13 Feb 2nd–Feb 8th, 2023 phoenixnewtimes.com phoenix new Times | cONTeNTs | feeDBacK | OPiNiON | NeWs | feaTuRe | NighT+Day | culTuRe | film | cafe | music | The new policy also clarifies what actions are considered to be deadly force, which in its current policy is vaguely defined. “Strikes to a person’s throat” and “chokeholds/neck holds” are now clearly defined as deadly force, as are “kicks to a person’s head.” It also expands the defini- tion of so-called “use of force incidents” to any actions that cause pain, such as bending a person’s wrist to gain compliance. In Keenan’s view, there’s a pattern to the changes. “It’s hard to read this revised policy as something other than, in many ways, a direct response to specific acts of violence that the Phoenix police have perpetrated in the past,” he said. For instance, the new policy expressly prohibits “discharge of a less-lethal launcher to the head, neck, sternum, spine, groin, or kidneys at close range” except in cases that warrant deadly force. In 2017, a Phoenix cop shot a protester in the groin with a pepper ball. Officers on the force later created memorabilia celebrating the incident, which turned into a major scandal. The policy also prohibits force against “persons who are handcuffed or otherwise restrained,” which is not discussed in the current policy. This has also been a historic problem for the department. In 2017, a man named Muhammad Muhaymin died after multiple officers pinned him to the ground as he was being handcuffed. In October, two Phoenix officers beat a handcuffed man on video, and may face criminal charges. Keenan questioned whether the new policy will make a difference. “Will these policy changes simply be ink on paper? Or will they actually be able to change a very broken and corrupt culture at the Phoenix Police Department,” he asked. In December, Sullivan announced a four-step plan to make changes at the department, including a review of the department’s use-of-force policy and expanding the arsenal of nondeadly tools officers can use while on patrol. | NEWS | his initial request to be executed. It also noted that Hobbs’ review process was now starting. With Mayes declining to move forward on new death warrants, which set a date for executions, and Hobbs pursuing a review, executions are essentially on pause in the state. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office has long favored death penalty cases. The office has sought so many death penalty cases over the years that, at times, it has run out of lawyers to prosecute them all. Mitchell has been more conservative in seeking the death penalty than her predeces- sors. In the nine months since she took office, she has sought the death penalty for five people. Former county attorneys Andrew Thomas and Bill Montgomery each sought dozens more death sentences. Thomas sought 89 from 2005 to 2007, and Montgomery sought 41 between 2010 and 2012. Still, Mitchell has no plans to stop her requests for executions. Mitchell said during her press conference that she plans to ask Mayes to ensure that all those sentenced to death in Maricopa County who have exhausted their appeals be executed once the review is completed. “Families of those murdered by those sentenced to death walk a long and painful path,” Mitchell said, referring to the often decades-long legal process that follows any death sentence and drags victims’ families through years of hearings and appeals. “That is why I hope the review process outlined in the governor’s order will be both expedient and transparent.” Hobbs plans to appoint an “independent review commissioner” — a death penalty expert who has not worked for the Arizona Department of Corrections — to review the state’s execution procedures, including “lethal injection drug and gas chamber chemical procurement process, execution protocols, and staffing considerations including training and experience,” according to her executive order. The review will result in a report to the governor with recommendations for improve- ment. No timeline for the review or completion of the report is given in the order. And Hobbs has hedged on questions about her personal stance on the death penalty — making it unclear whether the death penalty in Arizona will pick up where it left off after the review is complete. Hobbs has also appointed a new director of the embattled Arizona Department of Corrections, which conducts executions in the state prison in Florence. Ryan Thornell, currently the deputy commissioner of the Maine Department of Corrections, will take the place of former director David Shinn. Mitchell emphasized that the review will “not change the way the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office does business.” She said she spoke with Mayes and requested that the attorney general’s office continue to prosecute death penalty cases, as it is tasked with doing. “Attorney General Mayes assured me that if any changes were to be made that she would notify me of those,” Mitchell said. The attorney general’s office will continue with legal proceedings surrounding appeals of death penalty convictions, according to Richie Taylor, the communications director for Mayes’ office. “While AG Mayes will not seek death warrants during the review process, appellate litigation will continue for death row inmates that have not yet exhausted their appeals,” he said. Interruption from p 9 Force from p 10
