Jasiri X, 1Hood Media, started a petition to demand Pittsburgh
city officials fire Officer Robert Swartzwelder.
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Dear friend,
Two Black men were shot by the police, and a grand jury investigation just proved the local Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) President, Officer Robert Swartzwelder, deliberately covered it up.1 Pittsburgh police officers murdered 57-year-old Christopher Mark Thompkins in his own home.2 In 2018, 20-year-old Christopher Howard was shot and wounded by police and subsequently sentenced to prison. According to an Allegheny County grand jury investigation, Officer Swartzwelder, intentionally withheld information and attempted to block investigators.3 Yet, nothing is being done to reprimand Officer Swartzwelder for his overreach in power and attempt to pervert the course of justice.
Patricia, we need your help to put a spotlight on the lengths to which police unions around the country will go to keep officers from being held accountable for taking Black lives. If we bring enough attention to Swartzwelder's corrupt actions then we can secure his dismissal and set a new standard for police accountability across the country.
According to the issued report, Swartzwelder acted with, “deliberate malfeasance,” and “utter disregard,” for the policies and ethical standards of the Police Bureau following the 2017 shootings of both Thompkins and Howard.5 Swartzwelder prevented investigators from gathering needed evidence, which led to an “appearance of impropriety” and an apparent cover-up.6 All of which Swartzwelder arranged -- as he abused his overseeing power to obstruct each stage of the investigation.7As a result, the command staff from the city police acquiesced to Swartzwelder’s demands and implemented no longstanding policies for future investigations.8 And what’s worse, no one with authority over Swartzwelder told him to stop.9
While the grand jury has recommended a series of actions for the Pittsburgh police to follow, including bringing in Allegheny County police to further investigate officer-involved shootings, this is not enough.10 According to Pittsburgh's own Mayor Bill Peduto,“... [A]ny time the supervising detectives from the district attorney’s office could have intervened to stop the FOP president’s interference at the scenes but did not do so.”11 Not punishing Swartzwelder is tantamount to admitting that a culture of corruption and violence exists inside the Pittsburgh Police Department unabated.
Police killings are cutting the lives of Black people short. Black people are dying at the hands of police at a rate of 7.2 per million, while whites are killed at a rate of 2.9 per million -- it’s no secret that police-involved shootings impact Black people at disproportionately high rates.4 With the recent acquittal of the police officers responsible for the murders of both Stephon Clark and Terence Crutcher, both of whom were Black men -- the lack of will in police departments and courts across the country to hold police officers accountable for their violence is undeniable. This is not an issue we can afford to ignore.
Onwards,
Jasiri X, 1Hood Media
References:
1. Post- Gazette, "Scathing grand jury report says police union head allowed to hinder investigations." https://act.colorofchange.org/go/122661?t=12&akid=23653%2E1942551%2E-dkyqQ
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. NBC News. "Police killings hit people of color hardest, study finds." https://act.colorofchange.org/go/122662?t=14&akid=23653%2E1942551%2E-dkyqQ
5. Post- Gazette, "Scathing grand jury report says police union head allowed to hinder investigations." https://act.colorofchange.org/go/122661?t=16&akid=23653%2E1942551%2E-dkyqQ
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
8. Ibid.
9. Ibid.
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid.
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