Fed Appeals Court Will Name A Special Prosecutor To Argue Joe Arpaio's Guilty Verdict Should Stand

Source: Buzzfeed News

A Federal Appeals Court Will Name A Special Prosecutor To Argue Joe Arpaio's Guilty Verdict Should Stand

The Justice Department won't defend a judge's order denying Arpaio's request to vacate the guilty verdict in his criminal contempt case following his pardon by President Trump.

Posted on April 17, 2018, at 11:59 a.m.

Zoe Tillman
BuzzFeed News Reporter
Washington, DC

Reporting From
Washington, DC

The Justice Department won't defend a judge's refusal to toss out the guilty verdict against Joe Arpaio following his pardon by President Donald Trump last year, so a federal appeals court will appoint a special prosecutor to do it instead.

In a 2-1 order on Tuesday, the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit found that as Arpaio challenges an order that would keep the guilty verdict against him on the books even after he was pardoned, the court would not get "the benefit of full briefing and argument" unless it brought in a special prosecutor.

Arpaio, the former sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona, opposed the appointment of a special prosecutor, arguing it would be "totally improper" and that the court would be taking an "accusatory role" by appointing a lawyer to defend the lower court judge's decision. Arpaio's lawyer did not immediately return a request for comment. Arpaio is now running for one of Arizona's Senate seats.

A judge in July, 2017, found Arpaio guilty of criminal contempt for disobeying an order that his office stop engaging in certain tactics used to catch people suspected of being unlawfully in the United States.

Read more: https://www.buzzfeed.com/zoetillman/joe-arpaio-verdict-defense?utm_term=.irVe22Edw&bftwnews#.opEaJJVjX