PHOENIX — The results of an expansive Department of Justice investigation into the Phoenix Police Department are close to being released and the Phoenix City Council called in officials from the Maricopa County Attorney's Office to brief them on what to expect.
Deputy attorneys Joe Branco and Tom Liddy appeared at the Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee meeting to discuss the possibility of a consent decree versus a trial.
Liddy stressed that the city would have a seat at the table in writing the consent decree, allowing more room for negotiation. If no consent decree is reached, the Phoenix Police Department could have a trial on their hands which may result in several court orders with less flexibility.
Councilman Jim Waring expressed his skepticism at the idea, equating the consent decree to a guilty plea. "You might as well fight it out, no matter how long it takes," he said.
The attorneys noted that the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office didn't enter a consent decree and went to trial, which has been ongoing for the last 13 years and cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars.
The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office has had a court-appointed monitor for the last decade.
Liddy and Branco also stressed that ambiguity in any agreement would cause more court action and arguing down the road, especially if the actions the DOJ is asking for contain vague targets like an "adequate" or "appropriate" amount. Those words, they said, have no standard definition and can be open to interpretation.
Councilmembers Ann O'Brien and Kevin Robinson agreed that, at minimum, the city would need to see the findings of the investigation before agreeing to any option on principle.
"Why in the world would we do something without having all the facts?" Robinson asked.
“I do not understand why any jurisdiction would agree in principle to something that they have not been able to read," O'Brien said. "I didn't do it when I bought my house.”
Liddy and Branco also told the council that a court appointed monitor or even a judge in the case could add new things to any agreement, even years down the road.
"So I guess from your perspective, why the hell would anybody ever accept the consent decree?” Councilman Jim Waring (District 3) asked Liddy.
“The difference is," Liddy replied, "if there's a consent degree, you have a seat at the table writing it.”
The investigation, now going on for 30 months, appears to be broad in scope. As of November 2023, Phoenix PD said it's provided the DOJ with more than 147,000 documents; 20 terabytes of data; more than 22,000 body-worn camera videos; 200 911 calls; 200 hours of ride-alongs with officers; and interviews of more than 130 city employees.
The DOJ announced what’s called a “pattern or practice” investigation into Phoenix PD in August 2021 looking at five areas of conduct:
- Use of Force
- Possible discriminatory policies or practices
- Possible violations of First Amendment rights
- Possible violations of the rights of those with disabilities or behavioral health concerns
- Possible violations of the rights of homeless people
The briefing happened during the Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee meeting around 10 a.m.
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