Senate President Petersen, U.S. Attorney Courchaine Praise Trump Administration for Ending Department of Justice Witch Hunt Against Phoenix Police Department

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                 

Wednesday, May 21, 2025

Senate President Petersen, U.S. Attorney Courchaine Praise Trump Administration for Ending Department of Justice Witch Hunt Against Phoenix Police Department

PHOENIX, ARIZONA— Senate President Warren Petersen and U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona Timothy Courchaine are praising the Trump Administration for ending the witch hunt launched by the previous administration’s U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) against the Phoenix Police Department in an effort to impose a destructive and costly consent decree on the agency.

"The men and women who selflessly serve within the Phoenix Police Department were unjustly attacked by the Biden Administration for years in an effort to appease radical activists targeting law enforcement across the nation," said President Petersen. "Today's announcement is complete vindication and will remove the handcuffs off our law enforcement so that they may do their jobs to keep the City of Phoenix and our citizens safe from criminals seeking to cause harm. Like Arizona Senate Republicans, the Trump Administration unequivocally backs the blue, and I'm grateful for the collaboration with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, U.S. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, and Arizona's U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine to end the witch hunt against our Phoenix Police."

U.S. Assistant Attorney General Dhillon shared this morning the DOJ is dropping an investigation against the Phoenix Police Department, as well as several other agencies nationwide, following President Petersen's March 12 meeting with the DOJ and subsequent letter to Dhillon regarding the Biden Administration's disturbingly biased and outright factually inaccurate report against Phoenix Police. In the letter, President Petersen shined a light on misstated facts and law to create a case of wrongdoing against the agency. He emphasized how the Biden Administration did not disclose its "experts" or methodologies used when compiling the report, nor were its remedial measures linked to constitutional duties or standards. He also expressed that consent decrees are nothing more than backhanded attempts to hijack police departments and bring them under the control of the federal government, adding that these court-ordered mandates are unconstitutional and exploited by overreaching presidential administrations.

"Under the leadership of President Trump and Attorney General Bondi, the Department of Justice is committed to the rule of law. That means ending unjust investigations that have strayed from the facts and the law," said U.S. Attorney Courchaine. "The men and women serving in the Phoenix Police Department have consistently demonstrated their professionalism and dedication to duty. The United States Attorney's Office thanks them for their sacrifice each day as they put their lives on the line to protect our community. Assistant Attorney General Dhillon's actions will allow the Phoenix Police Department to focus on its mission unfettered by needless investigations run by distant lawyers, keeping them accountable to the people of Phoenix, not Washington D.C."

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For more information, contact:

Kim Quintero

Director of Communications | Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus

kquintero@azleg.gov