Laurie Roberts

opinion columnist

If you want to know the true state of the Democratic Party in Arizona, consider the candidate it has put up to challenge Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

Arpaio is 83 years old, has been dogged by controversy, was nailed for racial profiling and is awaiting a federal judge’s decision about whether he should face criminal charges for ignoring the judge’s orders.

And the only person Democrats could find to challenge him is a former prison sergeant who was demoted for having sex with a female subordinate?

12News’ Brahm Resnik is reporting that Joe Rodriguez, who filed Monday to run against Arpaio, was knocked down from correctional sergeant to correctional officer in 2003.

This, because he "engaged in an intimate and sexual off-duty relationship" with a female subordinate and was “untruthful” when asked about it, according to a letter in his Department of Corrections file.

Resnik reports that his personnel file also shows a pair of one-week suspensions that were reduced to reprimands, an eight-hour suspension and two other reprimands. Rodriguez was a prison employee from 1999 to 2006 and from 2007 to January 2014.

Rodriguez, 47, told Resnik he was later promoted again to sergeant before leaving the agency and is now “committed to the highest standards of professionalism” as he runs to knock off Arpaio.

“During my first time in a management role at the Arizona Department of Corrections, almost 15 years ago, I engaged in behavior that was unprofessional and a mistake,” he wrote. “Frankly, I was newly promoted and inexperienced at the time. However, I did learn from the incident and hold myself to the highest standards of professionalism today.”

OK, so recap, the best the Democrats can find to run against a vulnerable sheriff -- a job that involves running the jails -- is an ex-prison sergeant who had sex with a subordinate, lied about it and now says he's learned from his mistake?

Apparently so. Here's Steven Slugocki, chairman of the Maricopa County Democratic Party, in announcing that Rodriguez will run: "Joe Rodriguez is the candidate for Maricopa County sheriff that Maricopa County deserves. This is a winnable race and I look forward to Joe Rodriguez’s strong and robust campaign."

Heavy sigh...

Joe Arpaio's days as America's Toughest Sheriff are numbered

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