A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that he would postpone a decision on whether or not to charge Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio with contempt of court, KPNX-TV reported.
The ruling came hours after U.S. District Judge Murray Snow said that Arpaio should pay detainees $1,000 or more in a 2007 racial profiling case.
According to the Arizona Republic, Arpaio and three of his top aides were found in civil contempt two weeks ago for disobeying court orders meant to stop racial profiling. Snow ruled that Arpaio deliberately violated the rights of the Latino drivers and covered up his officers' misconduct by failing to conduct a proper internal investigation.
Arpaio and Chief Deputy Jerry Sheridan admitted to violating the court order, but insisted it was not intentional.
Snow said those who were detained by deputies solely on suspicion of being in the country illegally should be paid $1,000 for the first hour of detention and $200 for every 20 minutes thereafter.