PHOENIX — The American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona is opposing Maricopa County’s effort to prematurely end federal court oversight of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, arguing the agency has failed to fully comply with reforms ordered after findings of racially discriminatory policing, according to an ACLU press release issued Thursday.
According to the ACLU of Arizona, Maricopa County filed a motion seeking to terminate court-ordered reforms stemming from Ortega Melendres v. Sheridan, a long-running class action lawsuit that found the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office engaged in unconstitutional racial profiling and discriminatory immigration enforcement practices. The case originated during the tenure of former Sheriff Joe Arpaio and resulted in years of federal monitoring aimed at preventing future civil rights violations.
The ACLU press release states that the county’s motion follows a court-ordered budget report revealing that the sheriff’s office improperly attributed tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to compliance with the case. The report found that the department mischaracterized spending related to the lawsuit while still failing to complete key reforms required by the court, including reducing racial disparities in traffic stops and properly investigating allegations of deputy misconduct.
“Maricopa County’s move to prematurely halt reforms in Melendres ignores the enduring harm Latino residents have experienced at the hands of MCSO,” said Victoria Lopez, executive director of the ACLU of Arizona, in a statement released by the organization. She said the case is intended to ensure “meaningful, lasting reform,” not temporary changes that risk allowing unconstitutional practices to reemerge.
According to the ACLU, federal oversight was imposed after the court found that deputies routinely targeted Latino drivers for traffic stops without legal justification and engaged in unlawful immigration enforcement. The court-ordered reforms require MCSO to implement new policies, training, data collection and accountability measures to prevent racial profiling and civil rights violations, the press release explains.
The ACLU of Arizona noted that despite some progress, the sheriff’s office has not yet met all requirements needed to demonstrate sustained compliance. The organization stated that oversight should remain in place until MCSO can show that reforms are fully implemented and that discriminatory practices have been eliminated, rather than paused or reduced.
“The county’s effort to end reforms now is like a doctor choosing to end treatment when a patient’s cancer is only partially cured,” said Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, deputy director of the ACLU’s Criminal Law Reform Project, according to the ACLU press release. She warned that lifting oversight before full compliance risks undoing progress made since the court first intervened.
The ACLU emphasized that the lawsuit was never intended to be symbolic or temporary, but rather a structural intervention to address systemic misconduct within one of the largest sheriff’s offices in the country. According to the organization, ending court supervision before reforms are complete would jeopardize protections designed to prevent a return to the practices that led to the lawsuit.
The press release also highlights ongoing concerns that racial disparities in policing persist in Maricopa County, including unequal traffic stop patterns and unresolved misconduct investigations. The ACLU argues that these issues demonstrate the continued need for federal oversight to ensure accountability and transparency within the sheriff’s office.
The organization framed Maricopa County’s motion as part of a broader effort to shift attention away from compliance failures and public accountability. According to the ACLU, county residents remain entitled to policing practices that respect constitutional rights and protect against discrimination, particularly in communities historically targeted by law enforcement.
The ACLU of Arizona concluded that federal oversight should continue until Maricopa County can prove that reforms are durable, effective and fully implemented. The organization stated that ending supervision now would undermine the purpose of the Melendres ruling and risk repeating the harms that led to the lawsuit in the first place.
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