Oct 13, 2011
Romney's Babeu blunder
Arizona Democratic Party executive director Luis Heredia released the following statement in response to Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu endorsing Mitt Romney:
“We really have to hand it to Mitt Romney for landing the endorsements of two Arizona Republicans who truly represent him. First, there was flip-flopper Jeff Flake. And now, he has Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, who like Romney clearly has an affinity for the finer things – even if he has to misappropriate taxpayer funds to get them. Babeu’s choice to spend $53,000 in taxpayer funds so that he could fly 25 people to St. Louis to watch him receive an award is no less absurd than Romney’s refusal to back tax cuts for the middle class while going over blueprints for the new wing of his $12 million La Jolla mansion.”
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
Pinal County Sheriff's Office used RICO, jail funds for travel
Pinal Sheriff's Office spent $53,000 on Mo. trip
by Lindsey Collom - Aug. 28, 2011
The Arizona Republic
Records show about half of the trip was paid by court fees given to the Sheriff's Office to improve county jails. The other half came from seized cash and property meant to fund investigations and prosecutions.
The Pinal County Sheriff's Office spent more than $53,000 this summer to send 25 people to a weeklong conference in St. Louis where the sheriff received a national award.
Sheriff's officials say the funds were used in a manner allowable under statute. But critics see the trip as little more than a junket at a time when Sheriff Paul Babeu claims he's hurting for cash to combat drug cartels and has sought public donations to provide his deputies with rifles.
"It may pass the legal test, but some people may say this doesn't pass the smell test," said Mary Marshall, spokeswoman for the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission. "Some people are going to have disagreements about, is this the proper use?"
