Judge hits Lake with $33,000 in court costs over election challenge

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Thompson on Wednesday ordered former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake to cover about $33,000 in costs for some of the fees related to her failed lawsuit against Democratic Governor-elect Katie Hobbs and Maricopa County officials. But the judge denied the defendants’ request to sanction Lake and her attorneys over her lawsuit challenging the integrity of the election.

Thompson also denied a request from the defendants for Lake to repay all of Hobbs’ attorneys’ fees related to the lawsuit. Maricopa County, in a motion filed and and joined by Hobbs on Tuesday, urged the judge to sanction Lake over the lawsuit, which they said was filed in “bad faith.” …

Thompson said Wednesday that the prevailing party in his court is entitled to an award of some taxable costs, including the fees for witnesses and the cost of compensating someone to be present to inspect the ballots. That amounts to a little over $33,000 in this case.