Arizona AG Brnovich asks SCOTUS to uphold death penalty for convicted cop-killer

Arizona Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich asked the Supreme Court on Monday to uphold the death penalty for convicted cop-killer John Montenegro Cruz.

Cruz was convicted of murder in 2005 after killing Tucson police officer Patrick Hardesty on May 26, 2003. Hardesty had responded to a hit-and-run incident involving Cruz. The officer had to chase down Cruz prompting him to open fire and inflict fatal wounds on Hardesty.

"Identifying and supporting the true victims of crime is essential to the administration of justice," Brnovich argued. "In this case, a police officer was murdered, and his family and community should not have to endure endless attempts by the perpetrator to avoid responsibility for his heinous crime."

At issue is Cruz's assertion that he was not allowed to inform the jury that he would have been ineligible for parole under a life sentence. Had the jury been aware, he argued, Cruz might have avoided the death penalty. 

Cruz has previously lost all appeals in Arizona courts and has told the Supreme Court that the Arizona Supreme Court violated high court precedent in its ruling.