PHILADELPHIA FREE PRESS 05-05-21

Sheriff Sales halted until September

By Christopher Doyle Special to the Press/Review

a moratorium on sheriff sales in the city until September.

The decision came hours after ess than four weeks Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle after the end of a year- Bilal, the elected city official long moratorium, sher- responsible for conducting iff sales in Philadelphia have auctions of foreclosed-upon come to a halt again – and they and tax-delinquent properties, are not set to restart for more had petitioned the court for a than four months. shorter, 60-day moratorium.

The Philadelphia Court of It also came after members of Common Pleas announced City Council had spent weeks Thursday that it was ordering pressuring Bilal to petition the

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court for a moratorium, citing the impact that resuming sheriff sales would have on struggling homeowners.

The court order, issued by President Judge Idee Fox, said that a moratorium would enable Philadelphians to access the $350 million in aid allotted to Pennsylvania homeowners by the federal American Rescue Plan. The order adds that all writs in possession of the

sheriff will be reissued at no further cost, and that the court will put forth a program to help Philadelphia homeowners access federal aid within 30 days.

The new moratorium follows an earlier suspension of sheriff sales that began in March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and lasted until April 6, 2021. The sheriff sales since April 6 have been conducted via a new virtual bidding system run by the Silver Spring, Maryland-based

Center City Philadelphia's Community Newspaper

May 5, 2021

Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal.

Bid4Assets – although the validity of its contract with the Sheriff’s Office has now been put into question. (Bid4Assets also handles the auction process for five other counties in Pennsylvania region, according to a March Sheriff’s Office press release – namely Berks, Bucks, Montgomery, Adams, and Monroe Counties.)

Bilal released a statement saying that she was initially skeptical that she had a “viable, valid legal reason” to request a moratorium.

“If you’re a human being a different crisis than the one with at least one compassionwe had in ’90-’91,” Paul Levy, ate bone in your body, then president of the Center City you don’t like sheriff sales,” District.

Bilal said. “While there is no At that time, says Levy, the argument that resuming Shercity was on the verge of bankiff Sales during the pandemic ruptcy. creates the opportunity for “The city was unable to pay even more hardship for those its basic operating expenses caught in the foreclosure proand we had, due to a decade loss of federal funds, in Center cess, the law is clear: Without a viable, valid legal reason, I City there was no sidewalk cannot petitionXthe court for a sweeping going on and there was graffiti every place,” he ...postponement.”

She said that after conversasaid. tions with advocacy groups Things were dismal indeed.

“It was a 9-5 downtown and including Community Legal Services, she was convinced retailers closed their doors at that giving homeowners time 5:30 pm, rolled down security gates and it was largely empty to access ARP funds was a compelling reason to petition at night,” Levy remembers. the court. Page x continued on page 4 “But as I made clear during my successful X 2019 camtime between the United States paign to change the way the ... and Germany. Callaway’s Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office books on American philosophy conducts its business, I am not and intellectual history have someone who is content to acearned him some international cept the status quo,” Bilal said. renown.

“I came to the determination Why Lincoln Steffens? that the latest federal relief Callaway states in his Introduction that the volume is an continued on page 5 “attempt to better understand the social and political pheOBITUARY nomenon of corruption generRita was born, ally.” Municipal corruption, after all, is not limited to Stef- in Philadelphia, on June fens’ time but can be viewed 1922. as an all persuasive force exist- 12, She lived ing in every era that seeks to through the “change the form of governDepression and ment from one that is repreWorld War II... sentative of the people to an Page 2 oligarchy.” {Steffens’ words}.

Steffens was born in San POLITICS.....................................3 Francisco but grew up in Sac- NOTES ON MUSIC..........................7 ramento, California. As the CRIME.......................................10

The Center City District turns 30 – an interview with Paul Levy

By Nathaniel Lee Press/Review Correspondent

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ast year, Covid-19 swept through the nation like a tidal wave shutting the nation down and causing many businesses to come to an abrupt halt. Doors were shut, businesses were shuttered, and people sheltered in their homes turning Center City Philadelphia, a once thriving commercial corridor, a ghost town.

That was then, this is now.

People are once again returning Paul Levy. Courtesy of the Center City District to Center City and one group, the Center City District which corridor the success that it is. celebrates its 30th anniversary, But it wasn’t without lots of had much to do with making vision and hard work. the Center City commercial “Our first day starting was

literally our first day of operation was March 20, 1991 and what is sort of remarkable right now is that the city is in

City Safari – Remembering Lincoln Steffens

By Thom Nickels Contributing Editor

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nvestigative journalist Lincoln Steffens (18661936) isn’t much remembered today, according to Kevin Baker of The New York Times in 2011.

The same thing, perhaps, can be written about Steffens in 2021, despite the reissuing of the author’s classic, The Shame of the Cities, and the Philosophy of Corruption and Reform, by Cambridge Scholars Publishing last year.

The Cambridge Scholars edition of Steffens’ work is edited, annotated and introduced by Professor H.G. Callaway, a Philadelphian who splits his

Lincoln Steffens Marker in Carmel California. Courtesy of Wikipedia.

continued on page 4

CLASSIFIEDS..............................11

2 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM •MAY 05, 2021

Obituary - Rita Roy June 12, 1922 - April 23, 2021

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ita was born, in Philadelphia, on June 12, 1922.

She lived through the Depression and World War II. She met the ‘lid for her pot’ when she was 19 and married her love, Charles, when only 20.

It was a marriage that thrived for 61 years, “until death…” caused a part.

Rita and Charles were lovers and business partners. They opened a Photography Studio in NYC and also a School in Philadelphia, that taught returning GIs the trade of photography.

I knew her as a colleague, and only recently realized she began her 35 years-long Real Estate Career at age 58.

She continued to sell until age 92! Earlier, she was model and muse; photographer, stylist and teacher; a Bridal Store manager, (when her mother needed help at “Blue Bird Bridal” on South Street), and a ticket-seller & promoter for her son, Phillip Roger Roy’s many productions.

Rita was the original “Gig-worker”. She was beautiful, brilliant, curious, flexible, gracious, hard-working and loyal.

She had stamina and a “can-do” attitude and recognized there were times to quit, times to keep going, and times to fall up. She never shied away from a challenge.

Her first ‘job’/passion was family. She loved and marveled at her

children, Robin, Vicki and Phil. She adored their children and felt blessed to meet 10 great grandchildren. She instilled good values, and was willing to be their first, and later go-to, employer or professional reference, to insure that they stayed on paths toward their independent successes.

I enjoyed seeing Rita and Charles together.

I mean this in the best way when I say, they reminded me of Morticia and Gomez Addams. I am sure time (a 1991 production) and oversized personalities were key to my belief.

Charles adored Rita. He was her chauffer and tall handsome helpmate.

She was his muse. 61 years into the marriage, he seemed to thrill at her attention. There was PDA in his hand reaching out to adjust her collar or sleeve.

They liked, loved and laughed at each other.

They happily made sacrifices for family and friends. They recognized quality and made beautiful homes in I.M. Pei buildings.

At work, Rita advertised herself as “the mother of all Realtors” and was not unaware of the double entendre.

Truth was her motherliness, her natural happiness, grace, concern and integrity were part of a recipe for repeat business and “double-pops’.

It also made her a bit of a hero to us other working moms.

The fabric of Philadelphia: Without your patronage, businesses, restaurants, theaters and institutions do not survive.

We all value the fabric of our city.

It is what makes Philadelphia a great city.

Please support local business.

Review UNIVERSITY

CITY

Rita joined Jackson Cross in 1980, she quickly became a top agent.

I met her through Real Estate, and when I joined J-C in 1984 she was already a star. Residential Real Estate is a ‘commission’s only’ business and could be cut-throat. The Mamet play Glengarry Glen Ross came out as a movie in 1992. It shows the dark side of the business. Rita rolled along on the light side. She recognized competition as another challenge, and cooperation as a path to career longevity and success. In 1986 she was at the top of her game and I was an up-and-comer. At the Philadelphia REALTOR AWARDS ceremony, she was awarded some top prizes. I was the longshot who won “Most Listings Sold”. I was young and lean, with a 36” in-seam, wearing some faddy asymmetrical Japanese mini-dress.

An agent who won a few top prizes, made her resentment of my win clear, even openly calling me “unprofessionally dressed” like a “space alien stork”.

Rita reminded me that jealousy is unattractive, and that, as she had been a stylist, her opinion of my outfit, “Looks great!”, carried more weight.

It was fun to work with Rita. When her son had unsold seats at his cabaret theater, Grendel’s Lair, Rita would gift us with tickets. Phil’s shows were not boring. Rita took his penchant for controversy, nudity and satire in stride. She’d work at the Ticket Window and was at ease with naked show girls as with Jazz legends, well-heeled customers and the denizens of South Street.

Recognizing that selling an older female face might be a liability, she was an advocate for herself. At age 70, in a 1992 Daily News article about Philadelphia’s Top Real Estate Producers, Rita said: “Age is really a matter of the mind. … at this point in my life, my competition is the age of my chil-

Mrs. Roy and her husband, Charles, worked together as photographers for much of their professional careers. Courtesy of the family

Rita with her twin great-granddaughters, Basha and Charlie. Courtesy of the family.

Mrs. Roy and her husband, Charles, knew how to pose for photographs. Courtesy of the family.

dren. … I enjoy going out with these young couples and singles. I’m having fun.”

When I got married, on May 24, 1994, Rita was one of the few colleagues I invited to the reception, in Woodland Cemetery. She had just gotten a car phone, and she and Charles kept running out to check

messages. She may have been one of the older Agents, but she was among the first to embrace new technologies in the service of her clients.

I enjoyed working with Rita. My world feels a little diminished with her passing.

I wish all who loved her easy access to great

memories and am confident that there are many!

I like to imagine her, reunited with Charles, beaming down on their descendants who were the favorites of their many successes.

