Friday, August 31, 2012

Pinal Sheriff Cleared in Abuse-of-Power Charges

Posted By on Fri, Aug 31, 2012 at 4:00 PM

This just in out of Phoenix, from the Associated Press:

Paul Babeu has been cleared in an investigation into whether he abused his authority as sheriff of Pinal County.

State Solicitor General Dave Cole said Friday that Babeu has committed no criminal violations and will not be charged in the case.

Babeu had asked the Attorney General's Office earlier this year to look into claims made by his former boyfriend, Jose Orozco, that Babeu threatened him with deportation.

Babeu also had accused Orozco of property and identity theft in his handling of Babeu's Twitter account and other websites. Cole cleared Orozco as well.

Cole oversaw the investigation to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest on the part of Attorney General Tom Horne.

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