Tempe Police sergeant under investigation for stun gun incident in restroom

TEMPE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) — The Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board (AZ POST) is investigating a Tempe Police sergeant following an incident in a restaurant bathroom. The sergeant fired her stun gun 13 times in one minute and 16 seconds, according to investigators and body-worn camera video.

The incident took place on Nov. 9, 2022. Police were responding to a trespass call. A man reportedly would not leave a restaurant bathroom. Video shows Officer Daniel Rodriguez spending more than five minutes telling the man to sit down and keep his hands out of his pocket. The man does not appear to comprehend the orders.

The video shows Sgt. Latasha Hampton eventually shooting the man with a stun gun as Rodriguez attempts to cuff him. Later, a third officer, Alex Kitchens, joins the struggle. The video shows Rodriguez and Kitchens struggling with the man and striking him on the head and face before successfully handcuffing him. A state investigator later said the man had meth in his system.

Tempe Police reportedly opened an internal investigation for violations of its use of force policy. The department sent the case to the Mesa Police Department, which completed the investigation and sent it back to Tempe, where the lead investigator concluded that the two officers and the sergeant had violated department policy. But the investigation reportedly lasted more than 180 days, which is a window for internal investigations resulting in discipline. The result is that the officers and sergeant were not disciplined.

Arizona’s Family learned that an anonymous complaint was sent to the AZ POST board, which resulted in the hearing on Wednesday night. The POST board found that Rodriguez and Kitchens did not violate state standards for excessive force. But the board voted to begin an investigation into Sgt. Hampton’s actions with the stun gun.

The Tempe Police Department released the following statement:

“In late July 2023, Tempe’s new city manager, new interim deputy city manager and new police chief learned about a use of force incident that occurred in September 2022. That incident is the subject of review by the Arizona Peace Officers Standards and Training (AZPOST) Board. Immediately upon learning about the incident, Tempe’s leaders implemented a comprehensive review of the incident and the city’s response to the incident.
The officers’ body camera footage and the department’s Internal Affairs investigation showed that the use of force in this incident was outside of our department’s standards. All three officers received retraining about the use of force policy. Regrettably, because TPD’s 180-day time limit to complete such investigations was exceeded, no discipline could be considered regarding this incident.
Such incidents simply will not be tolerated in our city, or by our leadership team. Accountability is of paramount importance to maintaining trust with public safety. The city is committed to fully understanding and correcting any mistakes that may have been made in this incident and its investigation, and ensuring that they will be prevented in the future.
Today, the AZPOST Board concluded that its organization would commence an investigation into the use of force employed by one of the three officers on scene, Sgt. Latasha Hampton, a 22-year Tempe Police officer. Tempe Police Chief Ken McCoy has placed Sgt. Hampton on restricted duty, providing no direct law enforcement services, until the outcome of the AZPOST investigation.”
Tempe Police Department

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