Scottsdale Police Department Has Quite a Shooting Problem, ACLU Alleges
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That -- along with Officer James Peters' involvement in a sixth fatal shooting -- is why representatives of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona announced that they've filed a lawsuit against the department and the City of Scottsdale.
See also:
-ACLU Suing City of Scottsdale Over Officer James Peters' Sixth Kill
-James Peters, Scottsdale Cop With Six Kills, Approved for Retirement
The ACLU, along with Alexandria Loxas, filed the lawsuit specifically in response to the fatal shooting of Alexandria's father, 50-year-old John Loxas.
Alexandria Loxas went beyond stating that her father had been killed as a result of Peters' poor judgment, as she said her father was essentially used by Peters as "target practice."
"Not only is my father gone...this tragedy will affect the rest of our lives," said Loxas, who was also referring to her then-7-month-old son, who was in John Loxas' arms when Peters shot a rifle round into Loxas' head.
ACLU representatives, sitting next to a timeline chart of Peters' seven shootings in his 12-year career, compared his involvement in a sixth fatal shooting with a 2008 shooting involving Scottsdale cops.
In that shooting, two SWAT team officers shot a man named David Hulstedt in the back. In that case, Hulstedt had a child in his arms and was unarmed when police shot him without warning, ACLU legal director Dan Pochoda described.
An internal review by Scottsdale police found officers' actions in that case to be "in policy," but the family sued in federal court -- and won.

































