Trump, against the law
Former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is a political ally of President Trump. He is an ideological soulmate, having also long ago fallen down the fetid rabbit hole of birtherism. He is also a serial abuser of the law who, by racially profiling defendants despite being ordered not to, violated, with impunity, the rulings of federal courts.
The power of an elected sheriff is virtually unchecked. Should he break the law, only the courts are there to rein him in.
In 2013, Federal Judge Murray Snow, an appointee of President George W. Bush, ruled that Arpaio had violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for illegally profiling Hispanics in his enforcement of immigration law.
The 142-page ruling lays out the offenses in detail and bars Arpaio from, among other things, “Using race or Latino ancestry as a factor in determining to stop any vehicle in Maricopa County with a Latino occupant.”
And “Detaining Latino occupants of vehicles stopped for traffic violations for a period longer than reasonably necessary to resolve the traffic violation.”
Arpaio, duty- and Constitution-bound to abide by the ruling, defied it. Three years later, Snow reviewed the evidence and referred Arpaio for criminal contempt prosecution.
A year later, that proceeding concluded. “The evidence at trial,” wrote the judge, “proves beyond a reasonable doubt and the Court finds that Judge Snow issued a clear and definite order . . . that Defendant knew of the order; and that Defendant willfully violated the order.”
The tin-pot sheriff was guilty of criminal contempt, a misdemeanor, light but necessary punishment given the serial lawbreaking executed on his orders.
Friday night, the President of the United States undermined the rule of law and emboldened all allies in positions of power who might seek to follow in Arpaio’s illegal footsteps.
There was no review by the Justice Department’s pardon office. No legal justification offered. Only a man, drunk on power, rewarding a loyalist who violated the rights of others.
Arpaio broke the law, and broke it, and broke it again, and now his reward is a clean record, courtesy of a dirty President.