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Trump pardons longtime Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio

Trump pardons longtime Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio
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(RNN) – President Donald Trump on Friday pardoned Joe Arpaio, former sheriff of Maricopa County, AZ.

Trump hinted at the pardon at a rally in the state on Tuesday.  Arpaio is 85. 

Arpaio thanked the president on Friday night for the decision. 

Trump pardoned the multi-decade veteran of law enforcement following his conviction for intentionally disobeying a judge's order in an immigration case.

The White House said he was a "worthy candidate" for a presidential pardon. 

Arpaio enlisted in the military at age 18 at the outbreak of the Korean War, the White House said, adding that following his service he was a police officer in the nation's capital, and Las Vegas. 

He joined the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), and later ran for Maricopa County sheriff in the early 1990s. He served several terms. 

"Sheriff Joe Arpaio is now eighty-five years old, and after more than fifty years of admirable service to our nation, he is worthy of a Presidential pardon," a White House release said on Friday.  

Arpaio's sentencing was set for Oct. 5, and he could have faced up to six months in jail. 

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