Arizona Sheriff Vows to Enforce Immigration Law Whether ‘Feds’ Like It or Not

[Flash]

(CNSNews.com) – Calling himself “the poster boy” for those who support the enforcement of federal immigration laws, Sheriff Joe Arpaio said he will continue to arrest individuals who are in the country illegally, even if Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) does not renew the 287(g) agreement that the Maricopa County (Ariz.) Sheriff’s Office has operated under for the past two years.

“We’ve been doing it for two years and have been very successful, but I guess they don’t like to enforce illegal immigration laws,” Arpaio told CNSNews.com. “[It] doesn’t make any difference. I’m still going to continue my programs, regardless of what the feds like or don’t like.”

Under that agreement, authorized in the 287(g) section of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, more than 100 officers and deputies with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office were trained and certified by ICE to enforce federal immigration laws in 2007.

Arpaio claims that ICE is renewing the part of the agreement that allows his personnel to check the immigration status of those booked into the county jail, but will not renew the portion that authorizes officers to make arrests based on immigration status.

“When we come across illegal aliens, we arrest them,” Arpaio said. “That’s the part they don’t like, and that’s the one they took away.”

But an ICE spokesman told CNSNews.com that the 90-day window for state and local law enforcement agencies to review and sign new “standardized” agreements is Oct. 14 and that no decision will be made on those agreements until each has been reviewed by John Morton, assistant secretary of ICE.

“As Sheriff Arpaio knows, no decisions have been made on his 287(g) agreement,” Vincent Picard told CNSNews.com. “ICE is committed to smart and effective immigration enforcement, and we will review all of the new 287(g )Agreements at the conclusion of the 90 days.”

According to ICE officials, its Office of Professional Responsibility is also conducting audits of law enforcement agencies, including one done in July on the Maricopa County agency, a copy of which was obtained by CNSNews.com.

ICE spokesman Richard Rocha told CNSNews.com that the agency doesn’t routinely release audits but that “several agencies have been audited” to date.

“It’s part of the general review process,” Rocha said. “It’s part of our office’s effort to make sure programs are working as effectively as possible and to identify any challenges that need to be addressed.”

Rocha was unable to say what agencies or exactly how many have been audited by his office.

Arpaio’s outspoken manner and the “crime suppression sweeps” his office has conducted in Maricopa County have been characterized by critics as racial profiling, and the Department of Justice launched an investigation into those charges earlier this year.

The ICE audit of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department (MCSD), however, is generally positive, including the following remarks included in the executive summary of the report:

-- “Since February of 2007, the MCSO 287(g) program has processed more than 15,000 illegal aliens, saving ICE considerable resources.”

-- “The communications and working relationship between the OI (Office of Investigations), DRO (Office of Detention and Removal Operations) and MCSD (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department) are excellent.”

The summary said that most of the officers operating under the 287(g) program were assigned to either the Human Smuggling Unit (HSU), the Community Action Team (CAT) or the jail operations unit. It said the HSU and the jail operations were not mentioned in the current Memorandum of Agreement or MOA.

“The CAT Unit is a catchall term used for all 287(g) deputies, mainly patrol officers, who are not assigned to the HSU or to the jail component,” the summary states. “The CAT 287(g) patrol deputies rarely use their authority; most CAT officers rely on the jail officers to determine if someone who has been arrested for state violations may be an illegal alien. If the LEA encounter does not result in an arrest on State charges, the CAT 287(g) officers normally release the individual without attempting to determine if the subject may be an illegal alien.”

Arpaio claims that more than 30,000 individuals have been identified as illegal aliens since his department signed on with ICE in 2007.

He also claims that even without the 287(g), federal law allows state and local law enforcement agencies to enforce immigration laws if probable cause exists.

Kris Kobach, former counsel to U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft and a professor of law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, told CNSNews.com that there is a federal statute that addresses immigration law and local law enforcement.

“Federal law does expressly authorize state and local police to make immigration arrests of previously deported felons who return to the United States and are in the country unlawfully,” Kobach said.

“That federal statute is found at 8 U.S.C. 1252c. In addition, as the U.S. Department of Justice officially recognized in 2002, state and local police possess the inherent authority to arrest illegal aliens and detain them briefly in order to transfer them to federal custody,” Kobach added.

