Arizona sheriff should resign for ignoring more than 400 sex crimes.

While an  Arizona Sheriff named Joe Arpaio declared war on undocumented workers in  his county (Maricopa, which includes Phoenix), he failed to investigate more than 400 sex crimes, including some that involved young children.

This isn’t  the first time Sheriff Arpaio has brought shame to his office —  something John Dougherty knows all too well. John was a journalist at  the Phoenix New Times for 13 years, where he investigated  Arpaio’s department extensively. John reported on abuses of power, civil  rights violations, and millions of dollars in wasted money under  Arpaio. Yet when John heard about the Sheriff’s failure to investigate even sex crimes involving children, he knew he had to do more.

John wants Sheriff Joe Arpaio to resign, but he knows that Arpaio won’t go quietly. John needs other Arizona officials to say Joe should go to turn up the pressure on Arpaio to resign.

John  started a petition on Change.org that asks the 5 members of the  Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to call for Sheriff Joe Arpaio to  resign. Can you add your name to John’s petition to turn up the heat on  Sheriff Arpaio?

Sheriff Joe  Arpaio’s directive to prioritize traffic stops and military-style raids  to find undocumented workers has had chilling results. While people who  committed no crimes are arrested, real felons put Phoenix-area  residents in danger.

According to the New York Times, one woman repeatedly asked Sheriff Arpaio’s department to “investigate the molestation of her three daughters.” Arpaio’s office wouldn’t budge, and an alleged child molester walks free in Maricopa County as a result.

The US  Department of Justice agrees that Arpaio’s office is out of control. In  an explosive report issued this week, the government said Sheriff Joe  Arpaio has repeatedly broken the law and violated thousands of people’s  civil rights. And just this weekend, Arpaio’s office allegedly left a  Gulf War veteran brain dead after repeatedly shooting him with a Taser  while in custody.

John  Dougherty, the reporter who started a petition on Change.org, thinks  that momentum is building to force out Sheriff Arpaio. It’s key that  pressure comes from the local level, and the best bet to make that  happen is with the Maricopa Board of Supervisors. While they can’t fire  Arpaio, it would be much-needed fuel on the fire burning under the  sheriff if they come out and say Arpaio should resign. And your signature could make the difference.

Join  3,300 other people who have signed John’s petition and demand that  local officials call on Sheriff Joe Arpaio to resign for ignoring sex  crimes.

Thanks for being a change-maker,

– Jackie and the Change.org team