The Whole System Is Outta Order!

"Your Honor, I ask you, is this justice?" - Al Capone, The Untouchables

The greatest miscarriage of justice since the O.J. Simpson trial occurred yesterday in my fair city. And I had the extreme misfortune to be present for the debacle. Let's start at the beginning, shall we?

In April 2005, I was working a patrol car in the city's Northeast section, when we get a call for a Person With A Weapon on the 9000 block of Revere Street. When I arrived on the scene, a female officer was talking to the victim, who was bleeding from the head like a stuck pig. Her blonde hair was matted down in streaks of deep red, belying her youthful face. The victim was hysterical, but claimed her husband came home drunk, and hit her in the back of the head with a dumbbell. The husband fled the scene when the police were called.

My partner and I were checking the scene when a white vehicle drove by the street. The victim screamed, "That's him!," and we jumped in our cars to give chase. When we stopped the husband, the female officer said over the radio, "Be advised, the offender is a Philadelphia Police Detective." Swell. We asked the offender to step out of the car, and he did, while talking on his cellphone. When we asked him to get off the phone, he replied with disdain, "I'm talking to my FOP rep." My immediate reaction: asshole.

A supervisor was called to the scene, and the offender was arrested. The victim suffered a severe laceration to the back of her scalp, and was stitched up at the local hospital.

A few months later, we get a court notice for the trial. The defense, hoping witnesses and the victim will eventually refuse to show, asked for a continuance. Everyone showed for the next listing. We had the trial yesterday, eight continuances and sixteen months after the incident! The judge in the case was the "honorable" Judge Meehan. You'll understand the sarcasm shortly.

The victim, the witness, the defendant, the defendant's daughter, and several "character witnesses" for the defendant had their say in court. Because guys who work with this clown absolutely know what he does away from work, right? The defendant plead not guilty at the start, and the defense first threw out a self-defense argument. This was laughable because the defendant, a ten-year veteran of the military and a ten-year veteran of the force, was easily twice the size of his waif-like wife. When that didn't work, the defense tried to convince the judge that during the argument, the defendant pushed the victim, causing her to fall onto an unknown solid object. Right.

I figured it was a home run, since the defense just admitted simple assault. Regardless of intent, anyone whose actions cause bodily injury to another is guilty of the offense of simple assault. Game, set, and match, right? Closing arguments came and went, while Judge Meehan listened from on high. This was not a jury trial; the judge would made the ruling.

Immediately after the prosecution finished his closing, Judge Meehan ordered the defendant to stand. Before the defendant was out of his chair, the judge stated, "I find you not guilty of all charges."

Silence.

I wanted to shout, "He admitted he assaulted her! How can you say 'not guilty' with a straight face? Who bought your ruling?"

In my humble opinion, the fix was in. Judge Meehan didn't even make it look believable. He didn't adjourn to his chambers to mull the case over. He didn't even pause before his ruling. In my opinion, he didn't want to ruin the life a former detective (who has a long history of alleged domestic violence) , whose family has money and political clout, even though his "ruling" ruined the life of the victim. The detective had even a passing relationship with Meehan, if only by virtue of his position in the department. After a while, detectives get to know everyone in the court system. Meehan was no different.

After the ruling, the victim came up to me and said, "What do I do now? He got away with it again. You'll find me dead in Pennypack Park someday, and he'll walk on that, too." What do you say to something like that? The only words I could find were, "I'm sorry." The Philadelphia Judicial System victimized this woman twice in this case, and countless times previously. And now, she has to live the rest of her life in fear.

Oh, and the defendant? Since he was found not guilty, he can now apply for reinstatement to the PPD. He will almost surely get it . . . as well as all of his back pay. Despicable.