By Elizabeth Campion

MAY 05, 2021 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM • 3

DA Krasner Announces Charges in Deed Fraud Investigation In- Review volving Over a Dozen Homes UNIVERSITY

218South South 45th 45th Street, Street 218 Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia, PA19104 19104 Tel (215) 222-2846 Tel (215)222-2846 Fax (215) 222-2378 Fax (215)222-2378

Revenue Department Releases April 2021 Collections

H

arrisburg, PA — Pennsylvania collected $4.0 billion in General Fund revenue in April, which was $28.2 million, or 0.7 percent, more than anticipated, Revenue Secretary Dan Hassell reported today. Fiscal yearto-date General Fund collections total $32.7 billion, which is $1.3 billion, or 4.2 percent, above estimate.

Secretary Hassell noted that personal income tax (PIT) revenue in April was $1.7 billion, $571.8 million below estimate.

This is a direct result of the Department of Revenue extending the deadline for filing 2020 personal income tax returns and making final 2020 income tax payments.

The filing deadline was moved to May 17, 2021 — about a month later than the original deadline — which means the majority of the PIT revenue shortfall from April is expected to be made up in May. Despite this shift, stronger-than-expected collections in April from the other two primary revenue sources — corporation tax and sales tax — largely offset the PIT shortfall. Overall, revenue collections are trending very positively when compared to this time last year.

“The good news is that Pennsylvania’s economic outlook is much improved from November, when we created our monthly revenue estimates that anticipated a much slower recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Secretary Hassell said.

“As of today, we are more than $1.3 billion above our estimate for the fiscal year. This is very positive news with

two months to go in the current fiscal year.”

As a reminder, under Pennsylvania law the deadline for filing state income tax returns is tied to the deadline set at the federal level. The IRS also extended the federal income tax filing deadline to May 17, 2021.

Below is a full breakdown of revenue collections: Sales tax receipts totaled $1.2 billion for April, $273.1 million above estimate. Year-todate sales tax collections total $10.5 billion, which is $529.9 million, or 5.3 percent, more than anticipated.

Personal income tax (PIT) revenue in April was $1.7 billion, $571.8 million below estimate.

This brings year-to-date PIT collections to $12.9 billion, which is $299.3 million, or 2.3 percent, below estimate.

April corporation tax revenue of $551.2 million was $251.8 million above estimate. Year-to-date corporation tax collections total $5.2 billion, which is $728.4 million, or 16.3 percent, above estimate.

Inheritance tax revenue for the month was $145.5 million, $57.2 million above estimate, bringing the year-todate total to $1.1 billion, which is $162.9 million, or 17.2 percent, above estimate.

Realty transfer tax revenue was $52.6 million for April, $12.0 million above estimate, bringing the fiscal-year total to $518.2 million, which is $80.7 million, or 18.5 percent, more than anticipated.

Other General Fund tax revenue, including cigarette, malt beverage, liquor and gaming taxes, totaled $67.6 mil-

CITY

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D

istrict Attorney Larry Krasner just announced multiple charges against an individual for their role in the illegal deed transfer of 14 residential properties. The arrest and charging follows an extensive joint investigation conducted by the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Unit (ECU) and Philadelphia Police Department’s Major Crimes Unit with invaluable assistance from the Philadelphia Department of Records and Pennsylvania Treasury Department.

Tyree Burno (DOB 9/23/1978) is charged with 20 counts of Theft (F3), 20 counts of Theft

by Deception (F3), 40 counts of Identity Theft (F3), 42 counts of Forgery (F3), 17 counts of Tamper with Public Records (F3), 17 counts of Tamper with Public Records or Identification (F3), 17 counts of Securing Execution of Documents by Deception (M2), 8 counts of Attempted Theft [F3], 4 counts of Bad Checks (M1), 2 counts of Criminal Use of Communication (F3), and 2 counts of Deceptive Business Practices (F3).

The investigation into Burno’s alleged activities began in 2019 after the

Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office received a complaint from a member of the public about a fraudulently transferred deed belonging to a residential property. The investigation later expanded to other illegally transferred deeds with the cooperation of the Department of Records and Philadelphia Police Department detectives.

As Burno began his illegal activities, he initially used his own name, but later created two LLCs with the use of a stolen identity for the sole purpose of conducting these fraudulent transactions. Investigators also discovered, based on information provided by the state’s Treasury Department, that he had used in excess of $12,000 in fraudulent checks to pay for parking tickets and other personal matters.

“This administration has made it abundantly clear that illegal deed transfers and the theft of homes and generational wealth will not be tolerated,” said DA Krasner.

“I’m so grateful to the dedication and hard work demonstrated by our Economic Crimes Unit, led by Assistant District Attorneys Dawn Holtz and Kimberly Esack, and to the Philadelphia

“The fact that this investigation began with a tip from a member of the public highlights the important role communities play in bringing to justice people who engage in illegal deed transfers and house flipping,” said lead investigator and ECU Assistant Supervisor Kimberly Esack. “While systemic reforms —including the need to strengthen identification requirements for establishing LLCs and mail-in deed filing — are desperately needed to curb this predatory activity, we will continue to work with our partners in law enforcement as well as public servants such as Commissioner Jim Leonard at the Department of Records to protect homeowners and families from these illegal practices.”

To report deed fraud or other types of economic crime, including scams against elders, crimes against workers, home improvement schemes, and insurance fraud, contact the DAO’s ECU: 215–686–9902 or FraudComplaint@phila.gov.

The Philadelphia District

lion for the month, $45.8 million above estimate and bringing the year-todate total to $1.4 billion, which is $107.8 million, or 8.4 percent, above estimate.

Non-tax revenue to-

taled $226.3 million for the month, $39.9 million below estimate, bringing the year-to-date total to $1.1 billion, which is $2.8 million, or 0.3 percent, below estimate.

In addition to the Gen-

eral Fund collections, the Motor License Fund received $283.2 million for the month, $14.4 million above estimate. Fiscal year-to-date collections for the fund – which include the commonly

Police detectives involved in this case, who pursue justice for victims and our communities every single day.”

Email editor@pressreview.net newsdesk@pressreview.net editor@pressreview.net graphics@pressreview.net graphics@pressreview.net Editor & Publisher Editor & Publisher Robert Christian Robert Christian Associate Publisher Assistant Editor Claudia Christian Jack Firneno Controller & Bookkeeping Associate Publisher Alexandra Christian Claudia Christian Administrative Website & Bookkeeping Social Media Tina Davis Dorian Korein Graphic Designers Graphic Designers Kasia Gadek Kelly Kusumoto Kusumoto Kelly Kasia Gadek Contributing ContributingWriters Editor Nicole Contosta Thom Nickels Bob Behr Contributing Writers Haywood Brewster Napoleon F. Kingcade Marc Holmes III Nathan Lerner Bill Burrison Dea Mallin Contributing Reporters Thom Nickels Tim Legnani Christopher Doyle Paulina Malek Nathaniel Lee Haywood Brewster Columnists Community JenniferContributors Jones JohnContosta Lane Nicole Henry Lazarus Jim Brown Kam Williams Theater & Arts Contributor Sales Richard Lord Claudia Christian Arts TimContributor Legnani Paula Roberts Social Media Kelly Kusumoto Architectural Contributor David Traub Columnists John Lane Henry Lazarus Sales Claudia Christian Dorian Korein

Attorney’s Office is the largest prosecutor’s office in Pennsylvania, and one of the largest in the nation. It serves the more than 1.5 million residents of the City and County of Philadelphia, employing 600 lawyers, detectives, and support staff. The District Attorney’s Office is responsible for the prosecution of approximately 40,000 criminal cases annually.

known gas and diesel taxes, as well as other license, fine and fee revenues – total $2.3 billion, which is $14.5 million, or 0.6 percent, below estimate.

4 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM •MAY 05, 2021

PAUL LEVY

the CCD [Center City District] was simply clean continued from page 1 and safe.”

“We are technically what is a business im“There was no busiprovement district crenesses except for maybe a Wawa or two that were ated under state law, the Municipality Authoriopened in the evening. ties Act which enables No Convention Center, no Avenue of the Arts not property owners to come a huge number of restau- together with the consent of city government, to rants.”

This followed a period have a special assessment which then funds those in which there was a services,” Levy said. wave of optimism in the The CCD started with ‘80’s when restaurants sidewalk cleaners, those began to open. This opcleaners you see in the timism came crashing teal uniforms which keep down in the ‘90’s when the city threatened bank- Center City clean and neat, remove graffiti and ruptcy. patrol the area to help Levy explains, “That ensure safety. crisis really got people “We hit the streets in the business community, Ron Rubin who was March 20, 1991 and it had really a dramatic effect by our Chair, organized a group of businesses who doing something really simple which is making said ‘look, we recognize litter go away, putting that the city has limited people on the street.” resources. We wish they When Mayor Ed Rencould do more but the dell became mayor in problems of unemployment and poverty, which 1992 with a focus on fiscal recovery, arts and enterwere just as real then, constrained the ability of tainment, things really began to take off. the city’.”

The convention center Businesses jumped in to do what they had to do to opened in 1994 and the help change situations for CCD began a campaign they called the “make it a the corridor. night campaign” in 1993 “The whole original which was an initiative to organizing principal of get retailers to keep their

doors open in the evening one night a week.

“It seems really quaint now because we are such a dynamic city now, prepandemic, but we took it step by step.”

“As the city started to have conventions coming in, as arts and entertainment began to draw more people in, that helped to start a restaurant renaissance in the city which has really spread everywhere.”

It didn’t stop there. After these initial efforts, the group moved to beautify the district.

“We financed a whole series of streetscape improvements so all those green pedestrian light fixtures that you see throughout Center City, we installed over 3,000 of those,” Levy said.

And the directional signs and landscaping improvements, yup, that’s them too.

They began to build parks, including Dilworth Park, throughout the district which they manage.

“We really built a whole promotional effort to attract people to the city such as Restaurant Week, and there’s another one coming up in May, which we suspended

during the pandemic but ‘Center City Sips’ is an effort we do to bring people into the city.”

Then there’s the programming of quality public spaces such as ice skating at Dilworth Park in the Winter, a garden area and café events.

