Robert “Bob” Corbin lived his life as a prosecutor, a patriot, and a force to be reckoned with in Arizona law and politics. Early in his career, as a Maricopa County deputy county attorney, he prosecuted Ernesto Miranda not once but twice. Yes, that Miranda, the one whose case reached the Supreme Court and gave us the now-famous Miranda rights repeated in every TV show and cop movie. What most people forget, or never knew, is that Miranda himself was convicted at both trials of rape. He served his full sentence. He gained nothing personally from the Supreme Court’s ruling that forever changed criminal procedure in America.
Corbin, along with his first assistant Steve Twist, rewrote Arizona’s criminal code and turned it into one of the toughest in the nation. That legacy still defines Arizona justice today.
He also stood tall on the national stage. Twice elected president of the National Rifle Association, Corbin was an unflinching supporter of the Second Amendment and the freedoms it protects.
Away from politics and prosecution, Bob was a father to three remarkable and beautiful daughters, including the talented Kathy Corbin, who became my golf pro and carried her father’s discipline and grace into the sport.
I first met Bob in 1981. From that moment forward, he was a friend and a gentleman I admired. When he later moved to Williams, Arizona, distance cut into our time together, but never the respect I had for him.
Bob Corbin was the definition of class. A man of law, honor, and conviction. His passing leaves a void, but I am certain he has claimed a prime place in Heaven.
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