PHOENIX — A former prosecutor with the cities of Phoenix and Scottsdale was arrested last week, accused of violating a restraining order by sending dozens of threatening text messages to his estranged wife, according to court records obtained by 12News.
Robert Smith, 56, appeared before a judge Monday.
“This week is the humiliating and most disgusting week of my life," Smith told the judge. "I have no mental health history, Your Honor."
Smith was the former top prosecutor for the City of Phoenix. He recently left that job to work for the City of Scottsdale.
A Scottsdale spokesperson said he had been terminated as of Aug. 28.
In court paperwork, prosecutors said Smith sent "dozens" of text messages, some of them threatening his wife and claiming he would try to frame her unless she dropped the restraining order.
The order prohibited Smith from contacting his wife in any way, which included texting.
He had also previously been involuntarily held for a mental health evaluation, but was released after an overnight stay.
During Smith's initial appearance, prosecutors said he allegedly made references to Lizzie Borden and Jack Torrance (the name of Jack Nicholson's character from "The Shining").
“Mr. Smith had been asking a friend to get a gun for him recently," prosecutor Josh Vlark said during the hearing.
Smith's attorney said the incidents were "an aberration of an otherwise spotless career."
Smith then decided to address the judge, saying it was "against the advice of counsel."
He began to refute the claims, accusing his wife of targeting him.
The judge, however, said that these text messages were a violation of the restraining order and chastised Smith for sending them, saying as a lawyer he should have known better.
The judge set Smith's bail at $150,000.