Should We Abolish The Police?

PHOENIX — The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit today against the city of Phoenix for unlawfully denying access to public records that would shed light on the police department’s use of force policies and practices. The public records request, sent in May 2025, seeks to uncover whether the Phoenix Police Department (PPD) continues to have use of force problems that were identified in the Biden administration’s 2024 report. The ACLU filed similar requests in six other jurisdictions across the country where the Trump administration abruptly ended federal oversight. “Nearly a year after we submitted our public records request, PPD is still refusing to turn over information the public has a clear right to see,” said Sapana Anand, staff attorney at the ACLU’s Criminal Law Reform Project. “The Trump administration let PPD off the hook before they had to do the work to fix the serious problems that plagued the department, and now the public is left in the dark about whether that misconduct is continuing. Police are supposed to serve our communities, not operate in the shadows. If PPD has nothing to hide, it should show that these abuses have stopped by turning over what we asked for.” In May 2025, the Trump administration retracted the Biden administration’s finding of widespread police misconduct, excessive force, and racial targeting in Phoenix. The report includes horror stories of PPD’s routine use of egregious force, including the use of deadly neck restraints and the use of firearms and tasers on people who were already incapacitated. “Transparency is not a courtesy — it is the law. The Phoenix Police Department’s refusal to turn over public records has only deepened concerns that misconduct and excessive use of force continue,” said Lauren Beall, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Arizona. “The people of Phoenix deserve to know how, when, and why their government uses violence against them.” “Since the DOJ came to Phoenix, the police department and the City Council that enables them have been parroting talking points about ‘continuous improvement’ and ‘self-correction,’ but the lived experience of Phoenix residents says otherwise,” said Ben Laughlin, interim director of Poder in Action. “Our reality since the Trump administration retracted the report is 22 shootings, numerous scandals, and blocked transparency. We need these records released so that everyone can see what our communities already know from experience: PPD is a violent agency that must be held accountable.” The ACLU’s public record request seeks information about continued excessive force at the moment the Trump administration retracted findings, to determine whether the misconduct uncovered by the DOJ is continuing absent of federal oversight. PPD denied the request, despite the request fitting comfortably within the category of information that PPD is required to produce under state law. The complaint is available here: https://www.aclu.org/documents/poder-in-action-v-city-of-phoenix-police-department-verified-complaint-for-statutory-special-action-and-injunctive-relief

ACLU and partners urged members of Congress during Community Safety Week to pass legislation that allows people to sue federal law enforcement when they violate their rights.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Civil Liberties Union, the Institute for Justice, ACLU affiliates from ten states, and survivors of federal law enforcement abuse are on Capitol Hill this week for the ACLU’s third annual Community Safety Week, calling on Congress to pass legislation to ensure accountability when law enforcement officers violate constitutional rights. Community Safety Week comes at a moment of escalating threats to public safety from the Trump administration. Last year, the Department of Justice slashed about $500 million dollars in federal grants to organizations working to deliver safety and justice. Meanwhile, the administration is siphoning money to expand their reckless mass deportation campaign. Communities across the country are facing the consequences, as federal agents tear through communities, making unlawful arrests, and brutalizing families and people exercising their First Amendment rights. At the same time, existing civil rights laws leave little recourse for people whose constitutional rights are violated by law enforcement officers. Without meaningful consequences, reckless and abusive behavior is more likely to continue. Advocates urged Congress to act now to close this accountability gap. “I’m here because families like mine deserve justice when law enforcement violates our rights,” said Teyana Gibson Brown, a lead plaintiff in a case challenging unlawful federal enforcement practices in Minneapolis. “Masked and heavily armed ICE agents used a battering ram to illegally break into my home, point guns at my family, arrest my husband, and put all of our lives in danger, including my nine-year-old daughter. No family should have to go through what we did, and we deserve to have our day in court to make that clear.” Throughout the week, advocates met with members of Congress to advance two pieces of legislation that would create clear pathways to hold law enforcement officers accountable for constitutional violations, the Bivens Act and the Constitutional Accountability Act. “The Trump administration has created a recipe for disaster: flooding our streets with militarized agents and encouraging violence, all while telling them they can’t be held accountable for the harm they cause,” said Nicole Ndumele, director of the ACLU’s Policy and Government Affairs, Justice Division. “No one should be above the law, including federal agents. When government officials violate people’s rights, there must be a clear path to accountability, just as there would be for anyone else. With the vast majority of Americans demanding justice, now is the time for Congress to take meaningful action to protect civil rights and community safety.” Recent polling from the ACLU shows that by more than a 4-to-1 margin, Americans across political lines support stronger police accountability measures. “Whether it’s ATF agents violating the Second Amendment, ICE violating the Fourth, or the IRS violating the First,” said Patrick Jaicomo, director of the Institute for Justice’s Project on Immunity and Accountability. “Individuals who have their rights violated by federal officials must have a remedy in federal courts. It’s long past time for Congress to place federal officials on the same accountability footing as their state counterparts.”

Researchers asked experienced police supervisors to rate police reports, some of which were written by humans and some by AI