I've been kind of wrapped up with the unfortunate news from this morning about the husband of Managing Director-designate Camille Barnett so I haven't yet gotten to weigh in on the front-page, "above the fold" story in today's Inquirer:
FOP rips Nutter's pick for safety job
Apparently, Nutter failed to run his choice of Everett A. Gillison as Deputy Mayor of Public Safety by the FOP. It's not that he necessarily needs their approval, but it would have been the "political" thing to do.
Gillison, while in the public defender's office, represented convicted cop killer Solomon Montgomery who had shot Officer Gary Skerski during a bar hold up back in 2006. The Inquirer story from this morning includes several quotes from Nutter's new spokesperson, Doug Oliver, who gives all of the "right answers" about the fact that Ellison defended Montgomery:
"Regardless of his individual caseload, Everett Gillison is good at what he does"
"He was a senior lawyer assigned high-profile, high-publicity cases and [as a public defender] did not have the ability to pick and choose the cases he takes."
"Every man is entitled to a defense, and we don't think [Gillison] should be penalized for doing his job and doing it well."
and so forth.
And all of that is true. Our system of law depends on the adversarial system in which everyone, no matter what crime they committed, gets the best defense possible. That way, when they are convicted, we all are as confident as possible that it was because they actually committed the crime and not because they couldn't defend themselves. In fact, the FOP should probably push for cop killers to get the best defense possible so that we're not stuck with another Mumia case that drags on for over 25 years.
However, it's also understandable why the FOP would be a little sensitive to this, considering that the man in question did defend someone who took the life of one of their own. At the very least Nutter should have had some kind of informal consultation with them. And the Mayor-elect admits as much.
Nutter quickly owned up to the mistake in procedure while also standing by his choice of Ellison. The following are quotes from Fox 29's coverage this morning:
The one mistake I made here was not at least giving him [FOP head John McNesby] a call ahead of time, because I do consider him a friend, both personally and professionally, and he deserved a heads up. I made a mistake in that regard.
...
[McNesby] is my friend. He's a true professional, and certainly deserved the heads up. I ended up talking to him after and apologize at that time, and I reiterated that I had made a mistake in that particular matter, and when you make a mistake, you just have to own up to it.
Standing by his choice of Gillison he said:
I understand the concern [by the FOP], but quite frankly, because Everett [Gillison] is so good, I know that he can actually help us in the government better coordinate all of our public safety services - the police, the courts, the DA, the public defenders, probation and parole - because he's seen the system from the insider and understands what works and what doesn't.
So, you be the judge. How do you think Nutter handled this first potential misstep? Is the story done now and do you think they move on or will it linger and leave a lasting impression on the new administration?
Comments (23)
Nutter handled this well. Yeah, maybe as a courtesy he should have alerted the FOP before making the appointment public. But he owes the FOP nothing, nor does the FOP have any legal right to provide input on the appointment. In fact, the FOP didn't even endorse Nutter when it really mattered, so they should quite honestly just be grateful that he's mature and professional enough to not allow those politics to be a factor, b/c other local politicians might have.
Posted by Anonymous | January 4, 2008 4:13 PM
This is a non-issue, and I'm stunned it's gotten this far, honestly.
Nutter forgot to make a courtesy call. After the countless escapades of the oh-so-brilliant Street administration, we should be so lucky to call this a "misstep".
Posted by Jenkins | January 4, 2008 4:25 PM
Agreed. Compared to the testy "don't blame me" and "it's your fault too" of departing Sylvester Johnson, who takes his petulance from his mentor John Street, apparently, Nutter's open, responsive style is refreshing.
What we have now in Nutter compares well to what we leave behind: A chief who:
1. takes credit on behalf of a mayor for things neither did but talked a good deal about doing,
2. who presided over a spike in killings/shootings by his officers while proclaiming that he is all about civil rights of the little man,
3. who claims he is against "stop and frisk" or what police say they do as a matter of course under his oversight yet the commish heartily condemns the incoming mayor on the issue,
4. who left untouched a host of reforms that other successful large, low crime cities have in place, and are listed in the last article below,
5. who honestly thinks that a layperson response to violent crime is more relevant to reducing crime, and that police and prisons are passe, and that Philly has too much emphasis on police and prisons, when all indicators show we have too few given our population and proximity.
I doubt Nutter would even be able to allow such a fully documented mess behind him on public safety:
\www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20080104_Johnson_rips_DN__defends_himself___cop_shooting.html
www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/20080104_Editorial___Police_Shooting.html
www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/20080104_Editorial___Police_Shooting.html
Posted by lj | January 4, 2008 6:13 PM
I expect that police groups will be sore and sensitive after the abuse and neglect they suffered under Street's Johnson. Nutter appears to be healing this with respect and understanding like an adult.
The rule by bratty power mad children appears to be over. We can all breathe a collective sigh of relief.