“Those are two forms of arrest authority that Sheriff Arpaio possesses, apart from Section 287(g) authority,” Kobach said.

Arpaio said that the law usually isn’t enforced, but he would like to change that.

“You know what?” Arpaio said. “I’m going to start enforcing that law.”

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/55199

[Flash]

bump.

[Reason]

Inmate deaths and injuries under Arpaio


Family members of inmates who have died or been injured in jail custody have filed lawsuits against the sheriff’s office. Maricopa County has paid more than $43 million in settlement claims during Arpaio's tenure. [62] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-wake-61) [63] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-East_Valley_Tribune-62)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=20)] Charles Agster

In August 2001, Charles Agster, a 33-year-old mentally handicapped man, died in the county jail three days after being forced by sheriff's officers into a restraint chair used for controlling combative arrestees. Agster's parents had been taking him to a psychiatric hospital because he was exhibiting paranoia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranoia), then called police when he refused to leave a convenience store where they had stopped enroute. Officers took Agster to the Madison Street jail, placed a "spit hood" over his face and strapped him to the chair, where he had an apparent seizure and lost consciousness. He was declared brain dead three days later. A medical examiner later concluded that Agster died of complications of methamphetamine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine) intoxication (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intoxication). In a subsequent lawsuit, an attorney for the sheriff's office described the amount of methamphetamine in Agster's system as 17 times the known lethal dose. The lawsuit resulted in a $9 million jury verdict against the county, the sheriff's office, and Correctional Health Services (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Correctional_Health_Services&action=edit&redlink=1).[68] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-67)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=21)] Scott Norberg

One major controversy includes the 1996 death of inmate Scott Norberg, a former Brigham Young University (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigham_Young_University) football wide receiver, who died while in custody of the Sheriff's office.[69] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-68) Norberg was arrested for assaulting a police officer in Mesa (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesa,_Arizona), Arizona, after neighbors in a residential area had reported a delirious man walking in their neighborhood.[70] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-69) Arpaio's office repeatedly claimed Norberg was also high on methamphetamine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine), but a blood toxicology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxicology) performed post-mortem was inconclusive. According to a toxological report, Norberg did have methamphetamine in his urine, though "there would be no direct effect caused by the methamphetamine on Norberg's behavior at the time of the incident".[71] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-70) During his internment, evidence suggests detention officers (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Detention_officer&action=edit&redlink=1) shocked Norberg several times with a stun-gun (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stun-gun). According to an investigation by Amnesty International (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amnesty_International), Norberg was already handcuffed and face down when officers dragged him from his cell and placed him in a restraint chair with a towel covering his face. After Norberg's corpse was discovered, detention officers accused Norberg of attacking them as they were trying to restrain him. The cause of his death, according to the Maricopa County medical examiner, was due to "positional asphyxia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positional_asphyxia)". Sheriff Arpaio investigated and subsequently cleared detention officers of any criminal wrongdoing.[72] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-71)
Norberg’s parents filed a lawsuit against Arpaio and his office. The lawsuit was settled for $8.25 million (USD) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_dollars).[73] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-72)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=22)] Brian Crenshaw

Brian Crenshaw was a legally blind and mentally disabled inmate who suffered fatal injuries while being held in Maricopa County Jail for shoplifting. The injuries that led to his death were initially blamed on a fall from his bunk but were later discovered to have been the result of a brutal beating by jail guards on March 7, 2003.[citation needed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)] A lawsuit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawsuit) filed in the Maricopa County Superior Court of Arizona by the lawyer for Crenshaw's family stated:

An external examination report of the Maricopa County Medical Examiners Office concluded that Brian's death was caused by "complications of blunt force trauma due to a fall." This conclusion was reached largely on the [Maricopa County Sheriffs Office]'s relation of their "history" of Brian's injuries to the Medical Examiner's Office; a history that included the MCSO's implausable story that all of Brian's injuries were caused by a fall from his cell bed. The Maricopa County Medical Examiner conducted no autopsy; nor was the Maricopa County Medical Examiner informed by MCSO or [the Correctional Health Services] about Brian's beating on March 7, 2003 and/or related events. An independent autopsy report later narrowed the cause of Brian's death to peritonitis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peritonitis) and sepsis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepsis) secondary to the duodenal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duodenal) perforation. A fall from Brian's 4-foot, 2 inch bunk could not have simultaneously caused a broken neck, broken toes, and a duodenal perforation.[74] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-73)
The lawsuit against Arpaio and his office resulted in an award of $2 million.[75] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-74) As in the Scott Norberg case, it was alleged that Arpaio's office destroyed evidence in the case. In the Crenshaw case, the attorney who represented the case before a jury alleged digital video evidence was destroyed.[76] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-75)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=23)] Richard Post

