PHOENIX, AZ — A Phoenix police officer has been fired after an officer-involved shooting in September 2022.
Interim Phoenix Police Chief Michael Sullivan determined that Officer Jesse Johnson was "out-of-policy" during the shooting.
Video in the player above includes edited body camera footage from the shooting
On September 24, 2022, 34-year-old Ali Osman was shot and killed by officers near 19th and Glendale avenues after he threw rocks and other items at patrol cars and officers.
After the shooting, an officer told investigators that the rocks were the size of baseballs or bigger. Rocks that were collected from the intersection ranged from 2.9 ounces to 19.8 ounces.
Two officers shot at Osman, but it is unknown if Sullivan intends to take action against the other officer involved.
In 2023, Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell cleared the officers of criminal wrongdoing and did not charge the officers due in part to the "reasonable likelihood of conviction" at trial.
“The administrative investigation by the Phoenix Police Department that was announced today was concerning whether the officer violated department policy," County Attorney Mitchell said to ABC15 Wednesday. "The criminal case reviewed by my office involves whether we could prove beyond a reasonable doubt to a unanimous jury that a crime was committed. Those are two very different considerations.”
After the interim chief's announcement, the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association released a statement saying that Sullivan's decision to fire officer Johnson was "unfair."
"First and foremost, any loss of life to a community member during a police contact is tragic and our officers try to avoid those responses at all costs," the statement said. "But it is unfair to hold one half of the interaction 100% responsible for the outcome."
PLEA originally noted that the Phoenix Police Department's Critical Incident Review Board unanimously found the use of force within policy. However, they issued a correction the following day to say it was a majority and not unanimous.
"Historically, deviations from CIRB’s recommendations have been rare and articulable," said PLEA.
ABC15 spoke with Quacy Smith, the attorney representing Osman's family, he says the officer getting fired is the "right decision."
"I was surprised at frankly," Smith said. "I was surprised that he got fired, you know, after all this time."
When ABC15 spoke with Smith on Wednesday, he had not yet spoken with Osman's family. But said he was sure they would have some emotions to process.
"It goes to show that the Phoenix Police Department and the city of Phoenix are making some honest efforts to improve the relationship between the police officers and the citizen and that should be commended," said Smith.
Phoenix Police told ABC15 that the last officer that was fired in relation to an officer-involved shooting was in December 2021. That officer was eventually reinstated by the civil service board.
