Anti-Thomas rally draws more than 250 people in Phoenix

Discontent with Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas' and Sheriff Joe Arpaio's legal battles with county officials moved to a public forum Monday and received a boost from an unexpected source with inside knowledge of their cases.

Hundreds of attorneys gathered on the courthouse steps in downtown Phoenix to protest Thomas and Arpaio's public campaign against public corruption. And, in a scathing letter to The Arizona Republic, the Yavapai County attorney, who previously handled some of Thomas' cases against county officials, blasted the prosecutor and sheriff as "a threat to the entire criminal-justice system."

Sheila Polk, a Republican and career prosecutor, spent six months working on two of the cases sought by Thomas and Arpaio in their ongoing battle against county officials and the courts. Her office handled the first criminal case against Supervisor Don Stapley and the investigation into the disputed Superior Court tower project.

In her letter, Polk wrote that although Maricopa County isn't her jurisdiction, she can't sit by and watch the abuses from a distance anymore.

"I am conservative and passionately believe in limited government, not the totalitarianism that is spreading before my eyes," she wrote. "The actions of Arpaio and Thomas are a disservice to the hundreds of dedicated men and women who work in their offices and a threat to the entire criminal-justice system."

Polk had stayed out of the legal drama in Maricopa County, and her remarks offer the first insight from an outside law-enforcement official who has some knowledge of the cases Arpaio and Thomas have lodged against county officials.

Maricopa County Sheriff's Chief Deputy David Hendershott said that the Yavapai County Attorney's Office mishandled the allegations and that Polk wasn't as familiar with the cases as she implied.

But Polk's words appeared to shock Thomas, who learned about the letter the same day a rally was held near his office.

More than 250 people, mostly attorneys, gathered in front of the Superior Court complex in downtown Phoenix on Monday to protest criminal charges filed against a Superior Court judge who is accused of hindering prosecution, obstructing a criminal investigation and bribery.

Thomas laughed off the rally with a quip: "They predicted 1,000 people would turn out, and obviously that didn't materialize. So, I guess I'm not as big a draw as the sheriff."

He said he could not comment on Polk's letter.

Hendershott spoke on behalf of Arpaio. Hendershott said that Polk's office repeatedly failed to issue subpoenas the Sheriff's Office needed.

"It seemed clear to us that this case was being deliberately stalled," he said. "We basically let her know that her work product was ineffective."

Hendershott implied that Polk was interested in becoming a judge and was trying to curry favor with attorneys and politicians by stalling the investigation. Polk declined to comment, saying the letter speaks for itself.

Hendershott said that, after learning of Polk's letter, he also notified the FBI of his concerns about Polk's handling of the investigations.


Source