Arizona Senate Republicans have moved forward with a targeted plan to strengthen local law enforcement and safeguard vulnerable children, particularly runaway and at-risk youth in the child welfare system.
Senate Bill 1550, sponsored by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman David Farnsworth (R-LD10), passed the Senate this week and now heads to the House for consideration as part of upcoming FY27 budget negotiations.
The bill appropriates $1,255,500 from the state general fund to the Town of Queen Creek for its Police Department to launch a three-year specialized law enforcement pilot program. The initiative focuses on five key areas: preventing runaway incidents among youth; protecting at-risk children from exploitation; enhancing investigative capabilities; strengthening collaboration with care providers and state agencies; and developing a replicable model framework that could be expanded statewide.
“Protecting our children is crucial and should unite us all, beyond political lines,” stated Senator Farnsworth. “Every moment counts when a child is in danger or in state care, and we must ensure law enforcement has the necessary tools to act swiftly and effectively to prevent exploitation. Our child safety system should be transparent and prioritize placing children in loving, safe environments, ideally with family.”
Queen Creek has emerged as a critical testing ground for these reforms due to a notable concentration of missing-from-care incidents at residential treatment facilities serving some of Arizona’s most vulnerable youth.
The adjacent Canyon State Academy (serving boys) and Desert Lily Academy (serving girls), operated by the Nevada-based Rite of Passage under contract with the Department of Child Safety (DCS), have seen significant police activity since the Queen Creek Police Department’s establishment in 2022.
According to Fox10 Phoenix, officers have responded to more than 2,000 calls for service at the campuses, with annual calls reaching 430 at Canyon State and 306 at Desert Lily by 2024.
Between January 2024 and December 2025, police recorded 208 missing persons reports for boys at Canyon State Academy and 119 for girls at Desert Lily Academy—averaging roughly one child going missing every two days across the two facilities. Many of these runaways have escalated into exploitation and trafficking investigations.
Queen Creek Police Chief Randy Brice emphasized the urgency: “If we don’t find them within that first few hours, our concern is that they’ll be trafficked, and we have to put a lot of resources into solving those quickly.”
A notable case involved Wendell Whyte, who was sentenced in July 2025 to 20 years in prison for trafficking three girls (ages 14, 16, and 17) from Desert Lily Academy. Court records indicate that Whyte has previously exploited one of the victims in Phoenix’s “The Blade” area, a known corridor for prostitution near 27th Avenue and Indian School Road.
The girls reportedly ran from the facility, were provided drugs and alcohol, and were coerced into sex work.
Additional concerns have surfaced regarding facility operations. In September 2025, former Desert Lily Academy Supervisor Christopher Lamont Allen was arrested and later indicted on two counts of sexual conduct with a minor after a 17-year-old resident alleged he had sex with her on two occasions, with surveillance video reportedly capturing the encounters.
Fox 10 Phoenix investigations have also documented prior cases of staff physically assaulting students at both academies, including incidents involving punching, tackling, and pinning youth to the ground.
Senator Farnsworth, who collaborated with group homes and local leaders to develop a three-pillar strategy of prevention, response, and investigation, highlighted the bill’s broader goals.
“This bill enhances support for law enforcement, encourages collaboration among agencies, and underscores our commitment to caring for our most vulnerable,” added Farnsworth. “We aspire to create a model that can be emulated across Arizona, ensuring that every child feels safe and valued. Together, we can guarantee that protecting our children and strengthening law enforcement remain top priorities.”
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Arizona Senate Appropriations and Transportation Committee Chairman David Farnsworth (R-LD10) is calling attention to a rise in runaway and missing youth cases involving group homes and residential treatment campuses. He announced efforts to develop a pilot program aimed at improving prevention and response.
In a statement released last week, Farnsworth said he is working with local officials and law enforcement in the Town of Queen Creek to explore funding for two full-time, specialized police officers dedicated to addressing missing-from-care incidents. The proposed positions would focus on prevention efforts, rapid response when a youth is reported missing, and thorough investigations.
