Commissioner: Let court decide if panel did anything wrong

Mary O'Grady acknowledged the Arizona Constitution does give the governor the right, with the consent of two-thirds of the Senate, to remove any or all commission members "for substantial neglect of duty, gross misconduct in office, or inability to discharge the duties of office.''

But in a letter to the governor, O'Grady said that requires providing each member with notice of specific violations that rise to that level. She said a general letter to all five commissioners — and three days to respond — is "patently insufficient.''

More to the point, O'Grady told Brewer that it is up to the courts and not her to determine whether certain violations alleged by the governor have occurred. That includes the question of whether calls made by Colleen Mathis, who chairs the panel, to other commissioners violations the state's Open Meeting Law.

In fact, O'Grady noted, the question of whether the commission is subject to that law is currently being litigated in court.

Similarly, O'Grady brushed aside Brewer's complaints that the commission did not follow constitutional requirements when crafting draft maps for the state's nine congressional districts. She said the ultimate question of whether those maps meet the requirements of a voter-approved constitutional amendment also rests with the courts.

In separate responses, Mathis and the two Democratic commissioners, Linda McNulty and Jose Herrera, denied they had done anything to merit their removal.

Republican Richard Stertz said he, too, had done nothing wrong — but only because he disagreed with the actions the other three had taken. No response to the governor's complaint was immediately available from the fifth member, Republican Scott Freeman.