Two police officers with the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) Civil Affairs Unit arrived at The Friends Center where a local activist group, No ICE Philly, was hosting a public meeting and one year anniversary celebration. In a move that left participants concerned and confused, the officers asked people on their way to the event their name and reason for being there. PPD is investigating the presence of the officers at the event. Niles Wilson, Senior Director of Law Enforcement Initiatives at CPE, spoke with The Philadelphia Inquirer about how civil affairs units can operate in a way that does not undermine public trust and safety:
Niles Wilson of the Center for Policing Equity, a California-based research and reform group, said a key question of any investigation into the matter should be why the officers were at the meeting at all.
“What intelligence did the police department have that would either lead these officers to do this, or were these officers acting on their own?” he asked. “That needs to be answered.”
The stakes reach beyond any particular meeting, he said.
A civil affairs unit is an asset, one that can help “towards transparency and building trust between the police department and the community,” Wilson said. But “anytime the public trust is lost in that service, then it disrupts public safety everywhere.”
Read the article at The Philadelphia Inquirer’s website (subscription required).