Darryl Webb / Reuters
Federal prosecutors on Tuesday said they plan on charging Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio with criminal contempt for violating a court order to stop detaining people suspected of being in the country illegally.
Arpaio, the self-proclaimed “toughest sheriff in America,” has made a name for himself by being tough on undocumented immigrants and making inmates at his infamous Tent City facility wear pink underwear.
The announcement Tuesday of pending charges comes one day before early voting begins in his reelection bid.
Plans to file charges against Arpaio were reported by the Associated Press and Arizona Republic. The DOJ did not immediately respond to BuzzFeed News' request for comment.
The charges are response to a 2007 lawsuit in which a federal court ruled that Arpaio’s Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office profiled and illegally detained Latinos during traffic stops. The court ordered them to stop the practice in 2013.
In March 2015, Arpaio and his chief deputy admitted to violating the court order, one month before Arpaio and Chief Deputy Jerry Sheridan were scheduled to appear in court for an evidentiary hearing that could disclose the inner workings of the sheriff’s office.
If convicted, Arpaio could face up to six months in jail for misdemeanor criminal contempt, but could still keep his position as sheriff.
However, if he’s convicted of a felony, he faces an unspecified sentencing range, which could force him out of office.
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