Arizona still has the death penalty. Under what circumstances is it imposed?

Arizona (A.R.S. § 13-751) authorizes the death penalty for first-degree murder when the jury unanimously finds at least one of 14 statutory aggravating factors beyond a reasonable doubt. These include: murder of a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or prison employee in performance of their duties; murder committed in an especially cruel, heinous, or depraved manner; murder for pecuniary gain; murder involving multiple victims; murder of a child under 15 years of age; murder committed while the defendant was under a sentence of imprisonment; murder with a prior conviction for a serious offense or prior first-degree murder. The jury also considers mitigating circumstances (intellectual disability, age, lack of prior record, extreme emotional or mental disturbance, minor participation) and determines whether the aggravating circumstances outweigh the mitigating circumstances sufficiently to impose death. Post-Ring v. Arizona, 536 U.S. 584 (2002): the U.S. Supreme Court held Arizona's prior judge-only capital sentencing unconstitutional; Arizona now uses jury fact-finding for both guilt and the aggravating factors required for death eligibility. Process: first-degree murder trial (guilt phase) followed by separate penalty phase for death-eligible cases; direct appeal to Arizona Supreme Court; then state post-conviction proceedings; then federal habeas corpus through the Ninth Circuit, then potentially the U.S. Supreme Court. Capital cases in Arizona take 10-30+ years from conviction to execution. Maricopa and Pima counties (Phoenix and Tucson) account for the large majority of Arizona death sentences. Defendants facing capital charges in Arizona are entitled to appointment of death-qualified counsel and mitigation specialists.

I was previously convicted of marijuana possession in Arizona that's now legal under Prop 207. Can I get it expunged?

Yes — A.R.S. § 36-2862, enacted as part of Proposition 207 (2020), creates an expungement process for prior Arizona convictions involving conduct that would not be an offense under current Arizona law. Eligible convictions include: possession, consumption, or transportation of 1 ounce or less of marijuana (or 5 grams or less of concentrate); possession of paraphernalia used for marijuana; production of fewer than 6 marijuana plants for personal use. Process: file a petition with the court where the original conviction occurred; include documentation of the prior conviction; no filing fee required under A.R.S. § 36-2862(B) if the petition is for expungement of the eligible marijuana conviction; the court holds a hearing and, if the conviction qualifies, enters an order of expungement, sealing the records; the ADPS (Arizona Department of Public Safety) and other state agencies must update their records upon entry of the expungement order. After expungement: the person may lawfully state that they were not convicted of the offense in most contexts; the conviction is treated as if it never occurred; it cannot be used to deny employment, housing, or professional licensing in Arizona (with specific exceptions for positions requiring security clearances or involving children). What expungement does NOT cover: DUI marijuana convictions (the impaired driving aspect remains a crime regardless of Prop 207); sales, trafficking, or distribution offenses; amounts exceeding current legal possession limits. Many eligible Arizonans have not yet petitioned for expungement — if you have a prior Arizona marijuana possession conviction from before November 2020, consult an Arizona criminal defense attorney about eligibility.

What are the felony classes in Arizona and how are sentences determined?

Arizona uses a six-class felony system under A.R.S. § 13-702: Class 1 felony (most serious) through Class 6 felony (least serious), plus the special category of dangerous offenses. For each class, the statute prescribes a sentencing range with five tiers: mitigated, minimum, presumptive, maximum, and aggravated. Examples: Class 2 felony (non-dangerous, first offense): mitigated 3 years, minimum 4 years, presumptive 5 years, maximum 10 years, aggravated 12.5 years; Class 4 felony (non-dangerous, first offense): mitigated 1 year, minimum 1.5 years, presumptive 2.5 years, maximum 3 years, aggravated 3.75 years; Class 6 felony (non-dangerous, first offense): mitigated .33 years, minimum .5 years, presumptive 1 year, maximum 1.5 years, aggravated 2 years. Dangerous offenses (those involving deadly weapons or dangerous instruments): substantial mandatory minimums that far exceed non-dangerous equivalent sentences. Repetitive offenders: a person with one prior historical felony conviction faces 'category two' sentencing with elevated minimums; two or more prior historical felonies face 'category three' — the mandatory minimums for a class 2 violent crime with two prior convictions can approach 35 years. Arizona abolished parole for post-1993 offenders: most Arizona inmates must serve 85% of their imposed sentence; violent offenders serve 100%. This is why Arizona prison sentences, while nominally similar to other states, result in substantially longer actual incarceration.

