Apache Junction, Ariz., Dec. 15 -
In light of today's "damning" Justice Department report detailing illegal discrimination against Hispanic Americans by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, the Pinal County Greens today passed a resolution urging Sheriff Joe Arpaio to resign immediately.
"Enough is enough," said Richard Grayson, Pinal County Greens co-chair. "Sheriff Arpaio has done so much wrong during his terms in office that it would take 500 servers to contain all the data of his misdeeds. Joe, it's past time for you to go, and everyone but you apparently knows it."
Today's Justice Department report said that Arpaio oversaw a pattern of unconstitutional conduct that targeted Hispanics and retaliated against others who criticized the practices.
“We found discriminatory policing that was deeply rooted in the culture of the department - a culture that breeds a systemic disregard for basic constitutional protections," said Thomas E. Perez, assistant attorney general for civil rights. He laid the blame at Arpaio’s door, adding: “These issues go to the highest levels of the department."
Grayson, speaking for the Pinal County Greens, said, "It is unconscionable how little Joe Arpaio and his local apologists care for the Constitution. Even Maricopa County is a government of laws, not of unscrupulous men of zeal like the sheriff.
Arizona law enforcement needs to turn the page on Arpaio's sad chapter and let law-abiding officials create a compelling narrative of twenty-first century American justice for all."
The Pinal County Greens are members of the Arizona Green Party in Pinal County and supporters of Occupy Phoenix.