“It’s all about activating and animating the Center of the City,” he said. The success of the Center City Districts efforts did not go unnoticed. Not only have they turned the area into a thriving corridor, but it those efforts have slowly spread throughout other areas in the city as well.

“Since we started, there are 14 more of these that have started around the city so Germantown, Mount Arie, Chestnut Hill, Mayfair, Fishtown, Passyunk Avenue, Olde City – so this notion of businesses coming together partnering with the city and supplementing services is really encouraging because people are really committed to improving the public environment.”

When the city closed down due to the pandemic, Levy said that there was a regression in some significant areas, “The city was empty at night, we had bordered up store fronts, we had a huge upsurge in graffiti and graffiti is something we really focus on, it’s one of our major programs, so in some sense, March of 2020, our sort of 29th anniversary, was like year one all over again because we had a city that emptied out,” said Levy.

Despite these setbacks, the CCD is in a much better position now than it was then to restore and rebuild.

“The big difference is that in 1991 we were just an office district. There was one condominium downtown, there are 56 now, tons of apartment buildings, tons of hotels, so we have a lot more assets in the city to reactivate now so while this challenge of the pandemic and this stayat-home order has been profoundly challenging and people lost their jobs, the strength of the economy is something we really believe is starting to rebound now.”

Levy is optimistic that, with vaccinations now available and more people getting vaccinated, that the city is in a good position to bounce back.

CITY SAFARI continued from page 1

eldest of four children, he often clashed with the founder and headmaster of the Episcopal Day School that he attended as a boy. As a journalist, he was known as a muckraker who took on corruption and institutional dysfunction. America, he wrote, was the place of a Great Swindle, where corrupt money changers ruin all of its institutions.

Steffens covered the Mexican Revolution as a reporter and was enamored of the Soviet Communist Revolution.

He was well liked, even by people who vehemently opposed his views. Teddy Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, Lenin and Mussolini were among his journalistic contacts.

“Lincoln Steffens was an original muckraker: part reporter, part civic investigator, part agitator, part reformer, and mostly crusader…. In today’s world, a guy like Steffens might be regarded by the status quo as an ‘enemy of the people,’ or cynically as a purveyor of ‘fake news,’ wrote Voices of Monterey Bay reporter, Joe Livernois in 2017.

Steffens advised fellow journalists to “Sit around the bars and drink, and pose, and pretend, all you want to, but in reality, deep down underneath, care like hell.”

One of his most famous sayings, “I have seen the future, and it works,” was a catch all phrase he used multiple times for various issues.

H. G. Callaway’s Introduction is a smoother read than Steffens’ work itself, which tends to antidotal and of a patchwork journalistic style that often makes for an awkward reading experience.

The Shame of the Cities was compiled from a series of articles Steffens wrote for McClure’s Magazine. The cities Steffens covers are St. Louis, Minneapolis, Chicago, New York, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

Although most of the corrupt municipalities he writes about are Republican, Steffens lets his readers know that corruption affects both political parties.

In writing about St. Louis, for instance, Steffens comments, “There was little difference be-

tween the two parties in the city; but the rascals that were in had been getting the greater share of the spoils, and the ‘outs’ wanted more than was given to them.”

Steffens calls Philadelphia the most hopeless city in the nation. “But it was not till I got to Philadelphia that the possibilities of popular corruption were worked out to the limit of humiliating confession,” he writes.

He equates Philadelphia with general civic corruption and an all powerful city machine that controls the mind of the average voter. This was true when Philadelphia was Republican, and it’s certainly true today when the city is unlikely to ever elect a Republican mayor barring a miracle of biblical proportions.

“I cut twenty thousand words out of the Philadelphia article and yet I had not written half my facts,” Steffens states, adding, “I know a man who is making a history of the corrupt construction of the Philadelphia City Hall, in three volumes.” In a follow up sentence he then fairly concludes that no writer can put all the incidents of corruption of an American city into a book.

In concluding his two investigative pieces on Pittsburgh and Philadelphia for McClure’s, Steffens writes that “Pittsburgh may pull itself out of its disgrace,” but that other Pennsylvania city, Philadelphia, “is contented and seems hopeless.”

Steffens keeps harping on the corruption in Philadelphia when he writes about other cities. In his October 1902 article entitled ‘Tweed Days in St. Louis,’ Steffens concludes that “[St. Louis] isn’t our worst governed city; Philadelphia is that.”

While Pittsburgh could not be said to be Pennsylvania’s most beautiful city in 1912 (when industry darkened its skies), it is certainly the state’s most beautiful city in 2021.

With its mountains, three rivers and multi colored bridges forming a kind of OZ canopy around The Golden Triangle, Pittsburgh’s dazzling skyline rarely fails to impress.

In Steffens’ chapter on Pittsburgh, he cites the corruption surrounding

continued on page 6

SHERIFF continued from page 1

package contains legal reason sufficient for me to petition the court to temporarily postpone Philadelphia Sheriff Sales.”

Council efforts to convince Bilal to request a moratorium began soon after she announced sheriff sales would resume on April 6. Several councilmembers released statements at the time decrying the decision, including Council Majority Leader Cherelle Parker and West Philadelphia Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.

The City Council Committee on Law & Government, chaired

by Parker, held a marathon, six-hour hearing on April 22, in which councilmembers called Bilal and homeowner advocates to testify. In the hearing, councilmembers raised concerns about the impact resuming sheriff sales would have on homeowners who have fallen into arrears during the COVID-19 pandemic.

And housing advocates, including those from CLS, testified at the hearing that a moratorium was warranted by the forthcoming ARP homeowner aid.

Kate Dugan, a CLS lawyer who testified at the April 22 committee hearing, told The Philadelphia Free Press and University City Review that the $350 million in ARP homeowner aid would take time to distribute. She noted that the state legislature has to determine how to distribute aid and that the city and other advocacy groups still have to alert homeowners of they the new assistance.

“It would be really frustrating if somebody lost their house in May, but they could have applied for assistance in July or August,” Dugan said. “So, we’re grateful that the timing is lining up on this in a way that is really going to help a lot of people in Philadelphia.”

Dugan emphasized that there was aid to help homeowners with multiple costs they may have, including outstanding mortgages and tax payments, as well as payments that homeowners might need to make on

MAY 05, 2021 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM • 5

repairs and utilities. She said that CLS and the city would be available to work with people who needed help navigating the system to apply for aid. The city and CLS have also worked together over last month to prevent occupied houses from going up for auctions when sheriff sales resumed in April.

“The city has a really great existing network of legal aid organizations, but also housing networks, that for the past ten years have been helping people with mortgages and saving their homes,” Dugan said. “So, we tend to tap into that existing network to help connect people to funds.”

Bilal’s ultimately decided to accept forthcoming federal aid as a substantive reason to petition for a moratorium came only a half an hour before the start of Thursday’s City Council meeting – during which Parker was scheduled to introduce a resolution insisting that Bilal request a moratorium.

Bilal communicated her decision to councilmembers via email just before the council meeting began.

When Parker did introduce the resolution at the meeting, which was held several hours before the current moratorium was issued, she noted that she had reached out to Fox, the President Judge of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the day before on April 28.

“We also want to note for the record a special thanks to President Judge Fox for our communication with the courts, the correspondence we just sent to you [on April 28],” Parker said. “And I find it quite interesting that 24 hours after we sent our correspondence to you, and when you brought those stakeholders together from the legal-services community, that we received this letter from the sheriff announcing that sheriff sales would be halted.”

Parker said that this decision to halt sheriff sales would help protect Black homeowners and other homeowners of color in Philadelphia – many of whom, she said, are still battling to recover from the effects of the lingering COVID-19 pandemic.

“Black and brown homeowners are going to

face an avalanche of foreclosures and sheriff sales as we come out of this pandemic,” Parker said.

“If we don’t stand up for Philadelphia homeowners today, from all walks of life, then we won’t have homeowners in the future.”

West Philadelphia State Rep. Amen Brown, who has proposed a legislative memorandum in the state House imposing a statewide suspension of sheriff sales until Aug. 2, was similarly enthusiastic about the moratorium.

In a statement sent to the Philly Free Press and UC Review, Brown credited different city leaders for taking action that he believed would protect Philadelphia homeowners.

“I’m happy that decision-makers came together in order to do what’s right for the people of Philadelphia,” Brown said in a statement sent to the Philly Free Press and UC Review. “During this time of crisis, we all should be doing our part to uplift and provide support to our communities as best we can.”

“I just want to make sure we are all fighting to protect the people of Philadelphia as our capacity allows.”

After this period of help for homeowners is finished and sheriff sales resume, there are questions about how they will proceed.

Homeowner advocates and councilmembers raised concerns at the April 22 hearing about how the virtual sales process via Bid4Assets would affect the Philadelphia auction market.

They argued that the virtual process would open up auctions to bidders from outside the city who might be more likely to be unaware of homeowner protection laws, such as the nine-month right to redemption. There are also concerns that bidders would be better able to remain anonymous using a virtual platform.

Dugan said that CLS had been working with the Sheriff’s Office and Bid4Assets to make sure homeowners and bidders have access to relevant information, and that all parties are made aware of the city’s homeowners’ laws.

At Thursday’s City Council meeting, Parker said that she was un-

comfortable with the idea of “opening up our city to even more bulk buyers and speculators anywhere in the world,” so that they could “purchase property in our city, without ever having to set foot within the city limits.”

Bilal has previously noted that increased accessibility for potential developers could increase bids, meaning foreclosed-upon homeowners could ultimately recover a higher payout, which consists of auction proceeds in excess of outstanding mortgage and tax payments, and other costs. She also said that the online bidding process could actually increase accountability and transparency by putting the process out in the open on the internet.

The Sheriff’s Office has nevertheless backtracked with its commitment with its transition to virtual sales, which it had initially asserted would be permanent. The Sheriff’s Office website currently reads “Sheriff Sales will not be going back to in-person events in the near future,” but qualifies that “the Sheriff’s Office will be constantly monitoring the metrics of the online sales process and will make adjustments to the process as needed – that includes the possibility of a return to inperson sales.”

