Issues will await new Phoenix police chief
Federal probe of officer actions is among them
Phoenix police Chief Jeri Williams will retire this summer, which leaves city leaders to search for a replacement to lead a department marked by low morale, poor retention and a federal investigation.
Several City Council members told The Arizona Republic that recruitment is an uphill battle and that there aren’t enough new hires to make up for the ones who are resigning. Most council members agreed: Phoenix needs a leader who has experience working with the federal government, in light of the U.S. Department of Justice probe announced last summer.
How the department should navigate these situations varies by council member. Councilmember Carlos Garcia wants to see greater reform, while Councilmember Sal DiCiccio wants an end on “political attacks.”
Jeff Barton, in the top job as city manager for seven months, has the task of hiring a new police leader. He said in a statement that he intends to hire an external interim chief and later begin a national search for a permanent replacement.
An interim chief could serve as long as 18 months, Mayor Kate Gallego said.
“Regardless of when the transition happens, we will continue to keep the city safe and make sure we’re providing the high level of service our citizens expect,” she said.
Feds, activists digging into policing concerns
Whoever gets the job will have to navigate the federal investigation, which in part is focused on claims of police using excessive force.
Federal officials also are investigating allegations of police retaliation against protesters, discriminatory policing practices and the department’s response to people who have disabilities or are experiencing homelessness. The Justice Department announced it was opening the broad investigation nine months ago.
Investigations like this typically take years.
Among the problems that raised concerns was protesters hit with gang charges after they took to the streets of Phoenix in 2020 to protest the killings by police of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Dion Johnson by Arizona state troopers. A Maricopa County prosecutor charged 15 of the protesters as gang members. The charges were later dropped when the County Attorney’s Office acknowledged the charges were “deeply flawed.”
An outside review done at the request of the county attorney found numerous problems, including that prosecutors overlooked or ignored “the misstatements, exaggerations, and outright false statements of the Phoenix Police Response team.”
Williams was caught up in that controversy. The city commissioned its own investigation that said Williams did not know about the plans to charge protesters as gang members. She
received a one-day suspension.
In a notice of claim filed in February, which has since turned into a lawsuit, some allege Williams falsely claimed she didn’t know about the gang charges. Three police commanders — John Collins, Lawrence Hein and Gabriel Lopez — allege Williams demoted them from their roles as assistant chiefs once public opinion turned on the County Attorney Office’s decision to charge the protesters as gang members.
Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog organization, on Monday asked for an investigation into whether Williams lied.
The organization sent a letter to Matt Giordano, executive director for the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board, which has the power to strip officers of their certification, requesting an investigation into Williams and Executive Assistant Chief Michael Kurtenbach.
Giordano declined comment. “I never speculate on cases we may or may not open in the future,” he said in an email to The Republic.
Joe Clure, executive director of the Arizona Police Association, said an investigation is needed.
“There doesn’t appear to be any effort to launch an investigation. That is very disappointing to the rank-and-file police officers who are held, and should be held, to that standard,” Clure said.
Gallego would not comment on the situation, citing the ongoing litigation.
“Right now, the courts are taking the lead,” the mayor said.
While the federal investigation and local litigation loom, many point to positive changes in policing under Williams’ leadership.
Reform initiatives and scandals
Williams, who has been a police officer for 33 years, took over as chief in October 2016.
She has steered the department through reform and scandals alike.
Williams introduced body-worn cameras across the department in 2019. Other improvements ushered in during her tenure include:
Required documentation each time an officer points their weapon at someone, after a 2019 incident in which an officer pointed his gun at a man and threatened to shoot him in front of his fiancée and children.
Releasing “critical incident videos” within two weeks. The department started this practice in 2019 as the community pushed for more transparency.
Banned the use of specific strangleholds that cut off the flow of blood to the brain.
Installed a new records management system, after complaints that the old one was antiquated and an investigation found the system misclassified or excluded hundreds of crimes.
Despite strides in some areas, The Republic reported in 2019 that Phoenix officers shot at more people than any other police department in the U.S. In Williams’ first few years, from 2017 to 2018, the number of officer shootings more than doubled in the city.
Council wants chief who can steer Phoenix through DOJ probe
Phoenix’s elected officials agree: the new police chief needs to be a strong leader.
What that looks like depends on whom you ask.
Gallego said she wants someone who has experience serving a diverse community and has an appreciation for the experimentation in Phoenix’s police department, such as the civilian-only Community Assistance Program that responds to mental health and behavioral calls.
The mayor pointed to a recent 9% raise and retention bonus for officers as moves toward increasing retention.
Councilmember Debra Stark said she hopes a new chief can draw new hires.
“I want to get someone in there who can help us build back our police department, the numbers are so low right now,” she said.
Councilmember Jim Waring said he wants to find someone who has led a department before — preferably a large one, if it isn’t an internal candidate. He said he wants to see better retention.
Councilmember Sal DiCiccio said it hasn’t helped matters that some specialty positions have been put on patrol to fill gaps in coverage. He sees some of the measures, like pay raises, are just plugging a hole in a bursting dam.
“Everything that’s happening right now are temporary fixes to stop the bleeding. It’s not going to change until potential prospects feel that the politicians are going to quit attacking them,” he said.
Councilmember Carlos Garcia, a long-time activist and vocal proponent of police reform, said a new chief alone will not fix what he sees as deep-seeded issues in the department.
“It’s less about her replacement and more about the culture of the department now, particularly the union leadership who continues to pretend there’s nothing wrong with the department,” he said.
Lou Manganiello, Fraternal Order of Police Phoenix Lodge 2 president, said in a statement this is an opportunity for Phoenix leaders to invest in every area of the department.
“At a time when police officers citywide are facing a surge in violent incidents and the department is transferring dozens of experienced detectives back to patrol — decimating entire investigative units — our city needs a chief focused not merely on answering emergency calls, but on responding effectively to cut crime,” he said.
Police departments typically get the lion’s share of funding in metro Phoenix’s largest cities — about $1 in $3 of general fund spending goes toward police.
Yet departments here and across the U.S. are facing officer shortages. Phoenix has some 2,700 officers out of 3,125 budgeted positions. Earlier this year after an attack on nine officers in southwest Phoenix, Phoenix Law Enforcement Association then-President Michael “Britt” London said the dwindling numbers and ongoing federal investigation were eroding morale in the department.
In address, Gallego’s vow to ‘never’ defund police drew cheers
Gallego has long been an advocate of police reform. In her annual, largely non-political State of the City Address last month, she tested the political waters.
“I have never, and will never, defund the Phoenix Police Department,” she said to the loudest cheers of the day in the Phoenix Convention Center.
“Is our department perfect? No. No police agency in the country is without its flaws. We know our community has high expectations that we have not always met,” Gallego said in her address. “Yet, I firmly believe that each and every day the Phoenix Police Department does important work to make our community better ... I have never, and will never, defund the Phoenix Police Department.”