Sheriff Joe Arpaio Deploying 'Armed Posse' To Protect Schools

Following the Newtown massacre, Sheriff Joe Arpaio, of Maricopa County in Arizona, said he plans to send a volunteer armed posse to protect schools.

Arpaio said he has the 'authority to mobilize private citizens and fight crime in this county.' According to AZFamily.com, 'he'll use members of his 3,000 strong posse to patrol schools in towns that fall under sole jurisdiction of the sheriff's office.'

Admitting he doesn't yet know whether all schools will agree to the measure, Arpaio said he'd coordinate with them. He also asserted that such a program has been effective in malls, so it can be applicable to schools as well.

'We're not talking about placing the posse in the schools right now but in the outlying ' the perimeters of the school ' to detect any criminal activity,' he said.

Per the report:

Arpaio first started using his posse to protect malls during the holiday shopping season in 1993 in response to violent incidents in prior years. Since then he said malls where his posse members are on patrol have had zero violent re-occurrences and patrols by his all-volunteer squad during the 2012 shopping season netted a record 31 arrests.