A Philadelphia police officer is facing dismissal after an internal affairs investigation found he failed to help a man who was later fatally struck in a hit-and-run in the city’s Olney neighbourhood.
Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel announced on Monday that the two-year veteran had been suspended for 30 days with the intention of dismissing him. The officer has not been publicly identified.
Bethel said the officer had failed to uphold the department’s code of ethics, including its duty to protect the public and safeguard lives and property.
“I can’t train compassion, I can’t train empathy,” the commissioner told reporters. “Unfortunately, there are times when individuals may not exhibit those qualities and as a result of that they can no longer be serving in this police department.”
Philadelphia police officer left man in road
The incident happened at about 1.40am on August 27 on the 5500 block of Rising Sun Avenue. The victim, a 48-year-old man, was walking with an “unsteady gait” in a cycle lane when an officer stopped to speak to him.
Investigators said the man fell during the encounter, leaving him partly in the cycle lane and partly in the road. The officer pulled up in front of him, got out of the vehicle and continued speaking to him before returning to the patrol car and driving away.
After the officer left, a passer-by briefly approached the man. Police said one vehicle stopped after seeing him in the road, but another drove around it and struck him before fleeing the scene.
Passers-by pulled the injured man from the roadway and called for help. The officer involved in the earlier encounter was the first to return to the scene, according to police, but did not provide aid or file a report.
First Deputy Commissioner John Stanford said the department only learned of the fatal crash hours later, when the medical examiner’s office contacted police. Investigators then reviewed footage from nearby businesses and city cameras.
“What we can see on video doesn’t fall in line with our policies as a police department,” Stanford said. “Very troubling to see there’s an officer that responds to this location and fails to render any type of aid prior to the individual being struck by that vehicle.”
Hit-and-run driver identified
Police have located the vehicle involved in the crash and identified its alleged driver. No charges had been filed as of Monday, and the suspected driver has not been publicly named.
The vehicle was previously described as a green Kia Sportage, manufactured between 2023 and 2026, which was seen travelling east on Tabor Road after the collision.