Posted by Anonymous | January 4, 2008 6:19 PM
The FOP is behaving very badly. Nutter's appointee has done nothing illegal and nothing morally incorrect. However, the FOP wants to come down on him and the mayor. The FOP's reaction is insightful of the judgment capabilities of people with weapons who are charged with safeguarding society. If anything, it is the FOP that is suspect. I support our mayor.
Posted by KEM | January 4, 2008 9:31 PM
The FOP was way out of line, again. Gillson was doing what the tax payers were paying him to do, defending a cop killer who couldn't afford a private attorney. Did the FOP complain about any of their members that guarded Montgomery between his arrest and trial? They were doing their job too.
Posted by JohnR | January 4, 2008 10:09 PM
First, I think Nutter will turn out to be not much better than Street. I realized this when he ran those stupid campaign commercials a week before the election when he was 50 points ahead, basically blaming George Bush and Dick Cheney for Philly being in shambles. It shows he's just another Philly Democrat partisan hack, and he chose to be a divider rather than a uniter. Just like Street.
However, I will side with him on this - a public defender has to defend all sorts of people and take cases they may never take in private practice. The fact is SOMEONE was going to have to represent that cop killer. And it was his JOB to do it. It would be different if he took the case while he was in private practice.
Posted by JoeD | January 5, 2008 12:09 AM
I love how every Tom, Dick, & Berry knows how Nutter will run this city when he HASN'T BECOME MAYOR YET. People haven't even given it a few months yet.
In all honesty, could you imagine Street apologizing like that? No way.
Posted by Patricio | January 5, 2008 1:53 AM
The fraternal order police is what is wrong with this city. All unions need to be forcefully removed from Philadelphia so it can operate as a free city. The communists of unions and their defense of lazy shoddy performance should be one of the first things Nutter eliminates. aka Ronald Reagan with air traffic controllers. Police in this town have no pride in their job, just blowhards sucking cash out of the good citizens who pay way too much in taxes for the shoddy protection and service we get. FOP stands for everything wrong in Philadelphia. Keep insulting them Nutter, maybe they will go away.
Posted by Stallone | January 5, 2008 11:37 AM
The FOP's criticism of Nutter needs to be put into context. They are one of four municipal unions that will negotiate new contracts very shortly. I wouldn't be surprised to see someone from the fire fighters union attacking Nutter in the coming weeks.
Negotiating the municipal contracts will be the first big test of Nutter's administration. There is a good possibility of a strike, which can be a serious blow to the popularity of any mayor. Nutter has never run anything larger than a City Council office and it will be very interesting to see how he handles this challenge.
Posted by bw | January 5, 2008 3:01 PM
If the police department went on strike would anyone even notice? Ok, donut shops, but who else?
Posted by tr | January 5, 2008 5:57 PM
The problem i see with the FOP not getting a call from Nutter, is that you have a man who defends the most violent group of people in Philadelphia (MURDERS)one of whom killed a Police Officer.
Now i think more then a phone called should of happened.
Posted by Anonymous | January 5, 2008 6:39 PM
The problem i see with the FOP not getting a call from Nutter, is that you have a man who defends the most violent group of people in Philadelphia (MURDERS)one of whom killed a Police Officer.
Now i think more then a phone called should of happened.
Posted by Anonymous | January 5, 2008 6:39 PM
WTF? This guy is used to making excuses for criminals not prosecuting them or making the streets safer. He doesn't like the Police and is way too much of a liberal to save a city that is bleeding to death.
Posted by Naive | January 5, 2008 8:57 PM
To Stallone and TR, Wow all cops suck huh? Ok. There is a waiver form you can sign for a Police ride-a-long and I'll be glad to show you how all of us cops just suck the money out of the city and don't do anything.
There are more guns in Philly and we lock up more criminals with guns then NY which is 7x bigger than Philly. I guess we do that in between eating donuts. Are there lazy cops? Sure just like every other profession in the world. You watch too many Lethal Weapon movies and think we're action figures or something.
Leave a contact number here or with the Daily News and I'll be happy to take you out to North Philly for 8 hours and show you how lazy we are. Ask news writers like Scott Flanders or Dave Gambercetta how easy it is. Put up or shut up. Its easy sitting behind a keyboard and typing. Show me.
Posted by To the armchair warriors | January 5, 2008 10:25 PM
I don't consider myself an armchair warrior, and I support our police. I would like to see what goes on in an 8 hour shift myself anyway.
Posted by Mark Chalupa | January 6, 2008 5:39 AM
The FOP has arrived at this discussion with its usual bucket of excuses to throw into a lake of embarassing poor crime statistics. Thank you for the invitation to ride with you however I chose to ride with a winner, the New York City police department and recommend you do the same. Abandon your quest to create the most overtime possible for your cronies and instead fight crime. The assinine antics of the FOP is what leads educated citizens to feel we receive nothing for our money and the criminals to feel they can open fire on the tarnished tin badge.
