Sheriff Paul Penzone has dropped his defamation lawsuit against his predecessor over a TV commercial in the fall campaign that claimed Penzone assaulted his ex-wife 13 years ago during an argument.
Lawyers for Penzone dismissed the lawsuit against former Sheriff Joe Arpaio on Friday.
The dismissal came five days after Penzone took office as metro Phoenix's top law enforcer.
Penzone accused Arpaio of running the ad knowing that the allegation was false.
Arpaio's campaign maintained the allegation was fair game.
Penzone attorney Michael Manning says his client's crushing victory over Arpaio in November did what the lawsuit intended to do -- clear his name.
Kory Langhofer, an attorney for Arpaio, says the lawsuit would have ultimately ended in Arpaio's favor had the case run its course.
