Less than one month after Brandon Martin became chair of the Cochise County Republican Committee, local voters are calling for his resignation in light of court filings showing the frequent congressional candidate has failed to pay child support for the last six months.
The Jan. 3 court filing alleges Martin is delinquent with his $335 per month child support payments for his 11-year-old child. The amount of arrears is noted at $1,675 dating back to August 2022 when he lost in the primary for U.S. House in Congressional District 6.
Martin is also alleged to have ignored a recent demand for payment of nearly $500 in routine medical bills for the child as required by court order. Richard Wintory, the attorney for the child’s mother, declined to comment on the filing, stating he had “nothing to add as I stand by our pleadings to the Court.”
On Dec. 3, Martin was voted in as Cochise County Republican Chair by only a handful of votes against longtime chair Robert Montgomery. The outcome has splintered local Republicans and the 310 precinct committeemen, leading some to refuse to work with Martin.
But it is the news of Martin’s lack of financial support for his eldest child that is fanning concern, especially because it comes just days after Martin’s wife of 16 months announced on social media that they are separated.
The couple, who were married in September 2021, are the parents of a 1-year-old and are expecting their second child later this year.
In addition, the separation news raises questions about whether Martin is still a resident of Precinct 27, from which he was elected as a Republican precinct committeeman (PC). Being a PC is a prerequisite for being a county chair.
While the political posturing continues, Judge Terry Bannon of the Cochise County Superior Court is expected to schedule a hearing on the child support issues later this month. Bannon is well acquainted with the case which has
involved multiple visitation disputes over the years and claims by the parties of poor parenting by the other.
In addition to seeking payment of the delinquent child support and old medical bills, Wintory is asking Bannon to enforce a 2019 court order that required Martin to provide the child’s mother with a $500 bank balance to assist in covering various child rearing expenses.
If Martin continues to disregard any of the orders then he could face a contempt hearing and even jail time.
Wintory also wants the judge to sign an order requiring Martin’s employers to withhold future child support payments from checks. This raises questions about Martin’s relationship with Keepers of Liberty, a Sierra Vista-based nonprofit whose stated mission is to engage the public in civic education by hiring American Veterans to teach.
Court records show Martin previously gave the court a copy of an Independent Contractor Agreement showing he serves as executive director of Keepers of Liberty at $3,000 per month along with 10 percent of all monies he raises for the group, with a cap of $10,000 a month.
The Keepers of Liberty website refers in general terms to a goal of becoming “a premier private school in the state of Arizona, with a foundation of classical education, including civics and history.” The school would be dedicated to educating “a generation of knowledgeable and competent citizens, capable of taking this country into the future,” the website notes.
The website, however, makes no mention of where the organization is based, when it was founded, nor who runs it. A link on the site opens a Facebook page for KoL – Keepers of Liberty where the last posting was on May 18, 2022.
GuideStar has no financial reports concerning the group established in January 2020.
Tim Sifert, the group’s treasurer according to the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), did not respond to Arizona Daily Independent’s request to discuss Martin’s role with Keepers of Liberty. Sifert’s company, American Campaign Finance Foundation in Scottsdale, is also listed with the ACC as the group’s statutory agent.
ACC records list the group’s other officers and directors as Richard Laszok, David Enos Sr., John Lervold, Howard Siebert, and Steve Hasson. They all appear to reside in Cochise County.
Martin’s attorney declined to comment about the issues surrounding the Jan. 3 child support filing, citing privacy considerations involving the minor child.