City of Mesa Lawsuit: Falcon Field, Police Force, and Traffic Claims

The City of Mesa is currently defending a federal lawsuit from two flight schools over new landing fees at Falcon Field Airport, facing $243.4 million in claims from the families of five people killed in a 2024 plane crash at that same airport, and working through a series of police excessive-force cases and traffic-collision claims. Recent City of Mesa lawsuits span aviation disputes, civil rights litigation, and wrongful-death claims, and a 2024 Arizona Supreme Court ruling in a Mesa case has also tightened the rules for anyone who wants to sue the city.

Falcon Field Landing Fee Lawsuit

In May 2026, CAE Aviation Academy and Thrust Flight Properties sued the City of Mesa in federal court to block collection of new landing fees at Falcon Field Airport. The case, CAE Aviation Academy Phoenix LLC et al v. Mesa, City of, is pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona as case number 2:26-cv-03325, before Judge Krissa M. Lanham.¹

The Mesa City Council approved the fee structure on March 23, 2026. Fixed-wing aircraft under 6,000 pounds pay roughly $20 per landing after ten free landings each month; transient aircraft in the same weight class pay about $24 per landing, and heavier planes are charged by weight.² The flight schools said the fees raise “serious safety, financial and fairness concerns.”³ The plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction a day after filing; Mesa moved to dismiss on June 16, 2026.¹

The Federal Aviation Administration has also pressed the city. Its Office of Airport Compliance said the fee plan “may be inconsistent with the City’s Federal obligations, both grant assurances and Surplus Property Act conveyance obligations,” and warned the fees could “jeopardize or disrupt the Acceptable Level of Safety” at the airport. Two Part 13 complaints have been filed, and the FAA signaled it may open a Part 16 investigation, which could put Mesa’s federal airport funding at risk. The agency asked the city to delay implementation.²

Mesa has said the lawsuit “lacks legal merit” and that the fees are needed to cover operations, maintenance, and long-term financial sustainability at Falcon Field. The city retained the firm Anderson Kreiger and announced it would activate fee-collection technology on July 30, 2026, with billing starting August 1, 2026.⁴

Falcon Field Plane Crash Claims

On November 5, 2024, a Honda HA-420 HondaJet aborted takeoff on Runway 22L at Falcon Field. The aircraft reached roughly 133 knots and traveled about 3,400 feet before the crew rejected the takeoff, then overran the runway, broke through a perimeter fence, and struck a car on North Greenfield Road before catching fire. Two pilots, two passengers, and driver Raymond Longhi were killed; one passenger survived.⁵

Families of the five victims filed notices of claim against the City of Mesa totaling $243.4 million, alleging the city failed to maintain safe conditions around the runway.⁶ The Longhi family’s claim alone demands $60 million.⁷

The claims focus on Greenfield Road, which sits inside the airport’s Runway Protection Zone and carries about 20,000 vehicle trips a day.⁶ Attorneys for the families argue the runway has been extended twice since it was first activated in 1941 and is now roughly double its original length, placing its end next to the road.⁷ They say Mesa failed to install barriers, failed to maintain an adequate Runway Safety Area, and passed on multiple chances to reroute Greenfield Road out of the protection zone, including after a 2022 FAA advisory about eliminating such hazards.

Under Arizona law, a notice of claim is a required step before a lawsuit. If the city does not respond within 60 days, the claim is deemed denied and the families can file suit.⁶ Mesa has not commented publicly, citing the pending litigation.

Police Excessive-Force Cases

Mesa’s police department has been a defendant in several significant use-of-force cases over the past decade.

Daniel Shaver Shooting ($8 Million Settlement)

On January 18, 2016, Mesa Officer Phillip Brailsford shot and killed Daniel Shaver in a hallway at a La Quinta Inn after officers responded to reports of a rifle being pointed from a window. Shaver was unarmed and had been ordered to crawl toward officers; Brailsford fired as Shaver reached toward his waistband. A pellet rifle was later found in Shaver’s hotel room. Brailsford was charged with second-degree murder and acquitted at trial.⁸

In November 2022, Mesa reached an $8 million settlement with Shaver’s widow, Laney Sweet. Her attorneys described it as the highest settlement for a deceased victim in Arizona and more than double the city’s previous largest payout. The settlement was fully funded by January 2023, and the city committed to placing a memorial tree and bench for Shaver at Countryside Park.⁸

Spencer v. Pew

Cole Spencer sued Mesa SWAT officer Aaron Pew and three other officers over a 2018 arrest in which Spencer said he was beaten, Tasered, and choked. The Ninth Circuit denied Officer Pew qualified immunity, and Mesa settled the case for $150,000 in the summer of 2025. The ruling addressed use of force on handcuffed subjects lying face-down, and the department updated its training to focus restraint on a subject’s hips rather than the neck or spine.⁹

