Ex-Philadelphia police officer Ryan Pownall to be reinstated after winning arbitration case
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Former Philadelphia police officer Ryan Pownall, who had his murder charges dropped by a judge in 2022, will be reinstated with seniority and full-back pay after he won his arbitration case on Thursday.
Pownall was charged with multiple offenses, including murder, for allegedly fatally shooting 30-year-old David Jones, a Black man, in June 2017.
"As part of Ryan Pownall's due process rights, his case was presented to a neutral arbitrator where the City of Philadelphia and the Fraternal Order of Police presented their respective cases," Roosevelt Poplar, the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 President, said in a statement. "The arbitrator ruled in favor of Pownall's re-instatement to the Philadelphia police department. Pownall will also be entitled to full, back-pay and seniority under the ruling.
The FOP Lodge #5 and fellow officers stood in solidarity with Pownall and his family throughout this entire ordeal. We're happy to see Pownall re-instated to his job and he looks forward to protecting this great city."
A judge in 2022 dropped the murder charges against Pownall. At the time, the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office said it "strongly disagrees on many levels with the court's decision."
The city of Philadelphia paid Jones' family $1 million following the fatal shooting.
On June 8, 2017, Pownall stopped Jones for illegally riding a dirt bike near the 4200 block of Whitaker Avenue in North Philly.
A struggle ensued as Pownall felt a gun in Jones' waistband, then Jones allegedly resisted and started running.
Pownall's gun jammed during his first attempt to fire his gun, but surveillance video allegedly showed the second round hit Jones from 10 feet away. The third allegedly hit him in the back from 35 feet away.
At the time, Pownwall was the first Philadelphia police officer in nearly 20 years to face charges over an on-duty shooting.
Earlier this year, ex-Philadelphia police officer Edsaul Mendoza pleaded guilty to the shooting death of 12-year-old Thomas "T.J." Siderio in March 2022.
Siderio's family sued the city in February for the fatal shooting.