Police Eviction Enforcement Ramps Up in Arizona

A Maricopa County, Arizona police constable has performed more than 300 evictions since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s federal moratorium expired in early August, 2021, reports the Washington Post. Constables adhere to a government-recommended time of about 10 minutes to search the home, force everyone out and change the locks on renters who are newly jobless, working from home, grieving, terrified of the virus, or already sick as they exhausted their savings to pay what little they could. Tenants competing with increased demand must grapple with rent hikes of hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, and property managers who want them out regardless of their circumstances. The average rent has gone up by 40 percent since the beginning of the pandemic.

Constables enforcing these eviction notices must grapple with a familiar debate of empathy vs. enforcement, with many believing that tenants take advantage of the moratorium acted as if they were above the law, damaging property and spending their rental assistance on flat-screen TVs and new cars while their landlords suffer, while others recognize the complexities of the situation. All of them commiserate about a job that had become more fraught and unpredictable during the past few months. “A lot of people are still playing catch-up,” constable Lennie McClosky said. “They have good intentions.” Another retired constable said: “But, as a taxpayer, there’s a part of me that says: Why are we wasting my money to help deadbeats? Maybe it’s their own fault they can’t pay.”