The Arizona Court of Appeals has upheld the conviction of former eye surgeon Bradley Schwartz in the October 2004 slaying of Dr. David Brian Stidham.
The court ruled that despite Schwartz's claims, prosecutors did not engage in multiple acts of misconduct and Pima County Superior Court Judge Nanette Warner acted appropriately when she refused to sequester jurors or move Schwartz's trial out of Pima County.
Nor did Warner err when she declined to let Schwartz's attorney, Brick Storts, introduce evidence about an armed robber arrested around the time of Stidham's death, the court ruled.
Schwartz and Ronald Bruce Bigger are serving life sentences in Stidham's death. Schwartz was convicted in May 2006 of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and Bigger was convicted last year of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
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Pinal County prosecutors Sylvia Lafferty and Richard Platt, who handled the case, believe Schwartz paid Bigger $10,000 for the slaying because he was angry that Stidham had abandoned their joint practice while Schwartz was in a drug-rehabilitation program.