The Fraternal Order of Police is a cancer in Philadelphia that needs to be cut out. This was part of the referendum of change the citizens of Philadelphia gave to Michael Nutter. Selection of Everett A. Gillison has shown the FOP that Nutter will chose the best person for a job, pay no mind to the self centered FOP and instead concentrate on serving the people!
Leave a contact number here or with the Daily News and I'll be happy to make sure you find a way to get your grade school diploma finally. You will need it as you are searching for a new job when we get rid of the FOP slacker security blanket.
Posted by To the FOP cushy office leeches | January 6, 2008 9:11 AM
People, the rank and file in Philly are doing a good job under extreme circumstances caused by bureaucratic neglect.
To the police officer: I apologize for the blowhards. They are just frustrated after Johnson gets a send off of 1. Roberta Flack singing 2. an expensive police motorcade like he was the pope 3. helicopters flying overhead with police using the searchlights like a red carpet premiere.
This surreal scene after Johnson presided over a huge spike in homicides, made weak excuses that made me start to conclude that he was on the organized crime payroll.
We "can't arresth our way out of thith problem" he said, and gets a send off like I've never seen, not even for the best police chiefs like Timoney.
My response: "Thorry, thought that was why they gave you handcuths."
Who paid for this waste of money display? Why is DROP still being misused? Why did Johnson parrot every seventies-era Street crime nonaction? Why is Johnson convinced that a Nation of Islam 10,000 layperson response to crime is the answer, instead of what NYC and Chicago did?
Zero tolerance versus 10,000 non police officers. Hmmm. One gets you contempt, one gets you hollywood excesses. Who's really running this place?
That's why there is a frustration with even the rank and file, who don't deserve it.
Posted by Anonymous | January 6, 2008 3:47 PM
Compared to the FBI getting a warrant to bug a mayor's office after picking up a reference by top drug dealers to the mayor's executive secretary and former Dem Ward leader Connie Little, I'd say that no mayor of police chief is going to decrease crime while running a narcopoly.
If a mayor is so easily going to throw his own under the bus by trying to take money from a climate of addiction and misery, what could we expect?
Posted by Anonymous | January 6, 2008 4:21 PM
The questions that the press never touch are who's taken Shamsud-din Ali's place as drug turf coordinator/NOI extortionist/offshoot of the old Philly Black Mafia and how is Ligambi and organized crime affiliated with black OC and politics today?
After such a rich history outlined in academic tomes like "Black Brothers Inc., the Rise and Fall of Philadelphia's Black Mafia" it's too easy to assume that black organized crime simply dried up and blew away. Not with all these murders like we're back in the crack epidemic of the 80s.
Posted by Anonymous | January 6, 2008 4:42 PM
"The assinine antics of the FOP is what leads educated citizens to feel we receive nothing for our money and the criminals to feel they can open fire on the tarnished tin badge". WHAT? I know you are trying to sound eloquent but the reason that multiple Officers that were shot this year is because of the FOP? Maybe the fact that every shooter had prior arrests and except for one had prior gun arrests...which of course isn't jail time just probation.
Oh and about hiring the most qualified person for the job isn't the PD's fault. Like the convention center and other city agencies we have to have an "x" number of minorities and females. They have to hire people that have no business being cops..black or white. There are about 20 female cops in the entire city that would be able to catch me and put handcuffs on me. When is the last time you saw a female officer have an "outstanding" arrest on TV or the papers? Maybe in the movies but this is real life and im calling it like I see it.
There are cops that the FOP has fought for to get thier jobs back and I didn't agree with but thats what unions do...fight for thier members. It's just like defense attorneys who fight for criminals, thats ok right? Is that what bothers you so much about the FOP? As much as you wish we were all perfect, we're not doing a near impossible that you probaly can't even imagine. Like I said..get dirty. When was the last time you were in "the hood" or talked to anyone from there.
If you want to back NYPD go right ahead..they are winners. I have many friends up there and converse almost daily with some of them. What you are seeing are the headlines. When did you ever talk to a NY STREET cop except read crime stats. They are serious on crime. Ask them if they think a 20 year Public defender is a good choice for Public Safety. Let me know when they stop laughing!!
Posted by Anonymous | January 6, 2008 9:19 PM
98% of all Philly thinks the cops are doing a great job in less than supportive circumstances, but in fairness to the chicks, police work is not just about giving chase. A cop who can't figure out what the law is that he has to enforce is worse than the cop that can't catch someone who runs fast.
Posted by Anonymous | January 7, 2008 3:55 AM
The FOP is just wrong on Gillison. The man was doing his job and had no choice on who he defends as a public defender. If we had public defender's who refused to do their job or did it with malice then there would be many poor individuals who would have no protection of their rights. Isn't it the FOB who stand behind "bad cops" til the bitter end and helps those same cops get legal defense.
Nutter should not allow the politics to stop him from making change and Philly a safer place for all.
Posted by Anonymous | January 7, 2008 4:54 PM