Arizona is a Stand Your Ground state. How does self-defense work here?

Arizona's self-defense law (A.R.S. § 13-405 through 13-411) is among the broadest in the country. Key provisions: (1) Use of force: a person may use physical force against another when and to the extent a reasonable person in the same situation would believe it is immediately necessary to protect against the other's use or attempted use of unlawful physical force; (2) Deadly force: a person may use deadly force (force likely to cause death or serious physical injury) when they reasonably believe it is immediately necessary to protect against the other's use or attempted use of deadly force, or to prevent the commission of a serious crime including murder, aggravated assault, kidnapping, armed robbery, or arson of an occupied structure; (3) No duty to retreat: Arizona imposes NO duty to retreat before using deadly force — if you're in a place where you have a legal right to be, you can stand your ground and use deadly force if you reasonably believe it's necessary; (4) Presumption in home/vehicle: if someone unlawfully enters your home or occupied vehicle and you did not provoke the intrusion, you are legally presumed to have a reasonable belief that deadly force was necessary (the 'Castle Doctrine' presumption under A.R.S. § 13-419); (5) Civil immunity: A.R.S. § 13-413 immunizes lawful self-defense users from civil liability — if the criminal charges are dropped or result in acquittal based on self-defense, the civil case for damages is barred; (6) At trial: the defense must produce enough evidence to raise justification; the prosecution then must disprove self-defense beyond a reasonable doubt. Arizona's Stand Your Ground defense has been successfully raised in confrontations in vehicles, apartment parking lots, and public spaces — not just in homes.

What are the consequences of a criminal conviction in Arizona for my immigration status?

Criminal convictions in Arizona can devastate immigration status for non-citizens. Because Arizona is a border state with a large immigrant population (approximately 14% foreign-born), this intersection is especially significant. Key immigration consequences of Arizona convictions: (1) Aggravated felonies under INA § 101(a)(43) — a conviction for virtually any offense on the federal aggravated felony list triggers mandatory detention and removal with essentially no discretionary relief available, regardless of how long the person has lived in the US. Arizona offenses that may qualify as aggravated felonies include theft over $10,000 in value, certain drug trafficking offenses, crime of violence with 1-year+ sentence, and sexual abuse of a minor; (2) Crimes involving moral turpitude (CIMTs) — deportable under INA § 237(a)(2)(A); many Arizona felonies and even some misdemeanors qualify; (3) Drug convictions — any drug offense (including Arizona state marijuana convictions that occurred before Prop 207) may be deportable under INA § 237(a)(2)(B); (4) Domestic violence convictions — deportable under INA § 237(a)(2)(E); this includes Arizona domestic violence enhancement offenses (A.R.S. § 13-3601); (5) Plea agreements must be evaluated for immigration consequences before entry — after Padilla v. Kentucky (2010), defense attorneys have a Sixth Amendment duty to advise non-citizen clients about deportation consequences of guilty pleas; an Arizona defense attorney who fails to provide this advice committed ineffective assistance of counsel. Arizona's Prop 207 expungement of prior marijuana possession convictions may partially (not entirely) address the immigration consequences of those prior convictions — the DHS's acceptance of state expungements is still evolving.

Criminal Defense Laws in Arizona (2026)

Arizona executed its first prisoner since 2014 in April 2022 — Frank Atwood, a double-murderer — ending an eight-year moratorium that had arisen from the botched execution of Joseph Wood in 2014, where a lethal injection took nearly two hours. Arizona's continued use of capital punishment distinguishes it sharply from Washington (which abolished the death penalty in State v. Gregory in 2018) and Virginia (which abolished it legislatively in 2021). Arizona has 115+ individuals on death row, one of the largest death row populations in the country, and executed a second person in May 2022. Arizona's death penalty is authorized for first-degree murder with at least one of 14 statutory aggravating factors (A.R.S. § 13-751), including murder of a law enforcement officer, murder of a child under 15, murder for financial gain, and especially cruel or depraved manner of killing. The Maricopa County Attorney's Office (covering Phoenix) has historically been among the most active death penalty charging offices in the country.

