PHOENIX — The Phoenix Police Department will not discipline any officers for their roles in a massive city scandal where officials invented a fake gang and then falsely charged protesters as members back in 2020.
In a press release, the department wrote that six officers were internally investigated with Chief Matt Giordano ultimately determining that three violated policy.
See our original investigation into this incident in the player below.
POLITICALLY CHARGED: See full ABC15 investigation into protest arrests
However, sources tell ABC15 all three officers who violated policy are now retired and can’t be disciplined.
One of the key officials involved in the gang charges was Sgt. Doug McBride, who was the officer who misled a grand jury to secure the indictment, records show.
The court called his testimony “egregious.”
McBride retired in December 2025 before the internal investigation was completed, and he now collects a $98,000 annual pension.
The scandal largely began following the arrest of a group of 17 protesters on October 21, 2020. In the days after the arrest, Phoenix officers and county prosecutors colluded to invent a gang and then falsely charge the protesters as members.
The city and county stood by the charges until February 2021, when ABC15 launched its “Politically Charged” investigation.
The news series exposed how Phoenix police and county prosecutors lied to a grand jury to obtain the gang charges and testified that the protesters were comparable to the Bloods, Crips, and Hells Angels, according to a confidential transcript obtained by ABC15.
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As a direct result of ABC15's investigation, more than 40 felony protest cases were dismissed, the city and county admitted to widespread failures with the arrests, and the lead prosecutor was suspended from practicing law for at least two years and may never practice again.
In 2021, ABC15 debuted an hour-long special, showcasing the culmination of more than 50 in-depth reports. See the full 'Politically Charged' special here.
A large collection of the falsely charged protesters also joined to file a lawsuit against the City of Phoenix and the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
The county agreed to settle its half of the case last December for $6 million.
After the large settlement, most of the protesters dropped out of the case.
For the remaining claims against Phoenix, two people now remain in the lawsuit: Ryder Collins and Bruce Franks Jr.
This is a developing story. Stay with abc15.com for the latest updates.