Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has attracted national attention for his decision to move undocumented immigrants from the indoor facilities at a Maricopa County jail to Tent City. And segregate them from the rest of the population of Tent City.
Characteristically, Arpaio didn’t simply move the inmates. He alerted the media which appeared in force including television station helicopters. As disconcerting as the decision to segregate the inmates was the show Arpaio made of the move. As reported by Alternet.org, the inmates were accompanied by at least 50 MCSO deputies wearing body armor and combat fatigues and armed with shotguns and automatic rifles. They were also accompanied by at least two canine units. A Sheriff’s Department helicopter was overhead.
Almost all of those being marched to the newly segregated tents were Hispanic and there were all wearing black and white striped prison uniforms with the word unsentenced on the front of their shirts. It’s important to remember that many of these men have yet to be convicted of anything. Others have but are still awaiting trial for sentencing.
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