Jerry Sheridan, Tyler Kamp debate to become Maricopa County’s next sheriff

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — The two candidates for Maricopa County sheriff faced off for a second debate Wednesday night, which overwhelmingly centered on their controversial pasts and less about policy.

What to know about the candidates

Democrat Tyler Kamp, a former Phoenix Police lieutenant, is running against Republican Jerry Sheridan, who was second in command under former Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

Both candidates have extensive law enforcement backgrounds but have controversial pasts.

Sheridan was on the job when the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office was found guilty in 2013 of racial profiling for targeting Hispanics in traffic stops.

On the other side of the political aisle, Kamp switched parties in December to run as a Democrat and served more than 20 years in the Phoenix Police Department before retiring in 2021.

The former police lieutenant attacked Sheridan over the reputation of the Sheriff’s Office and those court rulings.

“There was government overreach. We saw discriminate - discrimination of people of color, and that has cost us. It’s fractured trust with community, and it’s cost us the tune over $350 million,” Kamp said.

A federal monitor was appointed to oversee the department and the reforms have cost taxpayers nearly $400 million and counting.

Arpaio fought those reforms, with Sheridan at his side for many of those announcements.

“I worked for over three years with the monitor to set the foundation that would lead to future compliance,” Sheridan said about his involvement. “And that’s exactly what I did. I will continue to work with that. This is a very complicated matter.”

In 2016, a federal judge held Sheridan in contempt of court for disobeying orders in that case.

Sheridan previously told Arizona’s Family he’d like to bring back some form of Arpaio’s controversial Tent City. He provided a little more context during this second debate.

“What I want to do is bring back a similar type housing. There’s no way I could bring ‘Tent City’ back. But the reason I want to do that is because it plays a key role in the management of the entire jail population,” Sheridan said during Wednesday’s debate. “But what it does, it plays a role in allowing us to run work-release furlough and I get a lot of support from the Defense Bar, and they’re not Republicans.”

Sheridan also admitted to being on the Brady List, a list of public safety officials with credibility issues. The Republican then suggested that Kamp could end up on that list himself.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Thursday that Kamp is not under investigation. However, a committee did review information about Kamp in early August which determined that he should not be on that list.

After the debate, Kamp told reporters that that claims Sheridan made against him were “entirely inaccurate.”

“It disappoints me, but it didn’t surprise me,” the Democrat said. “He took a page right out of Arpaio’s playbook.”

Still, Kamp also faced his own controversy. Last year, a female officer filed a complaint against Kamp, saying he sexually harassed her during his final year on the force.

The city of Phoenix investigation found Kamp guilty of sending dozens of inappropriate text messages while the officer was in training and under his chain of command.

During the debate, Sheridan also made an unsubstantiated accusation that Kamp had sex while on-duty with a police assistant.

When investigators asked about the allegations, Kamp said he didn’t remember the text messages and denied the harassment. He also said that after he retired, he went to Africa and lost his phone, so he couldn’t provide screenshots of the texts.

The winner will replace Maricopa County Sheriff Russ Skinner, who was appointed after Paul Penzone stepped down but lost his primary race to Kamp in July.

Fact-checking claims during Wednesday’s debate

Arizona’s Family Investigates fact-checked claims from Wednesday’s debate as part of our commitment to keep politicians accountable before, during and after the election cycle.

Claim: Sheridan says inmates voluntarily chose to go to Tent City

Fact-check: Mostly True ✅

“Tent City” was an outdoor detention facility put in place by then-Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

According to Arizona’s Family news archives, more than 300 unsentenced inmates were moved to “Tent City” in July 2004 since the Durango Jail was too full. This marked the first time pre-sentenced inmates were housed at the outdoor jail.

Former Arizona Attorney General Grant Woods said in a 2017 news conference that inmates often chose “Tent City” because it was outdoors and had more open space.

“It tells you that this negative image that we’ve gotten since 1993. That we are so tough on prisoners in Maricopa County, that this is how we treat them, that this is false,” Woods said.

Then-Sheriff Paul Penzone ended the practice of using Tent City when he took office in 2017. He described the facility as “a circus atmosphere for the general public.”

Penzone said at the time that “Tent City” had become a safety concern for detention officers and “a preferred location and a choice by inmates.”

“We’re going to give the criminals what they don’t want, which is detention inside jails,” Penzone said.

Claim: Kamp on harassment allegations

Fact-check: Needs Context ⚠️

Tyler Kamp was investigated after a female trainee reported him in a complaint alleging him of sexual harassment during his final year with the department. The complaint mentions dozens of text messages Kamp reportedly sent the officer while she was in training and under his chain of command.

The city found the complaint was substantiated, but there were no repercussions since Kamp had already left the department.

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