On Wednesday, the FBI office in Phoenix honored the 64 officers who made the ultimate sacrifice in 2024. Under Director Kash Patel, the FBI has directed public attention to its new special report on those officers’ deaths and the 85,000 assaults on law enforcement reported to the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program.
The report details the deaths of the 64 officers in both felonious circumstances as well as the 43 killed in accidents. It explained, “Thus far in 2025, 16 officers have been feloniously killed in the line of duty. Firearms were used in 75 percent of the incidents. The leading circumstances surrounding officers’ deaths included activities related to responses to unlawful or suspicious activities (7), pursuits (3), and traffic stops (3).”
The data reveals that most officers were killed in the months of April and August followed by February, July, and September, with the majority being killed in the FBI’s Southern region while responding to unlawful or suspicious activity.
In his remarks before the Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.) Conference Thursday, Patel said, “The FBI is committed to honoring fallen officers, supporting their families and colleagues, and relentlessly pursuing those who do them harm.”
In his message for National Police Week, Patel told the nation:
“In my time as director, I’ve made a call to every chief or sheriff whose department has lost an officer to an adversarial action in the line of duty. And although I’ve only been in this position for less than three months, I’ve already made far too many of those calls.
“Every line of duty death is a tragedy for the families who lose a loved one; for the officers who lose a colleague and a friend; and for the communities that lose a faithful protector and guardian of justice. Those losses remind us of the tremendous sacrifice law enforcement officers across the country make to keep the American people safe.
“They go to work every morning knowing there’s a chance they won’t make it home that night that they might be targeted just because they wear the badge, like the 64 officers who were feloniously killed in the line of duty last year and the more than 85,000 others who suffered assaults. But the men and women of law enforcement continue showing up for all of us despite the hardships, the demands and the dangers. They do it because they’ve made a choice to serve and protect their fellow American citizens, and they have no intention of letting us down.”
Patel concluded, “I’m honored and humbled to work alongside those who have dedicated their lives to public service, to having the backs of the American people, and all of us owe them a debt we can never repay. That’s why National Police Week is so important. It’s an opportunity to express our deepest gratitude for those who have taken an oath to protect our communities and pursue justice. And to honor the legacies of those who gave their lives so that others could be safe. The FBI and I are proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners throughout law enforcement together as we protect our nation.“
Under Senior Advisor of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) Kari Lake, the agency is terminating over 500 contractor roles by June 30th and is continuing efforts to sell its million-square-foot facility in Washington, D.C., despite an ongoing legal challenge.
Lake said in a statement posted to X, “In accordance with President Trump’s executive order dated March 14, we are in the process of rightsizing the agency and reducing the federal bureaucracy to meet administration priorities. We will continue to scale back the bloat at USAGM and make an archaic dinosaur into something worthy of being funded by hardworking Americans.”
She added, “Buckle up. There’s more to come.”
Per usual the fake news only uses part of my comment. Here is my comment in full: "In accordance with President Trump's executive order dated March 14, we are in the process of rightsizing the agency and reducing the federal bureaucracy to meet administration priorities. We will… https://t.co/xTQBAMWKjh
As reported by The Washington Post, the move is opposed by Biden-appointee Voice of America (VOA) Director Michael Abramowitz who told the outlet he is “heartbroken” over the downsizing.
“I find this action inexplicable, and to my knowledge, no rationale has been provided by USAGM for this decision,” he wrote in a statement to the Post. “We will continue to make efforts to help individual PSCs, especially those who face possible return to hostile countries, in any and every way we can during this difficult time.”
According to Lake, a total of 584 employees have been terminated across the board at USAGM including the Office of Cuba Broadcasting. Without specifically stating the breakdown by department, she noted that the majority were from VOA. Many of the terminations will affect different language services under the VOA aegis, and if upheld, could result in the termination of dozens of J-1 visas for foreign-born journalists who would face 30-day deadlines to leave the United States.
Steve Herman, a VOA national correspondent-turned-spokesman for the lawsuits against USAGM, told the outlet, “Among those affected (by the terminations) are J-1 visa holders who will be forced to leave the country in 30 days. Several of these journalists come from countries where they could be arrested or worse because of their objective reporting for VOA.”
As part of a raft of cost-saving measures, Lake announced in early May that One America News Network will provide news-feed services to the network of outlets under the USAGM including the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB), Radio Martí, and Voice of America.
