Former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio is being accused by a son of Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Az., of pursuing a trumped-up criminal case against him to embarrass the retiring senator, according to a report.
Austin Flake and his ex-wife Logan Brown are alleging Arpaio maliciously targeted them with felony animal cruelty charges after 21 dogs boarding at a kennel operated by Flake’s in-laws died from heat exhaustion in 2014, per court documents obtained by the Associated Press.
The Flakes were caring for the canines while the in-laws were out of town, but the case against them was eventually dismissed at the request of prosecutors.
Instead, the owners of the kennel pleaded guilty to the offense after it was determined they did not properly maintain the air conditioning unit ventilating the dogs’ accommodations.
This new federal lawsuit further alleges that Arpaio conducted surveillance on Austin Flake and his then-wife’s home and examined their phone records in an attempt to link the deaths to the lawmaker’s family.
Sen. Jeff Flake was a vocal opponent of Arpaio’s handling of immigration issues in Maricopa County, the couple’s legal team said.
Arpaio and Jeffrey Leonard, an attorney representing the county and the former sheriff, declined to comment to the AP on the matter.
The couple previously sought $4 million in a notice of claim document for the suit, according to the AP.
Arpaio is reportedly considering running to represent Arizona in the Senate when Sen. Jeff Flake vacates the seat after the 2018 mid-term elections.