There are, however, other concerns with the sheriff’s new virtual sale separate from its direct impact on the city auction market.

At the April 22 committee hearing, members of council questioned the process by which the Sheriff’s Office awarded a contract to Bid4Assets, as the Sheriff’s Office had not issued a Request for Proposal, known as an RFP. And on Friday, the city Law Department told WHYY that it had not prepared or approved the sheriff contract with Bid4Assets, as is required by the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter.

A spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office did not return emailed requests for comment about whether concerns over the process through which Bid4Assets was contracted influenced the sheriff’s decision to request a moratorium. The spokesperson also did not return a request for comment on

the missing preparation and approval from the Law Department more generally. Bid4Assets was not immediately able to return a request for comment.

Councilmember-atlarge Helen Gym said in the WHYY article that she attributed these serious procedural problems to larger, historical problems with the structure of the Sheriff’s Office.

John Green, who served as sheriff from 1988 to 2010, was sentenced to five years in prison in 2019. He was convicted of taking bribes in exchange for awarding no-bid, sheriff department contracts worth millions of dollars. And Jewell Williams, who was the city’s sheriff from 2012 to 2020, was accused of sexual harassment by his subordinates, leading the city to pay out hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal settlements.

Bilal, meanwhile, has been sued by three former Sheriff’s Office employees. They alleged that they were retaliated against for trying to expose misconduct that they had observed within the Sheriff’s Office, including alleged wasteful spending and sexual harassment. The Sheriff’s Office has yet to publicly comment on the lawsuits and, in an email to the Free Press and UC Review, reiterated a Sheriff’s Office policy not to comment on pending

litigation.

It is uncertain whether there will be any additional changes to the Sheriff’s Office and its auctioning process before sales restart in September.

Bilal, in her statement, nevertheless said she was eager to work with different actors on the city and state levels to distribute funds to homeowners in need.

“I look forward to working with Philadelphia City Council, the state authorities responsible for disbursing the Homeowners Assistance Fund [established by the ARP] to municipalities, homeowner advocacy groups, and anyone else who has a plan to mitigate this looming crisis,” Bilal said.

Dugan, the CLS lawyer, similarly encouraged cooperation. She stressed that regardless of whatever changes may come in the future, there is an immediate need to coordinate and help Philadelphia homeowners.

“This is looking a little like in 2008 when all the stakeholders worked together to start the mortgage-foreclosurediversion program, because there’s a lot of moving parts,” Dugan said. “There’s people who need money, there’s court hearing dates, there are sheriff sales, so just to coordinate and line that all up is going to be one of those all-hands-ondeck efforts.”

6 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM •MAY 05, 2021

CITY SAFARI continued from page 4

the building of the cities many beautiful bridges yet avoids going into specifics. Steffens seems to have a soft spot for Pennsylvania’s western city although that does not prevent him from lashing out at it severely. “Pittsburgh has been described physically as ‘Hell with the lid off,’ politically it is hell with the lid on.’ I am not going to lift the lid,” he writes.

“They are Scotch Presbyterians and Protestant Irish,” Steffens writes about Pittsburghers, apparently unmindful of the large CarpathianRuthenian population of Eastern Europeans that account for the large numbers of Eastern Catholic and Orthodox churches that mark the entrance to the city.

Steffens traces Pittsburgh’s corruption to the railroads while reminding the reader that the corruption rings in both

Pittsburgh and Philadelphia form a direct link up to the corruption rings in Harrisburg.

The corrupt party bosses and politicians that Steffens mentions in The Shame of the Cities are far too numerous to mention, but in every case he traces general municipal corruption back to big business and “the businessman.”

The businessman is for Steffens a devil out of hell.

Ironically, Steffens ends his article on Pittsburgh by saying that the city itself is “a spectacle for American self-respect, and its sturdiness a promise for poor old Pennsylvania.”

The writer also has an occasional soft spot for Philadelphia, such as when he writes, “Philadelphia, has long enjoyed great and widely distributed prosperity; it is a city of homes; there is a dwelling house for every five persons, men, women, and children, of the population; and the people give one a

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Bailey v. Philadelphia Quality-of-Life Stops Memo

By Christopher Doyle Special to the Philadelphia Free Press

T

Journalist Lincoln Steffens. Courtesy of Encyclopedia Britannica.

sense of more leisure and repose than any community I ever dwelt in.”

Philadelphia, he adds, “is surer that it as a ‘real aristocracy than any other place in the world, but its aristocrats with few exceptions, are in the ring, with it, or of no political use.”

Steffens, on a roll, tells the reader that Philadelphians do not vote but are “disenfranchised.”

“The honest citizens of Philadelphia have no more rights at the polls than the Negroes down

South. Nor do they fight very hard for this basic privilege.”

Sounding weirdly contemporary, Steffens goes on record as saying that dead people vote in Philadelphia.

“But many Philadelphians do not try to vote,” he adds. “They leave everything to the machine, and the machine casts their ballots for them.”

This is why Philadelphia is unlikely to have a Republican mayor in the near future.

he city quickly retracted a memo that it sent out to solicit affidavits supporting the police in civil rights litigation – but already it had left some in the community feeling concerned and misled.

The Philadelphia Police Department sent out a memo to several community organizations throughout the city on April 16. It encouraged city residents to sign a “declaration” to be submitted as an affidavit supporting the police in litigation concerning the enforcement of “qualityof-life” crimes. These crimes include carrying open liquor bottles, public urination, trespassing on closed public parks, and littering.

Some residents immediately raised concerns that the memo misrepresented the case at hand, which is an iteration of

Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw

Bailey v. Philadelphia – the decade-old federal civil rights case about unlawful and racially discriminatory stop-andfrisk policing. The ACLU of Pennsylvania, as well as the law firm Kairys, Rudovsky, Messing, Feinberg & Lin, had filed a motion on March 18 seeking to have police issue quality-of-life offenders a warning before conducting a formal police stop – something they argue would reduce racial bias. The police memo incorrectly said that the plaintiffs were looking to prevent enforcement of quality-of-life crimes altogether.

“To be clear, plaintiffs do not propose that the PPD abandon the policing of QOL [quality-oflife] offenses,” the plaintiffs write in the March 18 court filing. “Rather, Plaintiffs’ proposal incorporates a basic reform by requiring, absent exigent circumstances, that the person engaged in the alleged quality of life offense first be asked to refrain from the objectionable conduct, and only if they refuse would officers be permitted to proceed with a formal stop.”

The email with the memo soliciting signatures for an affidavit, meanwhile, said “without the community support on this issue we are likely to get an order from the judge requiring us to cease enforcing certain quality of life offences.” The memo itself contained questions and statements that similarly implied, incorrectly, that the plaintiffs were seeking to end the enforcement of quality-of-life offenses.

The misinformation in the memo provoked complaints across social

continued on page 9

MAY 05, 2021 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM • 7

The great mezzo-soprano Susan Graham brings glamour and brilliance on May 11 to a recital with pianist Bradley Moore for the Phila. Chamber Music Society, in person and steaming, in works by numerous composers all meant to highlight Schumann’s eight-song cycle “A Woman’s Love and Life”. Photo credit: Dario Acosta

L

antern Theater Co. continues its streamings of new plays from their archives with Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”, one of his sweetest and most romantic comedies, now through May 30, directed by Charles McMahon and featuring a cast of Lantern favorites: Chris Anthony, Peter DeLaurier, J. Hernandez, Dave Johnson, John Lopes, Bi Jean Ngo, Ruby Wolf and Frank X. Ticketed. 215-829-0395 or www.lanterntheater. org  Here’s a chance to sing your way to learning the Italian language, thanks to the AmericaItaly Society of Phila., now offering a ten-week course at 5:30 p.m. every Thursday from May 6.

Beloved Neapolitan ditties, Rap Italian style and important singers and songwriters add to the musical merriment. Ticketed. www.aisphila.org or 215-735-3250.  The Rotunda in University City presents Bowerbird’s Eminent State Series featuring Variant 6 performing drone and early music inspired vocal works.

Free; pay what you wish.

May 6 at 10 p.m. Then on May 10 et 6 p.m., the Rotunda presents a free two-hour Vision Driven Consulting Workshop on Social Media & Marketing. Information and links at 267-934-3705.  The Phila. Chamber Music Society has choice items in the days ahead, beginning on May 6 at 6 p.m. with the Parker Quartet at 6 p.m. in works by Dvorak and

Bartok, plus Dvorak’s Quintet in E Major with guest violist Kim Kashkashian. Then on May 11 at 6 p.m., triumphant international mezzosoprano Susan Graham is joined by pianist Bradley Moore in Schumann’s “Frauenliebe und Leben” with related works by Grieg, Strauss, Mahler, Debussy, Tchaikovsky and others. Both events are available streaming pay what you wish and also in person, limited to 25 attendees, at the Philosophical Society, 427 Chestnut St. Tickets at 215-567-8080 and at pcmsconcerts.org.  Trinity Center for Urban Life’s series of Performances for Young People in Virtual Programming presents soprano/actor/teaching artist Carline Waugh with pianist Henning Vauth on May 6 at 10:30 a.m. Information at 215732-2515 and at http:// facebook.com/TCULPhilly  Eddie Palmieri’s AfroCaribbean Jazz Quartet is streaming live at the Annenberg Center on May 7 at 7 p.m. with bass, alto saxophone and drums in this legendary bandleader’s Grammy Award winning takes on Latin jazz. On May 8, the film selection is “Calle de la Resistencia”, a 79-minute musical drama spotlighting the culture and heritage of Puerto Rico and is a collaboration with guest curator Maran Rabell of AFROTAINO and Director of the Philadelphia Latino Film Festival. www.AnnenbergCenter. org and 215-898-3900.  Mother’s Day at the Museum of the Ameri-

can Revolution begins on May 7 from 1 a.m. to 5 p.m. with pop up talks in the galleries about American women who aided the American Revolution followed by the chance to have a discounted lunch or dinner across the street at chef Jose Garces’ Amada restaurant. On Sunday, May 9, Museum visitors will be offered a carnation.

