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East Pittsburgh cop shoots & kills unarmed Blk 17yo.Update:Cop charged w/ criminal homicide…



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http://www.wtae.com/article/east-pi...anted-bond-homicide-case-antwon-rose/21971277


Why is East Pittsburgh officer free on bond in homicide case? Judge responds after highly unusual decision

East Pittsburgh police Officer Michael Rosfeld is free on unsecured bond -- something that criminal defense attorneys say is almost unheard of for a homicide suspect.

Senior District Judge Regis Welsh initially set a $250,000 unsecured bond for Rosfeld, who was arrested Wednesday and charged in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Antwon Rose. The officer did not have to put up any money for his release.

"I make my decision on bond based on circumstances, based on prior record, and based on the possibility or probability that a defendant might flee," Welsh said. "In this case, there was no question in my mind: The defendant was not a flight risk."

Welsh added, "The guy turned himself in, showed up for court this morning with a lawyer. It's obvious he's going to answer these charges."

Asked if he had ever issued an unsecured bond in a homicide case before, Welsh said he could not recall doing so in his 43 years as a judge.

"I'm not going to defend myself to anyone except to God and the president judge," Welsh said. "I'm very comfortable with what I did. If either side doesn't like it, they know what to do."

Mike Manko, a spokesman for District Attorney Stephen Zappala, said that the DA's office "vigorously argued against bond" for Rosfeld.

"The Pennsylvania Constitution says that if you are charged with a crime where the maximum sentence is life in prison, you are not entitled to bond," Manko said. "We do think it was an improper ruling by the magistrate. We are not going to contest it at this time. We do plan on dealing with it in the near future."

Later in the day, Allegheny County President Judge Jeffrey Manning modified the conditions of Rosfeld's bond by adding an order for electronic home monitoring.

That order came after the DA's office raised concerns about "a jurisdictional issue with the way that bond was set" by Welsh, according to Manko.

Following the electronic monitoring order, Zappala's spokesman said that the district attorney would not appeal the bond decision.
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https://triblive.com/local/alleghen...-pittsburgh-officer-charged-in-teens-shooting

Protesters descend on home of East Pittsburgh Officer Michael Rosfeld

Nearly 30 protesters converged Wednesday evening outside the home of the East Pittsburgh police officer charged with homicide in the shooting death of 17-year-old Antwon Rose.

The group brought flowers and cardboard gravestones, which they placed in front of large bushes shielding Michael Rosfeld's two-story Penn Hills property. They chanted for about 20 minutes before departing.

Penn Hills police watched over the protest and stepped in momentarily to remove items placed on Rosfeld's property.

Protesters returned to the house late Wednesday, chanting "No justice, no peace." They left shortly after 11 p.m.

Authorities earlier Wednesday charged Rosfeld with criminal homicide, accusing him of fatally shooting an unarmed Rose on June 19. Video surveillance showed Rose running from a vehicle Rosfeld stopped on suspicion of being involved in an earlier drive-by shooting in North Braddock. Rosfeld is free on $250,000 unsecured bond, though prosecutors said they plan to contest that ruling.

A few of Rosfeld's neighbors stood on their porches Wednesday night, watching the protest.

"You can't disagree with them," said neighbor John Cutruzzula, adding he typically saw Rosfeld only when the officer jogged.

Cutruzzula said he doesn't mind the increased activity on his street.

"They're peaceful, not destroying property," he said. "They're not hurting nothing — they're saying their piece; that's the name of the game."
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Not goating shit about a fucking charge we need a conviction on this one.
 
I am finding it hard to care about this one.

The car was involved and they have one of the guys on video taking the shot.

In the end the harm they were causing the community is what concerns me the most.

Fucking drive-by's
 
I don’t find it hard to care about someone running, with their back to police, not causing any threat to the police and they put 3 in his back.. dead

regardless of if he is a criminal or not, or whether he is armed, that gun could be strapped to his waist, fact is, he showed no gun and showed no threat besides running... there was no reason at all for him to pull the trigger
 
Police were making death threats to Marilyn Mosby's children for charging those cops.


The cop will get off. The kid is associated with drive bys.

Theyll prolly fire him after it's all over cuz of his past, and his confrontational not giving a fuck attitude. But he not going to jail
 
Can police officers shoot at fleeing individuals?

Only in very narrow circumstances. A seminal 1985 Supreme Court case, Tennessee vs. Garner, held that the police may not shoot at a fleeing person unless the officer reasonably believes that the individual poses a significant physical danger to the officer or others in the community. That means officers are expected to take other, less-deadly action during a foot or car pursuit unless the person being chased is seen as an immediate safety risk.

