Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone plans to work on strengthening relationships
Jan 6, 2017, 7:18 AM
(AP Photo/Matt York)
(AP Photo/Matt York)
PHOENIX — New Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone said he wants to work on strengthening the relationship between the department and the people it serves during his time in office.
“Over a long period of time starting today, we invest in relationships — relationships with those that we serve, no matter what they look like or where they come from,” Penzone said in a one-on-one interview with KTAR.
Penzone, who was sworn in on Monday as the county’s newest sheriff in 24 years, said another goal for his administration is to prioritize the safety concerns of the community.
“We have a lot of fugitives that are repeat offenders,” he said. “I want to develop a very comprehensive and talented team of men and women who go out and catch people and put them behind bars [to] be held accountable for the crimes they’ve committed.”
As for his predecessor’s infamous “Tent City,” Penzone said he will keep the alternative jailing method — but only if it makes sense to do so.
“It should be [open] because it’s needed for some reason,” he said.” If so, you run it the right way. If it falls short of those standards, then we close it.”
For now, Penzone said he wants to establish “what I stand for as a law enforcement leader, and select the men and women of the organization to fill the positions that are best suited to move us in that direction.”
