East Valley panels: Have the tough conversations

By Jason W. Brooks
Mail | X: @JasonWBrooks2

MESA — Adults can miss signs of a teen struggling, Brendan Salisbury said.

“When you have somebody who’s consistently not as interested in activities, not talking as much, maybe not eating as much, this is the time when you need to ask yourself ‘How can I have a direct and honest conversation with my child?,’” Salisbury said.

The panelist was answering a question Aug. 29 about what adults often miss during “Stronger Together: Safe Minds, Safe Communities.” The half-day teen mental health awareness and violence prevention summit was hosted by Maricopa County Supervisor Mark Stewart and organized by some of the people and organizations trying to shed light on these public safety topics.

Brought to the forefront by the fall 2023 murder of Preston Lord, whose father and stepmother attended the event, more forums, vigils, community meetings on teen safety topics have taken place in the East Valley.

A handful of individual speakers made “Ted Talk” like presentations, followed by three lively panel discussions, which took audience questions.

Salisbury and the rest of a student-led panel drew some of the most vocal reactions from those who were in the ASU Tech Student Union room. Riana Alexander, Tristan Kuehner and Lucy Wegener all gave responses to questions drawn on their own recent experiences as teens from moderator and activist Bridget Vega.

Wegener said she doesn’t believe parents and other adults who either shut down or change the subject when teen needs come up are being malicious.

“I don’t think those reactions come from a place of wanting to inflict harm,” Wegener said. “I think it comes from a place of fear.”

Wegener also praised the Chandler Unified School District — the largest public school district in the Southeast Valley — for making some strides on teen well-being, such as opening the Hope Institute suicide prevention crisis center on the Perry High School campus in Gilbert.

The free event also included a panel, hosted by Stewart himself, that included state Sen. Carine Werner and Rep. Matt Gress — sponsors of various public safety measures in the Arizona Legislature — alongside Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell.

Mitchell said one of her challenges, especially with complex cases such as Lord’s murder, is that much police and district attorney work must be done in near-complete privacy and secrecy, ranging from interviews to grand-jury proceedings. This can give the public the false impression that little, if anything, is being done on a case.

“The keys are to do everything in the correct order, and then go public and talk about what has and hasn’t happened in order to get accurate information out there,” Mitchell said.

The county attorney used the occasion to talk about a particular bill that didn’t pass this year that would allow parents or group home managers to confiscate guns if a dangerous situation presents. She’ll try again to get the bill passed in 2026, she said.

“Juvenile violent crimes are on the upswing,” Mitchell said. “We get parents calling police saying ‘My kid has a gun, I don’t want them to have it, things are going to happen.’ And a loophole in a (state) law says a kid can have a gun in their own residence or group home without approval of a parent or group home manager. That’s ridiculous.”

Another panel included Natasha Davis, director of counseling and social services for the Chandler Unified School District and longtime school resource officer Steve Dieu, as well as a local psychologist and other professionals whose work includes teen well-being.

Davis was among those who pointed out that not only must schools, law enforcement and other organizations collaborate and share information, they must promote availability of the tools they have. She mentioned CUSD’s use of the STOPit reporting app as an example.

Other presenters included advocate Katey McPherson, who mentioned she advocates for the “away for the day” device policy. She showed cell phone images in what she said was a smaller student being beaten by several larger students in a local school bathroom, illustrating that teens with phones on campus, even in passing periods or during lunch, sets up a formula for chaos.

Arizona Gang Task Force detective Julio Chavez said law enforcement agencies are moving away from the gang-detail approach. He also said one challenge is the number of single mothers who are raising children and attempting to keep them safe on their own.

We invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this topic. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.   Email Jason W. Brooks at jbrooks@iniusa.org.

Jason W. Brooks
News Editor | Chandler Independent

Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.

Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.

Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.

Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.

Community: He supports animal shelters.