Trenton leaders ask police director ‘what’s the plan’
TRENTON » A day after the shocking midday ambush execution of a reputed gang member, city leaders want to know about acting police director Carol Russell’s plan to address the recent spike in violence.
The city has experienced three murders on Russell’s watch — two brazen broaddaylight murders within two weeks of each other, and the snuffing out of a Philly man during what police sources described as a drug deal gone awry.
“What’s Plan B if Plan A’s not going to work,” said George Muschal, the South Ward councilman and one of Russell’s biggest critics. He was referring to Russell’s much-talked-about strategy to implement community policing in a community the mayor said is “clamoring” for it.
“After 20 years, you should have a Plan A, a Plan B and a Plan C,” Muschal said. “She has yet talked to council. We’d like to see her plan. She hasn’t come out and spoken anything about these last couple homicides. She wants to take the helm. She should be out there speaking to the people. She wants the position. She’s wearing the big shoes. She hasn’t said anything.”
Muschal was responding to a statement issued by the mayor’s office a day after Tuesday’s murder of Crip gangster Shaela Johnson in a notorious stretch of the city.
The 19-year-old was hit at least 14 times by two gunmen who sprayed up the 800 block of Stuyvesant Avenue outside of a deli around 2:15 p.m.
In the statement, Mayor Reed Gusciora called on residents to provide intelligence to cops about the midday slay and also touted how acting police director Russell’s vision for community policing is instrumental in solving such crimes.
“We must have an effective community policing plan that builds trust between City residents and the police,” the mayor said. “It’s an outdated concept to have a police force isolated from daily neighborhood contact. We need more patrol units to have personal, one-on-one contact with our citizens, and we also need police leadership to be engaged in the streets. That is why I brought on longtime police veteran Carol Russell as Director to lead neighborhood engagement and community policing efforts.”
At-large councilman Jerell Blakeley, who this week suggested he may walk back his previous support of Russell, faulted city officials for being late to the game.
“I’m looking forward to seeing a plan, not a statement,” he said. “We’ve had how many murders in the last month, and all we are getting is silence followed by press statements. … Community policing cannot just be a buzzword. The fact of the matter is how is community policing going to stop someone from executing someone in broad daylight.”
The Trentonian called Russell to try to learn how her community policing plan will address the deadly violence that has taken place since she officially took over the job Nov. 5.
But Russell – like she has done before – didn’t respond to a message left on her cell phone.
Addressing the critics, the mayor said, the plan is “unfolding. I’m not going to get into a scrap with council about their opinions.”
Since Russell took over as police director, the city has experienced three murders and one wild morning gun battle that left a trail of shell casings and blood throughout the Wilbur section.
One person, Justice Ford, was arrested in connection with the shootout after police originally believed him to be a victim until surveillance showed otherwise.
Johnson, who was on probation at the time of her death, became the city’s latest casualty.
She was actually one of six people arrested in April last year following the attempted killing of Zaire Jackson, who was acquitted of murder charges in connection with the 2012 death of Irvin “Swirv” Jackson.
Johnson and others were charged with weapons offenses after police found them in a nearby apartment with guns shortly after Zaire was shot in the stomach.
After a judge released the group from jail on the weapons offenses, Johnson was arrested seven months later for allegedly dealing heroin.
Two weeks before, 28-yearold Quanmir Spears was shot in the head Nov. 14 during another midday ambush on the 300 block of Spring Street.
Police cut loose a person of interest in that case after it was determined he was likely one of Spears’ friends and wasn’t involved.
Police continue to investigate those two ambush-style murders, involving victims who were suspected of carrying out many unsolved capital city shootings.
Those killings were bookended around the Nov. 18 murder of 27-year-old Eric Severino of Philadelphia, who was shot and killed during a drug deal in the Wilbur section.
He was found in a white SUV suffering a gunshot wound to the chest, slipped into cardiac arrest and died at the hospital.
Earlier Wednesday afternoon, Russell and the mayor interviewed with at least two news stations about the city’s most recent murder.
The alleged solo on-camera interview with one news station was a rare thing for Russell, who has been under fire from city leaders questioning her police background and qualifications.
And it apparently spiraled into a free-for-all when other news cameras just showed up out of the blue, the mayor claimed.
News vans were seen camped outside of Trenton Police headquarters, but by the time The Trentonian arrived at police headquarters, the interview was done and Russell was no longer available.
The mayor vigorously denied City Hall called a news
conference and purposely excluded The Trentonian, which has repeatedly attempted to interview the acting police director.
She has declined interview requests, possibly fearing questions about her qualifications and involvement in an alleged race-baiting scheme decades ago while she was still on the force.
Russell was one of several Trenton cops investigated for allegedly plotting to entrap white cops for discrimination, but she was never charged.
The whatever-you-call-it at police headquarters with Russell and the mayor came a day after The Trentonian reported that city leaders were slamming the mayor’s and Russell’s still-in-the-works plan to bring back one of the axed deputy chief positions.
Some city leaders viewed the potential move as a way of putting “training wheels” on the acting police director.
The talked-about move was touted by the mayor as a way to free up Russell to do more community engagement to further her goal of community policing.
But the mayor’s critics contend the 285-member force is already stretched thin and requiring cops to walk beats and more regularly interact with residents could jeopardize city safety.
Gusciora acknowledged the city doesn’t have the manpower to have cops dedicated to walking the beat.
But he still believes community policing can be phased in “periodically” between cops’ other responsibilities.