Acquitted Officers Sue Mayor, District Attorney And Police Commissioner, Claiming Defamation
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Five former members of the Philadelphia narcotics squad are now suing the mayor, police commissioner and district attorney for defamation. All five were acquitted earlier this year of corruption charges.
Attorney Chris Mannix says the five former narcotics squad members were defamed by D.A. Seth Williams in a letter he wrote about the corruption case that became public.
"Out of that letter, an avalanche of complete and utter destruction followed. Not just the criminal justice system, but the plaintiffs, their lives and reputations," Mannix said.
Also at issue in the case are statements that Mannix says were made by the mayor and Police Commissioner.
"You've got the police commissioner of Philadelphia saying its the worst corruption case he's ever seen and by the way, I think he was sold a bill of goods at best; I'm giving him some credit there and you have the mayor of Philadelphia calling them sick scumbags. They're never going to overcome that."
So the five officers are now suing the city and those officials for defamation, seeking monetary damages and what Mannix calls a "name clearing hearing."
"They have their jobs back, but they're never going to have their reputations back," Mannix explained. "We want their actual innocence declared."
The spokespeople for both Mayor Nutter and D.A. Williams said they could not comment on pending litigation.
The five officers are Perry Betts, Thomas Liciardello, Brian Reynolds, John Speiser and Michael Spicer. All five were acquitted in May of federal racketeering and other charges. They were awarded reinstatement this month.
Also joining in the lawsuit is their former supervisor, Lt. Robert Otto, who was not charged in the case.
