Arizona Attorney General has jumped into the complex and increasingly strange legal and political conflict involving Phoenix attorney Vladimir Gagic, Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell, and Mitchell’s fiancé, Paul Stout. Mayes’ intervention represents a notable escalation, with the dispute now reaching the State Bar of Arizona, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, the Phoenix Police Department, and the FBI. As a result, some insiders have expressed concerns that Mayes is crossing the line into policing protected speech, resulting in what critics say is political overreach.

The situation began when Gagic, a Marine veteran and attorney who has practiced law for more than twenty years, stated that he was convinced that the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office had wrongfully prosecuted one of his clients, Jamaal Pennington, for molestation. The case is currently on appeal before the Arizona Supreme Court.

According to the official disciplinary order issued by the Presiding Disciplinary Judge, the State Bar of Arizona suspended Gagic for one year after finding that he repeatedly made accusations against multiple Maricopa County judges without factual support. The order states that Gagic’s filings contained inflammatory claims that undermined the judiciary and interfered with the functioning of the courts.

“The record establishes that Respondent engaged in substantial and repeated violations of the Oath of Admission, the Lawyer’s Creed of Professionalism, Rule 41(b)(7), ER 3.5(d), ER 8.2(a), and ER 8.4(d). Respondent repeatedly accused multiple judicial officers of bias, corruption, political motivation, dishonesty, and bad faith without a factual foundation. His filings contained inflammatory and unsupported allegations that brought the administration of justice into disrepute and interfered with the proper functioning of the courts.

Decision and Order, In the Matter of Vladimir Gagic, PDJ 2022-9050, December 6, 2022”

Gagic maintains that the punishment was politically motivated.

In an interview with columnist Rachel Alexander, Gagic said that Mitchell warned him to stop criticizing her publicly, or she would not send Pennington’s prosecution for an integrity review. Mitchell filed a State Bar complaint against him in July 2025. Documents published by Phoenix New Times show Mitchell stating that Gagic had been repeatedly criticizing her on social media and that he was defaming her fiancé.

The conflict expanded when Gagic identified two anonymous accounts on X that had mocked him, accused him of plagiarism, accused him of domestic violence, and even taunted him for being the victim of an aggravated assault. The same accounts also took shots at former Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Representative Abe Hamadeh. In September 2025, during an injunction proceeding against Gagic, Stout admitted under oath that he operated the anonymous accounts on X to respond to critics of Mitchell. Stout told the court that he had created the anonymous accounts after seeing posts critical of Mitchell. Stout’s sworn testimony included the statement that he began posting at the end of 2023 after seeing negative commentary directed at his fiancée. The record showed that Stout had also made reports to the FBI for cyberstalking.

Additionally, Stout testified that Mitchell had assisted him in writing the petition for an injunction against Gagic and that the injunction was successful.

Attorney General Kris Mayes and Rachel Mitchell have been political rivals to the point of even clashing over jurisdiction. However, in this matter, it appears that the Attorney General’s Office is backing Mitchell against Gagic.

In early November, X notified Gagic that Arizona investigators issued a warrant seeking extensive data from his account. The warrant asks for login information, IP addresses, direct messages, metadata, deleted content, and device information.

A spokesperson for Mayes stated that her office “takes seriously allegations of harassment against family members of elected officials.” Still, Mayes herself has not issued a public statement specifically addressing the investigation into Gagic.

This feud now involves the State Bar of Arizona, multiple local law enforcement agencies, the FBI, and the state’s highest court. What began as a dispute over a criminal case now spans sealed disciplinary records, anonymous social media activity, police involvement, and claims of political retaliation.

With the Pennington appeal pending and the Attorney General’s investigation active, the conflict between Vladimir Gagic, Rachel Mitchell, and Paul Stout continues to grow. Each new development adds another layer to one of the most unusual and far-reaching disputes in recent Arizona legal history.