
Not to be outdone by the Arizona secretary of state's recent flirtation with birtherism, Sheriff Joe Arpaio escalated his probe into President Obama's birth certificate this week by dispatching a deputy from his "threats unit" to Hawaii.
Both the Arizona Republic and the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported deputy Brian Mackiewcz traveled with Arpaio's volunteer posse member Michael Zullo on Monday to try to get an official confirmation that Hawaii has the president's birth certificate on file.
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Joe Arpaio has been here before. At another time, during another Democratic administration, the tough talking Arizona sheriff was hit with a federal civil rights lawsuit designed to end the abusive practices of his agency.
It was 1997 when the sheriff, then 65, took to a press conference in Phoenix to react to news that the U.S. Justice Department was suing him for what it alleged was a longstanding mistreatment of inmates in his jails.
According to news reports from the time, he promised he would not back down. Everything was going to stay the same. "Nothing changes," he said.
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At a big news conference in downtown Phoenix on Thursday, the Justice Department's top civil rights lawyer described Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office as an agency out of control.
"At its core, this is an abuse of power case," assistant attorney general Thomas Perez said while announcing a massive civil rights lawsuit against the Arizona lawman.
But despite the tough talk, the reality is that little in the sheriff's office is likely to change anytime soon because, as Perez acknowledged, the lawsuit could take years to resolve.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Updated: 12:45PM
The Justice Department finally filed suit against Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his Maricopa County Sheriff's Office on Thursday, accusing the Arizona official of engaging "in a pattern or practice of unlawful discriminatory police conduct directed at Latinos in Maricopa County."
Federal authorities allege that Arpaio and his office have unconstitutionally and unlawfully targeted Latinos during traffic stops and during crime suppression operations. DOJ alleges that MCSO unlawfully detained Latino drivers and passengers and conducted unconstitutional searches and seizures in addition to illegally targeting Latino workers during worksite raids.
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It may seem at times like the investigations into Sheriff Joe Arpaio are endless. In the past four years, he and some of his closest aides have been the subject of at least five investigations into accusations that they became corrupted by the power and perks of the office.
Throughout it all, his aides have fallen, but the Arizona lawman remains untouched. Two investigations cleared him outright, one stalled and was transferred to another agency and two more have dragged on as officials in Washington, D.C. decide whether to act. Meanwhile, Arpaio continues to taunt his pursuers.
More recently, a disciplinary panel in Arizona that was looking into allegations against one of Arpaio's allies said there was evidence "beyond a reasonable doubt" to show that the sheriff participated in a federal crime in December 2009. Still, Arpaio, 79, remains a player in the Republican Party and continues to run for office, aiming for his sixth term as sheriff this year.
Understandably, it might be hard for a casual observer to keep all the investigations straight. TPM has compiled this guide to the many investigations and what resulted from them. It shows that Arpaio has been a target for years, but that he also has given political and financial help to some of the very people who cleared him or shelved investigations.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)The way former U.S. Attorney Paul Charlton sees it, federal prosecutors already have enough evidence to charge Sheriff Joe Arpaio with a crime. So, he said in an interview with TPM this week, it's time for the Justice Department to act.
"If this investigation began in 2008," Charlton said, "then it's time for these guys to make a decision."
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)The Wild West-style posses that helped make Sheriff Joe Arpaio famous early in his career will be greatly diminished if the U.S. Justice Department has its way.
According to a draft of the agreement that the DOJ spent months trying to strike with the Arizona lawman, the posses he's used in everything from photo ops to crime crackdowns would be banned from getting anywhere near immigration enforcement.
Although talks appear to have broken down and the Justice Department has indicated it will file a civil rights lawsuit against Arpaio's department, the 123-page draft of the agreement obtained by TPM provides a window into what types of things the feds want to stop cold.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)There are times when Sheriff Joe Arpaio has seemed untouchable. In his nearly 20 years in office, he has survived political challenges, court judgments and criminal investigations.
But a ruling filed last week by an arm of the Arizona Supreme Court could prove to be a road map to the Republican lawman's undoing.
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The Justice Department has given up on settling with Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio and is planning to sue the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office for systematic civil rights abuses of Hispanic residents, a DOJ official indicated in a terse letter to Arpaio's lawyer on Wednesday.
"It is clear that DOJ's concerted effort to attain voluntary compliance by your client has failed," Deputy Assistant Attorney General Roy Austin of DOJ's Civil Rights Division wrote in a letter to Arpaio lawyer Joseph Popolizio obtained by TPM.
Updated: April 10, 2012, 4:02 PM
In a Phoenix courtroom filled with fellow lawyers and some of his biggest critics on Tuesday, the former Arizona prosecutor who served for years as Sheriff Joe Arpaio's right-hand man was stripped of his license to practice law.
A three-member state disciplinary panel ruled that ex-Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas abused his powers as a prosecutor to target his political enemies. Because of that, they ruled he would be disbarred.
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If things went differently, Andrew Thomas might have had a bright career in Arizona politics.