Richard Post was a paraplegic (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraplegic) inmate arrested in 1996 for possession of marijuana and criminal trespass. Post was placed in a restraint chair by guards and his neck was broken in the process. The event, caught on video, shows guards smiling and laughing while Post is being injured. Because of his injuries, Post has lost much of the use of his arms.[77] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-76) Post settled his claims against the Sheriff's office for $800,000.[78] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-77)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=24)] Jeremy Flanders

In 1996, Jeremy Flanders was attacked by inmates at Tent City who used rebar tent stakes, which were not concreted into the ground. Although these stakes had been used as weapons in a previous riot at the facility, the Sheriff's office chose not to secure them properly. During the trial, the plaintiff "presented evidence that, among other things, the Sheriff and his deputies had actual knowledge that prisoners used rebar tent stakes and tent poles as weapons and did nothing to prevent it." Furthermore, "the Sheriff admitted knowing about, and in fact intentionally designing, some conditions at Tent City that created a substantial risk of inmate violence." After the attack: "another inmate entered the tent and found Flanders unconscious, gasping for air, and spewing blood out of his mouth, nose and ears. Flanders had been bloodied and beaten so badly that the other inmate initially did not recognize Flanders." Flanders suffered permanent brain damage as a result of the attack. On appeal, Flanders was awarded $635,532, of which Arpaio was personally responsible for thirty-five percent.[20] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Cates-19)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=25)] Ambria Renee Spencer

In 2006, inmate Ambrett Spencer, who was incarcerated for drunk driving and was nine months pregnant with a girl, complained of severe stomach pains and asked for medical attention. The infirmary nurse, who had no prenatal training, believed the pain was not an emergency. It was two hours before an ambulance was called for Spencer, who in the meantime had passed out from severely low blood pressure and lost so much color that the EMT who arrived at the scene said he knew she was "not getting enough blood to [her] organs and skin." At the hospital—four hours after first reporting pain—Spencer gave birth to a dead daughter, Ambria Renee. It was determined that Spencer's pain had been caused by placental abruption (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placental_abruption), internal bleeding resulting in loss of blood to the baby.
Ambrett Spencer has filed a lawsuit against Maricopa County, which as of November 2008 has not yet gone to trial. The county claims that the ambulance service is at fault for not transporting Spencer to the hospital fast enough.
Other female inmates have had miscarriages while incarcerated in Arpaio's jail and have reported physical abuse or neglect which they believe contributed to the loss of their pregnancies.[79] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Phoenix_New_Times-78)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=26)] Jose Rodriguez

On March 26, 1996, Jose Rodriquez, 39, died in a pool of his own vomit on a jail floor. His cries for help went ignored by Arpaio's jail employees. Rodriguez's dehydration, fever and twitching ultimately led to his death, even while inmates shouted for help.[79] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Phoenix_New_Times-78)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=27)] Phillip Wilson

In 2003, Phillip Wilson was serving two months in Tent City for a nonviolent offense. Wilson was attacked by the Aryan Brotherhood (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aryan_Brotherhood) prison gang and bludgeoned into a coma. He never recovered.[79] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Phoenix_New_Times-78)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=28)] Deborah Braillard

Deborah Braillard, 46, was documented as a diabetic in the jail's health records. Her cellmates say a nurse did not give Braillard insulin, and then detention officers ignored her when she went into diabetic shock. Braillard died on January 23, 2005, ultimately from lack of insulin.[79] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Phoenix_New_Times-78)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=29)] Clint Yarbrough

In December 2005, Clint Yarbrough suffocated in a jail restraint chair. On April 18, 2007, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors approved an undisclosed settlement payout to Yarbrough's family in excess of $1 million.[79] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Phoenix_New_Times-78)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=30)] Thomas Bruce Cooley

