Paul Babeu
Babeu in December 2011
Sheriff of Pinal County
In office
January 1, 2009 – January 1, 2017
Preceded byChris Vasquez
Succeeded byMark Lamb
Personal details
Born
Paul Raymond Babeu

(1969-02-03) February 3, 1969
North Adams, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
OccupationLaw enforcement officer
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/serviceMassachusetts Army National Guard
Arizona Army National Guard
Years of service1990–2010
Rank Major

Paul Raymond Babeu (pronounced BAB-you;[1] born February 3, 1969) is an American law enforcement officer, politician and member of the Republican Party who was sheriff of Pinal County, Arizona, from January 1, 2009, to January 1, 2017. He was Pinal County's first Republican sheriff.[2]

Babeu ran for Arizona's 4th congressional district in the 2012 elections to the United States House of Representatives but withdrew and came out as gay after a personal controversy. He became the Republican nominee for Arizona's 1st congressional district in the 2016 elections after winning the primary on August 30, 2016. He was defeated in the general election by Democrat Tom O'Halleran.

Early life and education

Babeu was born on February 3, 1969, in North Adams, Massachusetts, to Raymond and Helen Babeu. Raymond Babeu was a longtime employee of the area's electric utility who was also active in local politics. Paul Babeu was the tenth of eleven children born into the family.[1] Babeu has spoken of being molested for several years as a child by at least two Catholic priests, including Richard R. Lavigne.[3][4]

Babeu holds an associate degree in law enforcement from the Arizona Law Enforcement Academy. He also holds a bachelor's degree in history and political science from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and a summa cum laude master of public administration from American International College.[5]

Early career

Massachusetts politics

At age 17, while still in high school, Babeu campaigned against a proposed raise for North Adams, Massachusetts, City Council members. The council reduced the pay hike and Babeu, running as an independent, turned his effort into a successful campaign and was elected to City Council at the age of 18.[1] In 1992, Babeu was elected to a four-year term as a Berkshire County, Massachusetts, commissioner.[6]

At the end of this term in 1996, Babeu ran for a seat in the Massachusetts Senate based in Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin. He won the Republican nomination against Peter Abair. He lost in the general election to Democrat Andrea F. Nuciforo, Jr. 55–42%.[7]

In 1997, he ran for mayor of North Adams against incumbent Democrat John Barrett III. In the open primary, Babeu ranked first but failed to reach the 50% threshold. He led Barrett by just 145 votes.[8] In the general election, Barrett won re-election and defeated Babeu 53%-47%,[1] a difference of just 353 votes, in an election with an unusually high turnout rate of 75% among registered voters. In 2001, Babeu ran for a rematch against Barrett, but lost again.[1][6]

DeSisto School executive

Babeu served as headmaster and later as executive director the DeSisto School in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, a school for troubled youths, from 1999 to 2001. The school closed in 2004, following the death of its founder Michael DeSisto.[9] The school was in a long legal fight with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts over licensing, allegations of child abuse, a Commonwealth-imposed enrollment freeze, and accusations of failing to create a safe environment for its students. Court records show that problems at the school arose years before Babeu took over as headmaster.[10] Babeu stated that he had never been the target of an investigation or lawsuit and "was recognized for helping restore financial stability of the school."[10] Babeu was not named in any allegation during the investigation by the state.[11][12]

National Guard

Babeu joined the Massachusetts National Guard as a 21-year-old. He started his service as a private and rose through the ranks to major in the Arizona Army National Guard. During his tenure he served a tour in Iraq and spent 17 months deployed in Arizona as a commander with Operation Jump Start (Southwest Border Mission). From 2006 to 2007, Babeu spent 17 months as commander of Task Force Yuma supervising 700 soldiers, where they supported the United States Border Patrol to achieve operational control and reduce illegal immigration. Babeu retired in September 2010 after 20 years of service.[6]

Chandler patrolman

In 2002, he moved to Arizona to pursue a law enforcement career as a police officer for the city of Chandler, Arizona. He graduated from the Arizona Law Enforcement Academy as the #1 overall police recruit and was voted by his fellow officers as the class exemplary officer.[5]

Babeu was awarded two Life Saving Medals in the performance of his duties as a patrolman in Chandler. Babeu served as the Police Association president for the Chandler Police Department and on the board of directors for the Arizona Police Association.[5]

Career as Pinal County Sheriff and runs for higher office

Babeu speaking at a campaign event for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on August 31, 2016.

