Just got this in my email, thought it was interesting, and didn't find it here. I'm sure most all of you know who he is. He rocks!!! (Not sure who the author of the article is....the email didn't say...)



SHERIFF JOE ARPAIO

What every county in America should have as their sheriff!

SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN! -- Update on Joe Arpaio

Oh, there's MUCH more to know about Sheriff Joe! Maricopa County was spending approx. $18 million dollars a year on stray animals, like cats and dogs. Sheriff Joe offered to take the department over, and the County Supervisors said okay.

The animal shelters are now all staffed and operated by prisoners. They feed and care for the strays. Every animal in his care is taken out and walked twice daily. He now has prisoners who are experts in animal nutrition and behavior. They give great classes for anyone who'd like to adopt an animal.

He has literally taken stray dogs off the street, given them to the care of prisoners, and had them place in dog shows.

The best part? His budget for the entire department is now under $3 million.

Teresa and I adopted a Weimaraner from a Maricopa County shelter two years ago. He was neutered, and current on all shots, in great health, and even had a microchip inserted the day we got him. Cost us $78.
The prisoners get the benefit of about $0. 28 an hour for working, but most would work for free, just to be out of their cells for the day. Most of his budget is for utilities, building maintenance, etc. He pays the prisoners out of the fees collected for adopted animals.

I have long wondered when the rest of the country would take a look at the way he runs the jail system, and copy some of his ideas. He has a huge farm, donated to the county years ago, where inmates can work, and they grow most of their own fresh vegetables and food, doing all the work and harvesting by hand.

He has a pretty good sized hog farm, which provides meat, and fertilizer. It fertilizes the Christmas tree nursery, where prisoners work, and you can buy a living Christmas tree for $6 - $8 for the Holidays, and plant it later. We have six trees in our yard from the Prison.

Yup, he was reelected last year with 83% of the vote.

Now he's in trouble with the ACLU again.

He painted all his buses and vehicles with a mural, that has a special hotline phone number painted on it, where you can call and report suspected illegal aliens.

Immigrations and Customs Enforcement wasn't doing enough in his eyes, so he had 40 deputies trained specifically for enforcing immigration laws, started up his hotline, and bought 4 new buses just for hauling folks back to the border. He's kind of a 'Git-R Dun' kind of Sheriff.

TO THOSE OF YOU NOT FAMILIAR WITH JOE ARPAIO, HE IS THE MARICOPA ARIZONA COUNTY SHERIFF AND HE KEEPS GETTING ELECTED OVER AND OVER THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY:

Sheriff Joe Arpaio (In Arizona) who created the 'Tent City Jail': He has jail meals down to 40 cents a serving and charges the inmates for them.

He stopped smoking and porno magazines in the jails.

Took away their weights and cut off all but 'G' movies.

He started chain gangs so the inmates could do free work on county and city projects.

Then He Started Chain Gangs For Women So He Wouldn't Get Sued For Discrimination.

He took away cable TV until he found out there was a federal court order that required cable TV for jails. So He Hooked Up The Cable TV Again Only Let In The Disney Channel And The Weather Channel. When asked why the weather channel He Replied, 'So They Will Know How Hot It's Gonna Be While They Are Working ON My Chain Gangs.'

He Cut Off Coffee Since It Has Zero Nutritional Value. When the inmates complained, he told them, 'This Isn't The Ritz/Carlton.....If You Don't Like It, Don't Come Back.'

He bought Newt Gingrich's lecture series on videotape that he pipes into the jails. When asked by a reporter if he had any lecture series by a Democrat, he replied that a democratic lecture series might explain why a lot of the inmates were in his jails in the first place.

More On The Arizona Sheriff:

With Temperatures Being Even Hotter Than Usual In Phoenix (116 Degrees Just Set A New Record), the Associated Press Reports: About 2,000 Inmates Living In A Barbed-Wire-Surrounded Tent Encampment At The Maricopa County Jail Have Been Given Permission To Strip Down To Their Government-Issued Pink Boxer Shorts.

On Wednesday, hundreds of men wearing boxers were either curled up on their bunk beds or chatted in the tents, which reached 138 Degrees inside the week before.

Many were also swathed in wet, pink towels as sweat collected on their chests and dripped down to their PINK SOCKS.

'It Feels Like We Are In A Furnace,' Said James Zanzot, An Inmate Who Has Lived In The TENTS for 1 year. 'It's Inhumane.'

Joe Arpaio, the tough-guy sheriff who created the tent city and long ago started making his prisoners wear pink, and eat bologna sandwiches, is not one bit sympathetic. He said Wednesday that he told all of the inmates: 'It's 120 Degrees In Iraq And Our Soldiers Are Living In Tents Too, And They Have To Wear Full Battle Gear, But They Didn't Commit Any Crimes,So Shut Your Damned Mouths!'