Months before Thomas Bruce Cooley, 44, was found hanging by the bed sheets in his jail cell, a federal inspector had warned Arpaio that the jail psych ward was a suicide waiting to happen. A 1996 Department of Justice report specifically cautioned that inmates could use "overhanging structures" to hang themselves. Three more inmates died in the same way as Thomas Cooley while in Arpaio's custody: Kevin Holschlag, Michael Sanderson, and Juan Vasquez.[79] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-Phoenix_New_Times-78)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=31)] Icelandic extradition refusal

An Icelandic court in 1997 refused to extradite Connie and Donald Hanes to Maricopa County after hearing evidence about the county jail.[80] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-79)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=32)] Enforcement acts of deputies and posse

[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=33)] Blocking civilian access to law enforcement databases

On August 13, 2009, deputies took control of a computer system linked to sensitive criminal justice (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice) databases by forcefully changing its password to prevent civilians from accessing the data. Two days later, a Maricopa County judge ordered the Sheriff's Office to divulge the password, threatening to hold Chief Deputy David Hendershott in contempt of court (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contempt_of_court) if he did not comply. Hendershott said he was prevented from sharing the password by federal law. Federal and state laws require that access to the National Crime Information Center (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Crime_Information_Center) (NCIS) and similar Arizona databases be managed by a criminal justice agency. Hendershott said the Sheriff's Office is conducting a criminal investigation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_investigation) into suspected mismanagement of the system by court and other county personnel.
He said the investigation targets Superior Court presiding Judge Barbara Mundell, County Manager Smith and other county personnel, but he did not provide details on the investigation."[81] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-80)
On August 17, Hendershott agreed to provide the new password to avoid contempt charges.[82] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-81)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=34)] Botched raid

In 2004, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office SWAT (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SWAT) team led a raid on an Ahwatukee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahwatukee) home in a gated subdivision, looking for illegal weapons. No illegal weapons were found, but during the raid, the house burned down, SWAT officers forced a dog back into the building where it subsequently died, and an armored vehicle rolled into a neighbor's parked car as a result of brake failure.[83] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-82)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=35)] Prostitution sting

In an undercover sting operation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sting_operation) in November, 2003, sheriff's deputies arrested over 70 people for prostitution (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution) and solicitation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solicitation) of prostitution. The officers arrested alleged prostitutes and their alleged customers in more than thirty homes and ten massage parlors (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massage_parlor) in the Phoenix area. Records indicated that several of the officers and civilian posse members disrobed, fondled the breasts and genitals of the alleged prostitutes, and allowed their penises to be touched during the operation in the hopes of convincing the women they were not law enforcement officers. The Maricopa County Attorney's Office stated that the Sheriff's office had gone too far in allowing this behavior, and sixty of the cases were thrown out. Several of the customers in the case were prosecuted successfully.[84] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-83)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=36)] Conflicts with local news media

[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=37)] Arrest of Phoenix New Times executives

In October 2007, Arpaio's deputies arrested Village Voice Media (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Village_Voice_Media) executives and Phoenix New Times (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_New_Times) editors Michael Lacey (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Lacey) and Jim Larkin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Larkin) on charges of revealing grand jury (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_jury) secrets. In July 2004, the New Times had published Arpaio's home address in the context of a story about his real estate dealings, which the county attorney's office is investigating as a possible crime under Arizona state law. A special prosecutor served Village Voice Media with a subpoena ordering it to produce "all documents" related to the original real estate article, as well as "all Internet web site traffic information" to a number of articles that mentioned Arpaio. The prosecutor further ordered Village Voice Media to produce the IP addresses (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_address) of all visitors to the Phoenix New Times website since January 1, 2004, as well as what websites those readers had been to prior to visiting. As an act of "civil disobedience,"[85] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-84) Lacey and Larkin published the contents of the subpoena on or around October 18, which resulted in their arrests the same day.[86] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-85) On the following day, the county attorney dropped the case after declining to pursue charges against the two.[87] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-86) The Attorney General's office has since been ordered to appear before Judge Ana Baca due to missing documentation - including the original grand jury subpoenas - in the case file for the investigation of the New Times publication.[88] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-87)
On November 28, 2007, Judge Baca ruled that the subpoenas in this case were not validly issued. The special prosecutor filed the grand jury subpoenas without the consent of the grand jury. Baca's justification was a statute that had been clarified by case law and by subsequent legislation to bar such subpoena authority, unless certain reporting requirements are met. The prosecutor had not met those reporting requirements.[89] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-88) In April, 2008, the New Times editors filed suit against Arpaio, County Attorney Andrew Thomas and Special Prosecutor Dennis Wilenchik, alleging negligence, conspiracy and racketeering, and State and U.S. constitutional violations of free speech rights, false imprisonment, retaliation by law enforcement and abuse of process.[90] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-89)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=38)] Alleged harassment of New Times reporter

