Records show court officials were aware of David Cramer’s penchant for filing fraudulent documents for years before state prison officials blamed a forged court order for Cramer’s accidental release.
The Maricopa County Clerk of the Superior Court, Maricopa County Superior Court, Arizona Attorney General and state prison system are currently investigating how Cramer was able to file documents purportedly showing a judge signed off on his release from prison 20 years before he was scheduled to get out.
Cramer was sentenced to three decades in prison in 2014 after being found guilty of kidnapping, resisting arrest and unlawful imprisonment. He was supposed to remain in prison until 2047, but prison officials released him in June after three orders were filed in his case purportedly dismissing the charges and ordering his release.
Gov. Katie Hobbs said prison officials “followed what they thought was an accurate directive” when they released Cramer in June. Law enforcement officials re-arrested Cramer in August after discovering the court documents ordering his release – which were stamped by the Clerk's Office – were not legitimate.
But, so far, officials with the Clerk’s Office and court system aren’t saying how Cramer was able to fool them in the first place.
“Because there is an active and ongoing law enforcement investigation into this matter, we do not have any additional details to provide at this time,” according to a statement from a spokesman for the Clerk’s office.
But the official record in Cramer’s case, which dates back to 2012, shows judges in Cramer’s case had repeatedly struck down fake orders filed by Cramer and his associates. And the Clerk’s Office even sent them a letter in 2019 threatening to refer the matter to law enforcement if they didn’t stop.
A history of fraudulent filings
Records show that in 2017, 2018 and 2019, Cramer and individuals associated with a business called Black Canyon Enterprises LLC filed multiple fake documents claiming the court had vacated Cramer’s sentence or ordered his release.
At various times, Cramer or one of his children have been listed as the owner of Black Canyon Enterprises LLC or Black Canyon Enterprises PLLC. According to the company’s website, it provides “legal support, fiduciary services, sentence reduction, and final wish protection,” though no one associated with the business is licensed to practice law in Arizona.
At one point, the Clerk’s Office even “file-stamped” one of the fake documents filed by Cramer, showing it had been officially accepted.
A court order dated Aug. 28, 2018 later said the document was stamped “in error.”
“Because the Clerk’s Office was unable to confirm the signature as a judicial officer, and for other irregularities in the document, IT IS ORDERED directing the Clerk of Superior Court to reject the document,” Judge Sam Myers wrote.
The next year, the Clerk’s Office sent Black Canyon Enterprises a letter, warning it to stop filing the illegitimate court orders.
“The Presiding Criminal Judge as well as Criminal Court Administration have been made aware of this submission as well as prior submissions made by Black Canyon Enterprises, LLC, whereby one of its representatives purported to be a Judge or Commissioner of the Maricopa County Superior Court, and sign off on invalid Writs and Orders,” Jessica Fotinos, the Maricopa County clerk’s general counsel, wrote in the June 17, 2019 letter.
Fotinos warned that the Clerk would contact law enforcement if the filings continued.
“If this conduct continues, the Clerk’s Office will have no other choice but to refer these matters to law enforcement for investigation, and the State Bar of Arizona for the unauthorized practice of law,” she wrote.
The warning didn’t work, and it's unclear what steps the Clerk’s Office took to monitor Cramer’s case or ensure future fraudulent filings did not fall through the cracks.
On April 1, a new document was filed in Cramer’s case again claiming he was acquitted and a judge ordered his release. Judge Sunita Cairo struck down the filing for “having no basis in law or in fact,” according to a minute entry dated April 4.
Tricking court, prison into a release
Later that month, Cramer or his associates filed the first of three new fraudulent documents purportedly showing his charges were dismissed and a judge had ordered his release.
This time, no one flagged the illegitimate orders, and Cramer’s daughter used them to secure his release from the Lewis Prison in Buckeye, according to social media posts.
“I’ve been fighting the court, filing papers, and right now, I’m on my way to the prison to go pick up my dad after serving DOC, Department of Corrections, with his release order that I got a judge to sign,” Haven McQueen said in a TikTok post on June 16. The post is no longer available but a source shared a recording of the post with KJZZ.
Cairo eventually negated the fraudulent orders after Cramer was re-arrested on Aug. 20.
A spokesman for the Clerk’s Office would not say whether the office ever contacted law enforcement about Cramer’s fraudulent filings after sending the warning letter in 2019.
“This particular situation is rare but, when necessary, the Clerk’s Office takes action in coordination with the appropriate justice partner,” spokesman Cliff Summerhill said in an email. “In this case, the Clerk’s Office is fully cooperating with the AG’s office and their ongoing investigation into this matter.”
Jeff Fine, who was the Maricopa County Clerk when the letter was sent in 2019, declined to comment and referred all questions to the Clerk's Office.
