Under Babeu and Voyles, Pinal County became the poster child for abuse of RICO funds, prompting lawsuits and legislative reforms. Lamb says he was always interested in guns but didnt plan for a law enforcement career. Im already hurt me . For questions about programming, membership or anything else about KJZZ, please visit kjzz.org/contact. Babeu was tapping RICO funds to pay for Sheriff's Office travel as early as 2011. Contact. [1] Babeu was a 2012 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 4th Congressional District of Arizona. (FAIR has dismissed the characterization, calling the SPLC a partisan attack dog.) Earlier this summer, Lamb gathered some two dozen other sheriffs for a Protect America Now rally along the border in Arizona, where he declared, We are standing up for the Constitution, our oath and the rights of the people.. I asked Lamb if he was vaccinated, and he told me, through his PR representative, Corey Vale, to print exactly this: Thats nobodys damn business., Lamb makes a statement at the White House in support of Trumps veto of a bill that Congress passed to block the presidents declaration of a national emergency to fund a wall at the Southern border in March 2019. [7], In 1997, he ran for mayor of North Adams against incumbent Democrat John Barrett III. This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions. He says DeRose demanded the passwords to Babeu's websites and social-media accounts. See also: Babeu's Mexican Ex-Lover Says Sheriff's Attorney Threatened Him With Deportation Raymond Babeu was a longtime employee of the area's electric utility who was also active in local politics. and make legal threats opens a Pandora's box of ethics issues for any law enforcement person or any elected person. Babeu had previously deniedany knowledge or awareness of the abuse. Doug Barrett for POLITICO. Questions about the foundation also were raised in a 2015 federal lawsuit by attorneys from Perkins Coie and the American Civil Liberties Union. The Show highlights the creative builders, makers and designers that are sharing their talents with Arizonans. More recently, he was a consultant on Kanye Wests quixotic 2020 presidential campaign. Sheriff Paul Babeu, President of the Arizona Sheriff's Association and the National Sheriff of the Year, is Arizona's youngest Sheriff and leads the third largest Sheriff's Office in the state with 700 full-time employees. The decision by the AG's Office doesn't mean Babeu and Voyles have been cleared of wrongdoing. It could be the Justin cowboy hat he wears pulled low over his eyes and his penchant for Western shirts and a tactical vest in lieu of a uniform. . Questions about the foundation also were raised in a 2015 federal lawsuitby attorneys from Perkins Coie and the American Civil Liberties Union. He also holds a bachelor's degree in history and political science from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and a summa cum laude master of public administration from American International College. Phoenix's independent source of Weve come to the range because shooting is Lambs favorite pastime. Requests are often limited to reimbursements and often require proof of expenses. Babeu could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. Doug Ducey in 2017 signed a lawto increase oversight ofRICO expenditures and give people a better ability to challengeforfeiture laws. Paul Raymond Babeu (pronounced BAB-you; born February 3, 1969) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party who was sheriff of Pinal County, Arizona, from January 1, 2008, to January 1, 2017. Paul Babeu was a 2016 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 1st Congressional District of Arizona. There was an older Latino man named Randy wearing a snap-pocket shirt who had recently retired from a wild horse-and-burro program at the nearby prison and asked Lamb if he knew any cowboys. Voyles maintained that he implemented proper controls to ensure RICO funds were not misspent and pointed to audits conducted by the county, the Arizona Attorney Generals Office and the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission. Lamb chalked that up to an accountants error. 6:31PM. PCSO mouthpiece Tim Gaffney, in a statement posted online by the Arizona Daily Star, dismissed Karns e-mail by citing that no decision yet has been made by the Board of Supervisors, that this was merely an "organizational change to improve operations.". Pinal County is 5,400 square miles, roughly the size of Connecticut, and much of it is sand. A staunch conservative, Republican Babeu has made his stance on illegal immigration known to the nation as he fights for stricter laws. [8] In the general election, Barrett won re-election and defeated Babeu 53%-47%,[1] a difference of just 353 votes, in an election with an unusually high turnout rate of 75% among registered voters. Republican Mark Lamb succeeded Babeu as sheriff.