The Phoenix Police Department (PPD) announced Tuesday that the agency is updating its use of force policy. Interim Police Chief Michael Sullivan proposed the changes in response to the DOJ investigating PPD, as part of his effort vying to be named the permanent police chief. The new policy states that the force must be “objectively reasonable, necessary and proportional to effectively and safely resolve an incident.” However the Trump administration is shutting down the DOJ’s consent decrees with police departments across the country, and PPD officers are very concerned the policy is flawed.
The announcement admitted that the new policy is “deliberately stricter than the standards established by the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Graham v Connor. 490 U.S. 386 (1989).” That decision said force by officers must be “reasonable.” The new policy adds “necessary” and “proportional.”
The Arizona Sun Times spoke to Ben Leuschner, president of the Phoenix Police Sergeants & Lieutenants Association (PPSLA) and a lieutenant with PPD. He said the new policy is “very subjective, not well defined, and confusing to the rank and file.”
Leuschner said the problem with adding the word “proportionality” is it doesn’t specify who determines whether the force was proportional, and there is “no clear definition” of the term. If it is the average person, someone who watches law enforcement TV shows, but who has no training or experience in law enforcement, he said, and merely watches some videos from a fisheye lens taken from a bodycam, that person won’t understand all of the nuances.
“If a suspect pulls out a knife, can the officer only pull out a knife?” Leuschner asked. “If a suspect only fires three rounds, can the officer only fire three back?” He said these limitations could put an officer’s life — or the suspect and others — in jeopardy, and will contribute to attrition since officers will be concerned they cannot fully defend themselves from harm. While “reasonable and necessary” are understandable terms that have been defined in law, “proportionate” is not, he said.
He said Phoenix City Councilman Kevin Robinson described the standards established in Graham v. Conner for the use of force by law enforcement as reasonable based on a reasonable person, which was incorrect. The case held that it must be a reasonable police officer; the average person doesn’t have the training or experience.
The court held, “The ‘reasonableness’ of a particular use of force must be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, and its calculus must embody an allowance for the fact that police officers are often forced to make split-second decisions about the amount of force necessary in a particular situation.”
Leuschner said PPSLA surveyed its members about the new policy. Overwhelmingly, the supervisors said it is heading in the wrong direction. PPSLA is made up of about 98 percent of eligible PPD employees, and 79 percent of the supervisors responded. He said 94 percent said the policy will make policing more dangerous since officers will hesitate to use appropriate force when necessary. Even more strongly, 98 percent of supervisors believe it’s driven by political motives which degrade law enforcement operations.
Leuschner said what is disappointing is the new policy is distracting from the real problem at PPD, which is staff turnover. He said despite the fact PPD pays better than other law enforcement agencies in the Valley, the number of employees has dropped to 1998 levels, 2,486 — even though the city has increased by about one-fifth since 1998. He said studies reveal a correlation between fewer police officers and higher violent crime rates. The numbers of employees are continuing to drop, and within a couple of years will likely be as low as they were in the early 1990s, he said.
He suspects the revisions are being pushed as a justification to discipline officers the next time a video goes viral of an arrest.
A longtime officer with PPD, who declined to be identified, told The Sun Times that the restriction on profanity might sound good superficially, but could result in the loss of life. That part of the policy states, “Employees shall avoid action or language that intentionally escalates an encounter.” He explained that some criminals won’t listen to a polite, “Please get into the patrol car.” Instead, all they might respond to is “Get in the f****** car now!”
The officer told The Sun Times that Sullivan drafted the policy as an attempt to appease the Democratic leadership that runs Phoenix, the mayor and city council, in order to become the permanent police chief.
Much of the DOJ’s investigation into PPD related to accusations of racism and responding to a violent Antifa protest. All officers involved with the Antifa incident were exonerated from any crimes. During most of the time PPD was being investigated, it was led by a black female police chief, Jeri Williams.
Although PPD stated that over 800 comments about the draft policy were received, they were not posted for the public. PPD posted a survey requesting feedback from the public regarding hiring a permanent police chief.
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Rachel Alexander is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Rachel on Twitter / X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Phoenix Police” by Phoenix Police Department.