3rd and Chestnut. www. americanmuseum.org or 215-253-6731.  Bartram’s Garden also celebrates Mothers with two open-air socials. On May 7, a happy hour runs from 6 to 8 p.m. and on May 9 a Mother’s Day Brunch is from 10 a.m. to Noon, both featuring live music on the riverfront and Bartram Quizzo. 54th St. and Lindbergh Blvd, reachable by auto with lots of free parking. 215-7295281 or www.bartramsgarden. org  Anyone who has stopped by Fitler Square at 23rd and Pine, falls in love with this very English garden open to the public and filled with ancient trees, much greenery, many comfy benches, handsome animal sculptures, and a drinking fountain Current members and those who want to become members are invited there on May 8 from 10 a.m. to Noon for a raffle and a chance to renew or join in this gentle park filled with photo ops.

No rain date. FriendsofFitlerSquarePark@gmail. com  The always-anticipated Farewell Graduation Recital at the Academy of Vocal Arts streams from 7 p.m. on May 8 through 11:59 P.M. on May 12 and stars two young singers headed toward operatic careers at a time when at last such hopes and dreams once again seem possible. Mezzo-soprano Pascale Spinney is from Montreal; baritone Daniel Gallegos is from Chihuahua, Mexico and both have won numerous awards. Jose Melendez is Musical Director and Pianist. Program details and tickets at 215-735-1685 or at www.avaopera.org  Flower lovers will want to join in Garden Days on E. Passyunk Ave., May 8 to 31, a tie-in the annual Phila.

Flower Show which

this year moves from the Convention Center to the vast open-air spaces in FDR Park which is also the site of the American-Swedish Historical Museum near the Sports Complex.

Event will include food and drink sales, dance performances, a weekly raffle, scavenger hunts, a selfie station at the Singing Fountain and more.

Sponsored by the EPA Business Improvement District. 215-336-1455.  The Preservation Alliance is thrilled to announce that their beloved Architecture Walking Tours are back.

On May 8 at 11 a.m., the program will show first-hand “the transformation of our city from America’s 19th century engine to a 21st century capital of business and culture”. On May 9 at 2 p.m., Chestnut Hill gets the full treatment, a leisurely stroll through this suburban “Garden City”. Details and tickets at tours@preservationalliance.com or at 215546-1146.  Astral Nova presents the last of this year’s virtual series of young artists as they embark on major musical careers.

Trombonist Brittany Lasch appears on May 8 at 7 p.m. in a streaming program of works written especially for her including composers Weaver, McComas, Davern and others, accompanied by pianist

Thomas Weaver. Ticketed and available for one full week after the event. Details at 215-735-6999.  “Fanfare for the Future” on May 13 at 8 p.m.is an online Gala celebrating the Academy of Music with Music Director Yannick Nezet-Seguin as conductor and pianist with selected members of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Whoopi Goldberg is host of this spectacle which also includes soprano star Renee Fleming. The program includes works

by Montgomery for string quartet, the first movement from Mozart’s piano concerto No. 12, and Johan Strauss Jr.’s “On the Beautiful Blue Danube” waltz. Available through May 20 at 11 p.m. www.philorch.org and 215-893-1999.  STREAMING FROM AFAR: “Met Stars Live in Concert” unites four acclaimed vocal artists in works by Wagner and R. Strauss, live from the Hessisches Staatstheater in Wiesbaden, Germany: sopranos Christine Goerke and Elza van den Heever, tenor Andreas Schager and baritone Michael Volle. Tickets and details at 212-362-6000 and www.metopera.org/metstars .  The traditional Mexican art of creating stunning and brilliantly-hued flowers from crepe paper and other materials steps into your own home on

May 8 at 2 pm. from the Santa Monica, CA. 18th St. Arts Center., taught by artisan Carmela Morales. Free, in Spanish with English translations.

18thstreet.org/event/ flores-de-papel .

The Met Opera’s powerhouse nightly free streaming of major works from the current repertory and archivescontinues: May 6, Bellini’s “Norma”, Sondra Radvanovksy, Academy of Vocal Arts’ Joyce DiDonato, Joseph Callea; May 7, Berg’s “Wozzeck”, Elza van den Heever, Peter Matthei; May 8, Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly”, Patricia Racette, Maria Zifchak, Marcello Giordani; May 9, Handel’s “Agrippina”, DiDonato, Brenda Rae, Kate Lindsey, Iesten Davies. And three oldies: Puccini’s “La Boheme” from 1988, Renata Scotto, Jose Carreras, AVA’s James Morris; May 11, Mozart’s “Don Giovanni’, 1990, Carl Vaness, Karita Mattila, Jerry Hadley, Samuel Ramey; May 12, Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde”, 1999, Jane Eaglen, Ben Heppner, Rene Pape. These brilliant performances with great vocal artists, spectacular costumes and sets, a magnificent orchestra and chorus, start every evening at 7;30 p.m. and are available through 6:30 p.m. the following day. www. metopera.org 

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8 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM •MAY 05, 2021

Business Casual: Working Woes Today

By Richard Lord Contributing writer

checked the employment status of all those involved.) Business Cahilly Theatre sual is a quartet of short Week kicked off plays that tap into the this past weekquirky, humorous sides end, and the deluge of of the contemporary theatrical and quasibusiness scene. theatrical events with The argument could short (mostly online) be made that a more apstays began. propriate title for this One quite commend- show might be Business able aspect of the TheCasualty - or more preatre Week is that it gives cisely Business Causuala platform to small, ties. independent groups to The program opened showcase their skills with one of the best of and visions. A good ex- the four pieces, Studio ample of this was BusiExecutive. This playlet ness Casual, a show that involved two scriptran online for the first writers looking for a few days of the festival breakthrough meeting and proved that givwith the eponymous ing groups like this an studio exec who has the opportunity to be seen godlike power to kill is good for writers, per- the project or to give it formers and potential a full life. The working audiences alike. The script submitted has program note from one as its main character a of the producers sug“tragic” figure – “an orgest that the project was phaned assassin trained somewhat ad hoc, put in an underground fighttogether when the oping organization”. Stuportunity of a Theatre dio exec Heather likes Week slot came through. the basic concept of the Billing itself as “a script, but is convinced collection of short, it would work better if workplace comedies” that tragic figure/assasmounted by the unemsin was also a member ployed, it proved true to of her school ultimate that billing. (Or at least frisbee team. Also, she to the first part. I haven’t asks that the screenwrit-

P

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ers tweak the script ever so slightly so that the main story is how that frisbee team becomes an upstart team that wins the championship in overtime.

Jake Segelbaum not only wrote the wellpaced, witty script, he also directed Studio Executive. He saw that the three-member cast gave convincing performances, but some of his decisions on the visual side of the direction were questionable. To wit: he had Heather turn around twice and hold up a mirror to which she delivers her lines. What was that all about? He also has Greg, one of the screenwriting team, get assaulted and (apparently) murdered in his box on the screen as the two women wrangle over the direction of the story.

The actors in this piece were good to quite good. Brooke de Zutter was suitably unctuous as the studio exective, while Nick Erholm was spot-on as the screenwriter all too ready to compromise so as to see his name on a big screen. But the best performance belonged to Satchel Williams as Claire, the screenwriter

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who seems ready to go down in flames rather than to see her script turned into a Hollywood farce.

A Smooth Transition shows how the tyranny of sensitivity has taught many people in the business sphere to walk on verbal egg shells. Susan, a petite Asian woman, is offered a high managerial position at the company head office.

However, the company honcho who delivers this good news has to point out that as a petite Asian woman, she might have problems.

Those problems, he cautions, would come from subordinates resenting someone like her giving orders and expecting deference. So the brains at the company they’ve come up with a solution: Susan will give her orders through an android who will play the part of the new manager.

Much of the humor of A Smooth Transition comes from Walter, the honcho offering the promotion, doing verbal gymnastics to make sure that his choice of words and phrasing is not going to be offensive in any way. He’s even brought a lawyer to the meeting to advise him on what’s woke and what could be the stuff of a law suit in his choice of phrasing.

The cast of this playlet was perfect. Vida Manalang was a slightly baffled Susan; as Walter, Michael Stahler delivered a spot-on rendition of the contemporary corner-office hypocrite; Gary Bowman was a most believable android; and Jordan Dallam was absolutely splendid as the lawyer who didn’t utter a word, but expressed so much with his reactions to Walter’s wobbly explanations.

The Long Haul takes a slightly interesting and not terribly original idea and then gives it a bythe-numbers treatment.

The idea is that four long-haul truck drivers have formed a club of sorts, and the play is one of their meetings as they roll merrily along.

A serious road incident made worse by the hitand-run follow-up tried to insert some drama

A Smooth Transition.

Long Haul.

or conflict, but it didn’t really give the playlet much additional weight or even more humor.

Three of the four performances here were caricatures. This is not an insult to the actors or their director, Satchel Williams; the parts are written that way, and the actors played them as written. The odd man out here was Jordan Dallam, whose Steve serves the rational, moral compass the others lack.

Dallam’s performance was solid all the way through, the best thing about this piece.

The best piece in the program was the closing number, Foaming At The Mouth. This piece presented two employees of the park service brought together for a counseling session because they despise each other and each wants to see the other fired forthwith.

As it turns out, both have good reasons for seeing the other way booted out, but they’re both partly involved in the other’s transgressions. Not only that, but the counselor sent in to resolve the problems is actually a couple’s counselor on her first assignment who expected this session to be a patch-up of a love relationship gone south.

Foaming At The Mouth was written and directed by Liv Shoup, who deserves solid praise for both of those contributions. The script was a nicely packed look at how venom flows in the modern workplace, and her direction of the actors assured that the

humor and the nastiness was delivered delightfully.

The trio of actors here were marvelous. Caroline Juelke was perfect as the counselor who is clearly out of her depth but trying to twist things around to make it seem like she is in command of the volatile situation.

