Public safety is the backbone of our community and our men and women in blue are the ones on the front lines.
More than ever before, the job requires people to wake up every day and put their lives on the line.
That’s what makes The Arizona Republic’s recent editorial advocating a hostile takeover of the Phoenix Police Department by the Biden administration’s Justice Department so dangerous.
It appears that the editors of The Republic have taken the so-called “DOJ report” literally and are essentially begging them to turn us into a vassal state.
This would undoubtedly make Arizona residents less safe and Phoenix more dangerous.
DOJ Didn’t Tell the Whole Story, Ask the Right Questions
Name me one thing — just one — that the federal government has touched and improved in recent years. The answer: Nothing.
Let’s be clear: Abuse by officials should never be tolerated. But the DOJ report is nothing more than a politically driven document from people who want to undermine law enforcement.
Here’s what the DOJ report didn’t include: a full breakdown of the facts.
It also failed to ask the right questions. For example, the DOJ asked why there were so many police shootings. But it failed to ask why so many people were shooting at police or brandishing knives and other weapons.
Also ignored was the federal government’s failure to address the fentanyl epidemic or open the borders, leading to increased crime in Maricopa County neighborhoods.
But that’s not how the DOJ works. Instead, they use bits and pieces of information to claim patterns or practices of misconduct with little or no supporting evidence.
The Department of Justice didn’t clean my house. I did it
In many of the situations the DOJ cites, the suspect committed a crime and someone called the police. Yet the DOJ questions the purpose of the police involvement and, more tellingly, fails to mention the victims of the crime.
To illustrate how the Justice Department takes facts lightly in reaching a conclusion, one need look no further than the report’s references to the Maricopa County District Attorney’s Office’s “involvement in constitutional violations” related to the 2020 downtown Phoenix protests.
It states how the State Bar of Arizona suspended the prosecutor responsible. The clear implication was that the State Bar should come to the County Attorney’s office and clean house. That statement is false.
Here is the truth: The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office has cleaned up its own house. Policy changes and corrective actions have been implemented, including dismissing cases and referring this individual to the bar. I fired her and, along with other MCAO attorneys, testified against her at her bar hearing.
The federal government only wants to control the Phoenix police
But simply listing the facts won’t get you to the Justice Department’s ultimate agenda: auditing local police departments.
I’ve got news for them: a bunch of lawyers from Washington DC with no law enforcement experience whatsoever will not make Phoenix safer. DOJ consent decrees do not produce better outcomes or safer communities. In fact, most cities subject to DOJ consent decrees see an increase in violent crime within the first two years.
And then there is the cost. Money that could have been spent hiring more agents, retaining the ones we have, training staff, or spending on other interdiction programs is instead spent chasing DOJ mission creep.
Phoenix’s Endgame with DOJ: It’s still ‘let’s make a deal’
If you dare to challenge the consent decree, it’s even worse. Just ask the taxpayers of Maricopa County who paid nearly $300 million for things that happened years ago.
What did we get in return?
An unelected federal judge running the Sheriff’s Office, a $100,000-a-year bill for a floor of unused office space, slower investigations, and demoralized officers. All with no end in sight because the “independent monitor” only gets paid as long as he keeps finding problems.
Keep an eye on the city, not the money grabbers
Without a doubt, the safety of our residents is our top priority. As a Maricopa County attorney and career prosecutor, I have upheld my ethical commitment to protecting crime victims and preserving civil rights.
If there were evidence of widespread wrongdoing or corruption, I can guarantee that my office would investigate it.
Phoenix Police Chief Michael Sullivan has shown an unwavering commitment to reform. Oversight must remain with him and the City Council, which is accountable to voters.
The men and women of the Phoenix Police Department who put their lives on the line every day deserve our gratitude, not our condemnation.
Everyone needs to realize that Department of Justice scammers are never the answer.
Rachel Mitchell is a Maricopa County Attorney. On X, formerly Twitter: @Rachel1Mitchell.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: DOJ Takeover of Phoenix Police Will Make City More Dangerous
