Sheriff Joe Arpaio Still A Convict Despite Pardon, Judge Says

Presidential pardon or not, former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is still a criminal in the eye of the court. That's the the word from Federal Judge Susan Bolton who issued an order denying Arpaio's request to wipe his record clean.

The 85-year-old, former four-term sheriff who was booted from office last November, was convicted earlier this year of criminal contempt for ignoring the judge's ruling to stop immigration patrols.

Arpaio's lawyers said that the pardon issued by President Trump should wipe his record clean. (For more local news, subscribe to the Phoenix Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. For more information and updates on this and other political stories, subscribe to the White House Patch.)

Watch: Judge Rules Trump's Pardon Doesn't Undo Joe Arpaio's Conviction

While presidential pardons usually come after the judicial process runs its course, an application is made and remorse is shown, none of those were the case with the Arpaio pardon.

The former sheriff - who once compared his infamous tent city prison to a "concentration camp" - has not only shown no remorse, he has said he plans to go after people, with Senator John McCain being just one of his targets.

In a surprise move, the Justice Department – which had obtained Arpaio's conviction – reversed itself and filed papers arguing that "the court should vacate all orders and dismiss the case as moot."

Judge Bolton didn't buy their argument.

"The power to pardon is an executive prerogative of mercy, not of judicial recordkeeping," Bolton wrote. "To vacate all rulings in this case would run afoul of this important distinction. The Court found Defendant guilty of criminal contempt.

"The pardon undoubtedly spared Defendant from any punishment that otherwise might have been imposed. It did not, however, revise the historical facts of the case."

Arpaio's lawyers have appealed Bolton's decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

File photo of Arpaio campaigning with Trump in 2016 via Scott Olson/Getty Images News/Getty Images