The Phoenix Police Department has been found to regularly violate the constitutional rights of its most vulnerable residents, including minors, homeless individuals, racial minorities, and those experiencing mental health crises, according to a report released by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
The report highlights incidents where Phoenix police have fabricated incident reports, used unnecessary physical force and dangerous restraints, unlawfully detained homeless individuals, destroyed their property, delayed medical aid to injured suspects, and assaulted individuals for criticizing or filming them.
It was concluded that systemic issues and pervasive failures in the department’s policies, training, and accountability mechanisms have resulted in the widespread use of unconstitutional tactics, excessive force, and illegal retaliation against residents, infringing on their First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division stated in a press release that “Phoenix residents deserve nothing less than fair, non-discriminatory, and constitutional policing.”
The report also highlighted disparities in law enforcement practices, noting that certain laws are enforced more harshly against Black, Hispanic, and Native American individuals compared to white individuals engaging in similar behaviors.
The Justice Department initiated the investigation, known as a “pattern or practice” probe, in 2021, following a series of controversial police shootings and allegations of civil rights violations. Calls for reform intensified after the department’s response to the 2020 George Floyd protests, where police and prosecutors attempted to charge protesters for aiding a fictional criminal gang known as “A.C.A.B.” (All Cops Are Bastards).
During the protests, officers were found to have used pepper balls, stun bags, and other less-than-lethal munitions indiscriminately and without legal justification against protesters engaged in protected First Amendment activities. The report also revealed instances of officers making false statements to support arrests of protesters.
In a training session reviewed by Justice Department investigators, an instructor used a picture of a protester being shot in the groin with a projectile as a joke. The instructor also boasted about how a search warrant had left another protester “jobless and homeless at the same damn time.”
Despite being prohibited from using neck restraints after 2020, officers continued to employ dangerous compression restraints unnecessarily. One incident detailed in the report involved officers
stopping a group of individuals in a parking lot for trespassing, instructing them to sit on the curb, and asking for identification to check for warrants. When one man stood up to retrieve his wallet, an officer remarked, “He’s not listening, let’s just hook him.” The man explained he was following directions, but was forcefully subdued by the officers. One officer was heard saying, “It’s not breaking any law, bro!” as he grabbed the man’s neck, despite later denying applying pressure to the man’s throat.
Phoenix police have been observed to exhibit aggressive and disrespectful behavior even when interacting with minors. The report documented numerous instances of officers using excessive force and inappropriate language with young teenagers.
Additionally, Phoenix police were criticized for harassing homeless individuals through unlawful detentions, ID checks, searches, and arrests, disregarding a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that prohibits cities from criminalizing homelessness when shelter space is unavailable.
The Justice Department noted that encounters with homeless individuals often led to constitutional violations, as officers would demand identification without suspicion of a crime, detain individuals for unrelated questioning, and order them to relocate.
Furthermore, the report found instances of Phoenix police retaliating against citizens for criticizing or recording them during routine interactions, despite the legal right to film law enforcement activities. One example cited involved officers surrounding a man’s car, pointing a gun at his head, and subsequently arresting him for felony rioting after he filmed them.
The issue was identified not as isolated to individual officers but as a systemic problem within the Phoenix Police Department. Officers were reportedly trained to prioritize overwhelming and immediate force as a de-escalation tactic.
In some observed training sessions, officers were encouraged to use force without warning or hesitation upon arriving at a scene, regardless of the perceived risk. One training video featured an officer firing a projectile directly in front of a toddler in a crib, with trainers praising the action as a model execution of safety priorities.
Investigators found that officers were incentivized to use their weapons, with those using them less frequently having their weapons confiscated by the department.
City officials and police leaders did not respond positively to the Justice Department’s findings and recommendations. According to the Arizona Republic report, one city leader expressed concerns that federal oversight would weaken the department, while a police leader dismissed the report’s findings as containing “innuendo” and “half-truths.”
The Phoenix report marks the third significant civil rights investigation of a metropolitan police department released during President Joe Biden’s tenure. Previous reports have highlighted widespread civil rights violations by police departments in Minneapolis and Louisville.