Rita Castagna was absolutely convincing as the unapologetic termagant who has mastered the art of dirty infighting.

Michael Stahler was even better here than in was in Smooth Transition.

His David gets yanked through a mental wringer, and Stahler took every twist and turn of that experience in pitchperfect manner.

Caroline Juelke and Rita Castagna were not only the co-stars of that last short play, they were also co-producers of the show. It seems they came up with the idea for the program and then formed a production company, We’re Trying Up Here! Entertainment, to bring it to life.

Philly Theatre offers an opening for shows like Business Casual which otherwise might have trouble getting stages and getting attention and is thus a strong justification for the importance of the Theatre Week. It gives talented young writers, directors and actors a chance to show just how good they are. I, for one, would welcome the opportunity to see these talents again soon as Philly theatre gets back fully on its feet.

MEMO

continued from page 6

media and other news outlets, leading to its withdrawal after about one day.

The Society Hill Civic Association was among the community organizations that was sent the memo. Larry Spector, the president of the SHCA, said that he received an email with the memo attached during the afternoon on Friday April 16, with a message saying it had to be returned to the city Law Department by Monday April 19.

Spector then forwarded it to contacts on the SHCA mailing list. He said that after more than 300 people had signed in less than 24 hours, one resident alerted him that the memo did not accurately reflect the litigation. Spector then sent out another email on the morning of April 17 – with the memo and relevant excerpts from the plaintiffs’ court filing attached – writing that he was discarding all signatures he had received earlier and residents still supportive of the memo would have to sign again.

A few hours later, the city would issue its retraction.

Spector said he felt that the memo sent to him was “misleading” and that reading the actual court filing caused him “to conclude it was a misrepresentation.” He said he thought that the city had tried to frighten residents with a short deadline and a pretended end to the enforcement of quality-of-life laws.

“It was disgraceful, to be misled like that,” Spector said. “And to essentially just be, ‘you have to have this information by sundown otherwise the world’s going to end,’ that was not the way to do it.”

David Rudovsky, a civil rights lawyer who filed the plaintiffs’ motion and has helped litigate Bailey v. Philadelphia for years, noted that the city’s memo was “absolutely false.”

“People were being told that we were asking the court, and the court was considering our request, that police stop all quality-of-life enforcement, which was absolutely false, and a complete misrepresentation,” Rudovsky said. “And we

MAY 05, 2021 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM • 9

started getting calls from community groups about it and they said, ‘what’s going on,’ because they knew we weren’t asking from that.”

He added that the city’s attempt to solicit public opinion on this issue and in the manner that they did was “unusual,” and amounted to an attempt by the Police Department to build popular pressure in favor of the case.

“There are rules of evidence on surveys and these kinds of affidavits,” Rudovsky said. “It’s got to be done in a completely clean, neutral way.”

“I think it was an attempt by the Police Department to get community groups to put pressure on the judge not to go forward,” Rudovsky added.

The city has acknowledged the inaccuracy of the memo and conceded that it could misinform residents or frighten them into submitting an affidavit in support of the city and police. Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw and City Solicitor Diana Cortes disavowed the memo in a joint statement.

“We apologize and immediately retract communications in the past week from police regarding enforcement of quality-of-life offenses in Philadelphia communities,” Outlaw and Cortes said. “To be clear - in no way was the intent to scare community members into hastily providing affidavits for fear of negatively impacting the case.”

“We – as well as the Mayor [James Kenney] and Managing Director [Tumar Alexander] – strongly condemn any such fear-mongering.”

Outlaw and Cortes underscored that “any declarations or testimonials on this issue gathered from this outreach will not be presented to the Court at this time.”

A city spokesperson told The Philadelphia Free Press and University City Review that the city Law Department “drafted the text of the Declaration itself,” but that “the manner in which the circulation occurred was determined by persons within the Police Department.”

West Philadelphia Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, as well as Councilmembers-at-

large Helen Gym, Kendra Brooks, and Isaiah Thomas, denounced the memo in an April 17 joint statement. They said that it promoted “the kind of indiscriminate policing which has been widely discredited as ineffective and counterproductive,” and accused it of being “in direct contradiction to the City’s racial justice goals.”

The plaintiffs maintain that on-sight enforcement quality-of-life crimes afford police too much discretion in selecting which offenders are stopped and which are informally warned – an arbitrary method of enforcement that, plaintiffs allege, results in quality-of-life stops being demonstrably biased against Black Philadelphians. Statistical regression analysis cited in the filing indicates that if a detention is a qualityof-life stop, then all else equal, the probability that a detainee is Black increases by 72%.

The outcry surrounding the memo and racial bias in police stops run parallel to the concerns residents in many Philadelphia communities have about quality-of-life offenses. Spector said that he and other members of the SHCA wanted to make sure that the city reduced racial bias while preventing the quality-oflife crimes that has bothered residents.

“We don’t want to see unnecessary increase in stop-and-frisk encounters that we all know have, at times, had horrible, tragic consequences,” Spector said. “So, if quality of life can be maintained and those laws can be adhered to without stop and frisk, great, but certainly the underlying behaviors are unacceptable.”

Center City Councilmember Mark Squilla told the Philly Free Press and UC Review that he had not heard too much about the memo from constituents before it had been withdrawn. Squilla did say, however, that his office frequently hears complaints from constituents about quality-of-life offenses.

“Obviously, we’ve been inundated with complaints on issues concerning it in the city over the last several years, from aggressive panhandling, to encampments, to ATVs, to defecation on the street, to open-air

drug markets and things like that,” Squilla said.

At the same time, Squilla said that there were different ways of going about enforcement.

“I think there’s a new way at looking at enforcement today,” Squilla said. “Is enforcement just the police or is enforcement [to] deal with social services, where they come, and they give you options about what’s available to you and they give you the ability to go get help?”

Squilla said that he still wanted to learn more details about the plaintiff’s proposed reforms, such as what the specific quality-of-life offenses for which police would be issuing warnings before conducting stops, and how those warnings would be issued.

(Rudovsky, one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs, later clarified that a specific list of offenses would be determined by a court order or new police directives pursuant to a court order.)

The lawsuit Bailey v.

Philadelphia, of which the March 18 motion is a part, was filed in federal court against the city of Philadelphia by the ACLU and Kairys, Rudovsky, Messing, Feinberg & Lin in 2010. The Bailey plaintiffs alleged that the city and the police department subject Philadelphians to stopsand-frisks without probable cause, violating their rights under the Fourth and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution.

They specifically argued that the city’s stoppedand-frisked residents on the basis of race, using the policy to discriminate against Black Philadelphians. The March 18 filing specified that Black Philadelphians, comprising only 44% of the city population were the subject of 71% of police stops in the second half of 2019; while white Philadelphians, comprising 35% of the population were the subject of 22% of police stops. Statistical regression analysis conducted by city and plaintiff experts determined that the disparity could not be explained by other confounding, non-racial factors, such as crime rates and economic factors. Black Philadelphians, moreover, were about 50% more likely to be stopped without probable cause than white

Philadelphians, and about 40% more likely of being frisked without reasonable suspicion.

In 2011, the city entered into a consent decree, by which its stop-andfrisk policies were made subject to certain restrictions. The court has been overseeing the city’s for nearly a decade, and in 2020, the city for the first time acknowledged in court that police stops in Philadelphia were being conducted with “racial bias.” (Also in 2020, Philadelphia voters approved a referendum to amend the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter “to call on the Police Department to eliminate the practice of unconstitutional stop and frisk” – although the amendment is arguably tautological and mostly symbolic.)

There is a total of eight demands in the March 18 filing and the city and the plaintiffs have agreed to five. These including the assignment of “specially trained Accountability Officers” to monitor racial bias in police stops in five police districts; the provision of “Bailey specific training” to instruct officers “on the Consent Decree and the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment standards that govern stop and frisk practices”; and a “Command level review” of randomly selected documents and body-camera video relating to stops in five districts with high racial disparity in police stops.

The three demands that the city has not agreed to involve the dispute regarding quality-of-life offenses, and a process by which the department would discipline officers for conducting police stops with racial bias.

Rudovsky said he expects a ruling from the court within a couple of months.

The credibility of the city’s commitment to their obligations under

the Bailey consent decree was undermined earlier this year by a leaked police memo from February.

In the memo, a police captain scolds officers under his command for not conducting enough police stops. He then encourages officers to make motor-vehicle stops, partly because “motor vehicle codes give officers probable cause for a stop which avoids the issues we have with the Bailey Agreement.”

Rudovsky said that the city’s commitment to adhering to its Bailey obligations has improved somewhat over the last few years under the Kenney administration. He also said that the high-level leaders, such as the mayor and the police commissioner, seem willing to work with the court to achieve reform. Documents like the February memo and the quality-of-life memo nevertheless indicate to Rudovsky that the city is still resistant to enacting reform.

“That’s the basic question,” Rudovsky said when asked if the police department and city were working to adhere to the Bailey agreement in good faith. “There’s obviously resistance in the Police Department.”

Outlaw and Cortes, in their joint statement following the retraction, said that they would “work with Plaintiff’s counsel to determine a more thoughtful and appropriate method to solicit community input on this issue.”

Spector said that properly getting community input should not be something that proves to be this challenging to a city’s elected officials.

“Responsible leadership should know how to solicit community support, I’m not going to give them guidance on how to do that,” Spector said. “They just did it wrong.”

JUST JUST

DON’T TEXT DON’T TEXT AND AND

10 • PHILLYFREEPRESS.COM • UCREVIEW.COM •MAY 05, 2021

Crime Blotter

Crime Incidents as reported by the Philadelphia Police Department via opendataphilly.org. Feedback and inquiries can be sent to Dorian@Pressreview. net. This crime report does not cover the entire boundaries of each police district. It reflects only incidents in or near our circulation areas.

