Covington Team Earned a High-Profile Victory in A Racial Profiling Case

On May 13, 2016, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona ruled that Sheriff Joe Arpaio, along with several of his subordinates, were in civil contempt in a long-running civil rights case. The court found multiple intentional violations of its prior orders, including a preliminary injunction prohibiting the detention of suspected illegal immigrants in the absence of state law criminal charges. In a 162-page decision, the court found that Sheriff Arpaio and his department “have demonstrated a persistent disregard for the orders of this court, as well as an intention to violate and manipulate the laws and policies regulating their conduct,” and determined that Sheriff Arpaio and his chief deputy had knowingly testified falsely under oath during the contempt hearing.

Covington partner Stan Young, a member of the firm’s intellectual property litigation group and a former managing partner of its Palo Alto office, argued for the findings of contempt against Sheriff Arpaio. Others key contributors included Hyun Byun. The firm is co-counsel with the American Civil Liberties Union Immigrants Rights Project, the ACLU of Arizona, and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.