May 7, 2021
Law enforcement officials in Maricopa County, Arizona are refusing to turn over electronic devices subpoenaed by the Arizona State Legislature this week, claiming that compliance with the legislature’s lawful order would create an unspecified “security risk” to “law enforcement data.”
A letter signed by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office and addressed to former Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett vigorously defended officials’ decision to not turn over internet routers, but did not elaborate on the purported risk that complying with the subpoena would cause.
“While the County was delivering the subpoenaed material to the Senate’s custody on Thursday, April 22, 2021, MCAO was notified that delivering routers, or ‘virtual images’ of routers, posed a significant security risk to law enforcement data utilized by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office as well as numerous federal agencies,” the letter stated, adding, “We also learned that if criminal elements or others gained access to this data, it might compromise county and federal law enforcement efforts and put the lives of law enforcement personnel at risk.”