Representative Abe Hamadeh (R-AZ-08) asked the Trump administration last Wednesday to rescind its report criticizing the Phoenix Police Department (PPD), which came about as a result of violent protesters complaining about their interactions with officers. He sent a letter to FBI Director Kash Patel requesting a halt to the “desperate witch hunt,” which could end up putting the PPD in a consent decree with the federal government under monitoring. The Trump administration said in January that it is pausing all civil rights investigations into law enforcement agencies.
Hamadeh said in the letter, “Despite the Biden DOJ’s baseless claims, our officers did everything right, voluntarily cooperating in good faith, opening their records, and participating in lengthy interviews. They were met with stonewalling, mischaracterized testimony, and a final report riddled with glaring inaccuracies. The Biden DOJ’s claim that Phoenix Police Department officers violated constitutional standards during unrest following one of President Trump’s rallies was absurd. That claim is especially ludicrous because the Ninth Circuit affirmed that the department’s actions were lawful. The Biden DOJ ignored this and many other court-backed facts, choosing instead to cherry-pick narratives that support their political agenda.”
Hamadeh concluded in the accompanying press release, “Congressman Hamadeh believes that by rescinding the DOJ’s report on the Phoenix Police Department, the Trump administration will send a powerful message that political interference has no place in law enforcement, and that America First principles now govern the day.”
The DOJ investigation began after the rioting over the death of George Floyd, and included a review of the violent protesting at a Trump rally in downtown Phoenix in 2017. Prosecutors charged Antifa with gang charges after the Floyd riots, sparking anger from the radical left.
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