Treatment of the homeless part of DOJ probe into Phoenix Police Department
PHOENIX - The city of Phoenix is awaiting the findings by the U.S. Department of Justice after a two-and-a-half-year investigation into the police department.
The police department’s patterns or practices are under scrutiny, and one of those issues under scrutiny is how its officers treat people experiencing homelessness.
'People are just treated really bad if you’re homeless'
Jared Keenan, the legal director of ACLU Arizona
More than a year after the DOJ launched an investigation into Phoenix PD, the ACLU of Arizona sued the city of Phoenix in November 2022.
Plaintiffs claim that sweeps of homeless camps in The Zone became raids, resulting in personal belongings being destroyed by officers.
For now, Jared Keenan, the legal director of ACLU Arizona, is waiting on unreleased findings by the Department of Justice.
"I think they’re going to confirm what we suspected all along," he said.
The investigation into Phoenix Police focuses on several issues, including how officers handle people experiencing homelessness.
Frank Urban is one of two plaintiffs in Fund for Empowerment v. the city of Phoenix.
Frank Urban, is one of two plaintiffs in Fund for Empowerment v. the city of Phoenix
"People are just treated really bad if you’re homeless and that’s putting it lightly," he said.
He claims he’s been criminally cited for simply standing on a sidewalk as someone who was chronically homeless.
He’s another witness to raids in The Zone – once the largest homeless encampment in Phoenix before being cleared last November.
"You only had 10–15 minutes to do this and if you didn’t get it done in the allotted time, they would take your stuff and throw it away – a lot of the times – right in front of your face," Urban said.
After the lawsuit was filed, plaintiffs also motioned for a preliminary injunction to stop the sweeps and seizures.
A judge issued a preliminary injunction in their favor, prohibiting camping and sleeping bans against those who are unsheltered across Phoenix.
"It prevented the city of Phoenix and the Phoenix Police Department from using its anti-camping, city camp and urban camping ordinances to criminalize people who are unhoused. It also prevented the city from seizing the property of unsheltered individuals and destroying that property," Keenan said.
Keenan would like the injunction to be a long-term solution.
"Ultimately, we would like to see a permanent injunction in place which would permanently enjoin the city from engaging in the unconstitutional conduct," Keenan said.
DOJ's findings in Phoenix Police Department probe to be released any day: What to know
For the last two years, the Department of Justice has been investigating the Phoenix Police Department. While we await the results of the DOJ's investigation, we're breaking down the timeline of how we got here and why.
What next?
The city of Phoenix says it has implemented new protocols for identifying and storing unattended property.
Owners have 48 hours to remove unattended property after notice is left at the site. If items aren’t claimed, the property is stored for 45 days for pickup.
Urban says the violation of constitutional rights is still happening to those who are homeless.
FOX 10 reached out to Phoenix PD for comment, but our questions were forwarded to the city’s Office of Homeless Solutions.
The office released a statement, saying in part, "Any items that are removed from an encampment are authorized to be removed by those individuals as they engage with staff. No one’s property is disposed of without their permission."
The lawsuit against the city of Phoenix is ongoing and is not connected to the DOJ investigation. However, the handling of those experiencing homelessness has been a part of the probe.