Trump’s Arpaio Pardon ‘Appears to Sanction Lawless Behavior,’ Yet Is Absolute, Constitutional Law Prof Says

Targeted News Service

LAWRENCE, Kan., Aug. 28 -- The University of Kansas issued the following news:

President Donald Trump issued a pardon to Joe Arpaio, the controversial former Maricopa County, Arizona, sheriff, Aug 25. The lawman, known for his aggressive efforts to fight illegal immigration, had been convicted of criminal contempt of court for defying a judge's orders to cease detaining people he and his deputies suspected of being in the country illegally.

Richard Levy, the J.B. Smith Distinguished Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Kansas, is available to speak with media about the pardon, constitutional aspects of the pardon, including the role of the presidential pardon power, the scope of the power, the rule of law implications of pardoning someone found to be in defiance of a court order and related topics. Arpaio, a longtime supporter of Trump, who the president praised for his work in fighting immigration, was set to be sentenced in October. The pardon was Trump's first. The move underscores that the courts are ultimately dependent upon the political branches to enforce their decisions.

"The pardon power is absolute, and the decision to pardon Sheriff Joe Arpaio cannot be undone," Levy said. "This particular exercise of the pardon power appears to sanction lawless behavior and encourage defiance of controversial judicial decisions, undermining the rule of law. Nonetheless, the remedies for abuse of the pardon power are political, not legal."

Trump hinted at pardoning Arpaio during a rally in Phoenix but waited until Friday, praising the former sheriff as a patriot in an official statement.

An expert in constitutional law, Levy speaks frequently with media on constitutional topics and controversial cases, such as school finance litigation, abortion rights and the Supreme Court. He joined KU Law in 1985, having earned his law degree with honors from the University of Chicago Law School. He previously served as a clerk for Judge Richard Posner of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. In teaching and research, he has focused on constitutional law, administrative law and government institutions. Levy is a prolific scholar who was named a Postlethwaite Research Fellow, 1996-1999, and was named the inaugural J.B. Smith Distinguished Professor of Constitutional Law in 2007.