[34][35]. LAMBERT: Babeus exit from the primary leaves Lake Havasu Republican Senator Ron Gould and 1st District Congressman Paul Gosar to fight it out for the GOP nomination. Before its cancellation, Live PD was immensely popular, capturing more viewers than any other cable program on Friday and Saturday nights. [6], At the end of this term in 1996, Babeu ran for a seat in the Massachusetts Senate based in Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin. | AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta. Doug Barrett for POLITICO. The man's allegations were first published Friday in the Phoenix New Times, an alternative weekly magazine. The audit also found that $151,645 of the community outreachmonies awarded to the foundation went to unauthorized uses benefiting the County Attorney or Sheriff's Office programs. With an action figure-style charisma and a growing media platform, Lamb sees it as his mission to educate the American public about the role of the sheriff, which he described to me as to protect people from the bad guys, and I always say the sheriff is also there to protect the people from government overreach. As much as he glorifies law enforcement, though, Lamb is selective about which laws he chooses to enforce. Sheriff Paul Babeu is a decorated lawman, Iraq war veteran, and a corruption fighter. They exchanged more texts on September 6. | Doug Barrett for POLITICO. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. true. He became the Republican nominee for Arizona's 1st congressional district in the 2016 elections after winning the primary on August 30, 2016. Jessica Pishko is a writer and a lawyer who is working on a book about sheriffs. She says she spoke directly to the sheriff's lawyer, DeRose, about the Babeu camp's threats that Orozco could be deported if he "revealed the relationship." He graduated from the Arizona Law Enforcement Academy as the #1 overall police recruit and was voted by his fellow officers as the class exemplary officer. Yet he styles himself as the American Sheriff a moniker around which he has spent the past several years trying to build a national brand as a fervent defender of law enforcement. Lately, Lamb has been supporting the campaign of Kari Lake, a Trump-endorsed former Fox anchor running for Arizonas open governors seat in 2022. "It is truly puzzling why Captain Karns overreacted to an organizational change that has yet to take place, and I can only surmise that some other issue is in play that made him lash out," Gaffney says in his statement. Doug Barrett for POLITICO. "He wanted his legal rights protected. Perhaps Paul Babeu, the Arizona sheriff and former Romney campaign manager, should spend more time studying the Republican Party's approach to gay rights. Babeu didn't pay him for his online services, he claims. (State records show, and Vale confirmed, that Lambs 2020 campaign provided a $10,000 loan to the group in August of last year.) If you didn't know better, you might think Babeu is still sheriff, based on his website. | Local activist Roberto Reveles, who through the ACLU of Arizona has organized against racial profiling and other anti-immigrant policies in the state, has known Lamb since his earliest days as sheriff. "Jose came to our firm because he felt he was being intimidated, and he was in fear for his life," Weiss-Riner says. "That's just the worst kind of hypocrisy. Babeu was born on February 3, 1969, in North Adams, Massachusetts, to Raymond and Helen Babeu. Sources said agents also are interested in whether Babeu and other staff used any RICO funds or other public resources for campaign purposes since Babeu is currently running for Congress. He says he once wrote a comment on Chino Valley eNews (on which Babeu had an account), where gay men arrange sexual liaisons. The subpoena, obtained by The Arizona Republic through a public records request, was issued in the spring and ordered Lamb to provide the RICO documents before September. Records showBabeu spent more than $53,000 to send 25 people to a weeklong conference in St. Louisat which he received a national award. By 2016, he had moved to Pinal County and decided to seek the sheriffs job, running as a Republican and, in his words, a constitutional conservative; he made a point of opposing abortion rights in his campaign, but he ran without the same cowboy image he has today. If it doesnt benefit Pinal County, I dont need to be on the news, he said at the time. This summer, he made a short video saying he would not require, or ask, his staff to get vaccinated. Once elected, Lamb promised he would focus on building relationships within the county. Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu just won a primary for a competitive congressional seat in Arizona. Karns, however, would have faced a nearly $15,000 pay cut. Since taking office in 2017, Lamb has become the face of a new online streaming service called the American Sheriff Network and of a nonprofit coalition of sheriffs called Protect America Now; he also founded a charity, the American Sheriff Foundation. [31] On August 30, 2016, Babeu was declared the winner of the Republican primary. A group of kids gathered around Lambs truck for sheriff-branded stickers. Robert Tsai, a constitutional law professor at Boston University, told me he sees Protect America Now as political in nature an effort to leverage sheriffs in mainstream Republican politics, while also branding [sheriffs] for future political careers. Lamb says Protect America Now is not a political organization, but that its efforts are viewed as political sometimes. Yet Protect America Now, a 501(c)4, was founded in June 2020 by a group that includes Nathan Sproul, an Arizona-based Republican strategist. The following February, Jose Orozco, who was an undocumented immigrant, claimed that Babeu and Orozco had been lovers since meeting in 2006 on an online dating site. A September 4, 2011, text from the sheriff reads: "You can never have business after this and you will harm me and many others in the