The following is an official statement by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio regarding yesterday's lawsuit against his office by the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington D.C. for alleged refusal to turn over documents. It is followed by another statement by his Washington D.C. attorney, Bob Driscoll.
"The Obama administration has filed three lawsuits against Arizona in the last few weeks ... one against a college district, one against the state of Arizona and now one against my office. Each lawsuit centers on something to do with alleged racial discrimination.
"These actions make it abundantly clear that Arizona, including this Sheriff, IS Washington's new whipping boy. Now it's time to take the gloves off.
"As for today's lawsuit against my office: These people in Washington met with my attorneys only a few days ago. And in that meeting, Washington got our cooperation; they admitted they already have thousands of pages of the requested documents; and they were given access to interview my staff and get into my jails.
"They smiled in our faces and then stabbed us in the back with this lawsuit. The Obama administration intended to sue us all along, no matter what we did to try to avert it.
"Washington isn't playing fair and it's time Americans everywhere wake up and see this administration for what it really is. Calculating, underhanded at times and certainly not looking out for the best interests of the legal citizens residing in this country. "
STATEMENT OF ROBERT N. DRISCOLL, COUNSEL TO SHERIFF JOSEPH ARPAIO AND THE MARICOPA COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE
"Today's lawsuit by the Department of Justice is part of a deliberate media strategy to "get tough" on Sheriff Arpaio and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and undermine immigration enforcement by a local Sheriff who is trying desperately to make up for this Administration's own indifference to the topic. The DOJ suit speaks loudly by what it does not say. It does not allege that Sheriff Arpaio or the MCSO have discriminated against anyone because the DOJ, after 18 months of soliciting allegations against Sheriff Arpaio, has come up empty. Even
the purported basis for the suit, which alleges a lack of "cooperation," is a sham. In fact, after meeting with the DOl last week, just last Friday, on behalf of MCSO, informed the DOJ that MCSO would cooperate with all reasonable document requests and would schedule tours of MCSO facilities and interviews with senior MCSO command staff. We were awaiting a response from DOJ, and this lawsuit is apparently it. Clearly DOJ is more interested filing its third lawsuit in as many weeks against Arizona defendants than in looking into the allegations that purportedly gave rise to its investigation. This lawsuit is nothing more than an attempt to obscure the fact that DOJ still has no case. Today's suit over documents does not change that."
CONTACT: ROBERT N. DRISCOLL (202) 239-3470
