Three Police Officers Placed On Paid Leave After Watching A Man Drown

Three Tempe police officers who looked on as a man drowned in an Arizona lake late last month have been placed on “non-disciplinary paid administrative leave” as several law enforcement agencies investigate what happened.

According to city officials, officers responded to a call about a disturbance just after 5 a.m. 

Tempe Police officers found Sean Bickings, 34, and a woman at a reservoir near the city’s Elmore Pedestrian Bridge. They denied any physical violence occurred, and neither of them was under arrest.

According to a statement from the city of Tempe, they describe Bickings as “unsheltered.”

Officers were questioning Bickings and running his name through a database to determine if he had any outstanding warrants, the city said in a statement.

“That check had not yet been completed when Bickings decided to slowly climb over a 4-foot metal fence and enter the water,” the statement said.

“He swam about 30-40 yards before repeatedly indicating he was in distress. He soon went under and did not resurface,” the statement continued.

The incident was caught on police body camera. (Via New York Post)

The Tempe Officers Association, the union that represents Tempe Police Department officers, emailed a statement to CNN. 

“Attempting such a high-risk rescue could easily result in the death of the person in the water and the officer, who could be pulled down by a struggling adult. Officers are trained to call the Fire Department and or get the Tempe Police boat. That is what officers did here.”

The Tempe Police Department is conducting an investigation into Bickings’ death. It may take several weeks because they have to wait on results of a medical examiner’s report.

The three officers who initially responded to the call have been placed on non-disciplinary paid administrative leave pending the investigation, according to the city.

Separately, the city said it has asked the nearby Scottsdale Police Department to conduct an administrative review of the “critical incident response” in an effort to maintain “public trust and transparency.” That investigation is also expected to take several weeks.