TEMPE, AZ — More than 300 laptops for the Tempe Police Department were delivered to a city warehouse six months ago but have not been deployed to officers.
Internal emails obtained by the ABC15 Investigators show that 310 Panasonic FZ40 laptops were delivered at the end of August 2023 and an additional 50 were being customized out of the country and would arrive in the near future.
In addition to the laptops, 600 radios for officers were delivered in August 2023 but most also remain unused inside a warehouse.
City records show that Tempe City Council approved a contract with Motorola Solutions for 600 radios for nearly $5 million in October 2022. These radios include sophisticated software that has GPS technology to know an officer’s location.
A retired Tempe police officer who worked inside the department for two decades, including nine of those years inside the Technical Services Unit, spoke with the ABC15 Investigators about issues inside the unit that date back years. We are not naming the officer in our report because of fear of retaliation.
“I tried to report some problems in the unit. I tried to go through the proper channels, the chain of command, and I reported them to the city,” the former officer said.
This former officer previously filed a whistleblower complaint in 2021 about project delays and mismanagement of funds. He told ABC15 he felt the problems continued until he decided to retire.
ABC15 first reported on concerns within his Technical Services Unit earlier this month that show Tempe police officers were left to work with dated technology and old equipment, and there were technology projects that took years to finish. Four TSU members left the job in a matter of five months.
The former officer was the first one to leave in August of 2023, followed by three other members of the unit.
“Emotionally, it was difficult, because my team just wanted to do our job and we just wanted to do the work, provide the tech to the PD,” said the former officer. "And then to feel like you're the problem when you're just trying to do your job was very frustrating.”
Sources say that the city manager, Rosa Inchausti, met with several TSU employees last summer and they warned her that the entire unit might quit.
One of the other members sent an email last fall to the entire police department about his departure, saying in part: “Over the past 6-8 months, it became clear that my knowledge and experience were no longer valued as they once were.”
Chief Kenneth McCoy was appointed Tempe’s new chief last June and city officials have said that problems inside the department date back to past police chiefs and administrations.
Tempe officials tell the ABC15 Investigators that they have received the laptops and radios, but say they are not “sitting there.”
“Providing new laptops for police is not the same as buying an off-the-shelf laptop and connecting to the internet,” said city spokesperson Kris Baxter in an email response. “There are several steps, including security and encryption measures, that go into deploying them.”
Baxter said the last of the laptops arrived at the end of January.
However, sources have shared internal documentation that shows 310 of the 360 laptops for patrol officers were delivered in August. The ABC15 Investigators have learned that the remaining 50 were a customized color.
In addition, Tempe officials say there are about 150 city vehicles that need to be fitted with special mountings and new docking connections by the vendor so the laptops fit.
It is unclear when the docks and mounts are expected to be installed.
“The police officers in the field have radios and laptops that work well to do their jobs,” Baxter said. “No investigation has been hindered by a lack of this technology.”
As for the hundreds of unused radios, Baxter said, “We discovered that the new radios had manufacturer defects that greatly affected their performance -- a difficulty experienced by other cities attempting to adopt this new model.”
Tempe officials did not provide details about what the defects are but said the 100 radios deployed in a pilot program have been pulled as they work with the provider to resolve the issue.
“Radios are a lifeline for officers in the field. To protect the men and women who serve Tempe, the pilot radios were pulled and we are working with the provider to have the issue resolved before issuing any more of those radios,” the statement said.
The ABC15 Investigators reached out to Motorola Solutions to ask about Tempe’s claims about manufacturer defects, and they said in a written statement they are working to understand and address this matter.
The company issued this statement:
“Motorola Solutions is a global leader in public safety communications, and our radios are trusted by government agencies and organizations all over the world. We work closely with all of our customers to address feedback and support the deployment and operation of their technology solutions. We are currently working with the Tempe Police Department to understand and address this matter.”
Chief McCoy released a pre-recorded video statement after our first report into the Technical Services Unit.
The chief has said that the issues inside TSU and the Forensics Services Unit have existed for many years under different administrations and police chiefs.
“Upon learning about these issues, my executive leadership team and I took immediate action to address these matters, I believe in accountability and take seriously our responsibility to keep the public safe and pursue justice,” he said.
The department shared on the YouTube video that they have plans to add new tools inside the department.
“We are implementing a Real-Time Operations Center (RTOC), a cutting-edge version of the Real-Time Crime Centers used nationwide. The RTOC integrates traffic cameras with public safety professionals, enabling us to assist first responders during incidents and review footage for evidence.”
Tempe officials say that the city’s IT professionals are working with TPD and the vendors to make sure these projects move forward.
In a statement given to ABC15 earlier this month, Tempe officials wrote: “The conditions that caused the issues with TSU no longer exist in Tempe Police Department.”
“In looking at your reporting, looking at some of the press releases that have been coming out, it's frustrating because it seems like they're just trying to bury the problems or hide the problems instead of just dealing with the problems," said the retired officer.
Tempe’s police chief and the city manager would not go on camera to answer our questions about the technology that has yet to be deployed.
Have a tip for the ABC15 Investigators? Email Investigator Nicole Grigg at nicole.grigg@abc15.com
