Ex-sheriff’s pardon ‘a slap in the face’
PHOENIX United States President Donald Trump spared former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio a possible jail sentence yesterday by pardoning him from a recent federal conviction, reversing what critics saw as a long-awaited comeuppance for a lawman who escaped accountability for headline-grabbing tactics during his tenure as metropolitan Phoenix’s top law enforcer.
The White House said the 85-year-old was a ‘‘worthy candidate’’ for Trump’s first pardon as president.
‘‘Throughout his time as sheriff, Arpaio continued his life’s work of protecting the public from the scourges of crime and illegal immigration,’’ the White House statement said.
The announcement came three days after a rally in Phoenix at which Trump signalled his willingness to absolve the misdemeanour contempt of court conviction.
Arpaio was in a celebratory mood after the pardon, eating dinner at an Italian restaurant as someone in his party ordered champagne. He said he was thankful for the pardon.
‘‘I appreciate what the president did,’’ he said. ‘‘Pardon, no pardon – I’ll be with him as long as he’s president.’’
The pardon drew a swift and harsh denunciation from Latinos and political leaders in Arizona and beyond. They said it amounted to an endorsement of racism by wiping the conviction of a man who had been found by the courts to have racially profiled Latinos in his immigration patrols.
‘‘Pardoning Joe Arpaio is a slap in the face to the people of Maricopa County, especially the Latino community and those he victimised as he systematically and illegally violated their civil rights,’’ Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton said.
Vanita Gupta, former head of the US Justice Department’s civil rights division, said the pardon sent ‘‘a dangerous message that a law enforcement officer who abused his position of power and defied a court order can simply be excused by a president who himself clearly does not respect the law’’.
Arpaio became a nationally known political figure over the past dozen years as he took aggressive action to arrest illegal immigrants. But years of legal issues and costs stemming from his efforts began to take a toll on his political power, and he was handily defeated by a Democrat in a 2016 election.
This coincided with Trump winning the White House based in large part on his immigration rhetoric, with Arpaio campaigning for him around the country.
The pardon is a devastating defeat for critics who believe Arpaio sowed divisions by making hundreds of arrests in crackdowns that separated immigrant families and promoted a culture of cruelty by housing inmates in tents during triple-digit heat and forcing them to wear pink underwear.
They say the pardon removed the last chance to hold Arpaio legally accountable for what they say is a long history of misconduct. AP, Reuters