Sgt. Stephen Liczbinski: End Of Watch

On the behalf of a grateful city, I thank you, sir. You have served us with honor.

We will never forget you.

Incident At The Liczbinski Memorial?

Editor's Note: This story is currently in the "alleged" stage. There are a few corroborating witnesses, but I have yet to talk to anyone from my old district face-to-face to see if it actually happened. Keep that in mind when reading.

A retired Philly police officer named Phil related this story, which he received in an e-mail yesterday at 12:00pm:

TWO FEMALE CIVIL AFFAIRS OFFICERS FROM THE PHILADELPHIA POLICE DEPARTMENT, ONE BLACK AND ONE HISPANIC, WHO WERE ASSIGNED AS CROWD CONTROL, ALMOST STARTED A RIOT AT THE MEMORIAL SITE OF THE SLAIN OFFICER [Sergeant Liczbinski]. THEY MADE COMMENTS ABOUT THE PORT RICHMOND NEIGHBORHOOD, THAT IT IS A WHITE RACIST NEIGHBORHOOD.

THE REASON: BECAUSE TWO OLDER LADIES WERE SAYING HOW THIS NEIGHBORHOOD IS BEING RUINED BY GANGSTER, THUG DRUG DEALERS THAT ARE INFILTRATING THE NEIGHBORHOOD. THE MINORITY OFFICERS TOOK EXCEPTION TO THE COMMENTS AND A MELEE ENSUED.

THE 2 CIVIL AFFAIRS OFFICERS WERE IMMEDIATELY REMOVED FROM THE DETAIL BY A COMMANDER AND ARE FACING REPRIMAND. SEVERAL NEIGHBORS FILED COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE OFFICERS' CONDUCT WITH INTERNAL AFFAIRS. (H/T - Domelights)

If this is true, then I am truly ashamed of these officers. In my fourteen years on this job, I never considered my co-workers in terms of race, color, or creed. In my opinion, we are all blue, and there are more than enough people in this city that hate our guts [See also: FOX 29 News]. Why would we make trouble for ourselves?

That's a great thought - in theory - but, in reality, racial incidents are far too common in my department, and it comes from all sides. While I would like to believe that this story is either embellished or outright false, my experience tells me otherwise.

Quick story: In the PPD, it is common practice for every member of the department to give in a monetary donation when an officer is killed in the line of duty. (I believe it is $10 per member, but I may be wrong on that. I believe that is what we put up for Chuck Cassidy.) Anyway, when Officer Gary Skerski was assassinated in 2006, there were two detectives that did not submit the donation. And, while the donation is not mandatory, per se, what officer could look themselves in the mirror after refusing such a gesture?

Apparently, these two detectives could, and it still "angries up the blood."

Now, it is not my business to mention the race or gender of the detectives; it's not important. What is important is that after experiencing an incident that should bring the entire department together, there will always be members who want to separate themselves from the group.

If this incident is true, I hope they are dealt with in a timely fashion.

God Bless Joey Vento

For those of you in the Philadelphia area, Geno's Steaks proprietor Joey Vento is donating all proceeds from today's sales to the Stephen Liczbinski Family Memorial Fund.

That's every single time, people. If you're in the area, stop by for some delicious cheesesteaks. It's good food for a good cause.

Eric Floyd Has Been Captured

We got him!

PHILADELPHIA -- Police confirmed late Wednesday night that a man in custody is the third suspect wanted in connection with a weekend bank robbery and the shooting death of a police sergeant.

Police have been searching for 33-year-old Eric Floyd since Saturday's robbery in the Port Richmond section of the city and the subsequent fatal shooting of Sgt. Stephen Liczbinski.

Police reported Floyd's arrest occurred at a family member's house on the 5400 block of Windsor Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia.

Homicide unit investigators got a warrant for Floyd, and he surrendered without incident, police said.

Floyd is still inside the home. Police are bringing Liczbinski's handcuffs out to the scene. (H/T - NBC10)

FYI - This report came in an hour or so ago. Floyd is now sitting in a secured cell.

This is terrific news for a lot of reasons. First, it's good to see the last scumbag, cop-killing piece of shite off the streets. Second, it is especially good to know that he was taken away in Sergeant Liczbinski's handcuffs. And finally, it is great to see that the suspects have either been captured or killed before the funeral. Swift justice is always preferable.

Make yourself comfortable, you son of a bitch. Hopefully, a date with a needle is in your future.

UPDATE: If you would like to hear the police radio notification, you can listen to it HERE.

