MCSO joins crackdown in Tempe
Deputies set to help with Safe and Sober campaign
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is joining forces with Tempe police to fight alcohol-related rowdyism near Arizona State University’s campus that sometimes leads to violent crime.
At a meeting on Monday, Arpaio agreed to a request for help from Tempe Police Chief Tom Ryff, continuing the recent Safe and Sober campaign that resulted in nearly 1,400 arrests during the last three weekends in August.
“Tempe parties & alcohol consumption remain concern 4 Chief Ryff — he’s asking 4 my help. Expect a major crime suppression op this weekend,” Arpaio tweeted on Monday.
“There is sometimes a connection between crime, drinking and drugs,” Arpaio said by phone. “We are going to do it in conjunction with him (Ryff). We have the expertise in these types of operations.”
Lisa Allen, a spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Office, said getting booked into the Fourth Avenue Jail might make a bigger impression on stu-
dents than a more typical citation for consuming alcohol.
“Deterrence is the purpose, she said. “Hopefully, it will teach someone a lesson.”
ASU plays Wisconsin on Saturday night at Sun Devil Stadium, and a sellout crowd is anticipated.
Since the Safe and Sober campaign ended, three fraternity members were arrested and accused of participating in an attack on a 19-year-old student who belonged to a different fraternity on Sept. 2 at the District, an off-campus apartment complex.
On Thursday night, after an ASU football game, Tempe police officers and firefighters found themselves pelted by beer cans as they responded to a disturbance at the Hub On Campus, a high-rise apartment complex for students.
In an e-mail to the Tempe City Council, Ryff cited the Hub incident as an example of the ongoing problem with rowdyism. He said that 13 minors were arrested on suspicion of consuming alcohol and that other minors fled the building as police arrived. A fire extinguisher also was discharged.
Ryff said he asked the Sheriff’s Office to participate because of his desire to sustain the Safe and Sober campaign, especially after the two recent incidents. Sheriff’s deputies have jurisdiction throughout the county, and the agency also has specialized units.
“He’s making a commitment to assist us with these issues,” Ryff said. “I remain highly concerned with the alcohol, the DUI (driving under the influence) and the associated disorder.”
Although seven agencies participated, the Sheriff’s Office was a major player in Safe and Sober, Ryff said.
Deputies participated in all nine days of the operation by helping Tempe police cite underage drinkers at parties; they also handled detention duties, freeing up officers to handle other calls.
Ryff said all additional operations will target the 2-squaremile area surrounding the ASU campus that is considered Tempe’s “loud-party zone,” which also is fertile ground for violent crime.
A report Ryff presented to the City Council in August concluded that three of eight homicides, one in three sexual assaults and one in four aggravated assaults occur in the loudparty zone.