Sheriff Joe Arpaio takes witness stand in contempt of court hearing
Sep 30, 2015, 8:50 AM | Updated: 6:14 pm
(AP Photo)
PHOENIX — Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio took the witness stand for 30 minutes Wednesday in a civil contempt hearing that included his ignoring an injunction and pushing a retaliatory investigation.
Arpaio has already admitted in court in April that he didn’t abide by the court order that called for him to stop his immigration patrols.
The patrols continued for nearly two more years.
The hearings are examining how Arpaio’s office let its officers conduct immigration patrols for 18 months after the judge ordered them stopped.
During the springtime testimony, Arpaio said he didn’t quite understand the injunction. He also said his office had conducted a secret investigation into presiding U.S. District Judge Murray Snow’s family.
Snow had determined in 2013 that Arpaio’s deputies had profiled Latinos during traffic stops and immigration patrols.
The sheriff was asked about whether his immigration efforts were politically driven.
He denied the charge and explained he was trying to enforce laws.
Another part of the case involved the office’s refusal to turn over requested recordings of traffic stops and other documents before the profiling trial. Earlier this year, Arpaio acknowledged a contempt violation for not giving up the recordings.
Last week Arpaio’s second-in-command, Chief Deputy Jerry Sheridan, testified that he knew of the order to hand over those materials.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.