Ariz. Sheriff Faces Investigation Over Illegal Immigration Enforcement
By admin at 12 March, 2009, 5:21 pm
In addition to an investigation by the U.S. Justice Department, a controversial Arizona sheriff now faces a congressional hearing looking into allegations of civil rights abuse.
Earlier this week Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio received a letter from the Justice Department informing him that it was looking into allegations that his office targets people for illegal immigration offenses based on their race.
Today Democratic leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives asked Attorney General Eric Holder and Department of Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano to look into similar complaints.
But Arpaio, who is infamous for his outdoor prison called Tent City and forcing hardened criminals to wear pink jumpsuits, says he is not fazed by the investigations.
“I’m not concerned about it,” he told the East Valley Tribune. “We’re going to continue enforcing the law and nothing changes. If they have any problems, call the FBI.”
Michigan representative John Conyers, head of the House Judiciary Committee said the legislature is not looking to persecute anyone but noted that law enforcement in the U.S. cannot “interpret the law their own way to harass or use racial strategies to determine who they arrest.”
Last month Arpaio made news when he announced a plan to segregate 200 illegal immigrants who were in Durango Jail from the rest of the prison population.
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