70,000 Arrest Warrants

(Phoenix, Arizona) Under Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office website lists 70,000 people with open arrest warrants. About half of the total is comprised of drug and moving violation charges. The database can be searched by name and ZIP code.

Go here and click on Techno-Cops.

I'm no expert on law enforcement to-do lists, but 70,000 sure seems to be an excessive number of scofflaws. It might be interpreted that the public is less than fully committed to following state and local laws. Another slant might be that Sheriff Arpaio needs more deputies.

Of course, my comments about Maricopa Co. have to be viewed with respect to the rest of the country. Other comparably-sized counties may have twice as many outstanding arrest warrants.