Officer Jesse Johnson, who allegedly shot at Osman at least three times, was terminated by Chief Michael Sullivan after an internal investigation by the department found that Johnson's conduct was not in line with its policy, according to a statement from the agency.
“The decision was not made lightly but was done after careful consideration of all the facts,” agency spokesperson Sgt. Robert Scherer said in the statement. “The Phoenix Police Department must hold its employees to the highest standards, conduct and accountability.”
Scherer also noted Johnson can appeal the termination to the Civil Service Board.
ABC15 reported that the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association said it was "unfair to hold one half of the interaction 100% responsible for the outcome." The officers' association did not respond to Phoenix New Times' request for comment.
Johnson's firing for conduct not in line with department policy was the first since May 21, 2020, Scherer told New Times. Jeff Cooke, one of two officers involved in the killing of Ryan Whitaker, was terminated but reinstated by the Civil Service Board on Dec. 9, 2021. Allister Adel, then the Maricopa County Attorney, didn’t charge either of the officers for Whitaker's killing.
Sgt. Brian Bower, a police spokesperson, told New Times the department will not release any information about how Johnson violated its policy until it finishes its investigation into the other officers and the Civil Service Board reaches its own final decisions about the officers' conduct.
Johnson's firing comes as the city of Phoenix is trying to avoid independent oversight of its police department. The U.S. Department of Justice has been investigating Phoenix police for more than 32 months out of concern that the department has engaged systematically in excessive use of force, discriminatory policing, retaliation against protestors and violation of the rights of unsheltered and disabled people. Depending on what the Justice Department finds, it may seek a consent decree, a legally binding performance improvement plan that city officials are determined to avoid.
City officials also recently undercut the director of its own police oversight agency, the Office of Accountability and Transparency. The director, Roger Smith, submitted his resignation on Jan. 29.
"Events have led me to conclude that OAT does not have the independence required to effectively perform its responsibilities," Smith wrote in his resignation letter.
Quacy Smith, an attorney for Osman's family, holds a sample of rocks collected at the scene during a press conference on Sept. 30, 2022.
Katya Schwenk
‘Let’s get this motherfucker’: The killing of Ali Osman
Osman's death sparked an outpouring of grief and anger in Phoenix. The Somali refugee struggled with mental health issues, according to friends and family. "He's someone who needed help," Muktar Sheikh, a community organizer who knew Osman, told New Times in September 2022.Johnson was one of three officers who encountered Osman on Sept. 24, 2022, when Osman threw two rocks at a patrol car that drove past him on 19th Avenue. One rock caused minor damage to the car in which officers Jared Gibson and Brennan Olachea were riding. The two officers stopped and convened with Johnson, who was in another vehicle. They returned to their respective cars.
"Let's get this motherfucker," Olachea told Gibson, according to body camera footage released by Phoenix police. "Yeah," Gibson said. The three officers then returned to the intersection where Osman was standing on a patch of gravel off 19th Avenue.
Olachea and Gibson had a less-lethal shotgun in their patrol vehicle, and one officer had called for helicopter support. But when the three officers arrived where Osman was standing, the helicopter hadn't arrived, and the officers did not use the less-lethal option.
Instead, Johnson pulled up beside Osman and immediately left his patrol car with his gun drawn. Osman threw a small rock at Johnson, which hit the officer's shin. Within seconds, Johnson shot Osman three times. Olachea then exited the other car and also shot Osman.
Osman was hit at least three times in the neck. He was one of 10 people Phoenix police shot and killed in 2022. In 2023, officers shot and killed 12 people.
According to a lawsuit filed by Osman’s family, it took two minutes for the officers to provide any aid to Osman, which limited bodycam footage provided by Phoenix police after the incident did not clearly show.
"Both officers repeatedly scream, 'Get down,' 'Stay down,' 'Show me your hands,' 'Show me your hands, now,' and 'Let me see both of your hands' for two entire minutes in the direction of Mr. Osman's dead body," the lawsuit alleges, basing its account on bodycam footage that the Osman family's legal team reviewed.
Phoenix City Council voted on Nov. 1 to pay a $5.5 million settlement to Osman’s family. The family's attorney, Quacy Smith, said he was “appreciative of the city of Phoenix” for the speed with which a settlement was reached.
“We believe that the decision by the city council today was an effort to try to make it right for our clients,” Smith said.
The settlement was approved in a 6-1 vote, with Councilmember Jim Waring casting the lone vote against it. Waring said that Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell’s decision not to prosecute the officers was one of the reasons for his vote.
Mitchell’s office had not responded to New Times’ request for comment by the time of publication.
Mayor Kate Gallego told New Times in November that Osman’s death was a problem of policy. “The problem was at a policy level,” Gallego said. “We did not have the right policies guiding how to respond, so we have dramatically changed what we would do today.”
