The next Maricopa County Attorney will come from a pool of eight applicants, all of whom say they will run in 2020 if appointed.

Maybe it’s time for prosecutors like Barbara LaWall to stop defending the status quo and embrace a more effective justice system based on data and evidence. It has worked in Texas, Utah, Georgia and 29 other states. And unless Arizonans are somehow more crime-prone than the rest of the country, it will work here, too.

On this edition of The Breakdown, our reporters discuss Mark Brnovich, Criminal Justice Reform, and Gov. Doug Ducey's latest court appointment.

Gov. Doug Ducey appointed a Democrat to the Arizona Court of Appeals on Friday, a week after his controversial pick of Republican Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery to the Supreme Court.

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors set the process in motion today to replace Bill Montgomery as Maricopa County Attorney by naming its seven-member citizens committee to vet the applicants hoping to be appointed.

Maricopa County “top cop” Bill Montgomery’s got a new job, and while he’s trying on black robes half the lawyers in Phoenix are gunning for his old one.

Bill Montgomery’s power and influence as an Arizona Supreme Court justice will depend on whether he abides by more traditional standards of the high court by taking less of an activist role at the Capitol.

Gov. Doug Ducey appointed Bill Montgomery to the Arizona Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon, making the controversial Maricopa County attorney Ducey’s fifth selection to the state’s highest court.

I write to take exception to the op-ed about the nomination of Bill Montgomery to our state Supreme Court, written by Mark Harrison and published on Aug. 16. I do not know Harrison, but I have known Montgomery in various capacities for many years. Having written a graduate thesis on U.S. Supreme Court nominees and nominations, I’d also like to think I know something about judicial qualifications and history.

Yes, Mr. Montgomery took a novel path to eventual consideration to serve on the Arizona Supreme Court. If selected, he would bring a different perspective developed by a unique life of public service. He represents the values engrained in military service. Similar to Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, who also served as an elected leader before moving to the judiciary, he understands the difficulties of balancing political responsibilities and the natural tug-a-war of public policy development.