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Is Sheriff Joe Arpaio Going Down?


A Justice Department report blasts the embattled Arizona lawman for discriminating against Latinos.

Jeff Biggers, Salon

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Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has seen better days  (Credit: Rick Scuteri / Reuters)
 
 The clock struck at 1,095 days and 11 hours today for Sheriff Joe Arpaio in Maricopa County, Ariz. — or, at least according to the ticking icon on the Phoenix New Times home page that had asked readers for years: “How long has Sheriff Joe been under investigation by the feds?”

That investigation culminated Thursday when the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice released its long-awaited report, which found a “chronic culture of disregard for basic legal and constitutional obligations” in Arpaio’s office. Drawing from tens of thousands of documents and over 400 interviews with sheriff’s department personnel, inmates and experts, the report documented “a widespread pattern or practice of law enforcement and jail activities that discriminate against Latinos,”  resulting in gross violations of  constitutional rights.

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