Babeu campaigned for the office of Pinal County Sheriff in 2008 and defeated Democratic incumbent Chris Vasquez, 54% to 46%.[13] He was the first Republican sheriff elected in the history of the county (founded in 1875).[14] Babeu was reelected in 2012 with 53.3% of the votes, winning out over Democrat and independent candidates.

Babeu is vice president of the Arizona Sheriffs' Association[15] and was named the National Sheriff of the Year in 2011 by the National Sheriffs' Association.[16] Babeu led the third largest sheriff's office in Arizona with 700 full-time employees.[5][17]

Babeu has been an outspoken critic of the federal government on the issue of illegal immigration. According to Babeu's website, "Pinal County is the number one pass through county in all of America for drug and human smuggling."[18] He reported, "Pinal County contains an estimated 75-100 drug cartel cells and listening posts/observation posts, used to facilitate the illegal transportation of people and narcotics into the United States."[18] Babeu also helped U.S. Senator John McCain and U.S. Senator Jon Kyl draft their "10-Point Border Security Plan".[19]

In late 2010, Babeu was asked by Maricopa County sheriff Joe Arpaio to investigate allegations of wrongdoing in Arapaio's department. This 6-month-long detailed search led to the termination of Arpaio's top two deputies.[20]

In 2011 and 2012, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office collected $7 million worth of surplus military equipment. Babeau said he intended to balance the department's budget by auctioning the equipment.[21] After an Arizona Republic newspaper report, the Defense Logistics Agency directed Babeu "to retrieve vehicles and other equipment his office distributed to non-police organizations".[22]

2012 congressional election

On October 23, 2011, Babeu announced the formation of an exploratory committee to run for U.S. Congress in what would become Arizona's newly redrawn 4th congressional district.[23] He ran against one-term representative Paul Gosar, who had been elected to the state's 1st congressional district in 2010.

The following February, Jose Orozco, who was an undocumented immigrant, claimed that Babeu and Orozco had been lovers since meeting in 2006 on an online dating site. Orozco claimed that Babeu had known that he was an illegal alien while they were lovers, at odds with Babeu's views on immigration policy. After the relationship ended, Orozco claims that Babeu threatened Orozco with deportation to guarantee his silence. Orozco claimed his statements are documented in copies of email and SMS correspondence between Orozco and Babeu.[24]

A spokesman for Babeu denied the allegations and described them as "sensationalist". The spokesman confirmed that Babeu would continue to run for U.S. Congress.[25] Babeu came out as gay on February 18, 2012, saying that his sexual orientation was the only factual statement from the allegations.[26] Babeu stepped down as co-chair of Mitt Romney's presidential campaign in Arizona, but received the continued support of U.S. Senator John McCain, who called Babeu his friend.[27]

Babeu dropped his congressional bid on May 11, 2012; instead he sought re-election as sheriff.[28] He was re-elected by a large margin on November 6, 2012.[29]

On August 31, 2012, the Arizona solicitor general exonerated Babeu after an investigation. In a written statement, he wrote "The investigation determined that Babeu did not commit any criminal violations and further concluded that, although Orozco conducted himself in a manner that may constitute a violation of the law, there was no reasonable likelihood of conviction on anything more than a misdemeanor charge. It would be an inappropriate use of already-limited resources to prosecute Orozco for a misdemeanor."[30]

2016 congressional election

Babeu ran for Arizona's 1st congressional district in the 2016 elections. The district's incumbent representative, Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick, did not seek re-election as she instead ran for the U.S. Senate.[31] On August 30, 2016, Babeu was declared the winner of the Republican primary. He faced Democrat Tom O'Halleran in the general election.[32] O'Halleran defeated Babeu, receiving 51% of the vote to Babeu's 44%.[33]

