Racial-profiling trial begins for Ariz. sheriff

Associated Press

PHOENIX

Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s anti-illegal immigration patrols took center stage Thursday in federal court as a group of Latinos set out to prove that his deputies racially profiled them as part of a systemic policy of discrimination.

A lawyer for the plaintiffs who filed a civil lawsuit against Arpaio’s department said in opening statements that the evidence will show that Arpaio and his deputies discriminated against Hispanics.

“It’s our view that the problem starts at the top,” attorney Stan Young said.

Tim Casey, who is defending Arpaio, said the patrols were properly planned out and executed. He said they exceeded police standards. “Race and ethnicity had nothing to do with the traffic stops,” Case said.

Arpaio has said people pulled over were approached because deputies had probable cause to believe they had committed crimes and that officers only learned afterward that many were illegal immigrants.

The plaintiffs aren’t seeking money damages. They want a declaration that Arpaio’s office racially profiles and an order that requires the department to make changes to prevent what they said is discriminatory policing.

The lawsuit will serve as a precursor to a U.S. Justice Department’s case that alleges a broader range of civil-rights violations by Arpaio’s office. A DOJ lawyer leading the agency’s civil-rights case watched the trial.

For years, Arpaio, the self-proclaimed toughest sheriff in America, has denied allegations that his deputies in Arizona’s most-populous county racially profile Latinos in his trademark patrols.

The plaintiffs say deputies based some traffic stops on the race of Hispanics who were in vehicles, had no probable cause to pull them over and made the stops to ask about their immigration status.