The sheriff's deputy who was fined $315,000 in December for violating campaign finance law will appeal the ruling to an administrative law judge on Feb. 4.

Maricopa County Sheriff's Capt. Joel Fox has maintained that the contributions his group, SCA, made to the Arizona Republican Party during the run up to the last year's elections did not constitute a political action.

However, the attorney who investigated the matter for the county determined that the $105,000 in contributions SCA made transformed Fox's group into a political committee, and therefore made it subject to campaign finance reporting laws.

The hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Feb. 4 at the Office of Administrative Hearings.