Community members are questioning delays in Deer Valley Unified School District (DVUSD) releases of public records.
Tiffany Hawkins, a former board candidate and parent in the district, reported DVUSD “buried” about 3,000 emails in a public records request. Hawkins accused DVUSD officials of doing so to hide staff usage of school resources and time for electioneering.
DVUSD disgustingly buried 3k emails in a public records request to hide staff shamelessly hijacking school resources and time for election rigging, petition peddling, and political endorsements, flouting AZ law with reckless abandon! Taxpayers demand justice! @GoldwaterInstpic.twitter.com/Pvn6E2RSWB
DVUSD officials have previously faced accusations by parents of electioneering on school grounds. DVUSD Superintendent Curtis Finch was accused of doing so by placing political flyers on cars at school football games.
DVUSD is currently up for a budget override on the ballot this November. The 15 percent maintenance and operations (M&O) will cover approximately nine percent of all salaries, maintain maximum class sizes, pay for support services staff like counselors and nurses, and continue certain student programs such as free full-day kindergarten. This election is mail-in only.
Reporting from the Arizona Auditor General found that DVUSD spends more money on administrative costs in comparison to peer districts, ranking it as “high,” and noted that transportation spending per mile and per rider was “very high.” The report also noted that enrollments have declined steadily.
The auditor general also noted that the average teacher salary was over $2,000 less than the state average — even with the average teachers having over 12 years of experience. The district did apply its additional state monies intended to increase teacher salaries by 20 percent from the 2017 base fiscal year, which raised salaries by 35 percent.
Finch has blamed the state’s school choice program for their financial woes, manifesting as teachers struggling to come up with the funds for basic school supplies.
“Arizona has the most unusual (education) system in the nation. We have zero accountability,” said Finch in an interview with 12 News last week.
Hawkins also alleged that DVUSD denied 41 percent of her public records requests, along with withholding about 37,000 pages.
Arizona Women of Action (AZWOA), an affiliate of Hawkins, reported additional issues with public records requests being fulfilled in an untimely and incomplete manner.
AZWOA reported missing over 142,000 pages, collectively across multiple requests, and delays in responses taking anywhere from 100 to over 300 days.
A community member in Deer Valley Unified School District (@DVUSD) is exposing major delays and withholdings in public records requests, questioning compliance with Arizona’s public records law, which requires timely fulfillment.
DVUSD governing board member Kimberly Fisher said she has experienced “many games played” concerning public records retrieval. Fisher alleged “most” others wouldn’t speak up for “fear” of Superintendent Curtis Finch and his wife.
“Some excess redaction, some missing that suddenly show up, some taking over a year to receive, some they made me come in and scan myself if I wanted to see them only to find they already had them electronically,” said Fisher.
I, as an elected Governing Board member have had many games played with public records. Some excessive redaction, some missing that suddenly show up, some taking over a year to receive, some they made me come in and scan myself if I wanted to see them only to find they already…
Hawkins said she filed a complaint alleging “discrimination and retaliation.” The board dismissed the complaint.
Earlier this year, parents expressed concerns with DVUSD compliance with President Donald Trump’s orders to end Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) teachings and programs.
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The Maricopa County Library District (MCLD) is facing growing scrutiny from parents and advocacy groups over concerns that sexually explicit books are being displayed in the youth sections of its libraries. Organizations like AZ Women of Action (AZWOA) and EZAZ, along with dozens of local residents, are urging county officials to take stronger action to protect children and support parental rights.
The issue reached a boiling point this spring when residents raised their concerns directly with the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (BOS). In response, Supervisors Debbie Lesko and Mark Stewart held meetings with AZWOA representatives, signaling that the county may be preparing to address the controversy more directly.
MCLD, which oversees 15 libraries serving the nation’s fourth-most populous county, currently follows a Collection Development Policy that emphasizes community demand and diversity. The policy also defers to parents and guardians on what materials their children borrow, and explicitly avoids labeling materials based on their content or philosophy. Critics argue this approach lacks adequate safeguards.
At the center of the debate are specific books flagged as inappropriate by advocacy groups. Titles such as “It’s Perfectly Normal” by Robie H. Harris and “This Book Is Gay” by Juno Dawson have drawn sharp criticism for what opponents say are graphic depictions of sex and sexual behavior that are not suitable for minors. Novels by author Ellen Hopkins, which explore themes of sexual abuse and trafficking, have also been cited as problematic.
Advocates point to Arizona statutes—ARS 13-3506 and ARS 13-3507—which make it a felony to knowingly provide sexually explicit materials to minors or display such materials in public. Some residents have called on the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and County Attorney’s Office to investigate whether the library’s practices violate these laws.
“The goal isn’t censorship,” said Merissa Hamilton of EZAZ. “It’s about ensuring age-appropriate content and preserving a parent’s right to guide their children’s upbringing.”