process. Forfeiture money paid for Voyles' personal security system, retirement contributions of employees in his office and fundraising for the Sheriff's Office, according to the lawsuit. Foundation Executive Director Joseph Trasser has declined to discuss the subpoena and in March said the FBI probe of Babeu and Voyles "is not our issue.". . independent local journalism in Phoenix. He opposes all limitations on the Second Amendment. Visit his site and learn more today! Now in his second term, Shaun Babeu will be up for re-election in 2018. (Many job-safety rankings consider being a roofer more dangerous than being a police officer.). PHOENIX - Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu comes out and admits he's gay on Saturday a day after he's accused of a major scandal. Get the latest updates in news, food, music and culture, and receive special offers direct to your inbox. Im just speaking . The audit highlighted 31 awards, totaling $683,406 that went to the Arizona Public Safety Foundation. Babeu's statement said that "Border Patrol agents were shot at by drug smugglers last month on the Tohono O'odham Reservation south of Pinal County," but it's unclear whether the shooting involved . Help us fight for you and support local journalism.Subscribe to azcentral.com today. This month, he also was a featured speaker alongside Clarke, the former Milwaukee sheriff, and others at the American Priority Conference, a far-right convening held at Trumps resort in Miami. independent local journalism in Phoenix. Lamb won office the same year Sheriff Arpaio was defeated in Maricopa. The search was followed byan investigation by a federalgrand jury, which issued a subpoena for records evidencing misuse of county, state or federal RICO funds by Pinal County Sheriffs Office employees.. Melissa Weiss-Riner, Orozco's attorney, confirms her client's account. [11][12], Babeu joined the Massachusetts National Guard as a 21-year-old. "[30], Babeu ran for Arizona's 1st congressional district in the 2016 elections. Today its closer to 100, and a faint whisp of cloud floats in the sky, daring itself to cover the blazing sun. | Doug Barrett for POLITICO. If you're the victim of fraud, waste or abuse, reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8694. Photos by Doug Barrett/@400northcreative for Politico Magazine. According to sources with knowledge of the interviews, agents have asked about Sheriff Babeus use of a non-profit foundation run by some PCSO employees that received hundreds of thousands of dollars in funds that come from this seized criminal money. Gaffney points to Karns' past support of Babeu, including a letter he wrote recommending Babeu for the National Sheriff of the Year Award, and an e-mail commending Babeu for his leadership and stance on arming school administrators in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre. Please dont. Super Fans, Mascot Mania, and All-Stars: Suns and Nuggets Get Ready to Rumble, Katie Hobbs Gets Singed After Unwrapping Tamale-tastrophe, Fight Night: How Phoenix Became a Hotbed for Mixed Martial Arts Champions, New Attainable Not Necessarily Affordable Housing Coming to Downtown Phoenix, I Love the Rivalry: Fans Soak Up U.S.-Mexico Soccer Showdown in the Valley. Court records show that problems at the school arose years before Babeu took over as headmaster. He barely seems to sweat. | Senator John McCain and U.S. Sheriffs in almost every state operate independently with limited oversight, giving them the freedom to engage in political advocacy and appear in the media. In fact, Lambs constituents seem to love him: He was unopposed when he ran for reelection last fall and won another four-year term with 97 percent of the vote. BABEU: Clearly theres a disconnect with the federal government enforcing the law, doing their job and what were doing on the ground. | As we left the gun range during my visit to Pinal County and stopped by a gas station to hydrate, we again ran into more fans of Lambs. He says he commented anonymously that the sheriff was not who people thought he was. Descended from a long line of Mormons and still an unabashed member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he grew up all over the world, he is fond of saying, including the Philippines, Panama and Argentina, where he did his Mormon mission. [16] Babeu led the third largest sheriff's office in Arizona with 700 full-time employees. ", Antonio Bustamante, a criminal defense attorney and immigration activist, tells New Times that if the allegations against Babeu are true, "To use a position of authority. and help keep the future of New Times, Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our. But ABC15 remains unable to confirm Gaffney's statement. Lamb says the new network is important because we just felt like it was important to give [sheriffs] their voice back. When I asked if Lamb was concerned about a repeat of what happened in Texas, Vale dismissed it saying that lots of things are out of [the sheriffs] control. One episode features deputies tasing new recruits as part of their training, and watching as they scream pain. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. The 34-year-old from central Mexico charges that the sheriff's lawyer warned against mentioning the affair with Babeu. Phoenix's independent source of The new FBI interviews are the latest issue to hit Babeu as he attempts a second run for Congress.
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