PHOENIX — A Maricopa County court commissioner released a DUI suspect after ruling he could not find probable cause, because the trooper’s arrest narrative said it was generated with help from an artificial intelligence tool, ABC15 and Arizona’s Family reported.
Anthony Quidera was arrested Oct. 29 on eastbound Interstate 10 near 79th Avenue after a Department of Public Safety trooper reported seeing a vehicle traveling more than 100 mph in a 65 mph zone, according to court records cited by ABC15. He faces charges of DUI, speeding and possession of an open container.
The probable cause statement ended with a disclosure: “This report was generated with assistance from Truleo AI,” adding that the content reflected the officer’s own observations.
Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner Daniel Fenzel wrote that without the officer’s original account, the court was “unable to meaningfully weigh” whether the factual allegations were written in whole or in part by generative AI. “The court is unable to determine probable cause at this time,” he wrote.
Arizona’s Family reported DPS has used Truleo since 2024. Sean Harrington, director of the AI and Legal Technology Lab at ASU’s law school, told the station nothing in the rules bars officers from using AI to draft such statements. “They’re still responsible for all the facts they put in there,” he said.
Court records show Quidera did not appear for a scheduled arraignment Thursday, according to Arizona’s Family. The charges against him remain pending.
Sources: ABC15, Arizona’s Family. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: Zeb Micelli / CC0 via Wikimedia Commons.
