Supervisors voted Tuesday to push ahead with seeking an outside inquiry into how Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos conducted an internal review of his agencyâs handling of an alleged sexual assault of a deputy by a colleague.
The 4-to-1 vote followed a closed-door discussion with a county prosecutor who cited concerns about such an inquiry in a memo issued to the board that said, in part, that supervisors lack oversight of Nanos.
Supervisor Rex Scott remained the sole vote against seeking an outside investigation. He again cited concerns from an earlier discussion of the matter that such a probe could interfere with pending criminal and civil cases against the former sergeant accused of sexually assaulting a deputy at a holiday party in December he hosted that was attended by several members of the department.
Deputy Pima County attorney Daniel Jurkowitz, who met with Supervisors Tuesday behind closed doors, wrote in a Sept. 22 memo to the board that there was no authority by the outside law enforcement agencies the board seeks to approach to conduct such a review.
âThe purpose of an internal affairs investigation is to determine whether a law enforcement officer has committed a criminal violation, or violated policy and, if so, whether any disciplinary or other action should be taken in response,â Jurkowitz said in the memo.
âAs the primary purpose of an administrative investigation is to determine whether any disciplinary actions are warranted, this is solely within the domain of the Sheriff. Only the Sheriff can take disciplinary action against his employees, not the Board of Supervisors,â Jurkowitz wrote. âThere is no statutory authority for either (the Department of Public Safety) or the (Attorney Generalâs Office) to conduct a review of the administrative internal affairs investigation.â
A criminal investigation into the alleged assault is being handled by the Santa Cruz County Attorneyâs Office.
The night of the party, the deputy said she was sexually assaulted by her sergeant while in a spare bedroom after having too much to drink to be able to drive home.
The department launched its criminal investigation on Dec. 18, and Ricardo Garcia was placed on administrative leave with pay. He was then fired and arrested on suspicion of one count of sexual assault.
The Pima County Deputyâs Organization later claimed Nanos held up an internal investigation into how supervisors and commanders initially handled the case. The labor group has said command staff was at the scene the night of the alleged assault but was slow to intervene.
The union was the first to demand a full internal review by Nanos, or that another law enforcement agency do so.
In June, the deputy filed a $900,000 claim against Garcia, Pima County and other law enforcement officials.
The boardâs vote came one day after Nanos reversed his decision to remove PCSD deputies from their sergeant-at-arms roles from Board of Supervisors meetings. Previously, Supervisor Sharon Bronson claimed the move by Nanos was retaliation for her push for the independent review.
Nanos denied the allegation.
