle of the street after the police had told the rioters to move. But since Egleston said some personal videos taken of the rioters and some other information did not show Collins behaving hostilely towards the police, he claimed this was false.
Sponsel further questioned the officer about whether Collins was really a professional media photographer, pointing out that he wasn’t wearing a media badge. Egleston said this was misleading since there is no requirement for the media to wear a badge.
Egelston said Officer Douglas McBride engaged in Perjury when he told the Grand Jury that at least one of the rioters was a member of Antifa. When MCAO changed their minds about prosecuting the rioters, they pointed to a technicality, claiming that since “Gang Member Information Cards” had not been submitted to the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), apparently McBridge couldn’t call Antifa a gang.
Egelston also accused McBride of Perjury for stating that all of the rioters arrested were members of Antifa, asserting that Collins was not a member.
Egelston said it constituted Perjury when McBride said Collins was part of the group of rioters since videos of them did not show him present. However, Egelston didn’t address Collins’ presence in the street with Antifa after the police had told them to leave.
All five officers were accused by Egelston of Tampering with a Public Record, a class 6 felony. He said this was due to police reports they wrote or contributed to that contained false statements. This accusation mostly related to statements the officers made about Collins.
Another accusation related to how one of the officers described rioter Suvarna Ratnam, who appeared to be brandishing an umbrella as a weapon. Egelston said Ratnam did not use the umbrella aggressively towards the police, as the reports stated. However, Egelston admitted that Ratnam “threw a bottle of liquid at a police vehicle,” and when police attempted to arrest her, “she attempted to flee.”
In his response, Volkmer got into the specifics of why the two felony laws, Perjury and Tampering with a Public Record, weren’t violated.
In regards to the allegation of Perjury, he said it “requires proof that an individual made a false statement while believing it to be false.”
He said the crime of Tampering with a Public Record “requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt that a person knowingly made a false statement in a public record and that the person did so with the intent to defraud or deceive.
Volkmer said neither of those mental states can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
In regards to the misdemeanor crimes alleged, Volkmer said the 1-year Statute of Limitations had already passed by the time the matter was referred to his office.
In a ruling signed by Justice Ann Timmer, considered the furthest left justice on the Arizona Supreme Court, the state’s highest court affirmed Sponsel’s suspension on September 11. Timmer, whose sister is far left Arizona Republic journalist Laurie Roberts, is often the justice to issue opinions suspending or disbarring conservative attorneys. Timmer said a full written opinion would be issued later.
Sponsel and the police officers, some who were demoted, have filed lawsuits.
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Rachel Alexander is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Rachel on Twitter / X. Email tips to [email protected].
Image “April Sponsel” by ABC15 News.