In other words, a police officer who fires at a fleeing man who a moment earlier murdered a convenience store clerk may have reasonable grounds to argue that the shooting was justified. But if that same robber never fired his own weapon, the officer would likely have a much harder argument.

“You don’t shoot fleeing felons. You apprehend them unless there are exigent circumstances — emergencies — that require urgent police action to safeguard the community as a whole,” said Greg Gilbertson, a police practices expert and criminal justice professor at Centralia College in Washington state.

Gilbertson said he thought the video of the shooting of Walter Scott in North Charleston, South Carolina, was “insane” given what he said was the apparent lack of justification.

Though the legal standard has been established, courts continue to hear cases involving use of force against fleeing felons under a variety of circumstances. Just last year, the Supreme Court sided with police officers who were sued over a high-speed, two-state chase in Arkansas that ended with the deaths of the fleeing driver and his passenger.
 
So far based on the evidence...


Yall getting fooled by that chunky cheeked photo, we dont know how many bodies is tied to someone KNOWN for pulling drive-bys and he damn sure doesnt deserve the protesting.


Waste of energy, this is not Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice or Philando Castille.

This is someone that went looking for a specific outcome only to have karma bite him in the ass.


Like innocent women and children dont get shot in their backs during drive-bys.

Cases like this are why BLM wound up looking and being ineffective beyond being a minor inconvenience. We let Tamir and Sandra get covered up and forgotten for folks like this.

Fuck all that.
 
http://www.tampabay.com/shot-in-the...s-ap_nationalfb33a7eb824b47c492f01130c73878eb

Shot in the back: When can police fire on fleeing suspects?

CHICAGO (AP) — In decades past, police officers who shot suspects as they ran away were more likely to expect praise than criminal charges. And while the legal landscape and public opinion have shifted in recent years, it's never a certainty that such shootings will result in officer indictments.

Prosecutors moved quickly to charge a white officer with criminal homicide Wednesday in last week's death of an unarmed black teenager who was shot in the back while fleeing a traffic stop near Pittsburgh. In Georgia, another white police officer accused of fatally shooting a black man who was running away was fired and jailed .

In two other fatal police shootings — on Monday in Galveston, Texas , and on Saturday in Minneapolis — it remains to be seen whether charges will come. Those shootings also involved people who were running away.

A look at some of the history and legal principles behind such cases:

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OLD LAWS AUTHORIZED SHOOTINGS

The Allegheny County district attorney was direct when he announced charges against East Pittsburgh officer Michael Rosfeld.

"You do not shoot someone in the back if they are not a threat to you," Stephen Zappala told reporters.

But in the 1970s, officers were often authorized under state law to shoot a person in the back to keep the suspect from evading arrest even if the individual clearly posed no threat. The killing of Edward Garner in 1974 changed that.

Memphis police officer Elton Hymon was responding to a report of a prowler one night that year when he saw the 15-year-old sprint across the backyard of a home that had just been broken into.

The officer later told investigators that he was quite sure Garner wasn't armed. But on grounds that Garner was about to elude capture, he shouted, "Police! Halt!" And as the burglary suspect hopped a fence, the officer opened fire, striking Garner in the back of the head. The shooting was deemed justified.

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LEGAL THINKING EVOLVES

After winding through lower courts for a decade, Garner's case eventually led to a landmark decision by the Supreme Court in 1985.

The justices ruled 6-3 that shooting fleeing suspects who are not an imminent threat violates the person's constitutional rights. They said officers can use lethal force to stop a fleeing felon only if they have reasonable grounds to think the suspect is a danger to police or bystanders. And they added that officers should, if possible, shout out a warning before firing.

Prosecutors in the East Pittsburgh case did not believe Rosfeld had reasonable grounds to consider 17-year-old Antwon Rose Jr. a threat. The teen was a passenger in a car that was suspected of involvement in a drive-by shooting. Witnesses say Rose put out his hand to emphasize to the officer that he did not have a gun before jumping out of the car and running away.

___

AN OFFICER'S STATE OF MIND

A key issue in police shootings is whether a suspect was a threat or whether an officer assessed that threat properly. Legally speaking, the answer is complicated.

Among the Supreme Court cases that offered guidance was Graham v. Connor . In the 1989 decision, the justices said that an officer's fear in the heat of the moment, not just the actual threat, was relevant. Officers, they said, "are often forced to make split-second judgments." And the justices concluded that the reasonableness of an officer's use of force should be judged "from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight."

