I couldn’t find any decent commentary in support of President Trump’s pardon of Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio. So, I decided to do some research.Arpaio is certainly a controversial figure, who likes to intentionally stir up contention. He has been accused of all manner of misdeeds. He also won elections every four years, from 1992 until finally losing to Paul Penzone in 2016. At the time of the 2016 election, he had already been charged with contempt of court, and awaited sentencing in October 2017, which might reasonably be expected to interfere with his duties. (He was also, at the time, 84 years old.) The voting public of Maricopa County, who know him best, seemed to be content with Arpaio’s performance up to that point.
Beginning in 2005, Arpaio began to get aggressive with immigration law enforcement. “Saturation patrols” and “immigration sweeps” targeted Latino neighborhoods and day laborers. Businesses notorious for using illegal immigrant labor were targeted. In this time of “sanctuary cities,” and during the Obama administration, it was perhaps inevitable that many would resent Arpaio’s initiative. He received criticism from the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. District Courts, Amnesty International, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Jewish Committee, and the Anti-Defamation League. In 2008, the New York Times called Arpaio “America’s Worst Sheriff.” That year, he won the election for Sheriff with a ten-point lead against the Democratic candidate.
In 2010, he organized a “posse” to help his deputies enforce immigration law. It became a bit of a spectacle when action-adventure stars Steven Seagal, Lou Ferrigno and Peter Lupus joined the group. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office claimed that the posse had 3,000 members.In 2011, a Federal Grand Jury began investigating Arpaio’s office on criminal abuse-of-power allegations. In 2012, the Federal authorities said they were terminating the investigation without bringing any charges against him.
Post:forbes.com