The top prosecutor in Arizona’s Pima County reversed a nonprosecution policy on certain drug possession cases last month after the stance failed to meet the intended goal of reducing the jail population.
The failure was brought about by local law enforcement agencies, many of which continued to make arrests in the belief that it’s their job to enforce the law regardless of prosecution policies.
The Marana and Oro Valley Police Departments were two of several suburban agencies whose officers continued to make arrests despite Conover’s policy.
“That’s our job. We enforce criminal laws, and we make arrests,” Marana Sgt. Abel Samano told The Epoch Times. “Whatever the county attorney’s office decides to do after that, whatever their policies are, that is up to them. As far as we are concerned, we are doing our job.”
That doesn’t mean officers arrest their way out of every drug case, he said.
Well-trained officers consider the totality of the circumstances and come to an enforcement decision that they think is best for community members, including drug addicts.
For example, officers at the Marana Police Department almost never arrest any person who overdoses on drugs. In those cases, saving lives matters more, and officers also don’t want people to fear calling for help, Samano said.
Other times, officers merely give out citations and then transport people to treatment centers, he said.
“But sometimes, the last choice really is the only choice,” he said.
Oro Valley police officer Michael Duran told The Epoch Times that law enforcement members don’t get to pick and choose what laws to enforce or not.
“Our job is to make sure when there is a crime, we make the arrest, and provide the case to the county attorney’s office or local magistrate,“ he said. “Whether they choose to move forward with those charges or not, that is their job, and we don’t take it personally.”
Duran said the criminal justice system isn’t strictly about punishment when it comes to drug offenses, and that people can get court-required treatment for their addiction through a drug court.
“That makes sure that someone gets the help that they need. I’ve never met anyone who is happy to be addicted to drugs. I really do sympathize for people who have to struggle with this,” he said.
“Sometimes, they don’t always have the means to access those drugs and they commit other crimes to sustain those habits, or because of their mental state after being high they could commit disorderly conduct such as acting out in the middle of the park full of children.”
“I’ve got $18 million a year spent in my jail on mental health and drug addiction issues. Can we not give that $18 million a year to those who are better equipped to handle that?” Nanos said.
Conover, a former defense attorney, was elected in November 2020 on a progressive platform, after defeating a decades-long incumbent and two veteran prosecutors in the Democratic primary.
That year, a slew of progressive prosecutors were elected or reelected in the wake of the George Floyd protests, including Kim Foxx in Chicago, George Gascón in Los Angeles, and José Garza in Austin, Texas.
