Phoenix to announce police chief finalists soon
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Phoenix expects to name finalists for the city's next police chief next week.
Why it matters: Phoenix's next police chief will oversee a department that is now free of the threat of federal oversight following a damning U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) report that had highlighted violations of civil and constitutional rights, but has still publicly committed to following through on reforms.
Catch up quick: The city named four finalists for the position in March, but restarted its search in early April after Michael Sullivan, who'd served as interim chief since 2022, withdrew from consideration.
- City officials expected to get additional candidates who didn't previously apply because of a perception that Sullivan was a likely shoo-in.
- Sullivan's last day on the job was in late April, and acting chief Dennis Orender has led the department since.
State of play: Phoenix received 39 applicants by its May 5 deadline, per spokesperson Dan Wilson, but the city won't release names until after the Police Executive Research Forum, a firm hired to assist with its search, reviews the candidates.
- The city expects to name finalists the week of June 9, Wilson said.
- A public candidate forum will be held June 16. The public can submit feedback and questions for the finalists though the city's community survey.
- The city expects to announce its new chief sometime in July.
Flashback: The DOJ under the Biden administration issued a report last year following a three-year investigation that found a pattern of discriminatory enforcement and violations of constitutional rights by Phoenix police. Those patterns and practices included:
- Using excessive force, including unnecessary deadly force.
- Arresting people experiencing homelessness without reasonable suspicion of crimes and improperly seizing or destroying their property.
- Engaging in discriminatory enforcement against Black, Latino and Native American people.
- Violating the rights of protesters engaging in constitutionally protected speech.
- Discriminatory enforcement against people with behavioral health problems.
Yes, but: Now-President Trump's election in November, which occurred before Phoenix began its search for a police chief, was widely expected to end any chance of federal oversight, including a potential consent decree opposed by most of the City Council.
- Trump's DOJ last month ended its investigation and retracted the report, taking similar steps in several other cities where the feds had investigated police departments and scrapping proposed consent decrees in Louisville, Kentucky, and Minneapolis.
What's next: City officials after the election committed to moving forward with reforms, regardless of what happened with the investigation under the Trump administration.
- Phoenix has already implemented a new use-of-force policy, police misconduct hotline and data collection on stops, searches, arrests and use of force, among other reforms, with more planned for later in the year.