Joseph M. Arpaio, born June 14, 1932 in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States is a law enforcement officer, most notably as the Sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona.

Biography

Before becoming Sheriff (1932–1992)

Arpaio was the child of immigrants from Naples, Italy. His mother died during his birth. His father had little interest in raising the child, leaving his upbringing to whatever family members were willing to take him in. As a result of his father’s abandonment, Joe Arpaio spent his childhood being shuffled back and forth between different families.

Arpaio served in the United States Army between 1950 and 1953 and according to an April, 2001 article in Harper's Magazine, he claimed to be a veteran of the Korean War, but in fact spent the duration of the war in France. Following his 1953 discharge from the military, he moved to Washington, D.C. to work for the city's police department, after which he left to work on the police force of Las Vegas, Nevada. In 1956, he married his wife, Ava. Arpaio obtained a job with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) where he worked for more than two decades in a job that saw him stationed for a time in Turkey and Mexico. At the end of his career, he was named head of the Arizona branch of the DEA and served in that capacity for four years before taking retirement.

After becoming Sheriff (1992–present)

Arpaio was elected Sheriff of Maricopa County in 1992, beginning work as Sheriff in 1993. He immediately began to change rules at Maricopa County jails, serving less expensive meals to inmates, issuing inmates pink underwear, and taking away some inmates access to coffee, pornography, and most television. He opened a 'tent city' to house both both male and female inmates, despite some objections fromit's residents that they were "being treated like criminals" and he instituted the "first and only" chain gang for female inmates. While his methods were the focus of wide media controversy partly due to the fact that a majority of the inmates in Maricopa County's jails are awaiting trial under an assumption of innocence, he responded by saying that "jails should not be country clubs".

Joe Arpaio also instituted a program for inmates to study while in jail and to try to recover from drug abuse. This program is named Hard Knocks High, which is the only approved high school program in any United States jail. Another jail program, ALPHA, is aimed solely at getting inmates away from drug abuse. Community projects include bicycle registration, block watch, child identification/fingerprinting, Operation Identification for marking valuables, Operation Notification which identifies business owners during times of emergency, Project Lifeline which provides free cellular phones to domestic violence victims, S.T.A.R.S. (Sheriff’s Teaching Abuse Resistance to Students), and an annual summer camp for kids near Payson.

One of the most successful programs maintained by Sheriff Arpaio is the volunteer Posse program. The earliest organized Posse in Maricopa County was formed over 50 years ago. Sheriff Arpaio expanded the program through heavy recruiting, and got the volunteers involved in many areas of the Sheriff's Office. Search and rescue, prisoner transport, traffic control, backup for sworn deputies, and office administrative duties are some areas in which the Posse has provided free assistance. Holiday Mall Patrol deters crime during the holiday shopping season and provides motorist assistance and a sense of security for shoppers. Periodic Deadbeat Parent details target men and women with outstanding arrest warrants for failure to pay child support.

In 1996, Arpaio ran again for Sheriff, winning the election with 85 percent of the popular vote.

The publicity that Arpaio instituted through the 1990s led to him to be referred to as America's Toughest Sheriff, a title which appears to be self-proclaimed. (It has been documented that he has spent in excess of $20,000 in taxpayer money on media clipping services to follow such claims.)

He attends some of the Phoenix police's community activities personally, going as far as making free autograph show appearances several times a year. In addition to that, he oversaw the security detail of the New York Yankees baseball team when they were in Phoenix for the 2001 World Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Controversy

Scott Norberg

Arpaio has also been linked to several controversies, including the 1996 death of inmate Scott Norberg in the County jail, and the subsequent trial and acquittal of County Detention Officers.

Norberg was arrested for chasing two young girls in Mesa in order to kill them. High on methamphetamine, he attacked the jail Detention Officers who were trying to restrain him, resulting in his death. Norberg’s parents, who had disowned him years earlier, filed a lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Office. Arpaio defended his officers’ actions and wanted to go to trial, but the insurance company insisted on settling. The Justice Department and the FBI conducted an extensive investigation and came up with nothing.

Although Arpaio himself has not been found guilty of any crime, the county has paid monetary awards in lawsuits filed by family members against the county.

Fountain Hills prank calls

During April of 2004, Arpaio became involved in more controversy when he accused the West Bridgewater, Massachusetts Police Department of being unprofessional over their handling of surveillance tapes from an AT&T store that show a suspect making prank calls to several restaurants. The calls instructed restaurant managers to strip-search female customers, including minors. Several managers were arrested as a result. Arpaio believes that the suspect in the tapes from Massachusetts might be connected to a similar case in Fountain Hills. In response to Arpaio's comments, West Bridgewater Sheriff Raymund S. Rogers was quoted as saying "I think he's mad that our detectives just happen to be better than his detectives".

The West Bridgewater Police Department has refused to share the tapes showing the suspect prank-caller with Arizona law enforcement for the Fountain Hills investigation.

James Saville

James Saville was arrested in 1999 for attempting to murder the sheriff. Saville was found not guilty because the jury found that the sheriff department entraped Saville.[1]

Other Controversy

Arpaio has been accused of allowing the torture of inmates at his prisons in a British documentary from Channel 4.

External links

• Maricopa County Sheriff's Office
• Arapio.com: Anyone But Joe Arpaio in 2004
• Phoenix New Times articles about Joe Arpaio
• Mothers Against Arpaio