ARIZONA NEWS

Phoenix appoints 9 members to civilian review board to oversee police misconduct investigations

Oct 4, 2024, 4:05 AM

civilian review board Phoenix police misconduct allegations...

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, left, is seen swearing in the members of the new civilian review board. (City of Phoenix Photo)

(City of Phoenix Photo)

PHOENIX — Phoenix city leadership appointed nine members on Wednesday to its civilian review board that will oversee police misconduct investigations.

The purpose of the civilian review board, which the Phoenix City Council voted to appoint on Wednesday, is to provide more transparency and accountability to residents.

The board will work closely with the Office of Accountability and Transparency (OAT), an agency that oversees police misconduct investigations.

Specifically, the board will review, discuss and approve OAT’s monitoring reports. On top of that, it will also review policy recommendations OAT gives the Phoenix PD.

“Accountability and transparency are essential to building trust between law enforcement and our community,” Phoenix Mayor Gate Gallego said in a Wednesday news release.

Who is in Phoenix’s new civilian review board?

All of the members of the Phoenix civilian review board will serve staggered terms. Three members will serve two-year terms, three members will serve three-year terms and the final three members will service an initial four years.

After serving their initial terms, all of the following members will be eligible to serve a three-year term:

  • Terry Araman.
  • Penny Allee Taylor.
  • Tyrone Benson.
  • Armando Ruiz.
  • John Graham.
  • Valentina Hernandez.
  • Patricia (PJ) Jasso.
  • Braden Lopez-Biggs.
  • Dr. Michael Robert.

The group of civilians providing an extra layer of oversight into police misconduct investigations has a diverse background of experiences. Some members have worked in mental health, veteran care and homelessness outreach.

“Our newly established civilian review board further institutionalizes meaningful community engagement and gives residents a permanent role in our oversight processes,” Gallego said. “We look forward to the recommendations that will be made by this diverse group of engaged residents.”

Why group involved in police misconduct investigations was made

This board has been a long time coming. The Council previously discussed a civilian board dedicated to helping oversee Phoenix police misconduct allegation back in 2021.

The Council voted to create the board on May 15 of this year.

Furthermore, the creation of the Phoenix civilian review board came after the Phoenix City Council voted to pass a series of police reform recommendations to enhance data collection and documentation of police activity.

Zooming out, this extra layer of oversight reflects the city’s ongoing efforts to improve the Phoenix Police Department.

Those efforts ramped up after the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched an investigation into the department’s potential civil rights violations and abuses of power in August 2021.

In 2022, city officials hired Michael Sullivan as interim police chief and tasked him with guiding the department through the investigation and leading reform efforts.

The DOJ then released a scathing report about the department’s alleged civil rights violations in June of this year.

Gallego joined KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show earlier this week to discuss the city’s desire to avoid a consent decree with the DOJ. She said she believed the city would be better off without the bureaucratic burden, which would make change slower to enact.

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Phoenix appoints 9 members to civilian review board to oversee police misconduct investigations