On Wednesday, Governor Katie Hobbs announced that she has chosen Judge Maria Elena Cruz to fill the vacancy on the Arizona Supreme Court. Judge Cruz fills the vacancy left by the retirement of Justice Robert Brutinel.
Cruz currently serves on the Arizona Court of Appeals after an appointment from Governor Ducey in 2017, and has previously served on the Yuma County Superior Court, where she was the Presiding Judge, as well as on the Cocopah Indian Tribal Court.
Judge Cruz has been a Yuma County resident for over 30 years.
“Judge Maria Elena Cruz has led a life dedicated to justice and service to her state and community,” said Hobbs in a press release. “Her decades of work reflect not only her legal expertise, but her deep understanding of the people she serves. Her presence on the Arizona Supreme Court reaffirms that the court belongs to the people of Arizona.
“I’m confident Judge Cruz will be a Justice who gives a voice to working class people in every corner of our state. She is the daughter of working class parents who came to Arizona and worked hard to give her a better life. For 32 years, she has called Yuma County home. And after 113 years, she will be the first Latina and the first Black Arizonan to serve on the Arizona Supreme Court. From being raised by working class parents, one an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, to serving on the highest Court in Arizona, Maria Elena Cruz has lived the Arizona Promise,” said Hobbs who has been the unsuccessful subject of legal action in which she was accused of being a “racist.”
Cruz received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Arizona, has experience as both a defense attorney and prosecutor, and has presided over almost every type of case seen in state court, at every level.