Could this state commission help weed out bad cops? David Gambacorta, William Bender, Liz Navratil, The Philadelphia Inquirer
When Michael Rosfeld, a rookie East Pittsburgh police officer, shot and killed an unarmed teenager named Antwon Rose II in June 2018, some Pennsylvania lawmakers started kicking around the idea of improving training and hiring standards for cops across the state.
Several months before Rosfeld was hired in East Pittsburgh, he’d resigned from a university policing job after being notified that he was going to be fired. That a troubled cop could so easily get another law enforcement job and then take someone’s life seemed to make the case that the state needed to have a better way of regulating its police forces, which number more than 1,000.
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Campbell, a two-year veteran assigned to the department’s 14th district, struck a 53-year-old woman, as well as a 45-year-old man and their two dogs, Outlaw said. The woman was pinned under the car and unconscious before being rushed to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital, where she was listed in critical condition. The man sustained injuries to his right arm, hand, hip and leg, as well as road rash to his back, the commissioner said.
The crash also killed one of the dogs and injured the other.
“The fact that the offender, in this case, is a Philadelphia Police Officer is appalling,” Outlaw said in a statement. “Police Officers must be held to a higher standard – even while off-duty – and I assure the victims and the public that a complete and thorough investigation will take place.”
Bologna’s actions caused Gorski to sustain “serious bodily injury, including a large head wound that required treatment in a hospital while under arrest, including approximately 10 staples and approximately 10 sutures,” Krasner said at the time.
Gorski was initially arrested but later released, and charges against him were dropped after the video of his beating went viral.
John McNesby, president of the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 5, which represents law enforcement officers in the city, called charges against Bologna a rush to judgment on the part of Krasner. Our union and police officers will not stand-by and watch Inspector Bologna get railroaded by a politically, opportunistic DA, who has turned his back on Philadelphia police and the city, McNesby said at the time.
Bologna, 54, was seen hitting Temple University Evan Gorski, 21, in the back of his head with a baton during a June 1 protest over the death of George Floyd. Gorski s lawyer said his client needed 10 staples and 10 stitches for his wound.
Bologna, a 30-year member of the force, left the courthouse without commenting. He was suspended with intent to dismiss, but his attorneys said Friday that he now has the option to seek full reinstatement. He has not yet decided. Justice must be applied equally and in an even-handed manner, District Attorney Larry Krasner said in a statement issued. No one is above the law. We fully intend to pursue this case to a just conclusion.