Speaking with Gerald Richard’s campaign earlier on this whole Sheriff Joe, Andrew Thomas versus the media matter. This is what I was told:
Gerald Richard believes Andrew Thomas is violating his oath of office by encouraging and participating in a full-scale assault on the first amendment rights of the Arizona media and the public’s right to know.
Some background for my out of state readers:
Through a special prosecutor he appointed, Thomas authorized the arrests of the publisher and the owner of the New Times because of stories critical of Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Thomas claimed the two men violated state law by publishing Arpaio’s home address in the on-line versions of the stories, even though that address is publicly available through a number of other websites. Thomas also sought notes, e-mails and other research related to the stories, plus detailed information on everyone who had visited the New Times website over the past four years. The newspaper called it “a breathtaking abuse of the U.S. Constitution.” Such actions by the County’s top prosecutor should send a chill down the spine of freedom-loving people everywhere.