Also, if you would like to donate to the Liczbinski Family Memorial Trust Fund, the information can be found HERE. Thank you again.

Please Donate To A Fallen Officer's Family

Many of you have asked about donations to Sergeant Stephen Liczbinski's family. Here is the information. He has a wife, two sons, and a daughter. Anything you can spare would be greatly appreciated in their time of need. Thank you.


Stephen Liczbinski Family Memorial Trust Fund
Philadelphia Police and Fire Federal Credit Union
901 Arch Street
Philadelphia, Pa. 19107

(If any of my fellow bloggers would link this post or post the information on their sites, I would also appreciate it.)

Arrest Made In Liczbinski Murder!

Fucking right! Kill one of our own, and we're going to get you, you pieces of shit! (Pardon my French.)

PHILADELPHIA - May 4, 2008 (WPVI) -- Philadelphia police announced just before 8 a.m. Sunday that one person was arrested for the killing of a Philadelphia officer during a robbery, and they have the warrant to arrest another person.

Police are trying to find 34-year-old Eric DeShawn Floyd. Investigators say he recently escaped from a halfway house in Reading, Pa.

Philadelphia police had been questioning one person in connection with the murder of Sergeant Stephen Liczbinski, 39, from the 24th District. That person is now under arrest. (H/T - 6ABC)

24 hours. That's all we needed to catch this murdering scum. If nothing else, it will hopefully give some comfort to Sergeant Liczbinski's family.

Note to Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham: This is a Death Penalty case. Please treat it as such.

Jevon Warner: Arrested

UPDATE: Eric Floyd - the last remaining gunman - was just seen on a train in North Jersey at noon on Monday, May 5th. His photo is in the upper left sidebar of the blog.

A Thank You To The People Of Port Richmond

Sergeant Liczbinski's body is taken to the hearse.

If this story is true, then I want to sincerely thank to residents of Almond and Schiller Streets.

KYW's Tony Hanson reports while many neighbors in Port Richmond tried in vain to assist the dying officer, they were overcome by what they saw and heard.

Witnesses say they heard several shots -- very loud shots. Police say Sgt. Liczbinski was shot with an assault rifle.

Thomas Carjewski was among many residents who rushed to aid the officer:

“One of the neighbors was screaming, “A police officer's been shot! They shot the cop!” I ran around the front of the officer's car and he was shot. All the neighbors came out and tried to put pressure on his chest. He was hit in the chest. He was hit in the abdomen. They put pressure on there. I ran in the house, grabbed a phone and called 911.”

Nancy Braun describes a scene of chaos. As people were screaming and crying, she tried to comfort the sergeant:

"I was holding his head and one other guy was standing there, he was holding his arm trying to stop the bleeding from that. Another officer was holding his stomach wound and, in like 20 seconds, he just said, 'Tell my wife I love her.'

One witness called it an execution. The sergeant’s gun was still in its holster. (H/T - KYW1060)

Philadelphia Police Sergeant Shot And Killed

(Photo of the scene courtesy of CBS3.)

Apparently, Sergeant Stephen Liczbinski was ambushed during a bank robbery in my old district.

According to Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, at least two armed men robbed the Bank of America branch inside the Shop Rite located at 3547 Aramingo Avenue around 11:26 a.m. Ramsey says there may have been a third suspect involved in the hold up.

The suspects fled in a vehicle described as a black or blue Jeep.

An officer, identified as Sergeant Steve Liczbinski from the 24th District, encountered the vehicle in the 2500 block of E. Schiller Street. At least one of the suspects fired shots at Liczbinski, fatally wounding the officer.

Sgt. Liczbinski was shot three times, suffering wounds to the face and abdomen. He was rushed to Northeast Hospital then transferred to Temple University Hospital, where he later died.

One suspect was shot in the 500 block of E. Louden Street and later died at Einstein Medical Center.

The second suspect, and a possible third, are still at large. Police are conducting an extensive search for the suspects and interviewing possible witnesses.

The suspects are described as 3 black males with dreadlock wigs, one standing at 6'3" - 6'5" and the other two at 6'1". They were reportedly wearing female Muslim garb.

Sergeant Steve Liczbinski, a 12-year veteran of the department, was recently promoted to the rank of sergeant. Liczbinski is survived by his wife Michele, sons Matt and Stephen, and daughter Amber. (H/T - 6ABC)

The doers need to be found and killed. End of message.

Please pray for the sergeant's family.