Reader: Phoenix should invest in community, not add more police

Ruben Martinez Garcia

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I believe the city of Phoenix made a big mistake in trying to secure the public’s safety by adding more police. As reported recently, the council voted to increase its police budget to add more officers. According to Councilmember Jim Waring, the need was clear: “I think it’s of paramount importance that we increase the number of police officers we’re putting on the street every day. We’re at 1990-something levels of staffing with a much bigger city.” 

Of course, this sounds like the most logical step in the context of our developing population, which, according to the article, What Is the Population of Phoenix in 2025?, remains one of the country’s fastest-growing urban areas.

However, in the context of what is right, adding more police is abhorrent in my opinion because local police have so often mistreated people. Last year, ABC News reported that a U.S. Department of Justice investigation found “the Phoenix police deprives people of their rights under the Constitution and federal law.” Additionally, the DOJ “found systemic problems ... of civil rights violations, including unjustified deadly force, discrimination in traffic and other enforcement and unlawful detention citations and arrests of the homeless.”

ABC15 Arizona reported that “Phoenix officers routinely violate the rights of children and assault them and use excessive force against them. Those are some of the most troubling findings from the Department of Justice.” The station also reported that the DOJ found that “Phoenix officers often question children without telling them about their right to remain silent … and ignored the requirements of Miranda altogether.”

Put another way, Phoenix police have often failed to keep people safe, often acting not as protectors, but perpetrators. The reality is that some Phoenix officers have been cruel in their treatment of people. Consider, for example, the stories of Michael Kenyon and Tyron McAlpin. 

A year ago, Kenyon suffered “burns across much of his body after Phoenix officers pinned him face down on the scorching hot pavement,” as reported in Man ‘cooked’ on pavement files lawsuit against Phoenix Police Department.

Attorneys for McAlpin, who was arrested by Phoenix police last August, filed a lawsuit against the department in March, claiming officers “went after McAlpin based on false and unverified allegations from another man.”

I believe that what these individuals experienced was cruel and unjust, and that ignoring what is unjust perpetuates it forever. To acknowledge what is unjust is to initiate a solution one day. I hope we get closer to that day. 

I believe we cannot ignore the reality that more police does not equal more safety. We need to invest back into our communities instead. On this subject, I stand with Councilmember Anna Hernandez, who voted against the budget increase, saying it “sends the message that we will promote criminalization over dignity and care. We want investments into a thriving life, not into the institutions that often steal that away.”

Editor’s note: Arizona native Ruben Martinez Garcia holds a degree in English with a concentration in rhetoric from Arizona State University. He lives in Tolleson. Please send your comments to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.