Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell has taken a decisive step towards seeking justice for the family of Ted Price by filing a motion with the Arizona Supreme Court to obtain a warrant of execution for Aaron Brian Gunches. This motion follows years of legal and procedural delays that have prevented the execution from being carried out.
In 2002, Aaron Gunches led Ted Price into the desert and fatally shot him. Price was the ex-husband of Gunches’ girlfriend. Gunches subsequently pled guilty to first-degree murder and kidnapping. In addition to this case, Gunches also pled guilty to the attempted murder of an Arizona Department of Public Safety Trooper in a separate incident in La Paz County. For the murder of Ted Price, Gunches was sentenced to death by a jury not once, but twice, following a discovered error in the initial sentencing.
The execution process has faced significant delays, particularly since January 2023, when Arizona’s newly-elected governor and attorney general suspended executions to allow a newly-appointed commissioner to review the state’s execution protocols. Although the Arizona Supreme Court issued a warrant of execution in March 2023, the warrant expired before it could be enforced due to ongoing reviews and delays.
“For nearly two years, we’ve seen delay after delay from the governor and the attorney general,” Mitchell stated. “The commissioner’s report was expected at the end of 2023, but it never arrived. In a letter received by my office three weeks ago, I’m now told the report might be complete in early 2025. For almost 22 years, Ted Price’s family has been waiting for justice and closure. They’re not willing to wait any longer and neither am I.”
Mitchell’s motion specifically requests the Arizona Supreme Court to set a briefing schedule in preparation for a new warrant of execution. While it is uncommon for a county attorney to seek a death warrant, Mitchell asserts that as an attorney representing the state in felony prosecutions, she is justified in making this request.
“I believe that as an attorney who acts on behalf of the state, I also can appropriately ask the Supreme Court for a death warrant,” Mitchell added. “The victims have asserted their rights to finality and seek this office’s assistance in protecting their constitutional rights to a prompt and final conclusion to this case.”
The pursuit of a death warrant for Gunches highlights the ongoing struggle for justice and closure for Ted Price’s family, who have endured over two decades of waiting. Mitchell’s actions signal a commitment to bringing this lengthy and painful chapter to a close.