Way To Go, Sheriff! Maybe if all prisons were like this one there would be a lot less crime and/or repeat offenders. Criminals should be punished for their crimes - not live in luxury until it's time for their parole, only to go out and commit another crime so they can get back in to live on taxpayers money and enjoy things taxpayers can't afford to have for themselves.

On the news (December 11, 2007) Sheriff Joe has instituted another Road Gang for DUI Offenders. They will clean up around Phoenix and wear a pink shirt with a sign on the back that says 'Cleaning and Sober' and striped prison pants.

What a guy. You just gotta love him.

Weights I can understand, it's harder to restrain jacked inmates, but taking away their smokes and pornos? That's just cruel.

If more prisons take this path, then the number of criminals who choose to shoot it out rather than be captured will increase. And I'm pretty sure no one wants that.

Don't get me wrong; I'm sure some of them deserve it.

oh... good point. I didn't read the second part...
(I guess that teaches me for not reading the whole thing. I only read the Animal Shelter part.)

I dunno, I'm a confirmed lift-a-holic, I gotta have something I can work out with

But as a person looking into the vet profession, I admire his work in that sector.

We need more jailkeepers like Sherriff Joe.

I dunno, he seems to have his fair share of detractors too... And I tell you this most of the prisoners are minimum risk. They are either people who couldn't make bail, awaiting trial, or are serving a year or less.
The Sheriffs system seems very draconian for prisoners who haven't been convicted of a serious crimes. Sheriff jail isn't supposed to be a SUPERMAX. He also seems to love publicity...

He also plenty of detractors.

General -His brutal tactics has gotten the state sued several times...

http://www.villagevoice.com/news/074...a,78102,2.html

Financial irregularities ($41 Million missing)

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2008-...o-s-rithmetic/

Civil Rights (Phoenix Mayor requests FBI investigation on Civil Right Violations)
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepu...rpaio0413.html

There's some good, but not enough.

Originally Posted by mmarsh

I dunno, he seems to have his fair share of detractors too... And I tell you this most of the prisoners are minimum risk. They are either people who couldn't make bail, awaiting trial, or are serving a year or less.
The Sheriffs system seems very draconian for prisoners who haven't been convicted of a serious crimes. Sheriff jail isn't supposed to be a SUPERMAX. He also seems to love publicity...

You know I am just not certain I care, for as much as I believe people should be afforded every opportunity to prove themselves innocent I also believe that people convicted of crimes are sent to prison not just to get them out of the publics presence but also as a punishment and as such their time in prison should not be an enjoyable experience.

So other than applying it to those awaiting trial I really don't have an issue with what this guy is doing in terms of prisoner treatment however I do think his personal activities are a lot on the dodgy side so who knows a few years from now he may find himself on the receiving end of his own system.

Good, Bad or Indifferent???

I feel that after having read a little about the man that he is little more than a publicity seeking public official.

Many of his ideas to my way of thinking are quite good, but they are nothing new, the Russkies have had labour camps with similar regimes for 100 years, and we never missed a chance to belittle them and run them down. Did they know something we were too stupid to admit?

Having said that, I like the ideas, but I'm not too keen on the man, something sets off a little alarm bell somewhere in my conscience as to his motives. But I suppose that is only natural, the man is an elected public official, and they always bring out the cynic in me.

Originally Posted by MontyB

You know I am just not certain I care, for as much as I believe people should be afforded every opportunity to prove themselves innocent I also believe that people convicted of crimes are sent to prison not just to get them out of the publics presence but also as a punishment and as such their time in prison should not be an enjoyable experience.

So other than applying it to those awaiting trial I really don't have an issue with what this guy is doing in terms of prisoner treatment however I do think his personal activities are a lot on the dodgy side so who knows a few years from now he may find himself on the receiving end of his own system.

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In the US, the basis of our legal system is INNOCENT until proven GUILTY. That means for *some* of the prisoners they haven't been convicted of any crime yet, though the system in Arizona is already treating them as if they were convicted. Thats neither right, nor smart.

For the rest, as Gilbert and Sullivan once wrote "Let the Punishment fit the crime". I am not saying they should live the life of luxury, but depriving people of coffee, and other little things that have NO consequence on the prison is cruel, especially when those inmates are serving minor crimes like DUI, Drunk and Disorderly, or unpaid parking tickets. Remember this is COUNTY jail, not State or Federal Prison.

There is a safety concern too. Prisons are very stressful places, you push people too hard and they will snap; hurt others or themselves. This has even happened to inmates with no prior violent tendencies. Some people cannot deal with the stress of incarceration. So by running a pissant county jail like its Stalag 19 the sheriff is putting other inmates, guards, and workers at risk. And he has already been sued because of it.

What is the sheriff trying to prove? Not to come back to jail? If you've ever seen a jail, you don't need to grind in the heel to prove that. Remember these inmates are people who couldn't pay bail, are awaiting trial, and those convicted of minor offences.