Pima County residents are circulating a petition to remove Sheriff Chris Nanos, citing his handling of an unsolved abduction case and a disciplinary history his own deputies say he concealed for more than 40 years.

Nancy Guthrie, 84, the mother of NBC's "Today" co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, was reported missing Feb. 1 after being apparently abducted from her Catalina Foothills home.

Nearly two months later, no suspect has been identified, and critics including former Pima County Chief Deputy Richard Carmona have accused Nanos of compromising the investigation by prematurely releasing the crime scene.

On March 24, the Pima County Deputies Organization, which represents more than 300 deputies, unanimously voted no confidence in Nanos and called for his immediate resignation. The vote cited El Paso Police Department records showing Nanos was suspended eight times between 1976 and 1982, resulting in 37 days of suspension or leave without pay, for offenses including excessive force, illegal gambling, insubordination and discharge of his firearm.

Nanos ultimately resigned from El Paso in 1982 in lieu of termination, with insubordination and consistent inefficiency listed as reasons. The Deputies Organization said these issues were apparently withheld when he applied as a corrections officer with the Pima County Sheriff's Department.

The no-confidence vote was not the first time Nanos has been at odds with his deputies. The union has also criticized him for underpaying staff.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department did not respond to Tucson Spotlight's requests for comment. Nanos addressed the recall in an interview with KOLD.

“We’re aware of the recall, and it’s the right of the people,” Nanos told KOLD. “We’ll always honor the will of the people, and that’s what makes Democracy.”

Organizers of the effort said the broad coalition of signers reflects the depth of public frustration.

"This is a nonpartisan issue," said former Congressional District 7 candidate Daniel Butierez, who launched the recall on March 12 and said both Republican and Democratic voters have lined up to sign it.

Organizers say community members deserve honest communication from their elected officials and that voters likely did not have full information about Nanos' history when they elected him. They say newly revealed details about his record make a recall reasonable, even if success is uncertain.

His response to that scrutiny has drawn criticism of its own. Nanos has dismissed reporters covering the Guthrie case as "Monday morning quarterbacks" and called their stories "hit pieces," comments that critics say have only intensified outside scrutiny of his office.

The current controversies are not the first time Nanos has faced scrutiny. In 2016, an Arizona Daily Star investigation by Caitlin Schmidt into a cafe operating inside sheriff's headquarters led to an FBI probe that resulted in the indictment and eventual conviction of Nanos' chief deputy, Chris Radtke, on federal charges of misusing nearly $500,000 in RICO funds.

Nanos was not charged with any crimes, but the scandal shadowed his 2016 reelection campaign and he lost to Republican challenger Mark Napier. Nanos later defeated Napier in a rematch in 2020.

Nanos has worked in Arizona law enforcement for more than four decades, a tenure that reportedly played a role in his recommendation for sheriff. He was reelected in 2024, narrowly defeating Republican candidate Heather Lappin, a lieutenant under his command who was suspended during her campaign.

Many in the public, including Butierez, viewed the suspension as retaliation. The December deposition in which Nanos denied ever being suspended arose from a lawsuit filed by Deputies Organization President Aaron Cross over that suspension dispute.

"I actually think Heather would've won," Butierez said.

Questions about his record resurfaced in December 2025, when Nanos testified under oath that he had never been suspended as a law enforcement officer. The Arizona Republic subsequently published El Paso Police Department records showing he had been suspended eight times between 1976 and 1982.

Nanos has said he interpreted the question as referring only to his Pima County career, a response Pima County Supervisor Matt Heinz called "disqualifying for any county employee, but especially for one in law enforcement."

Butierez has repeatedly called for the Pima County Sheriff's office to be a nonpartisan position.

The recall campaign has launched a website and plans to begin sharing running signature totals Thursday as it works toward a goal of 135,000 petition signatures. Organizers will also post locations where community members can pick up petitions.

With a July primary on the horizon, organizers say the window to force accountability is narrow, but they believe the community is ready to act.

Quentin Agnello is a University of Arizona alum and freelance journalist in Tucson. Contact him at qsagnello@gmail.com.

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