Troy Mendez*
As a person who follows the teachings of Jesus, I hold to a simple principle: you cannot separate a company from what it does in the world. For more than a decade, I have served the people of Arizona as a priest in The Episcopal Church. Throughout that ministry, I have sought to build communities where we love our neighbors as ourselves, especially those who are most vulnerable.
Surveillance infrastructure that can be turned against people, including immigrant families who may fear detention or separation, young people who may be disproportionately monitored and disciplined, and those who gather to express dissent and risk being tracked or targeted does not strengthen our communities. Instead, it deepens fear, discourages participation in public life, and erodes the trust that neighbors must have in one another and in local institutions. It moves us farther away from God’s dream of the Beloved Community, what Jesus called the Kingdom of God.
Tempe is at a crossroads for our surveillance technology. Earlier this year, city officials moved to quickly replace the Flock cameras after privacy and data concerns. They landed on Axon Enterprise. The cameras are already being tested on our streets. That is why this decision matters. The question is not simply whether these cameras share data today. It is whether Tempe should enter partnership with a company whose broader work and business model contribute to systems that undermine the dignity, safety, and trust upon which healthy communities depend.
I understand the impulse. We must ensure our community can move freely and safely… But in their haste to respond, Tempe may have traded one vendor for another — and a far more dangerous one at that. Axon is not just any technology vendor. It is one of the largest private-sector partners of ICE and the Department of Homeland Security in the country. The company holds millions and millions in contracts with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and, during the second Trump administration alone, ICE has awarded Axon $16.7 million in new contracts — including body cameras and cloud storage deployed in deportation operations. This is not merely standard business. These are the tools of raids. Of separation. Of fear.
Then there is Axon’s leadership… Ronald Vitiello helped design Axon’s approach to winning government contracts before returning to federal service as Acting Deputy Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He is the same man who, as Acting Director of ICE under the first Trump administration, oversaw the zero-tolerance policy that tore children from their parents at the border.
And Axon’s ambitions extend far beyond what is being tested on Tempe’s streets today. The company’s “AI-era plan” centers on a product called Fusus — which integrates live footage from Axon cameras, third-party feeds, private sources like Amazon Ring, location blueprints, and state and local records into a single real-time AI tracking system. This is not a camera company. This is a mass surveillance company.
As a person of faith, I hold to a simple principle: you cannot separate a company from what it does in the world. I work with the Episcopal Evangelism Society across Maricopa County because we believe community wellbeing depends on how we treat our most vulnerable neighbors. Surveillance infrastructure that can be turned against immigrant families, young people, and those who show up to protest does not build community. It erodes it.
Before Tempe makes this partnership permanent, residents deserve the full picture: not just “does this camera share data today?” but “who is this company and whose interests does it ultimately serve?”
*The Very Rev. Troy Mendez, Executive Director- Episcopal Evangelism Society, Dean- Trinity Episcopal Cathedral
