Controversial Arizona sheriff facing Justice Department showdown

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -National News wire - The Infinite Echo

The US Justice Department has issued an ultimatum to Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio; turn over requested documents by Friday, or face the consequences.

In a battle that has been brewing for months, the Justice Department has turned up the heat, threatening to sue the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office if the department refuses to cooperate with a federal investigation into mistreatment of detainees, including charges of racial discrimination and unlawful searches and seizures. Arpaio and his attorneys claim to be cooperating with the investigation, but the feds see it differently.

Originally, the Justice Department had given the Arpaio and the Sheriffs Department until August 17th to turn over the requested documents. Lack of compliance by the department could cost the county millions of dollars in federal funds, a risk that concerns many county officials. Withholding the funds would devastate the budget, gutting countless programs.

Arpaio, for the most part, has remained defiant and undeterred, refusing to alter his tactics, including his now notorious ‘crime sweeps’, which despite the national attention, have produced few meaningful arrests.

The seventy-eight year old sheriff began his career in law enforcement as a beat cop in the Washington DC area before relocating to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1957. He later worked for the DEA for over twenty-five years before eventually moving to Arizona.
Arpaio has held the office of Maricopa County Sheriff since 1992. He often makes headlines for housing inmates in outdoor tents during the excruciating summer heat, and feeding the prisoners green Bologna.

According to the information provided to the media by the Justice department, Arpaio and his office has until ”no later than the close of business on Friday, August 27th, 2010” to turn over the requested documents.

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment

Vice President Biden meets with controversial county sheriff, Joe Arpaio

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -
National News wire - The Infinite Echo

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met privately with controversial Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio while visiting Phoenix on Monday, although details of the unannounced discussion have not been made public.

Biden who was in Phoenix today touting the successes of the Obama administrations economic stimulus plan was quick to point out to the small crowd gathered for a democratic fundraiser, that more than 2 million Arizonans have already received tax cuts as a result of the plan.



Bidens meeting with the controversial County Sheriff, however, caught many by surprise. It is no secret that Arpaio, who refers to himself as the nations “toughest sheriff’ does not see eye to eye with the Obama administration on many issues, most notably, illegal immigration.

Arpaios conduct, and that of his agency, have been repeatedly criticized by human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, and the American Civil Liberties Union. The Maricopa County Sheriff's Department is also under investigation for numerous civil rights violations. The investigation is being led by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, headed by former Arizona governor Janet Napolitano.

Arpaio, who has previously made headlines for housing Maricopa County jail inmates in outdoor tents during 110 degree plus temperatures, denies the charges, claiming bias.

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment

Judge Rules Against Sheriff in Jail Abortion Dispute

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -
National News wire - The Infinite Echo

Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the man who bills himself as “America's Toughest Sheriff“, has been dealt a stinging rebuke by a Maricopa County Superior Court judge who has ruled the Sheriff cannot demand inmates prepay the cost of transportation to the abortion clinic.


Sign at the Tent City Jail near Downtown Phoenix

Sheriff Arpaio had maintained the inmates pay up to $600 in transportation and security fees in advance for busing them to and from the abortion clinic. In 2005 an injunction was filed against the Sheriff's Office, prohibiting the practice. The Sheriff appealed the decision all the way to the Supreme Court. He lost his appeals.

The American Civil Liberties Union had successfully argued that prepayment creates obstacles to a woman's constitutional right to obtain an abortion in a timely manner. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Robert Oberbillig agreed. However, neither the American Civil Liberties Union nor the judge disputed the Sheriff Departments right to seek reimbursement of costs. Predictably, Arpaio is expected to appeal the ruling.

Sheriff Arpaio is no stranger to controversy. Over the years, he has received endless media attention for his outdoor jail facilities and for serving his inmates green bologna. Along the way, his public antics have gained him as many supporters as critics.

The outspoken sheriff has made the headlines frequently in recent weeks in a separate dispute with the Obama administration over his aggressive approach to illegal immigration enforcement. Arpaio has been re-elected four times since assuming the office in 1996. A 2007 recall petition failed to collect enough signatures to put the recall to a vote.

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment

Charles Barkley to Serve Time in Tent City Jail

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - blogment -
National News wire - The Infinite Echo

Former NBA star Charles Barkley will soon find himself serving ten days at Tent City, a controversial outdoor jail facility located in downtown Phoenix, as a result of a DUI arrest on New Year’s Eve.


Sign at Tent City

Barkley was arrested Dec. 31st, 2008 after Scottsdale Police observed his vehicle failing to stop at a stop sign. Sir Charles, as he is known by throngs of basketball fans, registered a blood-alcohol content of .149, nearly twice the legal limit of .08 in the state of Arizona. Barkley was sentenced to ten days, following a guilty plea by the former basketball star at a hearing on Monday.

Intensity in Tent City

The controversial facility, a makeshift jail in a Phoenix parking lot, has long been the subject of scrutiny, as has the man behind the idea, Maricopa County Sheriff, Joe Arpaio. Arpaio claims he chose to house Barkley at the outdoor facility because he “didn't want to be accused of offering special privileges for celebrities“.

“I'm taking a lot of heat for putting convicted illegal immigrants in the tents. How am I going to discriminate and not put high-profile people in the tents?" quipped Arpaio.

According to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department website, Tent City began in 1993, after Arpaio was able to acquire several surplus army tents. Rather than release inmates due to overcrowded conditions at the Maricopa County jail facility, Arpaio chose to house the inmates in a parking lot adjacent to the existing jail. The tents can often house as many as two thousand inmates.

For his part, Sir Charles has been contrite, apologizing for what he described as “unacceptable” conduct . Barkley, currently an analyst for TNT, is also expected to pay as much as two thousand dollars in fines. He is currently scheduled to begin serving his sentence on March 21st.

B. Thomas Cooper - Editor

Sound and Recording - Sound Foundation - National Newswire - The Infinite Echo - Impeachment Now! - Skate the Razor -
Skate the Razor Blog - blogment