On Friday afternoon, Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel announced that she will seek treatment for her mental health issues and substance use. This news comes after months of controversy surrounding the Maricopa County Attorney’s decision to falsely charge and politically prosecute over three dozen protesters who marched for Black lives in 2020. These false charges took place under Adel’s leadership, in collusion with Phoenix Police Department. 

Mass Liberation AZ issued the following statement:

“Allister Adel has spent many years building her career and profiting from people’s substance use issues. While, of course, treatment is a healthy choice for those who struggle with addiction, Adel’s announcement comes from a place of privilege. Adel’s confession that her personal, professional, and medical difficulties have led her to unhealthy coping behaviors is a slap in the face to the thousands of people who have been criminalized, prosecuted, and caged by her office for substance use. Adel’s poor leadership during her time in office has led to mental and physical harm for so many people, especially those people she falsely prosecuted with felonies and street gang charges for exercising their constitutional rights last year. 
 
There is no denying Adel’s health issues, but those issues don’t absolve her from her obligation to discharge the duties of the office. Her sorry excuse for leadership has led to multiple investigations, high level resignations, multi-million dollar lawsuits—not only from people falsely charged by her office, but also from her own staff—and a federal investigation from the Department of Justice.

It is in Allister Adel’s best interest to resign from her position and stop holding this office hostage. Adel doesn’t get to hide out during the calls for accountability. The community will not tolerate it. She can either resign or we will recall her. “