Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who claims to be the toughest sheriff in America, has received the first step in the contempt process of federal court. The court found him in contempt last year. See my prior post about Sheriff Joe here. Judge Snow in Maricopa County, or Phoenix, Arizona, has ordered a re-organization of the internal affairs department at the Sheriff’s office. The Sheriff’s office has already been found in civil contempt. Civil contempt simply means jail time is not an option.

It seems that someone in the internal affairs department kept a set of video tapes showing racial profiling in some traffic stops. Those tapes were expected to be used at trial. But, suddenly, they went missing. Ok.  . .  no one said Sheriff Arpaio is subtle. Of course, hiring a private investigator to investigate Judge Snow’s wife was not subtle other.

Still unresolved is the possibility that the Sheriff and his top aide, Jerry Sheridan, will be found in criminal contempt. They did violate the Judge’s orders. Criminal contempt would involve fines or jail time. See CBS news report.

According to the report, the citizens of Phoenix will have to pay another $13 million over the next year to pay for this case. They have already paid $41 million. All this just so Sheriff Joe can profile Hispanics.