In response to emails, texts and phone calls from constituents concerned over the arrest of a man who is deaf and has cerebral palsy, Phoenix City Councilman Kevin Robinson will hold a listening session in November.
Police body camera video shows Tyron McAlpin being repeatedly punched and tased. During a court hearing, the two officers involved in arresting Tyron McAlpin testified they had “light” and “brief” training on interacting with people with disabilities and couldn’t recall specifics.
“This particular incident clearly is not a good look for us,” said Robinson, who served 36 years as a Phoenix police officer before retiring. “Based on their testimony, I would think that we're not training enough. And I am a big advocate a very strong advocate of training, training and train some more after that because that's how we are able to affect a change in an organization that if we're not happy with the direction it's going.”
On Aug. 19, an employee at a Circle K near 12th Street and Indian School called cops to remove a guy who’d been trespassing. When they got there, that guy claimed he’d been assaulted by a man walking across the street. That man was Tyron McAlpin.
Body camera video shows an officer pulling into the parking lot where McAlpin was walking and the officer calls out to him to stop. Then the officer gets out of his vehicle, tells McAlpin to take a seat, and immediately there’s a scuffle. The officer said McAlpin swung at him.
Within seconds, you hear that officer say to another, “Tase him, tase him.” In the video, you see the officers repeatedly punch and tase McAlpin while he’s face down on the ground. One officer says McAlpin bit him during the struggle. McAlpin was charged with aggravated assault on officers and resisting arrest.
“It was a true injustice that Tyron was charged with any crime, coupled with the injustice of the assault on him by those two officers,” said Jesse Showalter, attorney for Tyron McAlpin.
On Oct. 17, Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell dismissed all charges against McAlpin. The Phoenix Law Enforcement Association, a union representing police officers, called the dismissal “appalling.” In a statement, the group said police are trained on how to interact with people who are “hearing impaired and/or disabled”, but they said they’re also trained on how to defend themselves if faced with a violent individual intent on hurting them.
“We proclaim to be a self-correcting self-assessing organization and you know, and then — there's still an investigation that has to be conducted — but the look itself is not very good, so I know we have a ways to go. Does it make it more difficult with the DOJ? You know, I think common sense dictates that you say, yes, it does,” Robinson said.
In June, a Department of Justice report found Phoenix police use excessive force, engage in discriminatory policing and violate people’s rights.
Before the DOJ announced its findings, city officials were touting a range of police reforms and say they’re committed to exceeding the 36 recommendations in the DOJ’s report. those changes. The mayor and council members have said they want to work with the DOJ while maintaining local control and avoiding federal oversight.
As for Tyron McAlpin’s case, both officers are on administrative leave as the police department conducts an internal investigation.
Robinson expects to hold a listening session with the community on Nov. 7 with specific details to come.