In recent weeks, AZWOA has launched a petition asking the BOS to move explicit titles from youth sections to adult areas and to consider implementing a rating system. Books rated three or higher on a five-point scale would require parental permission before being borrowed by minors.
As a partial response, the BOS approved a pilot program at the Queen Creek Library. The program allows parents to submit a form listing books their children may not check out. However, critics argue the system is cumbersome and poorly publicized, making it ineffective.
The future of library policy in Maricopa County remains uncertain, but one thing is clear: a growing number of residents are demanding more say in what books their children can access—and they’re not backing down.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Phoenix officers and residents have expressed concerns that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will use a consent decree to take over the Phoenix Police Department (PPD), as they have done for several dozen other major cities across the country.
Activists accused the DOJ of using a rinse-and-repeat playbook: launching opaque investigations into police departments over alleged misconduct that invariably churn out multimillion-dollar consent decrees containing politicized departmental reforms that result in higher crime rates.
Arizona Women of Action (AZWOA), a right-leaning grassroots nonprofit, said they have received emails from police officers expressing concern over Phoenix entering into a consent decree. AZWOA urged their network to have the Phoenix City Council oppose a consent decree in a press release.
“Please VOTE NO to a DOJ consent decree, and protect our city from high crime and high costs that come with it,” stated AZWOA. “Simply issue a letter of acknowledgement instead of taking on the costly and unnecessary Federal Monitor and decree.”
Consent decrees came to be during former President Bill Clinton’s first term in office under the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, with the specific goal of remedying alleged civil rights violations based on alleged patterns or practices of racial discrimination or excessive use of force. Under a consent decree, a city agrees to federal reforms and monitoring outlined as Recommended Remedial Measures (RRM) within a court-enforced settlement agreed upon by the city and DOJ. Should a city refuse an agreement, the DOJ will then sue the city to ensure compliance.
The DOJ began investigating PPD in August 2021. Their investigation focuses on types of force used, retaliatory activity against First Amendment-protected activity, discriminatory policing, unlawful seizures or disposals of homeless belongings, and responses to disabled individuals.
In August, two years after initiating their investigation, the DOJ and city of Phoenix offered an update. PPD provided over 20,000 body-worn camera videos, 80,000 documents, 200 hours of ride-alongs, and access to trainings at Phoenix Police Academy to DOJ investigators. PPD Interim Chief Michael Sullivan indicated in a video corresponding with the two-year update that PPD would seek to be independent of DOJ oversight.
“We need to be a self-assessing, self-correcting agency, and that’s not just something that we say,” said Sullivan.
Albuquerque, New Mexico; Baltimore, Maryland; Chicago, Illinois; Cleveland, Ohio; Ferguson, Missouri; Los Angeles County, California; Miami, Florida; New Orleans, Louisiana; Newark, New Jersey; Portland, Oregon; the Puerto Rico Police Department; Seattle, Washington; Springfield, Massachusetts; and Suffolk County, New York are among those major cities who have operated under a DOJ consent decree.
These consent decrees come at a great cost, with cities paying anywhere from several to tens of millions annually. Cleveland taxpayers have paid anywhere from $6 million to $11 million annually since 2015.
Part of the great cost comes from independent monitors charged with ensuring law enforcement’s compliance with the consent decree. Albuquerque has paid out millions to its independent monitor: six figures a month, totaling about $11 million since his work began in 2015. The monitor has made over $1.5 million annually, despite reportedly not living in the city. What’s more, investigative reporters found in April that Albuquerque’s violent crime rate has doubled since DOJ oversight began in 2015. Albuquerque Police Officers Association president Shaun Willoughby said that DOJ oversight has cost much for worsening returns.
“We have spent millions upon millions upon millions of taxpayers’ dollars, for what?” said Willoughby. “What did you get, Albuquerque? What did you receive out of this process but higher crime, a smaller police department, and you’re waiting longer for calls? That’s it.”
Consent decree timelines are subject to change as well.
Despite the worsening crime conditions, Albuquerque may only leave the consent decree if it achieves 95 percent operational compliance; as of May, the city had achieved 92 percent. The city originally agreed in 2015 to attempt full compliance within four years, or 2019, but has been kept under the agreement for over eight years now.
Studies have linked consent decrees to excess crime. A 2020 Harvard University report claimed that consent decrees created the conditions for 900 excess homicides and nearly 34,000 excess felonies.
Axios found that seven of 12 agencies experienced jumps in violent crime rates within the two years after enacting a consent decree.
Earlier this month, Law Officer reported that the city of Phoenix posted a job opening for a DOJ policy writer — despite the DOJ not having yet completed its investigation. The job listing appears to have since been removed.
“We aren’t sure what is happening in Phoenix but the DOJ has not even completed an investigation and it appears that officials within the city are simply assuming that they will be under a DOJ Consent Decree?” questioned the report.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
