Federal Judge Refuses to Erase Joe Arpaio's Conviction Despite Trump Pardon

A federal judge on Thursday shot down former sheriff Joe Arpaio's bid to sweep his criminal record clean, reports the Washington Post .

Arpaio, the controversial former lawman in Arizona's Maricopa County, was granted a pardon by President Trump on Aug. 25. He had been found guilty of criminal contempt of a federal court order after a five-day bench trial earlier this year and faced the possibility of up to six months in jail. After the pardon, the 85-year-old Arpaio petitioned the court to clear his record and prevent the ruling from being used in future litigation.

The case raised the novel question of how far a presidential pardon actually reaches.

The president issued the pardon, and Arpaio was spared "from any punishment that might otherwise have been imposed," the judge wrote. "It did not, however, 'revise the historical facts' of this case."

Arpaio's attorney immediately filed a notice of appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.