Sammantha Allen, John Michael Allen, Petitioners v. the Honorable Teresa A. Sanders, Judge of the Superior Court Of…

Summary

The Arizona Supreme Court held that, in a Chronis hearing involving a capital-case aggravating circumstance under A.R.S. § 13-751(F)(2), the trial court must independently decide whether a concurrently charged offense qualifies as a serious offense but must accept the grand jury's probable-cause determination for that offense. The court vacated the court of appeals' decision, affirmed the trial court's ruling, and remanded for further proceedings. Justice Bolick concurred in the result but would have interpreted Rule 13.5(c) as granting only a right to file a motion, with hearing procedures left to the trial court and rulemaking process.