On June 11, 2008, Ray Stern, a reporter for the Phoenix New Times (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_New_Times), was surrounded by several deputies while trying to examine public records at the City of Phoenix public records counter.[91] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-90) Stern called City Attorney Gary Verburg, who came down and instructed the deputies that Stern had the right to view the records. The deputies then threatened to simply arrest Stern on the spot. Later, a city "conflict resolution manager" walked up and laid down an Arizona law book. She pointed to the section of public records law that essentially says anyone can look at any public record during business hours. City Attorney Verburg told the deputies again that Stern had the right to look at any public record. Upon hearing that, the deputies warned Stern again that if he tried to look at the documents he would be arrested.
The events reported by the New Times are substantively verified in a memo drafted by Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Commander James Miller. In this memo, Miller states that the deputies did threaten to arrest Stern if he touched any of the records, and that he (Miller) held one of the records out in front of Stern, saying "take it", to create a pretense to arrest Stern. Miller also reported that the situation escalated into a standoff with the Phoenix Police, when they warned him not to attempt to arrest Stern.[92] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-91)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=39)] FOIA requests to mayor and other officials

In situations where government officials have been at odds with Arpaio, his office has used the Freedom of Information Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_Information_Act) to make broad requests for records of their email and correspondence. The requests have been targeted against Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, Maricopa County Court Administrator Marcus Reinkensmeyer, and most recently, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon.
Starting in March, 2008, Gordon spoke out, in a number of high-profile speeches, against racial profiling by Arpaio. On April 24, Arpaio's deputies issued a public-records request seeking the mayor's e-mails, cell phone records, and meeting calendar, as well as e-mail correspondence for Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris, City Manager Frank Fairbanks, and all of Gordon's administrative staff. The request covered every e-mail written by more than a dozen Phoenix staffers, from November to the date of the sheriff's demand.[93] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-92)
[edit (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joe_Arpaio&action=edit&section=40)] Arrests of critics

At a December 17, 2008 meeting, four audience members at a County Board of Supervisors meeting were arrested for suspicion of disorderly conduct and trespassing, after they applauded an anti-Arpaio speaker.[94] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-93) [95] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio#cite_note-94)

[erowe1]

I still want to know what he's talking about when he says, "When we come across illegal aliens we arrest them." How do they know when someone is an illegal alien if they haven't already arrested them? Do people have to show them some paper to prove they're citizens or else get arrested? If I went to his county and didn't bring proof of my citizenship with me, could he just arrest me for that? Or is it only people with a certain skin color and a certain accent who have to worry about that?

[jkr]

not a fan...maybe he will finally get tha boot.

[Nate]

Arpaio is a fascist moron. A drug warrior statist drunk on his own power & state granted authority. He thinks the solution to everything is more violent actions by bureaucrats with guns and tasers. He is part of the problem with this country.

[Flash]

Arpaio is a fascist moron. A drug warrior statist drunk on his own power & state granted authority. He thinks the solution to everything is more violent actions by bureaucrats with guns and tasers. He is part of the problem with this country.

Looking at it rationally-- illegal immigration can & probably will permanently damage this nation. While policy on drugs can be changed within time.

[erowe1]

Looking at it rationally-- illegal immigration can & probably will permanently damage this nation. While policy on drugs can be changed within time.

Immigration policy can be changed as easily as drug policy (though, admittedly, it's politically not very easy in either case). Both require a lifting of the existing prohibitions against them.

Do you support what Arpaio is doing? I don't know enough about it, but I was serious in my earlier question. Is he talking about being able to arrest people solely for their failure to produce proof of citizenship when asked?

[Flash]

Immigration policy can be changed as easily as drug policy (though, admittedly, it's politically not very easy in either case). Both require a lifting of the existing prohibitions against them.

