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Phoenix police opened an internal investigation after a complaint that officers, responding to a 911 call about a possibly suicidal man, repeatedly punched the man in the face.
On November 30, the officers were responding to a 911 call about a man who was wandering in the street and was possibly suicidal.
One witness, who recorded video of the violent encounter, made a complaint to the department. A second witness was tasered and arrested by officers who said he did not follow their commands.
The ABC15 Investigators have been asking questions about the incident for four months and recently obtained the police body-worn camera videos and reports.
“Just Not Humane”
Three officers arrived at the scene near the intersection of 35th and Dunlap avenues.
They stopped 41-year-old Joseph Savala on the sidewalk and told him to sit down.
The police report noted Savala had “previous injuries,” “may be suicidal” and had “slurred speech” like someone “under the influence of illegal drugs.”
“What did you do? Did you get hit by a car?” one of the officers asked.
“He’s compliant, he’s bleeding from the head,” another officer said over his radio as he requested paramedics.
When Savala tried to stand up, officers grabbed him and forced him down to “handcuff him for safety reasons,” according to the police report.
“People, help me help me,” Savala screamed. “I’m not giving up.”
"The sound of the scream that I heard coming from the guy who was being tackled by the officer, I knew something wasn't right,” said a witness who asked ABC15 not to name her.
“It was just not humane,” the woman recalled. She recorded a cell phone video of the incident, and afterward, she said she called the Phoenix Police Department to complain about the officers’ actions.
Officers are heard on video telling Savala to put his hands behind his back. In their report, they describe the man kicking and grabbing their hands as they pin him against the curb.
One of the officers wrote in the police report that he started punching “to prevent Joseph from further controlling his left hand and assaulting him.”
Another officer explained he punched Joseph multiple times, saying Joseph had his arm “concealed underneath him” and he was “trying to break free.”
“You could hear the hit, and blood is just squirting from his mouth, his nose,” the female witness described.
As Joseph’s face is covered in blood, a red pool surrounds his head on the sidewalk.
On the body-worn camera video, officers can be seen hitting Savala in the head at least 10 times during the five-minute struggle.
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“I can’t breathe,” Savala repeatedly said.
Also on the police video, another witness from across the street is yelling for officers to stop. Then he comes closer, and an officer tells him to “get out of the road.”
Moments later, police approach that man. One officer tasered him, and he was arrested.
However, he is not facing criminal charges.
“They wanted anybody who was recording or did not agree with what they were doing out of there,” the female witness told ABC15. “If you didn't listen, they were taking you down.”
Officers are also heard on camera telling the woman to back away. She says she left the scene a short time later.
Behavioral Health Crisis Response
Phoenix police officials declined to answer ABC15’s questions about the tactics and arrests that day, citing an ongoing internal investigation.
The department’s current use-of-force policy prohibits strikes to a person’s head against a hard fixed object like concrete unless deadly force is justified. However, that policy took effect in February, which was two months after this situation.
Phoenix police have been under pressure to reform how they respond to people in crisis, especially after the U.S. Department of Justice issued its report last year about the city's patterns of unconstitutional policing.
VIDEO GUIDE: ABC15 breaks down the Department of Justice's report
Ernest Stevens is a retired San Antonio police officer who told ABC15 it is the “last resort” to try to forcefully detain someone who is in a mental or behavioral health crisis.
Stevens has been the subject of several documentaries, and he is known as ‘Ernie the Crisis Cop.” He talked about alternatives to avoid escalating an encounter.
“My question is when they sat them down - I think - just set him in the back of the car,” Stevens said. He said the officers could have explained early on, “I'm not going to put any handcuffs on you. You didn't do anything wrong.”
Several years ago, Stevens said he met with a prior Phoenix police chief to discuss the department’s use-of-force concerns. Stevens emphasizes training, communication, and joint responses with medics or social workers.
“The majority of these calls are somebody that has lost the ability to cope, and they just need help being met in the moment and then being diverted either to a resource or just de-escalated,” Stevens said.
When paramedics arrived at Savala’s scene, they took the man to the hospital. Doctors found Savala had a broken nose and suffered a possible seizure, according to the police report.
It’s not clear if the seizure was before, during or after the arrest.
Criminal and Internal Investigations
Savala was charged with one felony resisting arrest charge. He could spend years in prison if convicted, in part due to his prior criminal record, which includes multiple charges tied to substance abuse.
The witness with the cell phone video told ABC15 she’s willing to testify on his behalf.
“I am not going to stop with this, because this is not okay, and if nobody else is going to step forward, I am,” the woman said.
A Phoenix police spokesperson said the officers involved in Savala’s arrest continue to work assigned to their respective squads. It’s unclear when the internal investigation will be completed.