Group walks out of county supervisors meeting over Arpaio debate

PHOENIX - Once again, things got uneasy at the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors meeting Wednesday morning.

After the leader of Citizens for a Better Arizona started addressing the five-member board, there was uproar when his supporters stood up.

The other side, Sheriff Joe Arpaio supporters, argued their view was being obstructed.

Randy Parraz, who leads Citizens for a Better Arizona, said they stood to show solidarity.

When things got chaotic, Parraz and his people walked out of the chambers.

"We're not going away and we're going to continue to put pressure until we get our day at the Board of Supervisors,” Parraz told his supporters outside the chambers.

By that point, the group had completed their mission: to deliver the 14-day notice to supervisors urging them to reign in Arpaio’s activity by way of his budget.

Close to a dozen speakers demanded the supervisors look into what they called Arpaio’s mismanagement of tax payer money.

Speakers mentioned other issues plaguing Arpaio: more than 400 mishandled sex crimes cases, the recent death of a veteran inside Arpaio’s jail and the recently-released Department of Justice investigation which alleges Arpaio racially profiled Latinos.

"I really believe that the board cannot duck this issue,” said Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox. “We must take responsibility and talk to the public about the impact of the Justice Department report."

Wilcox, one of five supervisors, urged their new chairman, Max Wilson, to place Arpaio on the agenda.

It’s not the first time she has urged her colleagues to take on the issue, she said.

The group is hoping the supervisors will place Arpaio on their January 25 meeting.

Supervisor Andy Kunasek, who is a former board chairman, wouldn’t talk to ABC15 on camera.

Current Chairman Max Wilson wouldn’t commit on an exact date to add Arpaio to the agenda.

“We want to address certain concerns. We don't want to be used. We want to solve problems and that's kind of direction we're going to head,” Wilson said.

Arpaio got plenty of support in and outside the chambers.

One women urged the supervisors to allow Arpaio to continue to do this job.

“Illegal is illegal…whether it's robbing or crossing that border, I want him to be able to enforce that law,” she said.