Do you support what Arpaio is doing? I don't know enough about it, but I was serious in my earlier question. Is he talking about being able to arrest people solely for their failure to produce proof of citizenship when asked?

I don't live in Arizona and know little of him, so I can't say I support him. Immigration policy can be changed, but deportation of actual illegal immigrants is a difficult task.

[Nate]

Looking at it rationally-- illegal immigration can & probably will permanently damage this nation. While policy on drugs can be changed within time.

Illegal immigration will not permanently damage this nation. Most of the people coming over are good, hardworking, family motivated people who are only coming here because they wish to make a better life for their children & grand children. The drug war and the empowerment of the gangster, criminal element amongst those immigrants WILL permanently damage this nation. The drug war is also what has been used to begin the transformation of this country into a police state. I could care less about illegal immigration. If we fix the problems with the welfare state and the gangsterism that has permeated lower class neighborhoods (many of which are immigrant communities) due to the thugs controlling the drug market, most of the problems associated with "illegals" will be non-existant. I know this because I lived in a mexican neighborhood for 7 years growing up.

Also in order to deport all the "illegals" in this country it would require a MASSIVE police force that would finish off what little freedoms we have left in this country & would empower the government to complete their creation of a police state. You want to solve this? Fix the problems created by the idiotic immigration policies, eliminate the minimum wage & income tax, end the drug war and stop giving out welfare. You do those things and I guarantee the "problems" associated with illegal immigration will cease to exist. In fact we will be welcoming these hardworking people into the American experiment because we will need the additional manpower for our then booming economy.

[Flash]

Illegal immigration will not permanently damage this nation. Most of the people coming over are good, hardworking, family motivated people who are only coming here because they wish to make a better life for their children & grand children. The drug war and the empowerment of the gangster, criminal element amongst those immigrants WILL permanently damage this nation. The drug war is also what has been used to turn this country into a police state. I could care less about illegal immigration. If we fix the problems with the welfare state and the gangsterism that has permeated lower class neighborhoods (many of which are immigrant communities) due to the thugs controlling the drug market, most of the problems associated with "illegals" will be non-existant. I know this because I lived in a mexican neighborhood for 7 years growing up.

Also in order to deport all the "illegals" in this country it would require a MASSIVE police force that would finish off what little freedoms we have left in this country & would empower the government in the creation of a police state. You want to solve this? Fix the problems created by the idiotic immigration policies, eliminate the minimum wage & income tax, end the drug war and stop giving out welfare. You do those things and I guarantee the "problems" associated with illegal immigration will cease to exist. In fact we will be welcoming these hardworking people into the American experiment because we will need the additional manpower for our then booming economy.

Yes, these things would be a huge improvement. But you contradicted yourself. First you say they are family-motivated & hard-working then you go on to say removing welfare would solve a lot of the immigration problem. I think you realize most illegals are oppurtunistic and come here due to government handouts & welfare. Getting rid of these things would be a step in the right direction, but I don't see it happening anytime soon. What I do see is an increasing illegal immigrant population in the south that will keep voting for the most liberal candidates who promise government-handouts.

And your second paragraph proves the point I was making. Deportation is impossible. Thus, illegal immigrants are here to stay. Hence why they are a more important issue than th drug policy.

[roho76]

Illegal immigration will not permanently damage this nation. Most of the people coming over are good, hardworking, family motivated people who are only coming here because they wish to make a better life for their children & grand children. The drug war and the empowerment of the gangster, criminal element amongst those immigrants WILL permanently damage this nation. The drug war is also what has been used to begin the transformation of this country into a police state. I could care less about illegal immigration. If we fix the problems with the welfare state and the gangsterism that has permeated lower class neighborhoods (many of which are immigrant communities) due to the thugs controlling the drug market, most of the problems associated with "illegals" will be non-existant. I know this because I lived in a mexican neighborhood for 7 years growing up.

Also in order to deport all the "illegals" in this country it would require a MASSIVE police force that would finish off what little freedoms we have left in this country & would empower the government to complete their creation of a police state. You want to solve this? Fix the problems created by the idiotic immigration policies, eliminate the minimum wage & income tax, end the drug war and stop giving out welfare. You do those things and I guarantee the "problems" associated with illegal immigration will cease to exist. In fact we will be welcoming these hardworking people into the American experiment because we will need the additional manpower for our then booming economy.

