Law Enforcement

In less than a week, a new Trump administration is set to take charge of a yearslong civil rights investigation of Phoenix and its police department. There’s been a recent flurry of action involving two other cities reviewed by the U.S. Justice Department during the Biden administration.

A national search is underway to find Phoenix’s next police chief. The city expects to have three finalists who will take questions from the community during a public forum in March.

Ridenour was convicted of six arson and hate crimes counts for burning two Douglas churches in May 2023 because they included women and LGBTQ parishioners in church leadership roles.

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes created a new unit to help local police departments investigate unsolved cases.

Axon says the decision to abandon the project is due to a ballot referendum initiative. Last month, a pro-union political organization called Worker Power said it helped to gather enough signatures to allow voters to decide if they want to veto the development.

Aaron Gunches is not going to get his wish to be executed on Valentine's Day. Instead, the justices said they want to hear arguments from all sides – including Attorney General Kris Mayes, who wants Gunches executed, but not on his schedule.

Phoenix leaders are considering a new tool focused on digital engagement to better track public safety concerns.

Arizona’s Democratic Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego support a bill which would require undocumented immigrants who are charged with certain crimes to be taken into custody.

"Imprisoned Minds" is co-authored by Kevin Wright, a criminal justice professor at ASU, and Erik Maloney, who's currently serving a life sentence at a prison in Arizona.

Turnover is expected in Arizona’s top-federal-prosecutor job as the Biden administration ends this month and a new Trump administration starts. Biden appointee, Gary Restaino, has been U.S. Attorney for Arizona for about three years.