Phoenix police chief finalists address staffing shortfalls, DOJ recommendations and community trust

Four finalists for Phoenix police chief — Interim Chief Michael Sullivan; Assistant Chief Ed DeCastro (Investigations); Assistant Chief Ed Wessing (Mesa Police Department); and Deputy Chief Casey Johnson (Oakland Police Department) — answered public and panel questions at a city-hosted forum, focusing on officer recruitment and retention, crime suppression strategies, reforms recommended by a June 2024 Department of Justice (DOJ) report, and community-police relations.

The finalists emphasized staffing and retention as the department's immediate priorities. “We have to keep the people that we have right now,” Assistant Chief Ed DeCastro said, describing liaison rotations that expose patrol officers to detective work and calling for morale-building and training. Assistant Chief Ed Wessing told attendees, “I think we’re in a crisis here in the city of Phoenix with the percentage of vacancy rate that we have for sworn positions. It’s just over 20%,” and proposed leadership development, mentoring and short-term reassignments from specialty units back to patrol. Deputy Chief Casey Johnson said partnership and targeted violence-intervention programs matter, citing Oakland’s use of a “ceasefire” approach and federal partnerships; he also suggested technology…