A Phoenix woman is taking the city and two police officers to federal court after what she says was a wrongful DUI arrest tied to internal pressure for more drunken-driving busts inside the department. Her lawsuit centers on a Dec. 29, 2024 traffic stop and body-camera audio that, according to the filing, captures officers worrying about losing their squad spots if they did not make DUI arrests. The suit asks a federal judge to clear her record and order policy changes at the Phoenix Police Department.
According to the complaint, Officer Mary Metheny stopped driver Brianna Longoria on Dec. 29, 2024 and, despite a breath test that registered “000” and what the suit describes as normal precinct tests, told Longoria she would still be arrested for DUI. In body-camera audio transcribed in the filing, Metheny is quoted saying, “Triple zeroes like I thought” and, “So I do believe that you’re impaired. So I’m going to place you under arrest for DUI.” The complaint also says Metheny later voided a red-light citation after reviewing video and seeing the light was green, and that the arrest report listed field-sobriety results the suit claims were fabricated, as reported by ABC15.
Federal Lawsuit Filed
Longoria filed a civil-rights lawsuit in December 2025 in U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona, naming Metheny, Officer Anette Hannah and the City of Phoenix and invoking 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Court records list the case as No. 2:25-cv-04931 and show it is active. The defendants filed an answer in February, and the court set a scheduling conference earlier this year, according to Justia Dockets.
Body-Cam Audio And The Quota Allegation
The complaint spotlights an exchange at the precinct that Longoria’s side says shows pressure to produce DUI arrests. In the body-camera audio, Officer Anette Hannah is recorded saying, “They’re gonna kick me off squad if I don’t get a DUI,” and Metheny replies, “You can. You can.” The suit states that Hannah later described Longoria’s station results as “super in the norms,” yet the arrest moved forward anyway. Longoria’s attorneys argue that the audio, the arrest paperwork and the later voided traffic citation together point to malicious prosecution and a de facto quota system, as reported by ABC15.
Internal Review Process
The Phoenix Police Department’s Professional Standards Bureau (PSB) is the unit that reviews allegations of officer misconduct and can recommend discipline up to and including termination. Its publicly available overview explains how complaints are filed, investigated and reviewed. That internal process is the pathway the department uses for misconduct complaints and oversight, according to City of Phoenix materials.
Policy And Legal Context
Formal quotas and incentive systems have long been criticized for encouraging enforcement decisions based on numbers rather than public safety. The President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing recommended that agencies “refrain from practices requiring officers to issue a predetermined number of tickets, citations, arrests or summonses,” guidance that reform advocates frequently cite in debates over policing metrics, according to the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. Longoria’s lawsuit is framed as a § 1983 civil-rights action, the federal route for claims that government officials violated constitutional protections, and if successful it could result in damages, injunctive relief and changes to department practices, according to the Legal Information Institute…