In six years as the top prosecutor in Maricopa County, he stood side-by-side with Sheriff Joe Arpaio and earned a reputation as an aggressive and ambitious politician. A pair of conservative warriors in a Republican stronghold, the two teamed up to push for tougher treatment of illegal immigrants and to pursue what they saw as widespread corruption by local government officials.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Actor Steven Seagal and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office are facing a lawsuit for allegedly conducting an "improper" raid on a man's home and driving a tank through his front gate, while filming an episode of the reality show Steven Seagal: Lawman.
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By his own account, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio's investigation into the president's birth certificate is far from over. But already, the supposedly volunteer investigator leading the sheriff's probe is raking in a profit from it.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio dove head first into the birther movement on Thursday, arguing at a news conference in Phoenix that President Obama's birth certificate is a fake and that crimes were committed in its creation.
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There may be nobody in Arizona better at ginning up publicity than Sheriff Joe Arpaio.
During his 20 years in office, the flamboyant Republican icon has proved time and again that he knows how to get his name in the news.
Today will be no different.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)When Sheriff Joe Arpaio launched his own federal political action committee last year, he vowed to move beyond his role as just a national leader for immigration hardliners. He wanted to become one of their more serious sources of campaign cash.
But months after announcing the creation of Joe PAC, the Arizona sheriff's desire to become a major financial backer for the movement is far from reality. Instead, it has been consumed by his own bid for reelection.
Updated Feb. 7 2:20PM
After claiming the allegations of civil rights violations by his Maricopa County Sheriff's Office were part of President Barack Obama's reelection bid, Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office said in a statement Monday that they had agreed to work together with the Justice Department to "develop a document that addresses any agreed upon improvements needed."
Both Arpaio and DOJ are "committed to avoiding unnecessary and expensive litigation by the creation of an enforceable agreement which will lead to sustainable reforms and positive results for all citizens of Maricopa County," according to a statement from the Sheriff's office.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Updated: January 17, 2012, 8:37 PM
A top Justice Department official says that Sheriff Joe Arpaio's actions "cast considerable doubt" on the claim that he and his office are cooperating following accusations that they use discriminatory policing methods. Indeed, the actions of Arpaio's Maricopa County Sheriff's Office suggest their "true goal is further delay," the official wrote.
Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez, who heads DOJ's Civil Rights Division, also chastised Arpaio for claiming that the federal investigation into his office's activities, which began during the Bush administration, was all about politics.
"This investigation is about public safety, not politics, notwithstanding Sheriff Arpaio's continuing claims to the contrary," Perez wrote in response to a letter sent by Arpaio's attorney earlier this month. "It is about breaking down the 'wall of distrust' between MCSO and significant segments of the community. It is about transforming MCSO into a fully effective, lawful sheriff's office -- one which has polices and practices in place that reduce crime, respect the Constitution, and earn the confidence of the entire community."
DOJ announced back in December that their review of the practices of the MCSO found that Arpaio had "promoted" and "encouraged" discriminatory behavior against Latinos in Maricopa County. Arpaio's team has asked DOJ to present all of its evidence in the name of transparency, though most of the evidence was the very same material and interviews that MCSO provided.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Maricopa County Sheriff's Office -- the same law enforcement agency accused of retaliating against political opponents -- wants the names of "each and every" resident interviewed by Justice Department officials who accused the MCSO of racial discrimination and other civil rights violations.
But a Justice Department spokeswoman said Wednesday that they "look forward to sitting down soon with MCSO," but "will not hesitate to take prompt legal action" if they find that MCSO "is again failing to act in good faith."
A defiant Arpaio had issued a statement on Wednesday (the deadline for MCSO to tell the feds whether they planned to cooperate with the three-and-a-half year investigation into allegations of discrimination) saying he would "not tolerate being micromanaged by Washington, DC." He said he wants to evaluate all of the evidence the feds have on him and his office.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio has a lot of problems on his plate right now, not the least of which are two ongoing investigations surrounding a Latino military veteran who died after a brief stay in his officers' custody.
So it begs the question: How could the Arizona sheriff find time to jet to Iowa this week for two days of campaigning on behalf of presidential hopeful Rick Perry?
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Updated: December 23, 2011 10:05PM
More than eight hours of video footage released Friday showed it was one of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's officers who used a Taser on a Latino military veteran that later died. The video also showed the veteran was nearly lifeless when officers put him naked in a cell and left him alone for about 11 minutes.
Two agencies were involved in an altercation with Ernest "Marty" Atencio when they tried to book him into an Arizona jail on suspicion of assault last week. But until now, neither the Maricopa County Sheriff's office nor the Phoenix Police Department had admitted to using a Taser in the melee. That was despite the fact that an attorney for Atencio's family said doctors found obvious signs that some sort of stun gun had been used.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office tells TPM it will release a video as soon as today showing officers struggling with a Latino military veteran who later died of his injuries.
