PHOENIX (AP) - Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone says he wants to rebuild his office’s relationship with communities that felt targeted when former Sheriff Joe Arpaio was in power.
Since defeating Arpaio in the November election, Penzone has distanced himself from the policies of the former sheriff, whose harsh immigration tactics included well-publicized sweeps and raids.
But some residents of Guadalupe say Penzone needs to do more to make up for the actions of the previous administration in the town of about 5,500 residents, The Arizona Republic reported last week (https://bit.ly/2mHdEMo ).
Tensions between Guadalupe and the sheriff’s office culminated during a 2008 sweep in which 22 people were arrested, including five believed to be in the country illegally.
Penzone discussed his desire to change community perceptions of the sheriff’s office at a court-mandated community meeting with Guadalupe residents in January.
“I don’t expect this to happen overnight,” Penzone said, “but my actions will speak louder than my words tonight.”
A federal judge previously appointed a court monitor to update the community on the agency’s compliance with court orders against racial profiling of Latinos. During the monitor’s sixth and seventh quarterly report in 2016, compliance only moved from 37 percent to 38 percent.
Some residents of Guadalupe, which contracts with the sheriff’s office because the town does not have its own police force, asked when the community can expect an apology.
Penzone told the newspaper in an interview that it would not be fair to ask the office to apologize for his predecessor’s actions.
“I can be empathetic with their desire to want an apology for actions that were deemed to be unfair or illegal,” Penzone said. “An apology should come from who caused it.”
Penzone laid out his priorities earlier this year in a 100-day plan that created a committee charged with examining Arpaio’s policies. It is made up of lawyers, former law enforcement officials and community members who work with the county’s minority communities.
One of the first items on its agenda is the future of Arpaio’s Tent City jail, Penzone said.
Penzone has ended an Arpaio policy that kept immigrants locked up in jails past their release date to give federal authorities extra time to launch deportation proceedings.
But Carlos Garcia, director of the Puente Human Rights Movement, criticized Penzone for being slow to make more changes.
Puente was formed in 2007 in response to the sheriff’s office gaining authority to enforce federal immigration laws.
“Because Arpaio caused so much harm, Penzone does not have much time,” Garcia said.
___
Information from: The Arizona Republic, https://www.azcentral.com
Please read our comment policy before commenting.