Mark Finchem and Paul Gosar Sanctioned by the Courts for Litigation Abuse

The Arizona Mirror reports, Finchem, Gosar and Kern must pay ex-Dem lawmaker’s $75,000 legal fees for ‘groundless’ lawsuit:

Republican secretary of state nominee Mark Finchem, U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar and former GOP state legislator Anthony Kern must pay $75,000 in attorney’s fees to a former Democratic state lawmaker they sued after a judge said the lawsuit was “primarily for purposes of harassment.”

In February 2021, the three Republicans filed a lawsuit against Charlene Fernandez, then a Democratic legislator from Yuma, accusing her of defaming them by making disparaging remarks, connecting them to the violence of Jan. 6 and conspiring against them [in the paranoid delusional kind of way.]

The lawsuit was a reaction to a letter sent by Fernandez and other Democratic lawmakers asking the FBI to investigate Finchem, Kern and Gosar’s connections to the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection in Washington, D.C.

See, Where was Anthony Kern on Jan. 6, and Mark Finchem was much closer to the Jan. 6 insurrection than he claimed. Here is Paul Gosar carrying out Donald Trump’s Coup Plot on the floor of the Hoiuse with Sen. Ted “Cancún” Cruz.

The trio did not sue the 43 other Democratic legislators who also signed the letter.

The lawsuit was stalled for months because Fernandez was immune from being served while the legislature’s annual session was taking place, but was eventually heard by a Yuma County Superior Court judge in March 2022.

The following month, Judge Levi Gunderson dismissed the case and said its defamation claims were baseless and Fernandez’s comments and the letter she signed were clearly protected by the First Amendment.

On Monday, Gunderson said that Finchem, Gosar and Kern must pay Fernandez’s legal fees because the lawsuit “was groundless and not made in good faith.”

In a scathing order, the judge wrote that the lawsuit — which included passages about the national political scene that are unrelated to Fernandez — was “written for an audience other than” the court in which it was filed. 

“The Court finds that (the) lawsuit … was brought for an improper purpose, having been filed against a political opponent primarily for purposes of harassment,” Gunderson wrote.

Howard Fischer adds, Judge slams political ‘harassment’ suit filed by 3 AZ Republicans:

The judge said Charlene Fernandez, then a Democratic state representative from Yuma, had an absolute constitutional right to send a letter to federal law enforcement officials asking them to investigate the activities of state Rep. Mark Finchem, now former state Rep. Anthony Kern, and U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar in connection with the events around the Jan. 6, 2021, riot and breach of the U.S. Capitol.

“Defendant’s conduct was clearly protected by both the right to free speech and the right to petition the government, as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and by the corresponding provisions of Arizona’s Constitution,’’ he said.

The judge, Yuma County Superior Court Judge Levi Gunderson, said the trio’s subsequent defamation lawsuit against Fernandez “was brought for an improper purpose, having been filed against a political opponent primarily for the purposes of harassment.’’

In fact, Gunderson said, the initial legal papers the three Republicans filed were less about legal grievances and more of a political screed. “It very much appears that a significant portion of the contents of the original complaint and the first amended complaint were written for an audience other than the assigned trial judge,’’ he wrote.

Gunderson, in his new order, said it was clear Fernandez and the others who signed the letter had done nothing to merit a lawsuit.

Gunderson, in his new order, said it was clear Fernandez and the others who signed the letter had done nothing to merit a lawsuit.

“Following an event of national importance on Jan. 6, 2021, defendant had the right, together with 41 other Arizona lawmakers, to express her concerns to federal law enforcement officials by signing the Jan. 12 letter,’’ he wrote. “She had the right to request that federal law enforcement officials conduct an investigation into any involvement, encouragement, or participation of the … named legislators in connection with the events of Jan. 6.’’

Finchem and Kern both marched to the Capitol that day, though there is no evidence either went inside. Gosar was inside in his role as a member of the U.S. House and worked to block certification of Joe Biden’s win.

All three have been part of the “stop the steal’’ movement.

Now, the GOP politicians are jointly on the hook for $75,000 in legal fees and another $616 in costs.

Finchem, of Oro Valley, is now the Republican nominee for secretary of state, and he faces Democrat Adrian Fontes in the November general election.

Kern, of Glendale, won the GOP primary for state Senate and has no Democratic opposition.

WRONG! Damn, Howie. Check the Secretary of State’s website! It’s right there: Brittani Barazza,  Democratic write-in candidate. If you live in District 27, remember to write-in Brittani Barazza, and volunteer to help her campaign. Sure a write-in candidacy is a hard way to go, but she had the courage to step up and file to run against this notorious insurrectionist who tried to overthrow American democracy.

[Insurrection leader] Gosar is seeking another two-year term in the U.S. House.

Gosar also has an opponent, Democratic write-in candidate Richard Grayson. He has run in previous cycles. Quite literally anyone is preferable to the vile white supremacist Paul Gosar. He is Arizona’s version of David Duke. Remember to write-in Richard Grayson, and volunteer to help his campaign. As with Brittani Barazza, Grayson, he had the courage to step up and file to run against this notorious insurrectionist who tried to overthrow American democracy.