An off-duty police officer who showed up at an anti-ICE protest is at the centre of a growing controversy in Arizona, after a Phoenix Police sergeant was placed on administrative leave for allegedly arriving armed at a student immigration protest and attempting to provoke teenagers into a confrontation that could lead to arrests.
The incident, which took place at Hamilton High School in Chandler on 30 January, has sparked intense debate about police conduct, protest rights, and whether an off-duty officer deliberately tried to escalate a peaceful student walkout into a law enforcement incident.
