The lawsuit aims to prevent disciplinary action against a Phoenix police officer who was captured on video armed and wearing a mask at an ICE protest in Chandler.
PHOENIX — A Phoenix police sergeant and a statewide law enforcement organization are suing the city, the police chief, and a city council member — claiming the department retaliated against the officer for attending an off-duty protest.
Sergeant Dusten Mullen and the Arizona Conference of Police and Sheriffs—known as AZCOPS—filed the federal lawsuit Sunday in the United States District Court in Arizona.
RELATED: Phoenix officer on leave for incident at high school ICE protest in Chandler, police chief says
The complaint alleges the Phoenix Police Department violated Mullen’s First and Fourteenth Amendment rights and bypassed its own disciplinary procedures after he attended a student protest in Chandler while off-duty in January.
Mullen wore a mask and was armed while attending the protest.
In a police report about the incident, Mullen is quoted as saying:
“My plan is legitimately to just let them all assault me, and you guys arrest them all, and I’ll keep it on film … So my goal (unintelligible) to get all these kids in jail if they want to break the law.”
The situation grew tense, and students began chanting around Mullen. Shortly after, a teen girl reportedly poured a cup of water on him.
Mullen told officers right after the incident that he wanted to press charges.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office told 12News the agency received a submittal for misdemeanor charges but declined to prosecute the juvenile “due to no reasonable likelihood of conviction.”
According to the lawsuit, Mullen was not in uniform, did not identify himself as a police officer, and, according to a Chandler Police Department public statement, “did not commit any crimes.”
RELATED: Off-duty Phoenix police officer involved in Hamilton High School protest incident, report says
The complaint claims Mullen received an”exceptional” performance review just days before the Jan. 30 incident and remained on full active duty for nearly two-and-a-half months afterward with no disciplinary action.
Mullen argues that all changed in April after media coverage of the incident and public comments from Phoenix City Councilwoman Anna Hernandez, who represents the district where Mullen was assigned.
The lawsuit claims Hernandez publicly questioned Mullen’s fitness for duty and alleges her involvement in pushing for his termination violates a city code provision that bars council members from directing personnel decisions.
Within days of Hernandez’s public statements, Mullen was placed on administrative leave. The department then moved to classify his conduct as a Class Three violation—the most serious category—which would allow for immediate termination and bypass a standard internal review process.
At the time Mullen was placed on leave, Chief Matt Giordano said:
“As law enforcement professionals, we are held to higher standards of conduct–both in and out of uniform. As the Chief of the Phoenix Police Department, I remain committed to building and maintaining community trust, transparency, and accountability. I am taking this matter very seriously, and I will communicate my findings publicly as soon as they are made.”
The plaintiffs argue that the classification is excessive, unconstitutionally vague, and selectively applied to punish Mullen for speech protected by the First Amendment.
Plaintiffs are asking the court for a temporary restraining order to stop any termination or disciplinary hearing until a full internal review process is completed. They are also asking the court to declare the Class Three criteria unconstitutional as applied to protected off-duty speech.
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