• Pima County and federal prosecutors clash over access to murder suspect • County attorney claims state case in jeopardy without federal collaboration • Legal experts note growing tension between immigration and criminal law

A power struggle between Pima County and federal prosecutorial agencies over access to a criminal defendant in the country illegally escalated to federal court this week, leaving distinct tension at the intersection of immigration and criminal law, and local and federal jurisdiction.

Julio Aguirre, 42, faces two sets of charges in both federal and state court for a carjacking and first degree murder in Tucson, but county prosecutors have so far been unable to locate or access the defendant for necessary court hearings after he was taken from a hospital by federa

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