Lindstrom Family Auto Wash

photo by Maxine Miller and Brianna Jones

3003 E Indian School Rd, Phoenix

Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the sheriff’s office raided the family car wash, in June of 2007. They arrested 14 people, 12 of who had false ID’. The car wash was one of many businesses to be raided by Arpaio and the Sheriff’s office. Arpaio’s office is under investigation for allegations of discrimination and unconstitutional searches and seizures by the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Justice Department. 248 people were arrested in Arpaio raids, only 152 were arrested for having fake papers. In late march and early April of 2008 150 people were arrested by the sheriff, only 73 of them were illegal immigrants, meaning that over half of the people he arrested were completely innocent (MSNBC, 2008). His only defense against that accusation to racial profiling was, “"It isn't racial profiling. We don't arrest just anybody on a street corner" (MSNBC, 2008) However, an American born landscaper saw an Hispanic man pulled over twice, the driver was obviously Hispanic. The landscaper said that it made him really angry because if they pulled him over once and they found he was not illegal and then they pulled him over again. (MSNBC, 2008). Arpaio is clearly using forms of racial profiling and targeting, not only people, but places that seem as if they might employ people in the country illegally. The Sheriffs raids seem to be ineffective at best, “But other tactics appear to be much more effective in identifying illegal immigrants for deportation, and the raids have little, if any effect on actual human smuggling operations or on rates of crime,” (Bolick, 2008). They mayor of Guadalupe, is angered at the Sheriff’s raids in her community. She says that she did not ask for any raids to be done in her community, clamming that the raids were only used to raise Arpaio’s profile for his reelection. Not to mention the danger it puts on the law enforcement officers and citizens of that community, “by failing to coordinate its raids with local police authorities, MCSO places law-enforcement officers and citizens at great risk” (Bolick, 2008). While he may not be braking any laws his is pushing the boundaries of peoples tolerance. One of these people is the mayor of Phoenix, who thinks the Sheriff should be using his time more wisely and focusing on more pressing matters, such as people with arrest warrants out. May court cases have been filed against the sheriff in reaction to his raids, “although Sheriff Arpaio says that he wins the vast majority of court claims that are field against him, he has lost a substantial number of high-profile cases, at great taxpayer expense,” (Bolick, 2008). They mayor has also asked for an investigation to be done concerning the racial profiling accusations against the Sheriff. There is a hint of hypocrisy of the Sheriffs actions ring true in this one quote form Latino protesters “we didn’t cross the border, it crossed us” (Moctezuma, & Davis).

- Maxine Miller and Brianna Jones

 

Resources

Bolick, C. (2008). Mission unaccomplished: h e misplaced priorities of the maricopa county sheriff’s office. Policy report, 229. Retrieved from http://elementmortgage.org/Common/Img/Mission%20Unaccomplished.pdf

Moctezuma, A, & Davis, M. (n.d.). Policing the third border in the suburbs of los angeles, whites are erecting a new border. 11. Retrieved from https://myasucourses.asu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_group=courses&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fcontent%2FcontentWrapper.jsp%3Fattachment%3Dtrue%26navItem%3Dcontent%26content_id%3D_4971317_1%26course_id%3D_195027_1%26displayName%3DMoctezuma_Davis_Policing%2Bthe%2BThird%2BBorder.pdf%26href%3D%2F%2540%2540%2FE828E5EA4B75E1B3512506134F79816A%2Fcourses%2F1%2F2011Spring-T-Flett%2Fcontent%2F_4971317_1%2FMoctezuma_Davis_Policing%252520the%252520Third%252520Border.pdf

MSNBC. (2008, April 25). Sheriff raising furor with immigration raids. Associated Press, Retrieved from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24314764/ns/us_news-life/