Cockrell v. City of Mesa

Darnay Cockrell sued the City of Mesa and officers Helfrich and Brown in 2025, alleging excessive force and racial discrimination. According to the complaint, Cockrell called 911 in August 2024 for help after his ex-girlfriend tried to take his four-year-old daughter. When officers arrived, they ordered him to the ground; when he did not comply, they forced him onto the asphalt and handcuffed him, with at least one officer placing a knee on his back. Cockrell says the officers treated him as a suspect “because he is African American, tall, and physically fit,” and that he suffered back and knee injuries, lost his job, and was evicted.¹⁰

The case was removed to federal court in December 2025 as case number 2:2025-cv-04535. Mesa and Officer Helfrich moved to dismiss on December 30, 2025, and Officer Brown joined that motion in February 2026.¹¹ Mesa police had previously said the officers did not violate department policies but would receive additional training.¹⁰

Mayfield v. City of Mesa

In Mayfield v. City of Mesa (No. 23-3222), the Ninth Circuit ruled in 2025 on whether Mesa police violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act by failing to provide a sign-language interpreter during a traffic stop and blood draw. The plaintiff, who is deaf, argued officers should not have relied on handwritten notes, lip-reading, and gestures. The court held that the exigent circumstances of a DUI stop made an in-person interpreter impractical and that body-camera footage showed the methods used allowed an effective exchange of information. It affirmed dismissal with prejudice.¹²

Traffic Collision Claims Against the City

Four drivers filed notices of claim totaling roughly $6 million against Mesa over collisions involving city employees or police officers, according to the Mesa Tribune.

Caleb Mims is seeking $5 million. In June, Officer Hayden Minarchin allegedly T-boned Mims at Country Club Drive and Holmes Avenue while responding to an emergency without activating his light bar. Mims reported whiplash, a cervical spine sprain, and a bulging disc.
Ivory Ward is seeking approximately $603,000. In May, Officer Tyler Magee allegedly rear-ended Ward on Loop 101 near the Rio Salado Parkway interchange. Ward reported bulging discs, a concussion, and neurological issues.
Gerald De Leon is seeking $450,000. In June, Officer Chad Shershen allegedly rear-ended De Leon on a US 60 off-ramp. The claim described De Leon as “severely injured.”
Stephanie Gallo is seeking $200,000. In May, city employee Thalia Padilla allegedly turned left into Gallo’s car at Rio Salado Parkway and Alma School Road. The claim alleged reckless indifference in assigning Padilla to drive a city vehicle.

Each is a notice of claim, the required precursor to a lawsuit against an Arizona municipality.¹³

How a Mesa Case Tightened the Rules for Suing the City

If you are thinking about filing a claim against Mesa, a 2024 Arizona Supreme Court decision in a Mesa case directly affects how you draft it. In City of Mesa v. Ryan/Rogers (No. CV-23-0284-PR), cyclist Philip Rogers was struck by a Mesa patrol car driven by officer Gustavo Williams in November 2021. Rogers filed a notice of claim offering to settle for “$1,000,000 or the applicable policy limits, whichever are greater.”¹⁴

The Supreme Court held that this language failed the statutory requirement under A.R.S. § 12-821.01(A) that a notice of claim state a “specific amount” for which the claim can be settled. Mesa’s insurance structure, a $3 million self-insured retention layered with additional policies, meant “applicable policy limits” could not be pinned down to a single figure. Rogers’s lawsuit was barred.¹⁴ A claimant must now provide either an exact dollar amount or a formula that leaves “no room for debate” about what the government would need to pay.¹⁵

1
PACER Monitor. CAE Aviation Academy Phoenix LLC et al v. Mesa, City of
2
AOPA. FAA Asks Arizona City to Delay Falcon Field Fees
3
Your Valley. Two Flight Schools Suing Mesa Over New Falcon Field Airport Landing Fees
4
Mesa Now. City of Mesa Statement on Falcon Field Landing Fee Lawsuit
5
BAAA-ACRO. Mesa Falcon Field Accident Record
6
Queen Creek Tribune. Plane Crash Victims’ Families Want $243M From Mesa
7
AZ Family. Families of Falcon Field Plane Crash Victims Sue Over Safety Failures
8
ABC15. $8M Settlement After Deadly Mesa Police Shooting of Daniel Shaver Now Funded
9
ABC15. Mesa Man Who Acted as His Own Lawyer From Prison Settles Police Excessive Force Case
10
AZ Central. Father Sues Mesa, Two Police Officers Alleging Excessive Force
11
Justia Dockets. Cockrell v. City of Mesa et al, Case No. 2:2025-cv-04535
12
Ninth Circuit. Mayfield v. City of Mesa, No. 23-3222
13
The Mesa Tribune. Claims for $6M Filed Against City of Mesa
14
FindLaw. City of Mesa v. Philip Rogers
15
Arizona Courts. Arizona Supreme Court Issues Opinion on Compliance With Notice of Claim Requirements