MESA – On Monday, the City of Mesa announced that Police Chief Ramon Batista has resigned.
The embattled Batista submitted his notice of intent to leave citing the desire to pursue personal interests and other professional opportunities.
In June 2019, the Mesa Police Association and the Mesa Fraternal Order of Police cast a vote of no confidence against Batista. Officers lost confidence in Batista due to his decision to abandon his officers when they have come under attack by the public and anti-law enforcement groups.
Related article: Mesa Police Have ‘No Confidence’ In Chief Ramon Batista
“Chief Batista has served this community well, taking over the department during some challenging times.” City Manager Chris Brady said. “He worked hard to connect with the community and provide expanded field training for our officers.”
Batista has worked in law enforcement for nearly 35 years. He started with Mesa in 2017 after retiring as the Assistant Police Chief for the City of Tucson.
The City of Mesa says the police department saw significant changes in the training of use-of-force instruction and de-escalation techniques as well as the lowest violent crime rates ever reported under Batista’s tenure.