A YEAR LATER, WAIT CONTINUES
No decision yet on potential prosecution in police shooting death of 14-year-old
A year to the day after a Tempe police officer shot and killed 14-year-old Antonio Arce while the boy fled with an air soft gun, both Arce’s family and the department are still waiting for a decision about whether the officer will be criminally charged.
The shooting of Arce — one of approximately 50 people killed by Arizona law enforcement last year — sparked a wave of protests and national attention. It also came on the heels of a record number of police shootings across the state in 2018.
In the year since Arce’s death, the lives of his family members have changed dramatically, as has that of Tempe Police Officer Joseph Jaen, who shot Arce once in the back while responding to a burglary call on the afternoon of Jan. 15, 2019. Arce’s family moved away. Jaen medically retired.
Yet both parties are still waiting for the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office to determine whether Jaen should face any criminal charges for the shooting.
No decision from Maricopa County
Tempe police investigators forwarded the case to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for review in February. Jennifer Liewer, a spokeswoman for the department, told The Arizona Republic on Friday that a decision has yet to be reached on the case.
She explained that the review board is working through a large volume of shootings due to the unusually high number of shootings in 2018.
“There was not a delay, just simply a larger number of incidents requiring review and we must give each case the
time and attention it deserves,” Liewer said in an email.
A Maricopa County Attorney’s Office document listing the review status of each shooting shows cases before and after Arce’s shooting have already been cleared.
Liewer was unable to provide an estimate for when a decision would be reached on the Arce shooting.
“We are keenly aware that the oneyear anniversary of this shooting is nearing and understand the importance of providing a decision,” she said. “However, this incident deserves a thoughtful and thorough review of the evidence and we are committed to doing so.”
Lawsuit questions whether Jaen was fit for duty
Daniel Ortega, the attorney for Arce’s family, filed a lawsuit against Jaen and Tempe Monday — two days shy of the anniversary of the shooting.
The lawsuit alleges that Jaen shot at Arce even though the boy did not present any threat and did not point the replica gun at the officer. It also alleges that Jaen — who was in a patrol uniform and marked car — didn’t identify himself as an officer and that he was approximately 116 feet from a fleeing Arce when Jaen fired his weapon.
Ortega also claims in the lawsuit that the city allowed Jaen to continue to work as an officer even though officials were aware he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. The lawsuit does not indicate what, if any, evidence he has of that and Ortega did not disclose any evidence to The Republic.
“Tempe’s deliberate, reckless, and callous actions, as described above, substantially contributed to and/or was the moving force behind defendant Jaen’s use of excessive force upon Antonio,” Ortega wrote in the lawsuit.
The notice of claim filed in July said the family was seeking $5 million to settle the case.
City spokeswoman Nikki Ripley confirmed the city was aware of the lawsuit. The city does not comment on pending litigation.
Arce’s family is not expected to attend any of the memorial events scheduled for the next few days. Ortega said the past year has been rough for them as they grieved, and the process has only been made more difficult by the lack of a decision.
“All my clients want is justice,” Ortega
Jaen has waiting.
He was placed on administrative leave after the shooting, in accordance with department policies. He then resigned in May.
Jaen later applied for early accidental disability retirement.
An accidental disability is one that occurred while the employee was on the clock and permanently prevents the employee from doing his or her job. Both physical and mental conditions can qualify.
The Tempe Police Public Safety Personnel Retirement System Board unanimously voted to award Jaen early accidental disability retirement in early January. The city has declined to disclose to The Republic what he cited as the physical or emotional disability sustained on the job that rendered him unable to perform his duties, citing medical privacy laws.
Records show Jaen previously filed for ordinary disability benefits in 2012. His application was later withdrawn for an unknown reason.
Tempe officials previously said Jaen was a member of the Army National Guard from 2007-13 and was deployed to Iraq in 2011.
Court records from Jaen’s 2012 divorce show he may have had a history of mental health issues, including depression and suicidal ideations. also spent the past year
The Tempe Officers Association, the union that represented Jaen, declined to speak to The Republic for this story. Jaen has not spoken publicly about the shooting, which is typical given it’s still considered an open case.
Sean Mattson, president of the Arizona Fraternal Order of Police, said the waiting process can have a serious effect on officers.
“Unfortunately, he (Jaen) probably ended his career a lot sooner than he, the department or the community probably wanted,” he said.
Mattson, who does not represent Tempe police or Jaen, acknowledged the importance of the process, but said the extended review time can compound any pre-existing issues an officer may be dealing with.
“We’re supposed to be on the side of justice and when we’re under the microscope of justice, it’s nerve-racking,” Mattson said.
Out of the more than 400 police shooting cases the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office has reviewed from 2011 to 2018, one officer was charged with murder — and later acquitted by a jury.
Tempe police will also conduct their own administrative investigation, which will determine whether the officer should face any disciplinary actions separate from MCAO’s decisions. Typically, this could range from recommending additional training to a suspension or termination.
it’s unclear what options they may have now that Jaen is no longer with the department.
Jan. 15, 2019, and the aftermath
Shortly after 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 15, 2019, Jaen responded to a report of a suspicious truck parked in an alleyway near Baseline Road and 48th Street. The caller told police there were two people near the vehicle and they might be involved in an ongoing burglary.
Officials have said video from Jaen’s body camera shows Arce holding a gun while sitting inside a truck in the alley. In the video, Jaen, who is in uniform, points his gun, steps out from behind a large trash can and orders Arce to show his hands.
Arce gets out of the truck and runs. Jaen then fires at Arce twice as he runs away from the officer and down the L-shaped alley. The teen never appears to turn around or point a weapon at Jaen.
Arce is hit once between the shoulder blades, continues to run and then falls to the ground. He later died at a hospital.
An airsoft gun was found under Arce’s body. It still had the orange tip, used to indicate the weapon wasn’t lethal.
His killing marked the youngest person shot by police since at least 2011, and possibly much longer.
In the days following the shooting, Tempe police released video of the moments leading up to the shooting and the pursuit. The video prompted questions from the Arce family and the community about whether the killing was warranted and caused speculation about the official narrative of events.
Two days after the shooting, nearly 100 protesters gathered outside Tempe Police Department headquarters.
“I want you to know the worst racists exist in Phoenix, Arizona,” Arce’s mother, Sandra Gonzalez, said. “They treat us as criminals. I want justice. I need justice.”
The protesters packed multiple Tempe City Council meetings in the following weeks, demanding justice for Arce. They asked the city to fire Jaen and for Chief Sylvia Moir to resign.
Police officials later screened the full recording of the shooting and the police response for members of the media. But it took nearly a year for them to release the full video and numerous documents the family and media had sought.
In January, the Tempe Police Department released many of the records and videos associated with the shooting. The records answered some questions, and prompted others.
So the family, the department and the community will continue to wait and see whether the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office will determine the shooting was justified, or if it will pursue criminal charges.