I agree. If we destroy the welfare state and the war on drugs the gangsterism will wither away. We can't get rid of illegal immigration. It's a stupid idea. But they can't expect free services off of the backs of the hard working either.

[Nate]

Yes, these things would be a huge improvement. But you contradicted yourself. First you say they are family-motivated & hard-working then you go on to say removing welfare would solve a lot of the immigration problem. I think you realize most illegals are oppurtunistic and come here due to government handouts & welfare. Getting rid of these things would be a step in the right direction, but I don't see it happening anytime soon. What I do see is an increasing illegal immigrant population in the south that will keep voting for the most liberal candidates who promise government-handouts.

And your second paragraph proves the point I was making. Deportation is impossible. Thus, illegal immigrants are here to stay. Hence why they are a more important issue than th drug policy.

That is just wrong. Most of the people coming over here do not get handouts. They work their asses off. Don't label the entire group because a minority go on welfare. Those that come over here to leech off the system only do it because we allow them to leech off of the system. All this "illegals just come over here and abuse the system" is nothing more than collectivist BS. Like I said I know this because I've actually lived in a mexican community. Don't believe that BS on the TV. The LARGE majority of illegals get NO government handouts & work their asses off at mutliple jobs. I know this for a fact from my own personal experiences inside that community. Most of these illegals work harder than the very large majority of Americans & DO NOT want a welfare handout. They want a good job where they can earn their money & live with the pride that comes from being able to provide for their families (something they couldn't do in Mexico).

[Nate]

I agree. If we destroy the welfare state and the war on drugs the gangsterism will wither away. We can't get rid of illegal immigration. It's a stupid idea. But they can't expect free services off of the backs of the hard working either.

I agree. The same way I believe that American citizens shouldn't expect free services off of the backs of the hard working either.

[torchbearer]

I think an elected sheriff has the authority to police his county. the federal government has zero authority to police anything.

[Nate]

I think an elected sheriff has the authority to police his county. the federal government has zero authority to police anything.

That doesn't mean that we should support the man. I agree that it is up to the people of his county to decide on his job status. "Sheriff Joe" has turned himself into a national figure based on his anti-freedom, aggressive drug warrior stance. He made himself famous based on his shameless self promotion of those beliefs. Therefore I have the right to say he is a fascist POS and tell others that I believe he should not be embraced as a "friend" of this movement. People can make up their own minds about if they want to support this asshole. I however will actively oppose the fascist scumbag.

[torchbearer]

That doesn't mean that we should support the man. I agree that it is up to the people of his county to decide on his job status. "Sheriff Joe" has turned himself into a national figure based on his anti-freedom, aggressive drug warrior stance. He made himself famous based on his shameless self promotion of those beliefs. Therefore I have the right to say he is a fascist POS and tell others that I believe he should not be embraced as a "friend" of this movement. People can make up their own minds about if they want to support this asshole. I however will actively oppose the fascist scumbag.

I don't think we disagree, i just think this would be less of an issue if the federal government wasn't policing the states.
if it was left up to the county, and your county was a drug war county, just move to a free county. voting with your feet. that was the jeffersonian idea.

thus, we should first focus on the federal police that have no constitutional authority before we worry about a person who only controls a county.

[Bruno]

not a fan...maybe he will finally get tha boot.


+ 1

[Nate]

I don't think we disagree, i just think this would be less of an issue if the federal government wasn't policing the states.
if it was left up to the county, and your county was a drug war county, just move to a free county. voting with your feet. that was the jeffersonian idea.

thus, we should first focus on the federal police that have no constitutional authority before we worry about a person who only controls a county.

Yea I hear ya. Good point.

[YumYum]

How do they know when someone is an illegal alien if they haven't already arrested them?

They're the ones with jobs.

[Nate]

They're the ones with jobs.

Nice one.

[Liberty_Tree]

If most illegals are so hardworking , they should work hard on becoming legal or fix there own country.


Do it the right way or don't do it at all.

[Rael]

You can't have uncontrolled immigration in a welfare state, especially when it's a wealthy country (at least on PAPER, haha) because most of the immigrants will be members of the Parasite Class.