Former ASU Police Say School Directed Them to Change Crime Stats

The lawsuit alleges Arizona State changed the classification of crime stats in order to improve its image in the local community.
Published: February 26, 2016

In a recently filed lawsuit, six former and current police employees at Arizona State University claim they were retaliated against after criticizing the department.

Five former ASU police and one current police employee filed a civil suit alleging the university forced some of them to retire, violated their free speech and manipulated crime statistics in violation of the Clery Act, among other things.

The lawsuit, which seeks punitive damages, accuses the school of falsely reporting crime statistics in order to improve its image in the local community. The plaintiffs claim they were forced to change crime classifications by supervisors.

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University officials and the Arizona Board of Regents have declined comment on the suit.

The school had been criticized in the past for insufficient staffing levels and low convictions rates in sexual assault cases, according to azcentral.com.

One police employee claims he was subjected to an internal affairs investigation and harassed after he wrote a blog post complaining about various aspects of the department. The employee claims the harassment forced him to retire. The blog post can be found here.

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