Katie Hobbs' Racial Discrimination Scandal Was Second-Largest Verdict In Arizona

Commentary

In case you missed it, Axios Phoenix reported today that Democrat Katie Hobbs’ racial discrimination scandal represented the second most expensive verdict in Arizona last year.

Hobbs’ $2.75 million racial discrimination scandal has dogged her campaign. The Arizona Republic editorial board wrote yesterday that, “in the Democratic primary, a large part of the base suffers from buyer’s remorse” with Hobbs. It’s not the first time Democrats have panicked about Hobbs’ electability.

Katie Hobbs continues to hide from any hard questions about her checkered past, skipping out on events and refusing to debate. A recent poll found having Hobbs on the Democrat ticket would drag down other Democrats like Mark Kelly.

“Arizona Democrats are having ‘buyer’s remorse’ as they get saddled with a weak, scandal-ridden candidate in Katie Hobbs.” – RNC Spokesperson Ben Petersen

Read more here.

3. Talonya Adams verdict second priciest of 2021
Axios Phoenix
June 6, 2022

A $2.75 million verdict to a former Arizona Senate staffer who alleged race and sex discrimination was the second largest civil verdict in Arizona last year, according to Arizona Attorney Magazine.

The largest verdict of $5 million went to the family of a Valley woman who died of sepsis after a doctor's visit.

Context: The staffer, Talonya Adams, worked for then-Senate minority leader and current Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who is now a Democratic candidate for governor.

Hobbs is already facing heat on the campaign trail for her role in Adams' firing.

Flashback: Talonya Adams, a Black woman who worked as a policy advisor for the Arizona Senate, asked for a raise in 2015 after learning men and white staffers were paid more than her.

Adams took emergency leave shortly after asking for a raise and, while out of the office, was notified that she had been fired.
The first jury found that she was underpaid because she's a Black woman. The second jury agreed that she was fired for complaining about that discriminatory pay and awarded her $2.75 million.

Of note: Hobbs testified in both trials that she was involved in the decision to fire Adams, but says her reasoning was not discriminatory but because she lost trust in Adams.

Hobbs later apologized and acknowledged the "discrimination that Talonya Adams faced as an employee in the Legislature."