Departure from office

Babeu's tenure as sheriff ended on January 1, 2017, after his term expired. Republican Mark Lamb succeeded Babeu as sheriff.[34][35]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Steller, Tim; McCombs, Brady (May 23, 2010). "Babeu is new face of Arizona sheriffs". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  2. ↑ Edythe Jensen (November 20, 2008). "Sheriff-elect Babeu won't finish year with Chandler police". azcentral.com. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Babeu says he was victim of priest abuse". KTAR.com. March 3, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Arizona sheriff Paul Babeu, originally from Western Mass., resigns from Mitt Romney's Arizona campaign after misconduct allegations by former lover". The Republican (Springfield, Massachusetts). February 20, 2012.
  5. 1 2 3 4 PCSO (November 24, 2011). "About Sheriff Paul Babeu". PCSO. Archived from the original on November 10, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  6. 1 2 3 "Border Boletín: Who is Paul Babeu?". azstarnet.com. May 23, 2010. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  7. ↑ "MA State Senate – Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire & Franklin Race". Our Campaigns. November 5, 1996. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  8. ↑ "It's official: Barrett and Babeu will square off again in race for mayor of North Adams". iberkshires.com. August 8, 2001. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Babeu kicks off his campaign with event at the Holiday Inn". iberkshires.com. September 19, 2001. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  10. 1 2 Robert Anglen, Ronald J. Hansen and Sean Holstege (March 1, 2012). "Legal trouble dogged Mass. private school led by Babeu". The Republic. Gannett.
  11. ↑ Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General (November 2001). "Massachusetts Office of Child Care Services vs DeSisto School Inc and A. Michael Desisto" (PDF). ABC15.com. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  12. ↑ Dave Biscobing; Mark LaMet; Maria Tomasch (June 24, 2013). "Documents: Babeu ran private boarding school with history of physical abuse". ABC15.com. The E.W. Scripps Co. Archived from the original on December 4, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  13. ↑ pinalcountyaz.gov (November 12, 2008). "Pinal County 2008 General Election Results". pinalcountyaz.gov. Archived from the original on December 15, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  14. ↑ pinalcountyaz.gov (2009). "2009–2010 Pinal County Budget Book". pinalcountyaz.gov. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  15. ↑ "Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu Elected to Second Term as President of Arizona Sheriff's Association". PhoenixNewTimes.com. January 20, 2011. Archived from the original on January 22, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  16. ↑ National Sheriffs' Association (June 19, 2011). "Sheriff of the Year". sheriffs.org. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  17. ↑ Collom, Lindsay (January 28, 2011). "Paul Babeu named 2011 Sheriff of the Year". Arizona Republic. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  18. 1 2 SheriffPaul.com (November 24, 2011). "Meet Paul". sheriffpaul.com. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  19. ↑ mccain.senate.gov (April 20, 2010). "Senators McCain and Kyl Announce Border Security Plan". mccain.senate.gov. Archived from the original on August 14, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  20. ↑ JJ Hensley (April 14, 2011). "Joe Arpaio aide investigation finished by Babeu". azcentral.com. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  21. ↑ Dennis Wagner (May 19, 2012). "Pinal Sheriff's Office stockpiles, prepares to sell military equipment". The Republic. Gannett, azcentral.com. Retrieved November 27, 2014.
  22. ↑ Dennis Wagner (August 20, 2014). "Police in combat gear stir criticism". The Arizona Republic. Gannett Company. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
  23. ↑ azredistricting.org (November 24, 2011). "Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission". azredistricting.org. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  24. ↑ Monica Alonzo (February 16, 2012). "Paul Babeu's Mexican Ex-Lover Says Sheriff's Attorney Threatened Him With Deportation (Phoenix New Times)". Phoenixnewtimes.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  25. ↑ Catanese, David (February 18, 2012). "Babeu bombshell: Gay relationship & deportation threats, report says". The Politico. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  26. ↑ Martin, Nick R. (February 18, 2012). "Arizona Sheriff Paul Babeu Angrily Denies Ex-Boyfriend's Accusations". Talking Points Memo. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  27. ↑ "Will recent allegations damage Babeu's political future?". KTVK. February 19, 2012. Archived from the original on February 23, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2012.
  28. ↑ Sheriff Babeu Abandons Race for Arizona Congressional Seat. Fox News Latino. May 11, 2012. Retrieved May 11, 2012.
  29. ↑ Lockhart, Larry (November 7, 2012). "Pinal County: Babeu leads GOP push". Casa Grande Dispatch. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
  30. ↑ Sanders, Rebekah L.; Collum, Lindsey (August 31, 2012). "Pinal Sheriff Paul Babeu exonerated". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved April 19, 2014.
  31. ↑ Wong, Scott (October 5, 2015). "Arizona sheriff launches bid for Congress". The Hill. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  32. ↑ Morales, Laurel (August 31, 2016). "It's Republican Paul Babeu And Democrat Tom O'Halleran In Monstrous CD-1 Race". KJZZ. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  33. ↑ "Democrat Tom O'Halleran defeats Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu in CD-1". ABC 15. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  34. ↑ Eduardo Santiago, 3 best known Arizona sheriffs out in new year Archived January 4, 2017, at the Wayback Machine (January 3, 2017).
  35. ↑ Ronald J. Hansen, Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu mum on plans after leaving office, Arizona Republic (November 9, 2016).
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