PHOENIX — Phoenix is not done fighting Nubia Rodriguez.
For more than three years, officials tried to prosecute her for the tragic death of Officer Paul Rutherford, with police and prosecutors withholding key video evidence and using misleading and biased testimony to obtain a negligent homicide charge.
When the court tossed charges against Rodriguez, she filed a lawsuit for malicious prosecution against the city.
In April, it appeared the legal drama surrounding the case would finally end.
Phoenix’s outside attorneys filed for a stay in the lawsuit because they had reached a tentative settlement with Rodriguez and just needed final approval.
It now appears Phoenix has pulled out of the agreement, court records show.
Rodriguez's attorney, Larry Wulkan, declined to comment specifically on the failed settlement.
But in a written statement, he added, "The City of Phoenix's treatment of Nubia Rodriguez remains, in a word, abhorrent. The City falsely accused Nubia of the homicide of a police officer who, by all accounts, was a good man who made a tragic mistake by running into traffic. The city refuses to take accountability for its officers' actions and the absolute destruction of an innocent woman's life."
A city spokesperson said Phoenix will not comment on the case because it’s ongoing.
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On March 21, 2019, Rodriguez hit Rutherford in the two-way turn lane on Indian School Road near 75th Avenue.
Rutherford, who wasn’t wearing a safety vest, was working a traffic accident when he suddenly ran into oncoming traffic without looking.
The high-profile criminal case lasted for more than three years.
Near the end, a judge remanded the case back to the grand jury because the court found police and prosecutors presented false testimony and biased evidence to jurors in order to get the charges.
Rather than re-present the case to a grand jury, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office decided to bring the matter before a judge in a preliminary hearing.
“I am so sorry for the loss of Officer Rutherford, and I wish I wasn’t here giving the news to his family, but I am. And I’m sorry that’s the case,” Kreamer said. “I’m also sorry for the pain that has continued for others, including Ms. Rodriguez. But I have to rule as best I can on the evidence that is in front of me.”
RELATED: Maricopa County judge finds police, prosecutors presented unfair, biased case to grand jurors
The judge added, “What matters is (Rutherford) appeared from a place he shouldn’t have been to a regular driver. Whether he was an officer or not, he ran out in front of her.”
Rodriguez filed her lawsuit in 2023.
At the time, she told ABC15 one of the hardest parts was talking to her young daughter about who would take care of her if she went to prison.
She was also a therapeutic foster mother, and Rodriguez said the criminal charges caused her to lose custody of a 9-year-old special needs child in her care who she was in the process of adopting.
The foster child was taken away on her birthday.
“We literally had 15, 20 minutes to pack all her stuff. She’s crying,” said Rodriguez, recounting that day. “All on her birthday. My daughter is hysterical. We’re all hysterical. We all are crying. My family is just so upset."
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After the tentative settlement in the lawsuit fell through, Phoenix replaced the outside attorneys handling the civil case.
Court records show discovery has restarted, and new depositions are being scheduled.
So far, only one deposition has been conducted in the case. Detective Cummings Smith, who taught traffic collision investigations at the police academy, testified about police protocols in traffic accident investigations.
ABC15 obtained a copy of the transcript and video.
Smith confirmed officers are trained about the dangers of secondary collisions and the importance of establishing safe traffic patterns during investigations.
"A majority of secondary collisions are... people that exit their vehicle, that are struck by another vehicle passing by," Smith said.
The detective also testified about the importance of safety tools like flares, traffic vests, and whistles. Video and records show Rutherford did not use those tools before he was hit.
When questioned about the investigation into Rutherford's death, Smith acknowledged it was handled by Michael Davidson, a "detective in training" at the time.
When asked to review Davidson's training records during the deposition, Smith said he did not see any documentation showing Davidson had received the training required by the traffic bureau's Vehicular Crime Unit.
Contact ABC15 Chief Investigator Dave Biscobing at dave@ABC15.com.
