Morgan Fischer
Gage Skidmore/Flickr/CCBY-SA 2.0
Who, exactly, is “we”?
On Friday, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office held its “They Served Well” memorial ceremony in front of its downtown Phoenix headquarters to honor personnel who died in the line of duty. Detention Lt. Rory Milligan, who was most recently working at Watkins Jail, was memorialized at the ceremony.
And what a beautiful ceremony it was, Maricopa County Supervisor Mark Stewart wants you to know. Later that morning, Stewart took to social media to post about attending the ceremony, sharing photos of deputies speaking to the crowd, several deputies on horseback and the memorial’s program.
“This morning we attended the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office ‘They Served Well’ Memorial as we remembered and honored the brave men and women who gave their lives in the line of duty,” wrote Stewart, a Republican who represents much of the East Valley. “Their courage, service, and sacrifice will never be forgotten. We owe a lasting debt of gratitude to those heroes and to the families who continue to carry their legacy forward.”
There’s only one problem: According to two county government sources who were in attendance and who spoke to Phoenix New Times, Stewart wasn’t there. Members of Stewart’s office did attend the event — stretching the meaning of “we” — but Stewart himself wasn’t in attendance.
New Times sent questions to Stewart’s office, including about his absence, where he actually was and why he posted as if he’d been there. There has been no response.
But for Stewart’s tweet, his absence wouldn’t have been glaring. Only one county supervisor attended in person: Republican Thomas Galvin, who has the pictures to prove it. Supervisor Kate Brophy McGee, the Republican chair of the board, sent in a video thanking the officers but was unable to be there.
Stewart has already become a bit of a pariah on the board. Swept into office two years ago thanks to skepticism he expressed about election security, Stewart has repeatedly bucked the Republican-controlled board’s majority in its ongoing election administration feud with MAGA county recorder Justin Heap.
The board has adopted a bellicose stance toward Heap, publicly blasting the recorder’s misstatements and summoning him to testify before the supervisors. But Stewart has been more conciliatory, striking a “why can’t we all just get along” tone.
After losing a recent court battle against Heap, the board’s other Republicans — and its lone Democrat, Steve Gallardo — voted to ask a judge for a stay of his ruling in the case. Stewart, who has retained his own legal counsel rather than be represented by the board’s attorney, was the lone vote against.
Source link
Morgan Fischer Maricopa County official fibs about going to fallen officer ceremony www.phoenixnewtimes.com
Phoenix New Times 2026-05-12 20:22:27
News +
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings