Is voter intimidation a crime? Arizona police talk ballot box concerns | USA TODAY

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office is monitoring ballot drop boxes after two men in tactical gear with weapons were seen near one in Mesa, Arizona.

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Law enforcement officers are monitoring outdoor ballot drop boxes as voter intimidation complaints over election observers continue to roll in, Maricopa County officials said. Groups of people have filmed voters and taken photos of their license plates as they dropped off their early ballots. It's not a state crime, but it's making voters uncomfortable.

"People have rights, and I respect those rights," Sheriff Paul Penzone said Monday of the election observers. "But you can be intimidating without committing a crime. You can make people uncomfortable without committing a crime. It doesn't make it OK because it's not a crime."

He promised to provide as many deputies as needed to ensure safety, as U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and state officials warned ballot drop box watchers that they won't tolerate voter intimidation. "The more folks that there are creating problems, the more deputies you're going to see on the streets focused on this," Penzone said at a news conference. "We'll come and babysit polling sites because people want to misbehave, if that's what we have to do to protect democracy."

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