'Firing Them Isn't Truly Enough:' Family Of Jim Rogers, Community Still Calling For Justice After His Death
By: Shelley Bortz/KDKA-TV
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Since the death of Jim Rogers last fall, the subject of peace between communities and police has taken center stage in Pittsburgh.
It was the focus of a forum today seeking answers but there was one issue.
The family of Jim Rogers wasn't asked to join the forum today, even though a lot of what was discussed was about his death.
They said it seems to them the police aren't interesting in what they have to say.
"We've been asked to do things that we're not trained to respond to," Pittsburgh Police Chief Scott Schubert said during the forum.
It's an issue departments across the country are having, officers responding to 911 calls they have no training for, including mental health emergencies.
In recent months, following the death of Rogers, Pittsburgh Police have been discussing dispatching social workers and other mental health professionals to those calls.
"I'll be the first to admit, there are people in our profession that shouldn't be in our profession," Schubert said. "They're the ones that make us look bad. They're the ones who harm the community."
Around 100 community members came together on Sunday for the "Saving Lives, Keeping The Peace" community forum held at the First United Methodist Church in Shadyside.
There, local clergy, police, and Black leaders discussed police reform to ensure senseless deaths, like Rogers', are not in vain.
The family of Rogers was in attendance but said they felt slighted they were not asked to participate.
In their words, they feel it's because they have questions no one can answer.
"Why aren't there social service units in police departments that can address the needs of the homeless or the mentally challenged out there that are getting the police called on them?"
That was one such question posed by one of Rogers' family members, Tiffany Hale.
Five police officers were fired as a result of the death of Rogers, which was ruled accidental, and a federal lawsuit was filed against the police.
The family of Rogers said they have nothing to do with the federal lawsuit, they just want the officers to be held accountable.
"Firing them isn't truly enough," said Diamond Rogers. "They could go to another police department and do this to someone else."
Others in attendance echoed that feeling. They want more help rather than simply punishment.