He was Pinal County's first Republican sheriff. The Goldwater Institute, a conservative watchdog group, raised concerns about the foundation last year and sought records to determine if Babeu was using it to bypass campaign-finance laws and promote his 2016 congressional campaign. Solve this simple math problem and enter the result. Instead, his pro-sheriff messaging with media savvy and Trump-y politics thrown in the mix seems designed for a wider audience. [19], In late 2010, Babeu was asked by Maricopa County sheriff Joe Arpaio to investigate allegations of wrongdoing in Arapaio's department. Babeu made that announcement after reports surfaced that he had tried to have a former boyfriend deported. Arizona won't prosecute Paul Babeu, Lando Voyles on use of RICO funds Doug Barrett for POLITICO, Lamb went through a variety of jobs, including running a paintball business in Utah that ultimately failed. 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. | AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta. The sheriff didn't dispute the authenticity of any text messages or photos appearing with this article.). Babeu didn't pay him for his online services, he claims. Join the New Times community and help support [1][6], Babeu served as headmaster and later as executive director the DeSisto School in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, a school for troubled youths, from 1999 to 2001. independent local journalism in Phoenix. Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu announces run for Congress 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. The county also enjoys relatively low levels of crime. Babeu said that after the two had broken up, Jose committed crimes against him, including posting defamatory information online under Babeu's name. That morning I came home, and I told my wife I was gonna be a cop, he concluded. Babeu first mentioned the alleged crimes on Saturday, when he held a press conference to discuss Jose's allegations. "One of the reasons is that record-keeping was so poor.". [33], Babeu's tenure as sheriff ended on January 1, 2017, after his term expired. Babeu, who subsequently came out as gay, denied making threats, and a state attorney general investigation later cleared him of any criminal wrongdoing, concluding that the allegations were not supported by the facts. In 2016, Babeu ran for Congress; he lost, but the sheriff spot was left open for Lamb, who defeated Babeus anointed successor in the primary and took the general election. Lamb often invokes the importance of the rule of law but says of the Jan. 6 rioters, I guarantee you those people are very loving, Christian people. His own sisters told people not to vote for him. Now he's a GOP "[10] Babeu was not named in any allegation during the investigation by the state. local news and culture, Monica Alonzo . He started his service as a private and rose through the ranks to major in the Arizona Army National Guard. 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. Typically, county employees have the right to appeal any discipline they receive to the Pinal County Merit System Commission, a five-member board that can uphold, modify, or overturn county officials' decisions. For questions about programming, membership or anything else about KJZZ, please visit kjzz.org/contact. [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. "[18] He reported, "Pinal County contains an estimated 75-100 drug cartel cells and listening posts/observation posts, used to facilitate the illegal transportation of people and narcotics into the United States. The board is meeting Wednesday, and Babeu's request is on the agenda. Orozco shared text messages between him and Babeu with New Times. A group of kids gathered around Lambs truck for sheriff-branded stickers. The FBI is asking new questions about Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu and his offices use of seized criminal money. See also: Babeu Sticks It to Taxpayers and a Volunteer Rescue Team. Lamb has appeared multiple times with Trump at the White House and other political events. Paul Babeu, Arizona Sheriff, Allegedly Threatened Gay - HuffPost The FBI issued a subpoena last year to the Arizona Public Safety Foundation, which for years operated out of the Sheriff's Office and was staffed by sheriff's deputies. About 1,000 Trump supporters had descended on the state Capitol; one group of them brought a guillotine. Phoenix's independent source of FBI agents conducted an informal search of the Pinal County Sheriff's Office in March, taking items related to Babeu and his administration. He says lawyer Chris DeRose demanded he sign an agreement that he would never breathe a word about the affair. Paul Babeu - Joe Biden Bio 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. 