The veteran, Ernest "Marty" Atencio, was kept on life support at a Phoenix hospital for days after last week's fight with officers inside one of Arpaio's jails. The fight took place early Friday morning, just hours after the Justice Department accused the Arizona sheriff of running an agency that regularly violates the civil rights of Latinos.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)A Republican prosecutor has cleared more than 30 Arizona politicians and three lobbyists of criminal wrongdoing in the Fiesta Bowl scandal, saying the state's laws just weren't tough enough for him to press charges.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)After being kept alive for days following a fight with officers in one of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's jails, a Latino military veteran died late Tuesday when he was taken off life support by doctors at a Phoenix hospital, his family's attorney tells TPM.
Ernest "Marty" Atencio was 44. He was injured early Friday morning, just hours after the Justice Department accused the Arizona sheriff of running an agency that regularly violates the rights of Latinos.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)A Latino military veteran is brain dead and his family is planning to decide today whether to take him off life support, following his scuffle with officers last week in one of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's jails.
Ernest "Marty" Atencio was injured early Friday morning, just hours after the Justice Department released a scathing report accusing the Arizona sheriff of running an agency that regularly violates the rights of Latinos.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)An inmate named Ernest M. Atencio was hospitalized because of injuries sustained while he was in a Maricopa County jail last week just days after the Justice Department released a report chronicling alleged discrimination in the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office led by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the Phoenix New Times reports.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Friday that the Justice Department's extensive three-and-a-half-year probe of his Maricopa County Sheriff's Office was all just part of a bid for President Obama to win the Hispanic vote in 2012, even though the investigation began five months before Obama was even elected.
Responding to the Civil Rights Division's findings that Arpaio "promoted a culture of bias" within the MCSO where detention officers called Latino inmates "wetbacks" and "Mexican bitches," Arpaio took to Fox News on Friday afternoon to criticize Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez for opening up DOJ's Thursday press conference with the words "buenos dias."
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio's critics say they know that despite the Justice Department's scathing report on bias in the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, Joe Arpaio is not going down without a fight.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio says that it's a "sad day for America" when he's accused of discrimination.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)The findings in DOJ's investigation of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office didn't surprise many local longtime critics of Sheriff Joe Arpaio, many of whom said Thursday that his departure would be the only way to put a stop to his office's deep-seated bias.
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The Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement just cut off the Maricopa County's Sheriff's Office's access to the Secure Communities program and terminated an agreement which lets them detain individuals in the country illegally after their initial arrest.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said in a statement that the decision was based on the Justice Department's findings of discriminatory policing practices by MCSO and Sheriff Joe Arpaio.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Updated: Dec. 15, 12:42PM
Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio has "promoted a culture of bias" against Latinos in his Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and communicated to officers that "biased policing would not only be tolerated, but encouraged," according to a just-released report by the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
DOJ investigators found during a three year probe that there was reasonable cause to believe that Arpaio, who fancies himself America's Toughest Sheriff, and the Maricopa County's Sheriff's Office (MCSO) have engaged "in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional policing" and "engages in racial profiling of Latinos; unlawfully stops, detains, and arrests Latinos; and unlawfully retaliates against individuals who complain about or criticize MCSO's policies or practices."
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)The head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division will announce the results of a long running investigation into in Joe Arpaio's Maricopa County Sheriff's Office in Arizona on Thursday.
Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez has a press conference at the U.S. Attorney's office in Phoenix scheduled for 12 p.m. EST to discuss the results of their probe into the office run by the man known as America's Toughest Sheriff.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Two former employees in the Maricopa County Sheriff's office have posted bail after being charged with conspiring to smuggle heroin and launder money. Three in total are facing charges.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the controversial anti-immigration official under federal investigation because his police practices and jail operations allegedly discriminate based on national origin, has reached a settlement with the Justice Department requiring him to turn over documents he's refused to give investigators.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Sheriff Joe Arpaio has his own way of getting in the Christmas spirit: he has inmates perform Christmas carols for him "American Idol"-style and serves the winner a "full turkey dinner with all the real trimmings" as opposed to the usual gruel, which the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office says "vaguely resembles an average Christmas meal" and costs 14 cents.
A press release from Arpaio's office says the man who describes himself as "America's Toughest Sheriff" would be holding a caroling contest for pre-trial inmates in "a move likely to make Ebenezer Scrooge smile."
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (2)Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio has gone Hollywood. The Maricopa County Sheriff announced Wednesday that he was teaming up with action movie stars -- including Lou Ferrigno of "Hulk" fame and actor Steven Seagal -- to aid in his anti-illegal immigration crusade.
Ferrigno and Seagal, both real life deputies in other parts of the county, were among the 56 individuals who were sworn in as illegal immigration fighters on Wednesday.
Arpaio's office said the "national known celebrity crime fighters" would join the 60th posse created in the County since Arpaio took office in 1993. All in all, there are nearly 3000 participants in the posses, Arpaio said.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Tea Partiers -- or supporters of any political cause or candidate -- will be allowed to wear their gear to the polls in Maricopa County, the Arizona Republic reports.
After a federal judge decided on Monday that "'tea party' T-shirt or any apparel that does not express support for or opposition to" a candidate, proposition or political party on the ballot should be allowed, a Maricopa County election official said she would not be able to retrain poll workers less than a day before the election. So Maricopa County Recorder Helen Purcell told the Arizona Republic she'll let any apparel in.
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