Former El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa was indicted in 2016 on multiple felony counts – including extortion, conspiracy, and official misconduct – amid a corruption scandal alleging he abused his power as sheriff. Prosecutors accused Maketa of threatening to terminate a $5.3 million jail contract unless the contractor fired an employee who opposed Maketa’s preferred candidate for sheriff, and of coercing a woman to recant an assault complaint against a deputy who was Maketa’s ally. Maketa resigned in 2014 as the allegations came to light and went to trial in 2017, but jurors deadlocked on the most serious charges; after two mistrials and partial acquittals, a judge dismissed all remaining charges in 2018, ending the case without any convictions.
.