The Following Crimes Occurred Between Friday, March 5th and Thursday, March 11th 3rd DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 3rd District, please call 215-686-3030. Reporting 3rd District crimes from Lombard St. to Mifflin St. and Delaware Ave. to Broad St.: Rape: 1300 S Broad St. Arson: 1500 S 12th St. Assault: 500 Reed St, 1100 S 10th St, 1100 S Broad St, 1500 S Broad St, S Front St & South St, 1300 S Juniper St, 100 South St. Burglary: 900 Washington Av. Robbery: 400 Catharine St, 1500 S Broad St, 1000 South St, 1000 Washington Av. Theft: 1200 Alter St, 1300 Dickinson St, 1400 E Moyamensing Av, 1400 E Passyunk Av, 1800 E Passyunk Av, 800 Kimball St, 0 Mifflin St, 1400 S 7th St, 1700 S 8th St, 800 S 9th St, 1200 S 11th St, 1500 S Broad St, 1600 S Christopher Columbus Blvd, 1300 S Hancock St, 1600 S Iseminger St, 700 Sigel St, 900 South St, 1300 Tasker St, 600 Washington Av. Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 1000 Federal St, 0 Queen St, 900 S Water St, 1200 Titan St. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 900 Ernst St, 1100 Linn St, 600 S 3rd St, 1800 S 5th St, 1700 S 8th St, 1700 S 11th St, 1300 S Howard St, S Howard St & Reed St, 1800 S Sartain St, 500 Sigel St, 700 South St. 6th DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 6th District, please call 215-686-3060. Reporting 6th District crimes from Spring Garden St. to Lombard St. and Front St. to Broad St.: Arson: 700 Sansom St. Assault: 1100 Chestnut St, 1200 Chestnut St, 1000 Filbert St, 1000 Hamilton St, 1200 Locust St, 1300 Locust St, 200 Market St, 400 Market St, 900 Market St, 1200 Market St (2 Incidents), 1300 Market St (2 Incidents), 1100 Pine St, 0 S 2nd St, 200 S 13th St (2 Incidents), 200 S Broad St, 1000 Sansom St. Burglary: 1300 Filbert St, 1100 Walnut St (2 Incidents).

Robbery: 1200 Market St, 100 N 10th St, S 12th St & Chestnut St. Theft: 400 Arch St, 1000 Arch St, 200 Callowhill St, 100 Chestnut St, 600 Chestnut St, 700 Chestnut St, 900 Chestnut St, 1000 Chestnut St, 1100 Chestnut St (2 Incidents), 1000 Filbert St, 1300 Filbert St, 100 N Independence Mall W, 400 Locust St, 1100 Locust St (3 Incidents), 1100 Ludlow St, 100 Market St, 700 Market St (2 Incidents), 800 Market St, 900 Market St (2 Incidents), 1000 Market St (12 Incidents), 1100 Market St (2 Incidents), 1200 Market St, 1300 Market St, 400 N 5th St (2 Incidents), 400 N 9th St, N 11th St & Market St, 0 N 12th St (2 Incidents), 500 Pine St, 1000 Pine St, 400 S 2nd St (3 Incidents), 300 S 5th St, S 8th St & Market St, 200 S 11th St, 1200 Spring Garden St, 1200 Spruce St, 1300 Spruce St, 200 W Washington Sq, 500 Walnut St, 900 Walnut St, 1100 Walnut St, 1200 Walnut St. Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 1100 Market St, N Front St & Callowhill St, 1000 Pearl St, 200 S 12th St. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 800 Callowhill St (2 Incidents), 1100 Chestnut St, 1200 Clover St, 900 Hamilton St, 1200 Hamilton St, 1300 Market St (2 Incidents), 300 N 5th St, 200 N 11th St (2 Incidents), N 13th St & Market St, 700 Race St, 1200 Race St, 400 Ranstead St, 100 S 10th St, 0 S 12th St, S 13th St & Sansom St, 300 S Broad St, 1000 Spring Garden St. 9th DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 9th District, please call 215-686-3090. Reporting 9th District crimes from Fairmount Ave. to Lombard St. and Broad St. to the Schuylkill River.: Assault: 1700 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy, 1500 Chestnut St, 1500 Fairmount Av, 1400 John F Kennedy Blvd, 1800 Market St, 0 N 16th St, 0 N 19th St, 100 N 20th St, 1500 Spruce St. Burglary: 300 Alexander Ct, 1900 Arch St, 2200 Green St, 200 N 16th St, 400 S 16th St. Robbery: 2100 Brandywine St, 1400 John F

Kennedy Blvd, 1700 Market St. Theft: 2000 Appletree St, 1900 Brandywine St, 1900 Callowhill St (2 Incidents), 1400 Chestnut St, 1500 Chestnut St (2 Incidents), 1600 Chestnut St (3 Incidents), 2100 Chestnut St, 2500 Fairmount Av, 2000 Hamilton St, 2100 Hamilton St (2 Incidents), 1500 John F Kennedy Blvd, 1500 Market St, 2000 Market St, 2200 Mount Vernon St, 200 N 16th St, 400 N 21st St, N 21st St & Spring St, N 23rd St & Fairmount Av, 100 N Broad St, 400 N Broad St, 2000 Pennsylvania Av, 1400 Race St, 0 S 17th St, 100 S 17th St, 2000 Sansom St, 1500 Spring Garden St, 1500 Spruce St (4 Incidents), 1700 Wallace St, 1700 Walnut St (2 Incidents), 1800 Walnut St. Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 1500 Arch St (2 Incidents), 100 S 18th St, 200 S 18th St, 100 S 21st St, 1500 Sansom St. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 2000 Cherry St, 1500 Chestnut St, 1400 John F Kennedy Blvd (3 Incidents), 1400 Locust St, 1500 Market St (3 Incidents), 400 N 18th St, 0 N 19th St, 400 N 21st St, 400 N Broad St, 400 S 16th St, 100 S 21st St, 1700 Spring Garden St, 2500 Spring Garden St (2 Incidents), 1500 Vine St, 1800 Walnut St (2 Incidents), 2000 Walnut St, 1400 Wood St. 12th DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 12th District, please call 215-686-1320. Reporting 12th District crimes within Southwest Philly bounded by Baltimore at 49th St. to Bartram Dr. at 60th St.: Rape: 5300 Hadfield St. Assault: 5300 Angora Ter, 5200 Beaumont St, 5400 Chester Av, 5500 Chester Av, 700 S 51st St, 1600 S 56th St, 2000 S Alden St, 1400 S Allison St, 2100 S Frazier St, 1900 S Salford St, 1400 S Vogdes St, 5600 Springfield Av, 5800 Willows Av, 5700 Woodland Av. Burglary: 5600 Gibson Dr, 1000 S 53rd St. Robbery: S 50th St & Beaumont St. Theft: 5200 Baltimore Av, 5400 Chester Av, 5200 Grays Av, 5200 Lindbergh Blvd, 5400 Lindbergh Blvd, 5800 Lindbergh Blvd, 1000 S 52nd St, S 54th St & Chester Av, 2100 S 57th St, S 58th St & Springfield Av, 1800 S Cecil St, 2400 S Edgewood St, 1300 S Lindenwood St, 2000 S Salford St (2 Incidents), 1100 S Wilton St, 5500 Saybrook Av, 5400 Woodland Av, 5800 Woodland Av (2 Incidents).

Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 5600 Kingsessing Av, 5400 Malcolm St, 1100 S 52nd St, 1600 S 57th St, 5500 Whitby Av, 5800 Woodland Av. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 5800 Fernwood St, 5400 Gibson Dr, 5300 Greenway Av, 5800 Hadfield St, 800 S 51st St, 2000 S 56th St, 2600 S 60th St, 1600 S Conestoga St, 900 S Paxon St, 1100 S Peach St, 5200 Upland St, 5500 Warrington Av, 5700 Windsor St, 5600 Woodland Av. 16th DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 16th District, please call 215-686-3160. Reporting 16th District crimes from Girard Ave. to Market St. and from the Schuylkill River to 52nd St.: Rape: 800 N 44th St. Assault: 4400 Holden St, 3900 Lancaster Av, 4300 Lancaster Av, 0 N 39th St, 700 N 40th St, 800 N 41st St, N 41st St & Mantua Av, 0 N 48th St, 4100 Parrish St, 4600 Parrish St. Burglary: 4100 Cambridge St, 600 N 32nd St, 900 N Saint Bernard St. Theft: 4900 Arch St, 3500 Brandywine St, 3300 Fairmount Av, 3500 Hamilton St, 4000 Lancaster Av (2 Incidents), 3000 Market St, 3500 Market St (2 Incidents), 600 N 32nd St, 500 N 35th St, 0 N 39th St, 300 N 41st St, 600 N 42nd St, 800 N 46th St, 1000 N 46th St, 400 N Preston St, 4800 Ogden St, 5000 Ogden St, 400 Sloan St, 600 Union St, 4100 Warren St, 4200 Westminster Av. Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 400 Dearborn St, 4600 Market St, 600 N 43rd St, 400 N 50th St, 400 N 52nd St, 4100 Warren St. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 3900

Cambridge St (2 Incidents), 4100 Cambridge St, 4000 Haverford Av (2 Incidents), 4400 Holden St, 3900 Lancaster Av, 4000 Lancaster Av (2 Incidents), 4500 Lancaster Av, 4200 Mantua Av (2 Incidents), 2900 Market St (4 Incidents), 3400 Market St, 400 N 40th St, N 40th St & Aspen St, 0 N 41st St, 800 N 47th St, N 51st St & Aspen St, 200 N 52nd St, 100 N Paxon St, 4000 Parrish St (2 Incidents), 5100 Parrish St, 4200 Powelton Av, 1100 Sloan St, 4000 W Girard Av, 300 Wiota St. 17th DISTRICT: To report a crime to the 17th District, please call 215686-3170. Reporting 17th District crimes from Lombard St. to Mifflin St. and Broad St. to the Schuylkill River.: Rape: 2100 Pierce St. Assault: 1500 Catharine St, 1400 Moore St, S 31st St & Grays Ferry Av, 1300 S Newkirk St, 1900 Tasker St (2 Incidents), 2300 Watkins St (2 Incidents).

