Philadelphia suspends all evictions by landlord-tenant officers after multiple shootings
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Philadelphia has suspended all evictions involving landlord-tenant officers after multiple shootings across the city over the past several months, officials said Wednesday.
In total, there have been three shootings involving landlord-tenant officers since March.
Philadelphia Municipal Court, Hon. Patrick Dugan and Marisa Shuter, the current Landlord Tenant Officer, both agreed to suspend lockouts immediately.
The lockouts will be suspended until further notice until the court has been assured the LTO's employees and contractors have received up-to-date training in use of force and de-escalation procedures, the city said.
Landlords still have the option to contact the Philadelphia Sherriff's Office for evictions, according to the city.
The latest shooting happened on Tuesday in the city's Kensington section.
A 33-year-old woman was shot by a court-appointed contractor during an eviction and placed in stable condition, police said.
Another one happened in March in North Philadelphia. A woman was shot in the head by a plain-clothed court officer who was at her apartment to serve an eviction notice.
City councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Jamie Gauthier each said in a statement they're "glad that they agreed to this course of action" to pause the evictions, and that the victim is in stable condition.
Brooks and Gauthier are also hoping the landlord-tenant office to establish:
- A policy for notifying tenants of the date and time of evictions (similar to established policies in New York City, Pittsburgh, and cities across the country), in order to eliminate unexpected lockouts and reduce the likelihood of escalation and violence;
- Guidelines and training for conducting evictions, including protocols for discharging firearms, appropriate use of force, and de-escalation tactics;
- Public accountability, including a public process to release the names of deputies involved in shootings and investigate conduct when an incident occurs.
"Although Council does not directly oversee the Municipal Court, we are ready to act to the fullest extent of our powers to ensure that residents in our city are safe. We look forward to continued partnership with the Municipal Court and other stakeholders, as well as meaningful, long-term reforms that will remedy this unjust system," the councilmembers said in a statement in part.