7/8/2020 6:45PM San Tan Valley area, on Gary Road just south of Judd Road, at around 6:45 pm on July 8.
A driver nearly killed bicyclist Larry Fawcet when police say he drove off the road; as you can see from the extensive damage on the vehicle, the driver was WAY off the road, striking the bicyclist on the (unpaved part?) of the shoulder. When the investigation report was finally released months after (but still before tox results were released) being harangued by ABC15, it revealed that the driver “… Cooper Lamb failed nearly every field sobriety test administered. The Drug Recognition Expert wrote that Cooper ‘displayed poor balance and fine motor skills, his speech was slow and slightly slurred, and he had major problems with simple comprehension on instructions’.”
I often criticize media outlets for not following up — in this case they did diligently follow up (special thanks to ABC15 and @ZachCrenshaw. My only complaint is the reason they did keep following up is because the driver/suspect is the son of Pinal County Sheriff. Anyway…
Report reveals Sheriff Lamb’s son was believed to be ‘impaired’ during near-fatal crash
but wait, there’s much more:
Son of Pinal County Sheriff Lamb strikes plea deal, as second DUI arrest comes to light
We learn about a second DUI charge just a couple months after the July incident. And then this:
Cooper Lamb, the son of Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, has taken a plea deal that will likely have him serve six months in jail.
His sentencing is scheduled for next month, where a judge is expected to agree to the terms of the deal, arranged by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
Six months? Six months! Aggravated assault is class 3 felony; it only stands to reason that driving impaired is not only a crime but obviously a dangerous one; the presumptive sentence is 7.5 YEARS for a dangerous class 3. What sort of deal is this? According to the news report it was arranged by MCAO, presumably to avoid conflict of interest with Pinal county.
There are other indications of “special treatment”, e.g. the suspect was not arrested after the crash even though DRE (Drug Recognition Experts) on the scene believed he was likely impaired; which would be the usual procedure.
By the way, any conviction for aggravated assault is supposed to cause a mandatory 3 year driver license revocation if a vehicle was involved, see 28-3304; does that actually happen?
Criminal Case and Crash Report
Four months mentioned in ABC report, indeed, the crash report was received in ADOT database 2020-11-13; incident # 3703728. The database shows blank non-motorist location, and LANE_1 — the news reports seem to state the bicyclist was on the shoulder.
Prior Case lookup History:
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- Criminal Case CR-202100217 in Pinal Superior court, agg assault.
- CR-2021030992 Maricopa county Superior; drugs charges.
- CT-2020079153 San Tan Justice; CT usually means civil traffic, so isn’t the DUI mentioned in news reports?
- TR-201603604 AJ Justice court. something to do with learner’s permit
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Lamb dies in 2022 Crash
Cooper Lamb, the driver in the near-fatal crash mentioned above, died in a car crash in December 2022, the news story describes the crash as the driver of the vehicle Lamb was riding in made a bad left into the path of a pickup truck; Lambs baby daughter was also killed, along with injuries and driver and another passenger.
I’ve been following this case and I am shocked at the blatant favoritism shown the Pinal County sheriff’s son by the Maricopa County Attorney’s office (the county’s top attorney, Allister Adel, has her own substance abuse issues, so one would be wise to assume she might look the other way when the Harlequin Romance sheriff asks for a favor).
Full disclosure: I have a loved one who was arrested in Pinal County for substance abuse. The charge was possession and probation violation. No DUI, no wreck, no victim and no violence. He’s serving 4.5 years. And yet sheriff junior gets six months special treatment in daddy’s jail? Wonder if that will show up on Pinal County Lockup on Netflix???? This special treatment is unconscionable. Why the differing sentences? Sheriff’s son should be serving at least 7.5 years on a Felony 3 for aggravated assault.
I’m sick of law enforcement worship. This is what you get when you elevate cops, sheriffs and deputies to god status. They can do no wrong and their families benefit. And the rest of us? We pay the price.
I just learn of his passing this week, if justiced been serve. Baby will still be here. I worry about the boy driving the white truck, seems unfair that they have arrested him. He had nothing to do with the accident. The stupidity of the woman, cause it all. This guy is a victim and as such she needs to be accountable no matter if she is in a hospital.
I just learn of his passing this week, if justiced been serve. Baby will still be here. I worry about the boy driving the white truck, seems unfair that they have arrested him. He had nothing to do with the accident. The stupidity of the woman, cause it all. This guy is a victim and as such she needs to be accountable no matter if she is in a hospital.