🚨ANNOUNCEMENT🚨
"United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) is excited to announce a partnership with One America News Network (OAN) to provide newsfeed services to USAGM networks, including Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB), Radio Martí, and Voice of America (VOA).
Lake explained at the time, “This idea came about after OCB suggested we explore OAN as a newsfeed option for the Miami-based, U.S. Government-funded news operation broadcasting to Cuba. At their suggestion, I reached out to OAN, and they offered to provide their newsfeed and video service free-of-charge. This is an enormous benefit to the American taxpayer, who is the sole-source of funding for USAGM’s news outlets, which broadcast only to international audiences.”
Lake clarified her USAGM role at the time saying, “In my current role as Senior Advisor to USAGM, I don’t have editorial control over the content of VOA and OCB programming, but I can ensure our outlets have reliable and credible options as they work to craft their reporting and news programs. And every day I look for ways to save American taxpayers money. Bringing in OAN as a video/news source does both. OAN is one of the few family-owned American media networks left in the United States. We are grateful for their generosity.” As previously reported by AZ Free News, Lake announced the cancellation of “obscene over-spending including a nearly quarter-of-a-billion-dollar lease for a Pennsylvania Avenue high-rise that has no broadcasting facilities to meet the needs of the agency and included a $9 million commission to a private real estate agent with connections.”
The sale of the existing headquarters for VOA, in use since 1954, was to take place shortly after the agency moved into the newly leased building by order of former President Biden. However, in addition to canceling that lease, Lake has also begun efforts to sell VOA’s existing studio space, listing the Wilbur J. Cohen Federal Building as “identified for accelerated disposition,” with the U.S. General Services Administration.
Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen, House Speaker Steve Montenegro, and State Treasure Kimberly Yee are continuing a legal battle against the administration of former President Joe Biden and his surrogate, Attorney General Kris Mayes to defeat what they say is an “unlawful, dictator-style land grab in northern Arizona.”
The lawsuit, currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, centers around the confiscation of a massive tract of Arizona land in Coconino and Mohave Counties which bans “the productive use of almost 1 million acres in northern Arizona,” and “permanently entombs one of the nation’s largest and highest-grade uranium deposits,” in addition to forbidding any road or infrastructure development in “an area the size of Rhode Island,” according to a legal brief submitted Wednesday.
The Biden White House, via Presidential Proclamation launched this audacious expropriation of Arizona land in August 2023 under the color of the Antiquities Act, creating “the Ancestral Footprints Monument.” In February 2024, Petersen launched a lawsuit to stop him.
“Former President Joe Biden and his army of radical bureaucrats abused their constitutional authority on countless levels during his failed administration. Their infatuation with locking up federal lands from productive uses is a prime example of the harm inflicted on states like Arizona,” said Petersen. “As we have argued throughout this case, Biden’s maneuver had nothing to do with protecting actual artifacts. This was an attempt to halt all mining, ranching, and other local uses of federal lands that are critical to our energy independence from adversary foreign nations, our food supply, and the strength of our economy. Republicans in the Arizona Legislature will continue to fight these actions to free our state from the grasp radical environmentalists had over the previous administration. Thankfully, we now have President Donald J. Trump in office, who has a consistent track record of safeguarding state sovereignty and promoting common-sense uses of federal land. I am continuing to work with his administration in an effort to end this legal battle.”
As Petersen and his legal team point out to the court, the unlawful seizure by the Biden administration stood in direct violation of the 1909 Antiquities Act. It uses as a basis given that a president is only empowered to reserve “the smallest area compatible with the proper care and management of the objects to be protected.”
In a press release, the Republican group said the coalition assembled to oppose Biden’s act of illegal seizure asserts that Biden failed to follow the law, “and the guardrails Congress established to create a check on the president’s power were violated.”
Governor Katie Hobbs vetoed HB 2700 on Monday which would have compelled the Arizona State Board of Education to include Geography in its prescribed competency requirements for graduation from high school and defined that instruction to include instruction accurately referring to the Gulf of America.
In her veto letter to Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro, Hobbs chose to adopt an adversarial, scolding tone toward Republican leaders.
Hobbs wrote, “Today, I vetoed House Bill 2700. Arizonans want us to work together to lower costs, secure the border, create jobs, and protect public education. Instead of joining with me to do that, this Legislature has chosen to attempt to dictate how teachers refer to geographic features. I encourage you to refocus your time and energy on solving real problems for Arizonans.”
