{"id":2640366,"date":"2026-08-04T14:26:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T18:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sheriff-in-nancy-guthrie-investigation-hit-with-eye-watering-9-figure-lawsuit-over-another-dept-disaster\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T14:29:34","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T18:29:34","slug":"sheriff-in-nancy-guthrie-investigation-hit-with-eye-watering-9-figure-lawsuit-over-another-dept-disaster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sheriff-in-nancy-guthrie-investigation-hit-with-eye-watering-9-figure-lawsuit-over-another-dept-disaster\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheriff in Nancy Guthrie Investigation Hit With Eye-Watering 9-Figure Lawsuit Over Another Dept. Disaster"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsheriff-in-nancy-guthrie-investigation-hit-with-eye-watering-9-figure-lawsuit-over-another-dept-disaster%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2640366&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The content discusses a lawsuit filed against the Pima County Sheriff\u2019s Office and Sheriff Chris Nanos related to an incident involving a man named Axeel Melendez. Melendez was shot in the spine and leg by deputies responding to a swatting call in April, which was later determined to be a fake emergency. Melendez had warned deputies about the potential for swatting and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-admin-presses-supreme-court-to-let-police-enter-homes-without-a-warrant-and-seize-firearms-report\/\" title=\"Biden Admin Presses Supreme Court To Let Police Enter Homes Without A Warrant And Seize Firearms: Report\">contacted law enforcement<\/a> for help after online threats, but despite assurances of safety, the deputies responded aggressively when they arrived. The lawsuit alleges that the deputies ignored red flags indicating the call was fraudulent, including inconsistent information and suspicious phone details. Melendez&#8217;s attorney claims that the sheriff&#8217;s department failed to adequately verify the threat, leading to serious injury and life-changing consequences for Melendez.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>The Pima County Sheriff\u2019s Office and Sheriff Chris Nanos have more to worry about than the approaching 190-day mark since Nancy Guthrie was taken from her home.<\/p>\n<p>Nanos and his department are facing a $176 million lawsuit from an Arizona man who says he is paralyzed after being shot by deputies responding to a swatting call in April, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/08\/03\/us-news\/nancy-guthrie-sheriff-hit-with-176-million-lawsuit-alleging-dangerous-incompetence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">New York Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Swatting takes place when police are intentionally summoned to a home when there has been no crime.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit said that Axeel Melendez, 24, warned deputies he was a swatting target and posed no threat.<\/p>\n<p>Deputies were called at about 6 a.m. after being told Melendez\u2019s father had shot his sister. Deputies responded, smashed Melendez\u2019s bedroom window with a shovel, and entered the house with guns drawn, the lawsuit claimed.<\/p>\n<p>Melendez heard the noise, told his mother to hide, then took his legally registered gun and cautiously approached the noise. While partially hiding behind a door, police fired seven times, hitting him in the spine and leg, the lawsuit said.<\/p>\n<p>Attorney Dev Sethi said Melendez was worried about swatting threats from an online hacker and contacted deputies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe dispatcher told Melendez, \u2018They can\u2019t just call SWAT on you. That\u2019s not how it works.\u2019 And assured him that\u2026 \u2018nothing\u2019s going to happen,\u2019\u201d Sethi said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Deputies determined a call summoning them to Melendez\u2019s house was fake and told him, \u201cHe should be alright,\u201d a police report said. Police said they would call him if summoned to his address.<\/p>\n<p>Two days later, the call came in that led to Melendez being shot.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAxeel is a shooting victim whose life will never be the same\u2026 He\u2019s not just looking at years of medical treatment and a mountain of hospital bills; his life has been shattered,\u201d Sethi said.<\/p>\n<p>Melendez had been hacked after playing an online video game, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/tucson.com\/news\/local\/crime-courts\/article_40b0ab11-25ba-4720-b48e-56eb94b425bd.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Arizona Daily Star<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit said Melendez was assured by deputies he had nothing to worry about.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSince he called law enforcement to get ahead of the false reporting, he should be alright, and that, if any reports come in afterward, we will contact him regarding those reports, and he would just need to let deputies know that he had been a victim of fraud and hacking,\u201d an incident report cited by Melendez\u2019s lawyer said.<\/p>\n<p>But when the April 10 call came in, none of that mattered, the lawsuit said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo communications professional or law enforcement officer appropriately recognized or properly responded to any one of the call\u2019s many red flags,\u201d Sethi wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Sethi said that while deputies were en route to Melendez\u2019s house, one deputy alerted them to the fake call and the potential of swatting.<\/p>\n<p>Even after that, the suit said, no attempt was made to reach Melendez.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe available transcript and CAD, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/its-now-almost-impossible-to-get-arrested-for-drugs-in-washington-state\/\" title=\"It\u2019s Now Almost Impossible To Get Arrested For Drugs In Washington State\">computer-aided dispatch<\/a>, does not indicate that PCSD dispatch called Axeel\u2019s known phone number or anyone else\u2019s phone number in the home, meaningfully cross-checked the call against the April 8 swatting report before escalating the response, or slowed the response to account for the obvious risk that this was the exact false report Axeel had warned PCSD about,\u201d the claim said.<\/p>\n<p>Sethi said Melendez did everything he was supposed to do.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe immediately reported the swatting threats against him, he asked the sheriff\u2019s department for help, and he believed PCSD personnel when they promised to keep him safe. The county\u2019s actions left Axeel no choice but to move forward with a Notice of Claim,\u201d the lawsuit said.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit added that deputies ignored indications the call was fake.<\/p>\n<p>Sethi said the call came from a Wisconsin number and that the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >caller gave inconsistent information<\/a>. Further, he argued, there were no background sounds that might be expected if the call had been genuine.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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