Bill Text: AZ SCR1039 | 2012 | Fiftieth Legislature 2nd Regular | Introduced
Bill Title: Sheriff Arpaio; denouncing practices
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 15)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-02-01 - Referred to Senate RULES Committee [SCR1039 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2012-SCR1039-Introduced.html
|
REFERENCE TITLE: Sheriff Arpaio; denouncing practices |
|
State of Arizona Senate Fiftieth Legislature Second Regular Session 2012
|
|
SCR 1039 |
|
|
|
Introduced by Senators Gallardo, Lopez, Lujan, Schapira; Representatives Campbell, Gonzales, Hobbs, Miranda C: Senators Cajero Bedford, Jackson, Landrum Taylor, Meza; Representatives Alston, Gallego, McCune Davis
|
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
denouncing the discriminatory practices of sheriff joe arpaio.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Whereas, Sheriff Joe Arpaio has served as Maricopa County Sheriff since 1993; and
Whereas, under Sheriff Arpaio's leadership, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) failed to investigate more than 400 sex crimes that were assigned to his office; and
Whereas, in El Mirage alone, the Sheriff's Office failed to adequately investigate or completely ignored at least 32 reported child molestation cases, including one involving a two-year-old child, even though suspects were known in all but six cases; and
Whereas, Sheriff Arpaio's office refused several requests over a period of months to answer questions about the investigations and declined a public records request for an internal affairs report; and
Whereas, Sheriff Arpaio and his high-ranking officers have already admitted that policy violations occurred, and as a result many perpetrators of these sex crimes went unpunished; and
Whereas, the United States Department of Justice, in a recently released report, concluded that MCSO, including its deputies, supervisory staff and command staff, engages in racial profiling of Latinos, unlawfully stops, detains and arrests Latinos and unlawfully retaliates against individuals who complain about or criticize MCSO's policies or practices; and
Whereas, Sheriff Arpaio has stated on many occasions that he is America's toughest sheriff and that he is in charge of his department; and
Whereas, Marty Atencio, a Latino veteran, was recently apprehended and booked by sheriff's deputies and later died while in custody; and
Whereas, community and elected leaders have expressed their disappointment and frustration with Sheriff Arpaio by calling for his resignation; and
Whereas, other leaders in state and local government continue to adhere to a code of silence and refuse to stand up for children who have been sexually violated, citizens who have been stripped of their constitutional right to free speech and taxpayers who continue to foot the bill for million dollar legal payouts due to the failed leadership of Joe Arpaio.
Therefore
Be it resolved by the Senate of the State of Arizona, the House of Representatives concurring:
That the Members of the Legislature denounce in the strongest terms the policies and practices of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and acknowledge that the issues of discrimination, uninvestigated sex crimes, abuse of power and waste of millions of dollars are indicative of his failure as Maricopa County's sheriff.
