TUCSON, ARIZONA – December 7, 2023 – The Pima County Attorney’s Office is pleased to announce that retired Arizona Court of Appeals Judge, William “Bill” Brammer, will join the Senior Leadership Team in the new year as the Chief of the Appellate Division at PCAO.
When Brammer accepted the position, Pima County Attorney Laura Conover remarked “The holidays have come early for The People’s Office.”
Brammer, a University of Arizona Wildcat, early in his career was a prosecutor in the City Attorney’s Office under Tucson City Attorney, Dino DeConcini.
Soon after, he was recruited into the newly founded firm of Dino’s father Evo, his brother Senator Dennis DeConcini, and John McDonald, then known as DeConcini and McDonald. That firm, with Brammer’s leadership as managing Shareholder, matured over the next 29 years to be one of the State’s leading law firms.
In 1997, Brammer was unanimously recommended by the Appellate Merit Selection Commission on his first attempt and was appointed to the Arizona Court of Appeals, where he served more than 15 years. That experience and his desire to do something different while mentoring young attorneys are what drew him to the doors of PCAO.
“Public service has been a large part of my life and career, and I was struck when I saw the announcement for the Appellate Chief position: this was a way I could return to meaningfully serving the community,” Brammer said.
Conover was delighted. “I’ll admit that when the standard government-form application hit my inbox, I thought it was the Senior Leadership team pulling a prank on me. It was a fantastic feeling when I learned it was a real inquiry.”
Conover anticipates that Brammer, as an Appellate Chief with more than a half-century of Judicial, Civil, and Criminal law experience, will have a positive, agency-wide effect on the practice of law. Plans are underway for Brammer to assist in training and mentoring agency lawyers, enhancing the quality of written and oral advocacy, trial, and appellate practice, in both the Criminal and Civil Divisions. Conover believes that Brammer’s presence will be beneficial for both employees and recruiting. Adding “Working with Brammer, an Arizona legal legend, will be an extraordinary opportunity for The People’s Office.”
“I haven’t been this excited in a long time. I’m ready to more than earn my keep,” said Brammer, after accepting Conover’s employment offer with a “holy smokes,” causing Conover to laugh wholeheartedly. “What a fantastic way to usher in 2024. The future is bright at PCAO,” Conover said.
The Pima County Attorney’s Office is committed to restorative justice, transparency, and accountability as the focus of a mission that also seeks alternatives to incarceration when appropriate, provides support for victims, and strives to be inclusive and equitable to all segments of the communities we serve in the pursuit of public safety and wellbeing.
Media Contact: Shawndrea Thomas
Director of Communications
Pima County Attorney’s Office
(520) 724-5738 (Office)
(520) 310-4720 (Mobile)
Shawndrea.Thomas@pcao.pima.gov
