City of Sedona files misdemeanor complaints against Clifford Ochser

Sedona, AZ - April 18, 2008 - On April 9, 2008, the Sedona City Attorney filed a misdemeanor complaint in the Sedona Municipal Court against Clifford Ochser, the owner of Evening Sky Tours in Sedona.

In the first count, the complaint charges that on or about January 12, 2008, Mr. Ochser sent or delivered a letter to former Sedona mayoral candidate Matthew Turner, threatening "to expose or publish his failings or infirmities." (a class 2 misdemeanor).

In the second count, the complaint charges that Mr. Ochser's anonymous letter to Matthew Turner was harassment (a class 1 misdemeanor).

The complaint charges that violations were made under the Arizona Revised Statutes 13-3004, 13-707, 13-802, 12-116 and 13-2921.

Section 13-3004 states:

A person who knowingly sends or delivers to another a letter or writing, whether subscribed or not, threatening to accuse him or another of a crime, or to expose or publish his failings or infirmities, and a writer or sender of an anonymous letter or writing calculated to create distrust of another or tending to impute dishonesty, want of chastity, drunkenness or any crime or infirmity to the receiver of the letter or to any other person, is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor."

Section 13-2921 states (in part):

A person commits harassment if, with intent to harass or with knowledge that the person is harassing another person, the person:

1. Anonymously or otherwise communicates or causes a communication with another person by verbal, electronic, mechanical, telegraphic, telephonic or written means in a manner that harasses.

2. Continues to follow another person in or about a public place for no legitimate purpose after being asked to desist.

3. Repeatedly commits an act or acts that harass another person.

Harassment under the above is a class 1 misdemeanor.

For purposes of this section, "harassment" means conduct directed at a specific person which would cause a reasonable person to be seriously alarmed, annoyed or harassed and the conduct in fact seriously alarms, annoys or harasses the person.

Penalties

Under A.R.S. 13-707,  it states that the penalty for a class 1 misdemeanor is six months; and four months for a class 2 misdemeanor. 

Under A.R.S. 13-802, it states that the penalty for a class 1 misdemeanor shall be a sentence to pay an amount, fixed by the court, not more than $2,500; and $750 for a class 2 misdemeanor.

About the Sedona Municipal Court

The Sedona Municipal Court is a Limited Jurisdiction Court and part of the Judicial Branch of Arizona government. It is subject to regulation by both the Arizona Supreme Court and the provisions of the applicable state statutes and the Sedona City Code.  The Court was established in 1989, shortly after the City's incorporation.
 
All of the cases filed in the Court are initiated by the Sedona Police Department, Arizona Department of Public Safety, Sedona Code Enforcement Officers and the Sedona City Attorney, with the exception of petitions for orders of protection and injunctions against harassment, which are filed by citizens.
 
As a Limited Jurisdiction Court, it handles only civil and criminal traffic, criminal misdemeanor, and city code violations. The Superior Courts or county courts handle felonies, civil, domestic relations, juvenile and probate cases.