🚨FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Senator @DaveFarnsworth_ Calls for Action on Rising Cases of Runaway, Missing Youth in Group Homes
Farnsworth said he is engaging with group-home operators, municipal leaders, and law enforcement to develop a three-pillar framework centered on prevention, response, and investigation. While the plan is still in development, Farnsworth said the long-term objective is to craft legislation that could establish a statewide model for addressing runaway and missing youth cases.
“We must recognize the growing issue of missing and runaway youth in these settings; it is a pressing concern that requires our attention,” Farnsworth said.
“By collaborating with local leaders and public safety experts, we can develop thoughtful and effective solutions. This proactive approach is the first step toward enhancing child safety and ensuring a brighter future for our community. My goal is to create legislation that not only addresses these challenges in Queen Creek but also serves as a positive example for communities throughout Arizona, making the protection of our vulnerable population a top priority.”
Queen Creek has been identified as a focal point for the initiative due to a significant increase in missing youth incidents tied to residential treatment campuses and group-home settings located in the area. Those facilities serve some of Arizona’s most vulnerable children, prompting renewed concern among lawmakers and local leaders.
According to the Queen Creek Police Department’s Missing Persons page on Facebook, three missing persons posts have been created since September 1st, with two of them listed as found, and one, 14-year-old Abrianna Madrid, still listed as missing since November 13th.
Queen Creek Vice Mayor Leah Martineau expressed support for the effort, citing the risks faced by youth who leave group-care and residential treatment settings without authorization.
“Youth who leave residential treatment and group-care settings without authorization face very real dangers, and Queen Creek is committed to addressing that reality head-on,” Martineau said. “Our role as a community is to strengthen safeguards, respond quickly when a child is missing, and ensure each situation receives the focused attention it deserves.”
Martineau said the proposed pilot program positions Queen Creek to serve as a test case for solutions that could be adopted by other Arizona communities, if successful.
Details of the pilot program, including funding mechanisms and legislative language, have not yet been finalized. Farnsworth said additional discussions with stakeholders will continue as the proposal takes shape.
A dozen Maricopa County libraries have removed more than 50 books on sex education and puberty from their children’s sections. The move follows complaints from parents and advocacy groups who said the books contained inappropriate material.
As previously reported by AZ Free News, the Maricopa County Library District (MCLD) has been subject to increasing criticism from parents’ rights advocates like Arizona Women of Action (AZWOA) and EZAZ, who engaged with the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (BOS) in June. The groups objected to books such as “It’s Perfectly Normal” by Robie H. Harris and “This Book Is Gay” by Juno Dawson for the titles’ graphic depictions of sex and sexual behavior.
Responding to a petition launched by AZWOA, the BOS approved a pilot program at the Queen Creek Library, allowing parents to submit a form listing books their children may not check out.
According to AZCentral, the Board later directed the books to be relocated in response to the concerns brought to them. Due to the administrative nature of the move, a formal vote was not required. Supervisor Steve Gallardo, the board’s only Democrat, expressed objections to the outlet, saying, “Call it whatever you want … it’s wrong, and we shouldn’t be engaging in this.” Gallardo claimed that although he “agreed with some of the changes,” parents should be responsible for monitoring their children in the libraries.
Republican Supervisors Lesko, Stewart, and Brophy McGee supported the measure fully, stating that the measure is intended to:
“Protect our youngest from their prying eyes and curiosity,” per Stewart.
“Relocate questionable books into areas of the library that are less, or not, accessible to children,” according to Brophy-McGee.
“Make sure that sexually explicit library books are out of the reach of minors,” as described by Lesko.
🚨🚨 YOUR VOICE IS NEEDED! 🚨🚨
The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors needs to know that residents are concerned about the sexually explicit books in the county libraries. Please sign & share this petition.
— Arizona Women of Action (@azwomenofaction) June 20, 2025
As reported by the Arizona Daily Independent, several books were brought to the BOS’s attention, though the complete list of inappropriate books is extensive. The AZWOA referred to a book rating site, ratedbooks.org, as well as a book list on Scottsdaleunites.com.