The Arizona Supreme Court is the court of last resort for Arizona capital cases — direct appeals from death sentences go directly to the Supreme Court, bypassing the Arizona Court of Appeals. Federal habeas review then proceeds through the Ninth Circuit. Arizona death penalty cases are therefore among the longest and most complex in American criminal jurisprudence, often spanning decades of post-conviction proceedings.

Prop 207 and Arizona Marijuana Law: A 2020 Transformation

Arizona's Proposition 207 (Smart and Safe Arizona Act), passed in November 2020 by 60% of voters, legalized recreational marijuana use for adults 21 and older. The practical legal consequences: (1) Adults 21+ may possess up to 1 ounce of marijuana (5 grams of concentrate) and grow up to 6 plants at home for personal use; (2) Prior marijuana possession convictions for quantities now legal may be expunged — A.R.S. § 36-2862 creates an expungement process for prior convictions that would not be offenses under current law; (3) Cannabis DUI remains fully enforced — Prop 207 did NOT change Arizona's cannabis DUI statute (A.R.S. § 28-1381(A)(3)) which creates a per se DUI for any detectable amount of marijuana metabolite in blood while driving (see DUI article for full analysis); (4) Employers retain the right to prohibit marijuana use and test employees — Prop 207 explicitly allows drug-free workplace policies; (5) Federal employment remains subject to federal law prohibiting marijuana — federal contractors, federal employees, CDL holders, and employees subject to DOT testing remain marijuana-prohibited regardless of Arizona law. The expungement provision is under-utilized: Arizona residents with prior misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions who meet the eligibility requirements can petition the court for expungement with no filing fee (A.R.S. § 36-2862(B)), but the process requires legal paperwork that many eligible individuals have not pursued.

Arizona Sentencing: Mandatory Minimums and the "Truth in Sentencing" Framework

Arizona's criminal sentencing is governed by A.R.S. § 13-701 through 13-709 and related statutes. Arizona uses a determinate sentencing structure with a prescribed range — mitigated, minimum, presumptive, maximum, and aggravated — for each felony class. Arizona's truth-in-sentencing requirement (A.R.S. § 41-1604.07) requires inmates to serve a substantial portion of their sentence before parole eligibility, with the specific percentage depending on offense type. Arizona abolished traditional parole (discretionary release by a parole board) for offenses committed after January 1, 1994 — post-1994 offenders must serve at least 85% of their imposed sentence for most offenses. For certain violent crimes and dangerous offenses: Arizona requires 100% (full sentence service) before any release consideration. Prior felony convictions substantially increase sentence ranges: a person with two or more prior historical felonies faces dramatically increased mandatory minimums. Historical felony priors include out-of-state convictions of comparable class, which means Arizona defense attorneys must analyze prior out-of-state records carefully.

Arizona's Strong Castle Doctrine and Stand Your Ground Law

Arizona enacted its Castle Doctrine (A.R.S. § 13-419) and Stand Your Ground law (A.R.S. § 13-405, 13-411) as part of a comprehensive self-defense statutory framework. Key provisions: (1) No duty to retreat — an Arizona resident confronted with deadly force in any place where they have a legal right to be has no legal duty to retreat before using deadly force in self-defense; (2) Presumption of reasonable fear — a person inside their home or vehicle is presumed to have a reasonable belief that deadly force is necessary if an intruder has unlawfully entered and the person does not provoke the situation; (3) Civil immunity — a person who lawfully uses physical or deadly force in self-defense is immune from civil liability for damages resulting from that use of force (A.R.S. § 13-413); (4) Justification as affirmative defense — at trial, the defendant has the burden of producing enough evidence to raise the justification defense; the prosecution then bears the burden of disproving it beyond a reasonable doubt. Arizona's Stand Your Ground law has been invoked in high-profile cases including situations arising in Phoenix's downtown area, in vehicle confrontations, and in rural property disputes. The breadth of the law — "any place where [the person] has a legal right to be" — means it extends beyond the home to vehicles, businesses, and public spaces.

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