Photo by Kathy McCraine
Sheriff Joe Arpaio just brokered a new deal with ICE. It allows him to continue to check immigration status in his jails, where about 10,000 souls reside. But the new deal squelches the Sheriff’s world-famous sweeps of the streets of Phoenix.
Sort of.
Of course, Sheriff Joe knew this deal was coming down weeks ago. You can’t convince me there wasn’t a lot of behind-the-scenes negotiating.
You see that I started this column with a picture of me and Sheriff Joe talking about the deal six weeks ago.
Does he look worried?
The Sheriff signed his first agreement, called 287 (g), with ICE several years ago. The old agreement allowed the Sheriff’s ICE-trained deputies to raid the streets looking for undocumented immigrants. Sure, there had to be a “reason,” like a cracked windshield, but we all knew the score here in Maricopa County.
Sheriff Joe was on the prowl for undocumented immigrants.
And most people in Arizona supported that. I am ashamed to say that many in the Grand Canyon State fear and sometimes hate Mexicans.
So while raiding the streets of Phoenix netted few immigrants, it brought a lot of free PR for a sheriff who wanted to please his conservative base.
We journos were voyeuristic enablers. We covered each and every raid, and Sheriff Joe loved that because the televised raids showed his supporters that he was on the job.
The old agreement the Sheriff signed with ICE a few years ago also allowed Sheriff Joe’s employees to check immigration status in the vast Maricopa County jail system. This is where Sheriff Joe got most stats of “illegals” he nabbed and sent to ICE for deportation. At this writing, he’s turned over more than 28,781 undocumented immigrants to ICE just because of the jail checks. The raids, by contrast, have netted less than 300 undocumented immigrants, according to The Arizona Republic.
The new agreement handed down from ICE allows the Sheriff to keep his jail stats. As for the PR, my guess is he’ll continue his raids using Arizona immigration laws, which are the harshest in the nation. Incredibly, if you’re an undocumented person, you can go to prison for smuggling yourself through Arizona. And things aren’t going to get better soon. The latest buzz is that state lawmakers might try to pass a law that failed last year. It slams undocumented immigrants for “trespassing” in Arizona.
So given the climate in Arizona, and the laws that exist and the laws that might exist, I don’t see why anyone would think the Sheriff lost a great deal with his new ICE agreement. He still has plenty of state law that will enable televised “sweeps” and he’s got the power to enforce laws anywhere he wants to in Maricopa County. He might huff and puff about his new ICE agreement, but little has actually changed.
I bet he’s not going to lose any sleep over it.
Not a wink.
I think what the sheriff does violates the constitution. It’s difficult for me to believe he’s allowed to continue his racist policies. He’s an embarrassment to the county and a financial burden to the taxpayers.
We moved from Arizona up to Washington state 10 years ago, but even up here his buffoonery is legendary.
You hit the nail on the head. He will never change. What about Andrew Thomas’ role. He is the one who tries to prosecute illegals for conspiracy with themselves for smuggling. And the media plays into both their hands. Sheriff Joe and Thomas manipulate the situations to get the coverage because they know the media cannot/will not resist. And the reporting fuels the fear they need to keep their jobs. It is a perpetual motion machine. The need to “report” fuels the activity which gives more to report. It is a symbiotic relationship and will exist until one side stops.
Terry – I’m surprised your blogroll and list of Arizona Journalism fails to list the East Valley Tribune’s Pulitzer-Prize winning “Reasonable Doubt” package by Ryan Gabrielson and Paul Giblin about our sheriff and him immigration tactics. Here’s a link:
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/page/reasonable_doubt
I am a Mexican-American and i am living the American dream. As an American I enjoy a lot of rights and opportunities but I also see the other side. One of my teachers once said “the more laws we allow to get passed the LESS rights we will have.” Some might think that this does not affect them but the things Arpio is doing will and has affected everyone in Maricopa County. Today he discriminates against Latinos, tomorrow against African, next year Asiana and some day it might just be all across the board including Caucasians.
How things get skewed! Joe Arpaio is tracking down
ILLEGAL immigrants, people who should not be in this
country! RACE has nothing to do with his work, he
is one man in this country is doing the job he was hired
to do.
Keep at it, but watch your back!