Merissa Hamilton of EZAZ later posted a list of egregious books found on MCLD shelves. Highlighted titles include “It’s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health” by Robie H. Harris, which features cartoon-like drawings with sexually graphic information. “This Book Is Gay” by Juno Dawson is also in question because it instructs children on how to engage in meetups for casual sexual encounters. Novels by Ellen Hopkins graphically depict sex, human trafficking, and abuse. These books may violate state statutes, including ARS 13-3506:
“It is unlawful for any person, with knowledge of the character of the item involved, to recklessly furnish, present, provide, make available, give, lend, show, advertise, or distribute to minors any item that is harmful to minors. C. A violation of this section is a Class 4 felony.”
“A. It is unlawful for any person knowingly to place explicit sexual material upon public display or knowingly to fail to take prompt action to remove such a display from property in his possession or under his control after learning of its existence. B. A person who violates any provision of this section is a Class 6 felony.
The potential prompted citizens to consider bringing these books to the attention of the county’s sheriff and attorney’s offices.
County Manager Jen Pokorski told Republic reporters in June that the county is contemplating a new rule, a new “software solution” which would permit parents to restrict their children’s access to different books by category.
“I think the goal of the new software would be, the books that we’ve deemed — or that have illustrative pornography, will be off limits to children under a certain age,” Supervisor Mark Stewart explained. “And then anything that a parent would want to opt their child into, they’re welcome to sign up and do that.”
However, he did clarify, to the Arizona Republic, “I did not say that sex-ed books are illustrative pornography.”
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.
The vice president of the Higley Unified School Board, Anna Van Hoek, received a package with an apparent threat of violence from a leftist parent.
The package, sent from Amazon, contained a rope and a book containing sexually explicit content, “Homegoing.” Following a report from Van Hoek, Gilbert Police submitted a warrant to Amazon and identified the sender as Queen Creek mother Lindzie Head.
Lindzie Head sent a copy of “Homegoing” along with a rope to Higley school board member Anna Van Hoek.
Head is a medical technologist (clinical lab scientist) at Mercy Gilbert Medical Center who serves on the Queen Creek Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. She previously held leadership roles with the PTO for Cortina Elementary School and Sossaman Middle School.
Van Hoek has taken stances on issues such as removing dirty books from classrooms and barring boys (identifying as transgender girls) from girls’ sports, in alliance with organizations such as Arizona Women of Action.
The package came after a high school English teacher, Brittany O’Neill, came under investigation for assigning the very book Head sent to Van Hoek, “Homegoing.” The book is a historical fiction addressing slavery that contains a number of passages depicting sex and rape, as well as abuse and drug use.
State law prevents the provision of sexually explicit books unless the materials are deemed educational, and parents give their consent. The Gilbert Police Department notified the district that it was investigating O’Neill over the assignment last month.
In that controversy, Van Hoek sided with the aggrieved parents who believe the book shouldn’t have been assigned to minors due to its content.
Van Hoek said in a statement that Head and her husband, Kyle Head, indicated to police that they have retained legal counsel.
In her statement, Van Hoek also said that she would not tolerate this threatening behavior. Van Hoek advised that she had previously endured an attack on her property: her tire was slashed during a board meeting last October.
“I want to make it unequivocally clear that I will not tolerate this kind of harassment and threats directed not only at myself but also at our district parents,” said Van Hoek. “Everyone has a right to express their concerns and speak out without fear of intimidation.”
Van Hoek also advised that another district parent had received the same sexually explicit book in an anonymous package from Head (confirmed by Gilbert Police) with the following message:
“Read the book and maybe you’ll learn something,” said Head’s message.
The same district parent who received Head’s package reported having his identifying information doxed on social media.
Van Hoek said that no additional information about the incidents could be provided due to an ongoing investigation.
These unwelcome packages appear to be the latest efforts by Head to become more civically involved.
Last May, Head participated in and graduated from the town of Queen Creek’s Citizen Leadership Institute. It was several months after this graduation that she applied for (and was given) the board member role for the Queen Creek Parks and Recreation Board.
Last October, Head wrote an opinion piece for the Daily Independent asking Congress to work in a bipartisan manner and pass the budget.
Head’s Instagram bio reads, “You can sit with me. Here to be unreasonable. Uninformed and relying on hearsay.”
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
