Interim Philadelphia Police Commissioner John Stanford on rebuilding, maintaining trust with community
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Interim Philadelphia Police Commissioner John Stanford is stepping into the top cop position at a tough time for the police department.
Former commissioner, Danielle Outlaw, announced her resignation not long after the release of body camera video that showed one of the department's former officers, Mark Dial, firing several shots, killing Eddie Irizarry within seconds of approaching his vehicle. While a judge dismissed all the charges against Dial Tuesday morning, the District Attorney's Office filed a motion just hours later to reinstate those charges.
CBS News Philadelphia asked Stanford how the department is working to rebuild and maintain trust with the community in light of incidents, like the Irizarry case.
"There's always those situations where you have an incident that can damage relationships or put a strain on them. But the reality is you have to do the work every day so that communities understand what you're doing, what you're about as an organization -- that's what we try to do and we're going to keep trying to do that," Stanford said. "So, folks understand we are here to provide a service. We're here to be a part of the communities throughout this city, not to be against any community in this city."
Commissioner Stanford said it's not up to him whether former officer Mark Dial could be rehired.
He said Dial coming back onto the force would require an arbitration process, adding that there is still an open and ongoing internal investigation.