Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery is reviewing 400-plus botched sex-crimes investigations to determine whether any might still be brought to justice, but he and other county officials sought to distance themselves Wednesday from calls for Sheriff Joe Arpaio's resignation over them.

About a hundred Arpaio critics converged at a county Board of Supervisors meeting to ask supervisors to push for the sheriff's resignation. Members of Citizens for a Better Arizona asked supervisors to hold a formal discussion and take a stance on the issue in January.

The board deferred any action at least until Montgomery's office completes its review. It is unclear whether the supervisors would act even if the county attorney acted or issued a formal legal opinion.

Democratic state lawmakers last week began calling for Arpaio's resignation over the bungled investigations of the sex-crime cases, including dozens in El Mirage. Local news media had previously reported on the mishandling of cases by Arpaio's office from 2005 to 2007, but recent national coverage catapulted the issue back into the news.

Montgomery said Wednesday that he will review and determine which sex-crime cases could lead to successful prosecution. He indicated his formal opinion likely would not focus on organizational changes within the Sheriff's Office.

"Simply screwing up in your job doesn't create criminal liability," Montgomery said, adding he would not "join the chorus" calling for Arpaio's resignation.

Montgomery said it is not his call to hold Arpaio accountable for the bungled cases, but instead is up to voters in 2012.

The five supervisors, the sheriff and the county attorney are separately elected and cannot oust each other. All are up for re-election next year and have been hesitant to publicly criticize each other, fearing negative headlines in the wake of the years-long political and legal infighting among their agencies that has cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

Mismanagement of the sex-crimes cases has thus far been attributed to poor oversight in the Sheriff's Office and to former Chief Deputy David Hendershott's efforts to fend off bad publicity for a key investigator.

Current Chief Deputy Jerry Sheridan told Arpaio's critics at Wednesday's board meeting that their request is "based on faulty, inaccurate and downright misleading statements." Sheridan defended his boss, saying the sheriff tasked 30 deputies in "short order" to investigate the hundreds of cases, and the internal investigation has been completed.

"We have never hidden behind anything or tried to cover up the fact that there was an issue," Sheridan told activists. "Police officers make mistakes. It's not unique to the Sheriff's Office. ... One thing the sheriff did was take immediate action once he realized there was a problem."

In an interview, Sheridan added, "I can tell you, the sheriff is not going to resign. And this will only empower the sheriff and bolster him to work harder and fight harder for his re-election next year."

The Sheriff's Office has said 432 sex-crime cases across the Valley have been reactivated, resulting in 19 arrests. The vast majority of the rest have been "exceptionally" cleared without arrest or were deemed unfounded.

An internal investigation into the cases was turned over to the county attorney for further review to ensure it was done properly, Sheridan said.

Montgomery said he has hired two additional attorneys for the sex-crimes unit to help review how sex-crime cases were investigated at various law-enforcement agencies across the Valley, including the Sheriff's Office and Phoenix Police Department. Montgomery said his office has been reviewing sheriff's cases since local media reported on the mishandled investigations in the spring. It has examined at least 150 of 432 cases so far.

In all, there could be up to 2,000 cases involving agencies Valley-wide that have "similar issues" as the botched sheriff's cases, Montgomery said.

Montgomery said he was "optimistic" that charges could be filed if he found further information on individual cases but admitted it would be difficult getting witnesses to come forward because some cases date back a decade.

Montgomery would not speculate on possible repercussions against the Sheriff's Office. When reminded that state statute gives him authority to bring misconduct allegations against public officials for possible removal, he answered: "At this point in time, I am not considering that."

County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox, a frequent Arpaio critic, said she wanted the board to examine the sheriff's internal investigation as well.

Board Chairman Andy Kunasek said supervisors would withhold judgment until Montgomery releases his formal opinion. Chiefs of staff for Supervisors Don Stapley and Max Wilson said the supervisors agreed.

Supervisor Fulton Brock could not be reached for comment.

"There should not be one uninvestigated crime," Kunasek said. "But we have to wait. And as this process goes through, I know there's parents, fathers, mothers, grandparents. It's a terribly painful item to even have in our community."

Dozens of community activists aired their opinions Wednesday on various issues regarding Arpaio: sex crimes, immigration enforcement, even $103.7million in funds misspent by the Sheriff's Office since 2004.

Sheriff's supporters and opponents sat on opposite sides of the supervisors' auditorium Wednesday, heckling and booing each other, and coughing loudly over speakers they did not support. Security officers eventually stepped in and warned them to be civil.

Reach the reporter at michelle.lee@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8290.