Arizona sheriff promises Obama-eligibility probe

Obama-eligibility probeLawman responds to request
from local tea-party leaders

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Posted: August 18, 2011
9:20 pm Eastern

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WND

From left to right, WND's Jerome Corsi, Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Surprise, Ariz., tea party leaders Julie Wise, Jim Wise and Jeff Lichter

At the request of tea party leaders in Arizona, famed Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has promised to investigate the validity of Barack Obama's purported long-form birth certificate in a determination of the president's eligibility for the county's 2012 election ballot.
Tea party leaders in Surprise, Ariz., met with Arpaio and WND senior reporter Jerome Corsi Thursday morning to express concern that a fake birth certificate would be used to document the president's eligibility to run in Maricopa County, where Arpaio is the chief law enforcement officer.
Arpaio's tough crackdown on illegal immigration has made him a national figure.
At a one-hour meeting in Arpaio's office, the tea party leaders presented the sheriff with a petition that was drafted after a speech by Corsi the previous night. Corsi, author of a best-selling book challenging Obama's eligibility, "Where's the Birth Certificate?", presented evidence from numerous computer-imaging specialists who believe the document presented by the White House April 27 is not authentic.
Autographed copies of Jerome Corsi's "Where’s the Birth Certificate?" are available only from the WND Superstore
At the gathering Wednesday night of more than 325 people, sponsored by the Surprise Tea Party Patriots of Surprise, Ariz., and the Liberty Through Action organization, 242 signatures were gathered on the petition, which requested that Arpaio begin a criminal investigation.
(Story continues below)

The petition calls for the sheriff to investigate the possibility that a crime has been committed against the Arizona secretary of state, who must decide whether to put Obama's name on the ballot
Arpaio told the tea party leaders the complaint is within his jurisdiction, and he will be forced to investigate. He said he expects political pressure, but he pointed out that as the chief law enforcement officer of Maricopa County, he's taken an oath to respond to citizens who approach him about enforcing the law.
Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Lt. Justin Griffin confirmed to WND that Arpaio is "waiting to receive all the documentation and all the investigative material from Dr. Jerry Corsi, and then he will look into the matter and compare it to the Arizona revised statutes."
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