Burglary: 1700 S Broad St. Robbery: 2100 South St. Theft: 1900 Catharine St, 2200 Cross St, 2300 Fernon St, 2600 Gerritt St, 1300 Grove St, 2400 Kimball St, 1500 Lombard St, 2200 Morris St, 2300 Mountain St, 2700 Pierce St, 1400 Point Breeze Av, 2000 Reed St, 2600 Reed St, 1600 S 22nd St, 1000 S Broad St (3 Incidents), 1100 S Broad St, 1700 S Chadwick St (2 Incidents), 1300 S Dover St, 1600 S Dover St, 1300 S Opal St, 1800 South St, 2100 South St, 2200 South St, 1500 Tasker St, 1400 Washington Av, 1500 Wharton St (2 Incidents).

Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 2100 Moore St, 1600 S 21st St, 600 S 22nd St, 700 S 22nd St, 2300 Wilder St. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 1500 Lombard St, 2300 Morris St, 1500 S 15th St, S 23rd St & Wharton St, 1700 S 25th St, S 28th St & Morris St, 1500 S 29th St (4 Incidents), S 34th St & Grays Ferry Av, 1700 S Napa St, 2200 Wharton St. 18th DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 18th District, please call 215-686-3180. Reporting 18th District crimes from Market St. to Woodland Ave. and 30th St. to Cobbs Creek Pkwy.: Homicide: 5500 Christian St. Arson: 5900 Pine St. Assault: 5800 Addison St, 5800 Cedar Av, 4400 Chestnut St, 5500 Christian St (5 Incidents), 6100 Locust St, 6000 Ludlow St, 6000 Market St, 5600 Osage Av, 5800 Rodman St, 0 S 40th St, S 44th St & Pine St, S 47th St & Woodland Av, 0 S 52nd St, 0 S 54th St, 500 S 54th St, S 55th St & Walnut St, 800 S 56th St, S 57th St & Rodman St, S 60th St & Cedar Av, 0 S 62nd St, 700 S Frazier St, 0 S Redfield St, 0 S Salford St (2 Incidents), 5800 Spruce St, 4900 Walnut St. Burglary: 3900 Chestnut St, 1100 S 47th St, 200 S Felton St, 4800 Sansom St, 5000 Sansom St, 4300 Spruce St. Robbery: 5900 Chestnut St, S 51st St & Sansom St. Theft: 3900 Baltimore Av, 4000 Baltimore Av, 5400 Catharine St (2 Incidents), 4200 Chester Av, 3900 Chestnut St, 4000 Chestnut St (2 Incidents), 4300 Chestnut St, 4600 Chestnut St, 4700 Chestnut St, 5400 Chestnut St, 5600 Chestnut St, 5100 Hazel Av, 5400 Larchwood Av, 5500 Locust St, 4500 Ludlow St, 5700 Ludlow St, 5100 Market St, N 34th St & Market St, 5700 Osage Av, 5800 Pemberton St, 4400 Pine St, 5200 Pine St, S 38th St & Walnut St, 300 S 41st St, S 45th St & Springfield Av, 1100 S 47th St, S 52nd St & Pine St, S 56th St & Chestnut St, 500 S 57th St, 800 S 58th St, 600 S 59th St, 300 S 60th St, 700 S 60th St, 200 S Melville St, 5100 Sansom St, 3700 Spruce St (2 Incidents), 4300 Spruce St, 4900 Spruce St, 5100 Spruce St, 3400 Walnut St, 3600 Walnut St, 4200 Walnut St (2 Incidents).

Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 3900 Baltimore Av, 4700 Baltimore Av, 5200 Delancey St, 5400 Larchwood Av, 4500 Locust St, 0 S 48th St, 0 S 52nd St (2 Incidents), 300 S 52nd St, 200 S 56th St, 400 S 56th St. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include

public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 5300 Addison St, 5700 Baltimore Av, 5400 Catharine St, 5600 Catharine St, 5600 Catherine St, 5400 Chestnut St, 5700 Christian St, 5800 Christian St, 6100 Cobbs Creek Pkwy, 6100 Ellsworth St, 5000 Irving St, 5500 Irving St, 5400 Locust St, 3900 Locust Walk, 5800 Ludlow St, 5900 Market St, N 40th St & Market St, 5300 Pine St, 5500 Pine St (2 Incidents), 1300 S 49th St, 200 S 52nd St, 300 S 52nd St, 100 S 56th St, 300 S 56th St, 200 S 57th St, 200 S 59th St, 300 S 60th St (2 Incidents), 1000 S 60th St, 900 S Alden St, 900 S Cecil St, 0 S Redfield St, 3800 Walnut St, 5000 Walnut St, 5800 Walnut St. 19th DISTRICT: To report a crime in the 19th District, please call 215-686-3190. Reporting 19th District crimes from City Ave. to Market St. and 52nd St. to 77th St.: Homicide: 1400 N 76th St (2 Incidents).

Assault: 5200 Arch St, 5600 Arch St (2 Incidents), 5800 Arch St, 6000 Callowhill St, 6100 City Av, 7500 City Av, 5800 Filbert St, 6500 Haverford Av, 5300 Jefferson St, 6600 Lotus Rd, 5800 Master St (2 Incidents), 6000 Master St, 5500 Media St, 1600 N 52nd St, 400 N 53rd St, 600 N 54th St, 0 N 56th St (2 Incidents), 1400 N 57th St, 1600 N 61st St, 200 N 63rd St (3 Incidents), 800 N 63rd St, 1000 N 66th St, 1400 N 76th St (2 Incidents), 100 N Conestoga St, 1200 N Conestoga St, 0 N Hobart St, 200 N Hobart St, 100 N Peach St, 1500 N Peach St, 100 N Vogdes St, 1400 N Wanamaker St, 200 N Wilton St, 6100 Nassau Rd, 5500 Pearl St, 5300 Poplar St, 5500 Race St, 5600 Race St, 6400 W Girard Av, 5200 W Montgomery Av. Burglary: 1200 N 56th St, 600 Wynnewood Rd. Robbery: 5900 Lancaster Av, 6400 Malvern Av, 5600 Market St. Theft: 5500 Arch St, 5900 Arch St, 5400 Arlington St, 7500 City Av, 400 Edgemore Rd, 5600 Gainor Rd, 7500 Haverford Av, 5700 Jefferson St, 6400 Lansdowne Av, 6300 Lebanon Av, 6700 Lebanon Av, 1100 Marlyn Rd, 1600 Meribrook Rd, 200 N 52nd St, 1200 N 54th St, 100 N 60th St, 1400 N 62nd St, 0 N 63rd St, 200 N 63rd St, 500 N 64th St, 100 N Conestoga St, 0 N Dewey St, 100 N Felton St, 1600 N Felton St, 400 N Hobart St, 1600 N Redfield St, 300 N Robinson St, 100 N Vogdes St, 1400 N Wanamaker St, 1700 N Wilton St, 5400 Sharswood St, 5600 Vine St, 1300 Westbury Dr. Vandalism/Criminal Mischief: 5400 Harlan St, 5500 Lansdowne Av, 5800 Master St (2 Incidents), 500 N 54th St, 1300 N 55th St, 1600 N 59th St, 100 N Salford St, 5700 Race St, 5800 W Girard Av. Other Offenses (Any incident that does not fit into other definitions, and may include public drunkenness, runaways, loitering, weapons offense or missing person): 6600 Callowhill St, 1300 Kimberly Dr, 6200 Lansdowne Av, 5200 Market St (3 Incidents), 5300 Market St (2 Incidents), 6000 Market St, 5800 Master St, 0 N 52nd St (4 Incidents), 1500 N 54th St, 2400 N 54th St, 1700 N 56th St (2 Incidents), 1400 N 61st St, 300 N 62nd St, 400 N 62nd St, 1600 N 76th St, 500 N Allison St, 1400 N Allison St, 0 N Edgewood St, 500 N Hobart St, 0 N Peach St, 200 N Salford St, 7600 Sherwood Rd, 5400 Spring St, 5900 Vine St, 6200 W Girard Av, 1400 West End Dr, 5400 Westminster Av, 5900 Woodcrest Av, 7500 Woodcrest Av, 600 Wynnewood Rd. Crime Incidents as reported by the Philadelphia Police Department via opendataphilly. org. Feedback and inquiries can be sent to Dorian@Pressreview.net. This crime report does not cover the entire boundaries of each police district. It reflects only incidents in or near our circulation areas.

Gov. Wolf joins Philadelphia Flyers organization to encourage Pennsylvanians to ‘Take Your Shot’ Governor Tom Wolf today visited the Philadelphia Flyers organization at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia to discuss COVID-19 vaccine efforts in Pennsylvania. The Flyers recently launched a comprehensive COVID-19 vaccine campaign, ‘Take Your Shot’, encouraging Pennsylvanians to get vaccinated.

“Today, Pennsylvania has hit a significant milestone in our vaccination efforts. Now, 50 percent of Pennsylvanians have received their first vaccination,” said Gov. Wolf.

“We must continue this important momentum to make it safe for all of us to come together and cheer on our favorite teams again. We all have a part to play in overcoming this disease that took so much from so many over the past year. We can do it by all Pennsylvanians getting vaccinated as soon as possible.”

The governor was joined by President of Business Operation for the Philadelphia Flyers and Wells Fargo Center

Valerie Camillo, Chief Medical Officer for the University of Pennsylvania Health System P.J. Brennan, MD, and a special appearance made

by Philadelphia Flyers’ mascot Gritty.

“Governor Wolf encouraged us to get involved in the fight to end this pandemic, and we’ve answered that call with the ‘Take Your Shot’ campaign, which has been a tremendous success,” said Valerie Camillo, Flyers President of Business Operations. “The Flyers are part of the fabric of this city and our entire region, so we’re doing our part to keep people safe, end this pandemic, and get back to doing the things we love with our friends and family - like cheering on the Flyers at Wells Fargo Center.”

The Flyers’ ‘Take Your Shot’ Campaign is in partnership with Penn Medicine, the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, and the city of Philadelphia. The public health campaign is an online vaccination

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