State Rep. Teresa Martinez (R-LD16) held a different view however and emphasized the importance of accurate and patriotic instruction for Arizona students: “It’s important to start teaching pro-America to our students. What better way to promote a patriotic country and teach children about patriotism than to start calling it Gulf of America and taking pride in that?”
While making her disapproval of the bill clear, Hobbs called upon Republican legislators to “work together to lower costs, secure the border, create jobs, and protect public education,” despite her recent vetoes, which have thrown aside meaningful reforms in all four policies.
In 2023, Hobbs infamously vetoed SB 1184 which would have eliminated rental taxes that drive up the monthly rent of millions of Arizonans, and SB 1063 which would have banned sales taxes on groceries. The sponsor of SB 1063, Senator Sonny Borrelli, said that Hobbs “would rather have windfall taxes go to cities on the backs of people that need to survive on essential items like groceries consumed at home.”
On Border Security, Hobbs vetoed the Arizona Immigration Cooperation and Enforcement (ICE) Act, SB 1164 this April, and SB 1610 earlier this month, which would have required county detention facilities to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) by providing access to data on illegal aliens arrested for serious crimes.
On the subject of Jobs, Hobbs drew severe criticism from Senate Majority Leader Janae Shamp (R-LD29) when she vetoed SB 1584.
“The Governor despicably vetoing this bill demonstrates her support for discrimination and a lack of leadership for refusing to push back against fellow Democrats who support these unethical hiring practices,” Shamp said at the time. ” I am extremely disappointed, yet not surprised, that Hobbs continues to appeal to the radical left with her tone-deaf veto decisions, rather than support legislation to reform workplace policies that prioritize anything other than talent and hard work. It’s truly petrifying that we have a governor who can, without shame, prioritize discrimination and favoritism, over unity and respect for every Arizonan.”
Hobbs also vetoed another school related bill, SB 1050, sponsored by Senator Vince Leach (R-LD17) in April. The bipartisan measure would have directed tax dollars from Government Property Lease Excise Tax (GPLET) to schools by prohibiting the abatement of school district-designated tax revenues. “This was a missed opportunity by the Governor,” Leach told AZ Free News. “She says she supports education funding, but her veto suggests otherwise.”
A recent report has identified the five safest cities in Arizona and also noted a significant drop in violent crime experiences as well as a slight decrease in property crime experiences.
The report from Safewise found the ten safest cities in Arizona are (ranked order): Oro Valley, Queen Creek, Gilbert, Sahuarita, Surprise, Buckeye, Maricopa, Marana, Chandler, and Prescott Valley. Twenty-five cities in total were ranked.
The five lowest ranked were Apache Junction, Avondale, Casa Grande, Glendale, and Tempe. For comparison: the violent crime reported per 1,000 people in Oro Valley was 0.55 and property crimes per 1,000 people were 11.51. Tempe with over quadruple the population has 5.2 violent crimes per 1,000 people and 36.13 property crimes per 1,000 people.
Zeroing in on the reports findings, SafeWise found that the five safest cities collective violent crime rate is 1.0 incidents per 1,000 people while property crime was 10.4 incidents per 1,000 people. The report also found that the number of Arizonans surveyed who said they feel safe jumped up 5% from 36% to 41%.
SafeWise Managing Editor and Safety Expert, Rebecca Edwards said in a statement, “Violent crime experiences are trending down across Arizona, and mass shootings dropped by more than 60% year over year—from eight in 2023 to just three in 2024. Cities like Queen Creek and Surprise saw decreases in both violent and property crime, showing that safety is improving for many Arizona communities.”
According to the report, although 63% of Arizonans surveyed were concerned about property crime on a daily basis, personal experiences with property crime dropped year over year with just 26% of respondents reporting a personal experience with property crime in the past year.
Arizonans are also ranked third for adopting the use of security cameras for their homes, following Delaware and Louisiana. As a matter of preference most Arizonans surveyed, 59%, preferred security cameras or guard dogs, 44%.
Overall, Arizona respondents were most concerned over violent crime, although violent crime experiences fell from 19% to 11% year over year.
Approximately 14% of Arizonans polled reported carrying a firearm for personal protection and 33% reportedly own one for property protection. Incongruently, the number concerned about gun violence increased from 58% to 67% despite a decrease in mass-shootings.
According to SafeWise, the report was generated from “voluntary, self-reported information that cities and jurisdictions across the country report through the FBI Summary Reporting System (SRS) and National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). For our 2025 reporting year, the most recent FBI data was released in October 2024 for crimes reported in 2023.” The company’s full report and methodology is available here.