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. Babeu could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. Pinal County Supervisor Jeff Serdy, who owns what he describes as a very high-volume gun shop in the area, told me, You could not ask for a better advocate for the Second Amendment than Sheriff Lamb. The back of Lambs black Chevy Silverado 2500 HD contains his workaday weaponry, including an AR-15 SBR. The lawsuit claimed the county agencies were misusing RICO funds and funneling money through the Arizona Public Safety Foundation. More recently, he was a consultant on Kanye Wests quixotic 2020 presidential campaign. . Pinal CountySheriff Mark Lamb said Wednesday that RICO funds no longer serve as a slush fund. The foundation used RICO funds from Pinal County to help support Sheriff's Office activities and functions. [1] Babeu has spoken of being molested for several years as a child by at least two Catholic priests, including Richard R. [10] Babeu stated that he had never been the target of an investigation or lawsuit and "was recognized for helping restore financial stability of the school. A Republican, he was elected in 2010 to represent the neighboring 1st congressional district . "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. If you didn't know better, you might think Babeu is still sheriff, based on his website. He has called vaccine mandates garbage and spoke at a recent anti-vaccine rally in Phoenix, where he told supporters, Were going to find out what kind of patriots you are. Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu who became the face of Arizona border security nationally after he started stridently opposing illegal immigration threatened his Mexican ex-lover with. When their relationship soured, Orozco claimed Babeu had threatened to have him deported unless he signed a contract swearing him to secrecy. See also: Babeu's Suspicious Past as School's Headmaster FBI probes Babeu's use of seized criminal money - KNXV Sheriff Babeu won his first term in a landslide election victory in 2008 over the incumbent Sheriff. and last updated 5:01 AM, Mar 30, 2016. The federal grand jury also asked for documents involving funds that were provided to the Arizona Public Safety Foundation, a non-profit agency that received hundreds of thousands of dollars in Pinal County RICO funds. The hosts called him. Pinal County Sheriffs Office spokeswoman Navideh Forghani said Friday that the sheriff already has complied with the demand and has turned over the records. The Goldwater Institute, a conservative watchdog group, raised concerns about the foundationin 2017 and sought records to determine if Babeu was using it to bypass campaign-finance laws and promote his 2016 congressional campaign. [2] If hes re-elected as sheriff, Babeu says he plans to continue to battle drug trafficking in the county. [5][17], Babeu has been an outspoken critic of the federal government on the issue of illegal immigration. Perhaps Paul Babeu, the Arizona sheriff and former Romney campaign manager, should spend more time studying the Republican Party's approach to gay rights. Doug Barrett for POLITICO. From 2006 to 2007, Babeu spent 17 months as commander of Task Force Yuma supervising 700 soldiers, where they supported the United States Border Patrol to achieve operational control and reduce illegal immigration. Melissa Weiss-Riner, Orozco's attorney, confirms her client's account. The man's allegations were first published Friday in the Phoenix New Times, an alternative weekly magazine. The Arizona Attorney General's Office said Wednesday it would not prosecute former Sheriff Paul Babeu and former County Attorney Lando Voyles for what it described as "eyebrow-raising". local news and culture, Stephen Lemons Arizona police seized $200 million in personal property, but where did the money go? He sarcastically thanks Babeu for "notifying me that you were involuntarily forcing an 'at-will' position on mepunitively reducing my pay by approximately $15,000 [and] handing me as good a 'Constructive Termination' cause of action as I have ever seen.". Get the latest updates in news, food, music and culture, and receive special offers direct to your inbox. 6:00AM. (The spot got picked up on Fox.) Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. Visit his site and learn more today! independent local journalism in Phoenix. He insists he doesnt have political ambitions beyond the sheriffs office, though. Babeu is vice president of the Arizona Sheriffs' Association[15] and was named the National Sheriff of the Year in 2011 by the National Sheriffs' Association. Lamb is a frequent talking head on Fox News and Newsmax, where he derides President Joe Bidens and Vice President Kamala Harris handling of immigration, and he has spoken at political events like a Turning Point Action summit a few months ago in Phoenix, where he quoted Shakespeare and Thomas Paine (Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered) and promised, The sheriffs are going to hold the line., Sheriff Mark Lamb has jurisdiction over Pinal County, a stretch of desert wedged between Phoenix and Tucson thats home to about 500,000 people.
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