Montgomery forwards Glendale stun gun case to FBI; Ducey calls inquiry 'whitewashed'

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery has asked the FBI to review a 2017 incident in which a Glendale police officer used a stun gun on a man multiple times during a traffic stop.

The announcement came hours after Gov. Doug Ducey called the county's first investigation, which declined to charge the officer, "whitewashed."

Montgomery announced he would forward the case to the FBI Wednesday after viewing footage that showed Officer Matt Schneider using a stun gun on Johnny Wheatcroft 11 times during a traffic stop, including after the man was on the ground and handcuffed. 

"After having personally reviewed all available video evidence, I have determined further investigation is warranted," Montgomery wrote in a statement. "In order to ensure the public's confidence in any future determination of whether the use of force was lawful, review by an uninvolved agency is appropriate."

The Maricopa County Attorney's Office previously declined to file any charges against the officers involved in October 2017, according to spokeswoman Amanda Steele.

Earlier in the day, Ducey urged Montgomery to re-evaluate the case, and called the investigation "whitewashed."

Ducey made the statement in response to a question from 12 News reporter Michael Doudna about the footage, 

"What I saw on that video tape did not represent the law enforcement I know in the state of Arizona," Ducey told Doudna. "Of course, you don’t like to make a statement on a video tape, but what I saw was completely unacceptable and it seems to me that the investigation was whitewashed. I’d love to see the County Attorney’s Office re-open the investigation and get to the bottom of what happened there and hold people accountable."

On Thursday, Steele told The Arizona Republic the move was not motivated by Ducey's comments. She said the county attorney began communicating with the FBI about the case "long before" he publicly announced the decision Wednesday. 

Montgomery has applied to serve on the Arizona Supreme Court — a position that the governor will fill later this year. 

Glendale claims it was first to FBI 

Several hours after Montgomery made his announcement, Glendale city officials issued a statement of their own saying they contacted the FBI on Monday — before Ducey or Montgomery ever got involved — and were "preparing" to send all of the documents and videos to them.

Officials said they had also already told the Maricopa County Attorney's Office on Tuesday that they would cooperate with its decision to re-examine the case. But they maintain that the case has already been properly investigated.

"We have no basis to believe that the County Attorney's original investigation was not thorough and comprehensive, and we accepted their findings," according to the statement that city spokeswoman Sue Breding sent to media.

The statement says Wheatcroft offered to settle with the city in December "for the absurd amount of $15 million." 

It goes on to say that the city holds its officers "to the highest standards" and will cooperate with any additional investigation.

In 2017, the Glendale Police Department suspended Schneider for three days for violating department protocol. Glendale police spokeswoman Officer Tiffany Ngalula said it was specifically for using a stun gun on Wheatcroft while he was already handcuffed and no longer resisting.

Earlier this week, Glendale police held a news conference where they showed a small group of reporters additional body-camera footage of the incident. They forbid any recording, despite the fact the attorney on the other side of the case has already released several videos police have provided to him.

MORE: Glendale mayor addresses controversial stun gun video

Wheatcroft's attorneys filed a federal lawsuit in November 2018, claiming police used excessive force and violated Wheatcroft's civil rights. It also claims Wheatcroft and his family suffered from trauma and physical and emotional damages. 

The lawsuit names Glendale, Schneider, Officer Mark Lindsey and Officer Michael Fernandez as defendants. The suit does not specify a damage amount being sought.