During his time as sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona, Joe Arpaio targeted Latinos to crack down on illegal immigration, which may soon cost residents over a quarter of a billion dollars. 

The former sheriff is infamous for his racially-charged rhetoric against Hispanics and African-Americans.

Arpaio, who then-President Donald Trump pardoned, had a signature traffic patrol policy that targeted immigrants, leading to several court-ordered overhauls of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office's traffic operations and internal affairs department.

A racial profiling lawsuit followed in 2013, with the judge deciding against the controversial sheriff. Because he and his office lost the case, Maricopa County residents would be the ones to shoulder the burden of paying it, with the cost expected to reach $273 million by the summer of 2024, according to the Associated Press.

County officials were told of the possible cost of the decision that was made a decade ago after a tentative budget that included $38 million in legal and compliance was approved.

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2011 DOJ Investigation Concluded Joe Arpaio Behind 'Worst Racial Profiling Case in US History'

In 2011, when he was still the Maricopa County Sheriff, Joe Arpaio was investigated by the US Department of Justice, which found that the controversial Donald Trump ally "oversaw the worst pattern of racial profiling by a law enforcement agency in US history."

According to US Attorney Thomas Perez, Joe Arpaio, as sheriff, and his deputies have created a "culture" of abusing the rights of Latinos in the county.

The controversial former sheriff knowingly created a "culture of bias" in the sheriff's office, with the DOJ investigation resulting in some damning findings.

The Phoenix New Times reported that the DOJ found that "Latino drivers are four-to-nine times more likely to be stopped than similarly situated non-Latino drivers." In addition, these traffic stops violated Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure.

Arpaio's office was also accused of retaliating against critics, subjecting them to "retaliatory detentions and arrests without cause, unfounded civil lawsuits, and other baseless complaints."

AP reported that the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office now had a crushing backlog of over 1,900 internal affairs investigations under Arpaio's successor.

Ex-Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio Remains Influential Figure in the Far Right

Joe Arpaio may not be the Maricopa County Sheriff anymore, but he still calls himself "Sheriff Joe," even after he was voted out in 2016 over his controversial policies.

According to the Arizona Mirror, Arpaio still considers himself sheriff, stating in an October 2022 interview, "I am the sheriff for this county." Arpaio served as sheriff for 26 years, and during that time, it had been marred by cruel, inhumane punishments and policies.

That included forcing prisoners to dress in pink underwear and eat moldy food and his costly racial profiling case against Latinos. However, despite not being sheriff anymore, he still serves as an inspiration for many far-right sheriffs around the country.

He is considered a hero by the controversial Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, which has been accused of being rooted with racism and antisemitism.

While he denies being involved with them publicly, Arpaio is a dues-paying member of the organization with him on their pamphlets' cover.

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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