"He was en engaging character, " said Paul Rubin, who profiled Marin in 2008 for the Phoenix New Times newspaper.

CNN: Ex-banker's courtroom death an apparent suicide

The Phoenix New Times found that, between 2004 and 2008, the county jails of New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Houston, which together house more than six times as many inmates as Maricopa, were sued a total of forty-three times.

NEWYORKER: Sheriff Joe

But in the interview with the New York Times, Affleck acknowledged that Phoenix gave "the performance of his career".

BBC: Casey Affleck admits Joaquin Phoenix film was staged