Multiple Sedona residents tell council they experienced police brutality; city staff to follow up

Multiple Sedona residents used the public‑comment period at the Jan. 13 City Council meeting to allege excessive force and mistreatment by members of the Sedona Police Department and to request investigation and training changes.

Timothy Bush told the council the local force had become “the Sedona Brutality Force” and described witnessing officers use force during an incident involving his fiancée. “They were hauling her away... after brutally attacking her, stripping her half naked, and then dragging her in a police car,” he said.

Gaia Lam, who identified herself as part of an organized group called Peaceforce, said she and others feel threatened by local police and recounted being arrested more than a year earlier. “We found each other that have been unduly hurt by police in this town,” she said, and asked the council to pursue training and other reforms.

Rachel Collins, who said she filed a lawsuit against the City of Sedona in September, described a broader pattern of alleged misconduct and accused police of refusing to take certain crime reports. “I lost my home, I lost all my possessions, I lost my businesses because of how enormous the crime was,” she told the council.

City manager Annette Spickered and other staff said they have been meeting with members of the community and have outstanding information requests on both sides. Spickered told the speakers the city would continue dialogue and staff would follow up, and she encouraged the public to return to council with findings and recommendations.

No formal action was taken at the meeting; council members asked staff to continue meeting with the group and to report back.