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Chapter 0211 - 572R - H Ver of HB4018
House Engrossed
technical
correction; public records
(now:� sheriff;
exclusive authority; auxiliary)
State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
CHAPTER 211
HOUSE BILL 4018
AN
ACT
amending section 11-441, Arizona
Revised Statutes; relating to county officers.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section
1.
1. Section
11-441, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
11-441.
Powers and duties
A. The sheriff shall:
1. Preserve the peace.
2. Arrest and take before the nearest magistrate for
examination all persons who attempt to commit or who have committed a public
offense.
3. Prevent and suppress all affrays, breaches of the
peace, riots and insurrections that may come to the knowledge of the sheriff.
4. Attend all courts, except justice and municipal
courts, when an element of danger is anticipated and attendance is requested by
the presiding judge and obey lawful orders and directions issued by the judge.
5. Take charge of and keep the county jail,
including a county jail under the jurisdiction of a county jail district, and
the prisoners in the county jail.
6. Endorse on all process and notices the year,
month, day, hour and minute of reception and issue to the person delivering the
process or notice, on payment of fees, a certificate showing the names of the
parties, the title of the paper and the time of reception.
7. Serve process and notices in the manner
prescribed by law and certify under the sheriff's hand on the process or
notices the manner and time of service, or if the sheriff fails to make
service, the reasons for failure, and return them without
delay. When returnable to another county, the sheriff may enclose
such process or notices in an envelope, addressed to the officer from whom
received, and deposit the envelope postage prepaid in the post
office. The return of the sheriff is prima facie evidence of the
facts stated in the return.
8. Secure, as soon as possible, the home of a
deceased person located outside the boundaries of an incorporated city or town
if the sheriff is unable to determine or locate the heirs or executor of the
deceased person.
B. The sheriff, in executing the duties prescribed
in subsection A, paragraphs 1 through 4 of this section, may command the aid of
as many inhabitants of the county as the sheriff deems necessary.
C. The sheriff shall conduct or coordinate within
the county search or rescue operations involving the life or health of any
person or may assist in such operations in another county at the request of
that county's sheriff.� The sheriff may request assistance from any persons or
agencies in fulfilling duties under this subsection. A search and
rescue unit established or recognized by a county may possess human remains as
defined in section 36-301 for the purpose of training canines used for
search and rescue work. The sheriff or the sheriff's designee shall
keep an inventory of all human remains that are kept for the purpose of
training search and rescue canines. The inventory must be updated
when the search and rescue unit receives human remains or disposes of human
remains that are no longer useful to the search and rescue
unit. Each search and rescue unit that possesses human remains for
the purpose of training search and rescue canines shall establish policies and
standard operating procedures for access to, the inventory of and the
possession and disposal of human remains kept for the purpose of training
search and rescue canines.
D. The sheriff, in executing the duties prescribed
in this section,
including the duties prescribed in subsection A
of this section,
may request
and use
the aid of
volunteer posse and reserve organizations located in the county.
When activated by the sheriff, The sheriff has
exclusive
authority to regulate the organization and
equipment that
is used by a posse or reserve organization or members of
a
posse or reserve organization that are acting
within the sheriff's authority and written policy in support of the
sheriff's office, consistent with law.
E. The sheriff may assist in executing the duties
prescribed in this section in another county at the request of that county's
sheriff.
F. The sheriff may require any prisoner who is on
work release to reimburse the county for reasonable expenses incurred in
connection with the release.
G. The board of supervisors of a county bordering
Mexico may adopt an ordinance pursuant to chapter 2 of this title allowing the
sheriff to prevent the entry from this state into Mexico at the border by any
resident of this state who is under eighteen years of age if the minor is
unaccompanied by a parent or guardian or does not have written consent for
entry from the minor's parent or guardian. The authority of the
sheriff is only to prevent entry and not to otherwise detain the minor. This
subsection does not limit the authority of the sheriff pursuant to any other
law.� A county is not civilly or criminally liable for not adopting an
ordinance pursuant to this subsection.
H. Notwithstanding section 13-3112, the
sheriff may authorize members of the sheriff's volunteer posse who have
received and passed firearms training that is approved by the Arizona peace
officer standards and training board to carry a deadly weapon without a permit
while on duty.
END_STATUTE
APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR JUNE 19, 2026.
FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE JUNE 22, 2026.