People who say they were victimized by Phoenix Police react to DOJ report
Victims speak following DOJ report on Phoenix Police
The scathing report by the Department of Justice outlining violations by the Phoenix Police Department prompted a news conference where victims named in the report gathered and shared their thoughts. FOX 10's Justin Lum has the story.
PHOENIX - Fallout continues from the Department of Justice report on Phoenix PD's pattern of violating of civil rights, use of excessive force and discriminatory policing.
More than 20 people who say they - or their loved ones - were victims of police brutality spoke in a news conference.
What to know: DOJ reveals findings in Phoenix PD probe
Following the U.S. Department of Justice releasing a scathing report following the years-long probe into the Phoenix Police Department, FOX 10's Justin Lum and Lauren Clark break down what was in the report and the reaction to it. We're also looking into the role of a consent decree and what it could mean for the department moving forward.
"We didn’t have a voice or it didn’t matter.," said Dravon Ames. "I feel like black people, brown people, we didn’t have a voice so it didn’t matter. So the DOJ stepping in and saying and having evidence of all the stuff we’ve been screaming, crying for, protesting for, it has some matter to it. We haven’t just been doing it for no reason."
In 2019, an officer forced Ames against a cop car, sweeping his right leg while shouting profanities at him and held Ames' fiance at gunpoint in front of their children after their daughter took a doll from a store.
It led to the officer's firing and a near 500-hundred-thousand dollar settlement.
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What are the top concerns in the DOJ report
An issue at the top of these findings is that Phoenix PD uses excessive force and unjustified deadly force.
The DOJ says through their investigation, Phoenix PD supervisors determined that 99% of force incidents complied with policy in 2022 and in training, they observed, officers were taught to use force when people do not immediately comply with commands.
The DOJ's review says officers used unreasonable force in a "significant share of incidents" in 2021 and 2022.
Issues in dealing with shooting incidents
According to the DOJ, families have also voiced frustrations about how they’ve been treated after a shooting – some still waiting years to recover loved one’s possessions.
Meanwhile, the city is going to thoroughly review the findings and then reach out to the DOJ in several weeks for further dialogue.