The Phoenix Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee approved an intergovernmental agreement between the Phoenix Police Department and ASU during their meeting on Tuesday, though some criticized the measure for being too vague and open-ended.
The Master Intergovernmental Agreement with Arizona State University is an extension of the partnership between the Phoenix Police Department and ASU.
According to the subcommittee, the agreement will add new services on ASU campuses based on police-related projects, as well as enter into new project agreements with the council’s approval.
Phoenix chief of police Jeri Williams, discussed why the department decided to partner with ASU for this project.
“We want to make sure that we are in line with the best practices across the country,” Williams said. “We thought it was important to have an academic end to that, because in some of these things we did not have the academic piece.”
According to the subcommittee, The Phoenix Police Department believes that ASU’s research and protocols can help to improve police practices and procedures; enhance data collection and reporting; and ensure the law enforcement procedures are aligned with best practices.
Williams added that with the help of Dr. Ed McGuire, an expert in crowd control and protesting, and ASU students, the Phoenix Police Department can gather information about better tactics that could be used to spark change in protest crowds.
The Phoenix Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee said that the project will not exceed $16,500, and that the funds are available in the Phoenix Police Department’s budget.
As of now, the Intergovernmental Agreement term will last for one year. However, if successful the agreement can be approved for another year by the City Manager.
However, there were differing opinions about the approved partnership between ASU and the Phoenix Police Department. Some ASU students shared their concerns about the agreement during the policy session.
Some of the concerns raised during the meeting included the initial proposal being too vague, if this was a waste of time for ASU students who may have to help with research, if this could cause further harm to the community, and if the police department’s funds could be better utilized in other projects such as mental health services, low cost housing, and education.
Marcus Reed, a student at the ASU Downtown Phoenix Campus, discussed why he and other ASU students are questioning the Intergovernmental Agreement.
“These are further attempts to reform the police, and many students and the wider community has been saying for quite some time that reform is not possible,” Reed said during the policy session.
Reed also said he believed that the agreement would slow down any type of incremental change that the police department has been working on in recent years.
“As an ASU student, I ask that you don’t throw any more money towards this,” Reed said to the Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee. “And you make sure that the Phoenix police start responding to the research that they already have.”
Contact the reporter at mlizak@asu.edu
