Phoenix launches website with videos, information on incidents in DOJ report

PHOENIX – The city of Phoenix launched a new website that will give users access to information and materials that were cited in the Department of Justice’s investigation into the Phoenix Police Department.

The DOJ Investigation Report Incidents website provides videos, incident reports and administrative documents for closed investigations referenced in the DOJ report.

“Evidence like incident reports, body worn camera videos and internal review documents are crucial to understand each incident described by DOJ,” Interim Police Chief Michael Sullivan said in a press release. “These materials are important for our community to see, and vital for the City to analyze as we strive to be a self-assessing and self-correcting department.”

In June, the DOJ released its nearly three yearlong pattern or practice investigation into the city of Phoenix and its police department. The results deemed the department to have systemic problems in its policies, training, supervision, and accountability systems.

The report found the department violated peoples civil rights by use of excessive force, violating the rights of the homeless, discrimination against minorities, ignoring First Amendment rights, discriminating against people with behavioral health disabilities and treatment of children.

Cases described in the report do not specify dates or report numbers but the city has attempted to identify the incidents and add them to the website.

How does the website work?

Visitors to the website will have access to around 179,000 documents and 22,000 body cam videos. The website allows users to search for specific incidents but also has a dashboard that organizes cases by seven categories which are the types of violations the DOJ found the department to make. The categories are use of force, homelessness, discriminatory policing, behavioral health, protected speech, youth and contributing cases.

The dashboard also provides the date of the incident, a link to the page in the DOJ report where the case was referenced, location of the scene, the departments internal review and outcome of the incident. Lastly, a link to additional information sends users to a summary of the event along with videos and documents.

The webpage also provides links to the DOJ report in English and Spanish, an annotated copy of the DOJ report from the department and the department’s Road to Reform report.

“This platform represents the City’s commitment to accountability and transparency,” Jeff Barton, Phoenix city manager, said. “We believe the community deserves information associated with these events, and the website gives people access to the facts,” Barton said.

What is the Phoenix Police doing to improve?

The city said it is examining the countermeasures the DOJ recommended to create change in the departments policing. Remedies like improving use-of-force training and requiring officers to report misconduct are two examples of the 37 solutions the DOJ recommended.

In January, months before the DOJ report was released, the department published its Road to Reform report. The 50-page report highlighted the changes the department made in policy, training and accountability in 2023.

“We want to compare these recommended remedial measures to the steps we have already taken to improve as a department. This is also an opportunity for us to look for ways we can make additional changes which better serve our community,” Sullivan said.