Tag: crime

bookmark_borderPhiladelphia: Where the Victim Goes to Jail

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Reader input:

Hi, we need some help getting our story our. We went to Valley Green Park on 7/31/11, parked at 500 W. Springfield Ave in Chestnut Hill and our car was vandalized. Rob was taken into custody for bogus charges (cops say they found drugs in the car in the same location where my wallet was stolen). We have a petition up on Change.org (Philadelphia: Where the victim goes to jail). Any help or coverage is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

OVERVIEW

Philadelphia: Where the victims go to jail!!

On July 31 2010, Rob DeMarco and I went for a walk at Valley Green Park in Chestnut Hill, and I parked my car in a parking lot at 500 W. Springfield Ave, Philadelphia PA 19118. We arrived back at my car about 2 hours later to find it had been vandalized. There were also 2 Philadelphia police officers waiting for us. My car door was damaged, window smashed, my wallet containing my ID, and several cards were stolen from the closed glove box, and my back seats had been set on fire!

The officers promptly asked who owns the car. Once I tell them I own the car, they tell me that they have to arrest me because illegal substances were found in a cigarette pack in my glove box. We did not have any illegal substances in my vehicle upon our arrival to the park and my cigarette pack was full of cigarettes. We tried to reason that my car was vandalized and my personal items were stolen from my glove box and this was not ours, but the officer tells me that either one of us or both of us are going to jail. Rob said he would go with the officers and was handcuffed and placed in the back of the car. We cooperated, figuring that this matter would be cleared up very quickly. He was never formally arrested, read his rights, nor were either one of us asked for a statement. Instead, Rob was locked in a holding cell overnight and released the following morning. Rob is now facing drug possession charges. If convicted, he may face incarceration and/or loss of his license.
I understand the police have a job to do and substance abuse is a serious crime. I have nothing but respect for the men and women who put their lives at risk for the safety of the public. However, in this case, I believe the officers used very poor judgment. All I received was a police report number written down on a piece of paper. I asked for names and badge numbers, and I was told it would all be on the report. I am writing this petition 2 days after these events and the reports are still unavailable.

I am asking for 14th District Captain Joel Dales to dismiss these charges. We are the victim of vandalism, theft, arson and now false charges!

Please call Captain Dales, Philadelphia 14th district at 215-686-3140, or email him at police.co_14@phila.gov

bookmark_borderPhiladelphia Gun Violence

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PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia Gun Violence Task Force today announced the arrest of as many as 34 suspects accused of illegal gun trafficking, straw purchasing and other firearm offenses.

Attorney General Tom Corbett, Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams, and Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said the arrests are part of an ongoing effort to tackle the problem of gun violence and homicides in Philadelphia.

In December 2006 Corbett partnered with the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office and the Philadelphia Police Department to form the Philadelphia Gun Violence Task Force. The Task Force, funded by the State Legislature, employs attorney general agents to work hand-in-hand with the Philadelphia police on gun related crimes. The defendants are prosecuted by the district attorney’s office.

Corbett said that the Philadelphia Gun Violence Task Force has opened 1,311 investigations, made 424 arrests and seized 779 firearms.

“The positive impact this Task Force has had on Philadelphia is undeniable,” Corbett said. “Not only have these agents made arrests and seized illegal firearms, but have assisted in solving shootings, burglaries, robberies, and homicides.”

“There is no doubt that the hard work of the Gun Violence Task Force has helped Philadelphia make a dent in the most dangerous crimes here, the crimes that are associated with guns,” says District Attorney Seth Williams. “The continued diligence of this Task Force is not only essential for Philadelphia, but for the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

Corbett noted that to date the Task Force has convicted 183 individuals of straw purchasing and other gun trafficking offenses.

Corbett explained that a straw purchase occurs when someone purchases a gun for an individual, who is not legally allowed to possess a firearm.

“When you purchase a gun for a criminal and that gun is used to kill someone, it is as if you pulled the trigger yourself,” Corbett said. “The majority o f the suspects arrested today are accused of being straw purchasers and allegedly purchased firearms for boyfriends or friends, who otherwise would never have been allowed to possess a gun.”

According to agents, at least 15 of the suspects being announced today were involved in some type of straw purchase transaction.

Corbett said that the majority of weapons the task force seized were purchased legally and given to a criminal, stolen in burglaries and thefts, or traded by drug users instead of cash.

“Drugs, guns and violence are problems that can never be separated from one another,” Corbett said.

“This is not exclusively a Philadelphia problem,” Corbett said. “Other cities and town across Pennsylvania have seen firsthand the effects gun violence can have on our communities.”

Corbett noted that his office offers an educational program called Think Again: Gun Violence and Straw Purchasing. The program includes a DVD, which shows the harsh realities and consequences of gun violence through candid interview’s with a victim’s mother, trauma surgeon and law enforcement.

Presentations are available, free of charge, by contacting the Attorney General’s Education and Outreach Unit at 1-800-525-7642 or by emailing education@attorneygeneral.gov.