A new round of contempt-of-court hearings began Thursday against the sheriff in the nation's sixth-largest city over his defiance of a judge's order to stop carrying out his signature immigration patrols.
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, best known for his immigration crackdowns that turned him into a national political figure, listened intently as his second-in-command testified Thursday about emails involving the agency's violation of a key court order. The order demanded the office to stop immigration patrols, which the agency ignored for 18 months.
Arpaio could face fines as a result of the hearings and could later be called into criminal court on the same grounds. He is expected to testify Tuesday or Wednesday.
Chief Deputy Jerry Sheridan acknowledged receiving emails about the agency's violation of court orders but said he delegated the reading of the messages to subordinates. He says he doesn't remember seeing the emails and didn't learn about the violation of the court order until years later.
Sheridan said he was consumed by other issues in the department at the time, including a death in its jail, the office's effort to address bungled sex crime investigations and a Justice Department civil rights investigation.
"This is something the chief deputy should have done but that's not what I did," he said.
Other subjects to be examined at the contempt hearing include allegations the sheriff launched an investigation of the judge in the profiling case in a failed bid to get him disqualified and that Arpaio's officers pocketed identification and other personal items seized from people during traffic stops and safe-house busts.
The sheriff underwent a first round of contempt hearings in April. The current round is scheduled to stretch into November.
The toughest legal defeats in Arpaio's 22-year tenure as sheriff have come from U.S. District Judge Murray Snow, who concluded more than two years ago that the police agency had systematically racially profiled Latinos in regular traffic and immigration patrols.
The judge has repeatedly expressed his frustration at the agency's failure to abide by his decision or carry out adequate investigations into officer wrongdoing.
There is no set range for the fines that Arpaio could face as a result of the hearings. The judge also could later expose Arpaio to possible jail time and even more fines if he recommends that prosecutors press a criminal contempt case against him.
The profiling case is projected to cost taxpayers $50 million by next summer. The costs include legal fees for lawyers on both sides, buying cameras for hundreds of deputies and paying for a team of former police officials to monitor Arpaio's office.
The taxpayer bill is expected to continue to rise until the sheriff's office has been found to be in full compliance with the court-ordered changes for three straight years. Arpaio's office hasn't yet been deemed to be in full compliance.
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