The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors could approve a $10 million contract today to defend Sheriff Joe Arpaio, former County Attorney Andrew Thomas and their employees against legal claims stemming from their investigations into county officials.

Two county supervisors, judges, county employees and one private citizen stand to receive a combined $56 million if they get what they have asked for to settle claims for damages.

All claim they were wrongfully targeted by Arpaio and Thomas in lawsuits and criminal investigations.

The claimants are seeking compensation for legal fees and other damages alleged to have been suffered, including stress, insomnia, tarnished reputations, loss of appetite, emotional distress, headaches and loss of future earnings. Damages sought range from $1.75 million to $10 million. One claimant, Deputy County Manager Sandi Wilson, wants $2 million or a written apology from Arpaio.

The contract for outside counsel is scheduled to go before the five-member Board of Supervisors at a 9 a.m. meeting. Two supervisors - Chairman Don Stapley and Mary Rose Wilcox - themselves have filed claims seeking damages.

It is unclear how or if Stapley and Wilcox will vote today.

The contract proposes a legal-services agreement of up to $10 million over three years. County Risk Manager Peter Crowley said it would allow county officials to assign legal matters to one or more law firms.

"It's to give us additional law firms to use in these high-profile abuse-of-process cases - the Stapley claim, the Wilcox claim, the judges' claims," Crowley said. "What we need are attorneys who haven't represented the county and don't plan on representing the county in the future, because we don't want to have a conflict of interest arise in their representation."

Crowley said county officials likely would assign at least one firm to represent the sheriff, his office and employees, and a second firm to represent Thomas, his office and employees. Other firms may be hired as needed, he said.

County Manager David Smith is searching for a mediator to help resolve the claims.

Sheriff's Deputy Chief Jack MacIntyre said he hoped other county officials would think twice about those claims.

"Hopefully, a little time has gone by and some of the people that filed claims that really don't have any merit at all give it some second thought and view it for what it was and is - and that is something that really didn't have any efficacy in its birth, and hasn't gotten better with age," he said.

Last month, Kenneth Feinberg, who is in charge of BP's $20 billion compensation fund for Gulf oil-spill victims, notified the county that he was too busy resolving claims stemming from the spill and could not help mediate claims arising from the Arpaio-Thomas investigations.

Arpaio, Thomas and some of their employees are under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, which has been presenting evidence involving abuse-of-power allegations before a grand jury.