That could mean an officer who shoots a fleeing suspect could be off the hook legally if he or she truly believed the suspect had a gun, say, in a pocket or waistband, but turned out to be wrong.

The need to somehow demonstrate what was inside an officer's head when he fired and to prove that an officer committed a crime beyond a reasonable doubt leaves little hope that an officer will get charged, said Chicago-based civil rights attorney Andrew M. Stroth. He said he often tells that to families he represents. And even if an officer is charged, he braces them for the difficulty of obtaining a conviction.

"There's also just an inherent bias in favor of police by prosecutors," Stroth said.

___

STATES MAKE OWN JUDGMENTS

Each state fashions its own laws spelling out when officers can use deadly force. There is no federal lethal-force law. The Supreme Court has helped guide many states in the development of their laws, but states still have tremendous leeway over what types of standards to adopt, or whether to adopt them at all.

A 2015 Amnesty International report on the use of lethal force by U.S. law enforcement found that nine states had no lethal-force laws and that more than a dozen had laws so weak they fell short of Supreme Court standards. Prosecutors in many of those states ended up relying heavily on use-of-force procedures drawn up by police departments to help them assess if officers could be charged criminally, the report said.

Many international human-rights organizations have long urged countries, states and municipalities to craft use-of-force laws with a clear, stark provision that police should use lethal force "only as an absolute last resort."

No state in the U.S. has a use-of-force law with such wording, according to the report.

Even when officers are charged , convictions are rare. Officers were acquitted in the 2016 shootings of Philando Castile in Minnesota and Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In Cincinnati, two juries failed to reach a verdict in the case of a University of Cincinnati officer who was tried twice for murder after killing Samuel DuBose in 2015.
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https://triblive.com/local/alleghen...t-attorneys-criticism-offices-closed-at-least

East Pittsburgh officials mum on DA's criticism, offices closed, protest shuts down expressway

The day after Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said East Pittsburgh Police has no policies, the tiny borough's elected officials have gone silent while its staff have gone missing.

However, protest marches in the name of justice for Antwon Rose continued in East Pittsburgh on Thursday night when a group of around 75 people marched up the Tri-Boro Expressway into Turtle Creek from the East Pittsburgh Borough Building.

About 8 p.m., Mayor Bill Peduto of the city of Pittsburgh arrived and listened to the concerns of protesters who argued that it's unfair that East Pittsburgh Police Officer Michael Rosfeld is on house arrest, rather than being held in jail without bond.

Peduto called on the court to increase Rosfeld's bond or revoke it. Rosfeld was released Wednesday on $250,000 unsecured bond.

The group of protesters demanded justice for Rose, the 17-year-old Woodland Hills High School student who was fatally shot while running from Rosfeld on June 19. Before marching, protesters left stuffed animals, candles and homemade memorial signs in front of the police station, which has remained empty most of the week.

Zappala made his policies criticism Wednesday morning during a news conference held to announce charges against Rosfeld.

Nicholas Evashavik, borough solicitor, has told council members not to speak to the media about Zappala's comment, East Pittsburgh Council President Dennis Simon told the Trib on Thursday.

The borough plans to send out a news release to address it, Simon said. As of 7 p.m. Thursday, no such release had gone out.

Meanwhile, the borough office, normally open until 2:30 p.m., has been closed for at least two days. Trib reporters who went to the office before that time on Wednesday and Thursday found it locked and empty.

East Pittsburgh police cars were seen Thursday afternoon at the Turtle Creek Police headquarters, a three-minute drive away.
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https://triblive.com/local/alleghen...op-who-fatally-shot-antwon-rose-to-be-sued-in

Michael Rosfeld, cop who fatally shot Antwon Rose, to be sued in unrelated case


Two men arrested last year by Michael Rosfeld when he worked for the University of Pittsburgh police department plan to file a lawsuit against the officer who was charged with homicide in an unrelated case this week, an attorney said Thursday.

Max Petrunya, an attorney with Robert Peirce & Associates, said the lawsuit will be filed on behalf of two of three men Rosfeld arrested in a Dec. 9 incident at the Garage Door Saloon in Oakland. The bar also will be named as a defendant.

Petrunya did not provide details about the nature of the lawsuit or say whether it would be filed in Allegheny County or federal court. He anticipated filing the suit next week.

In criminal complaints filed against Timothy Riley, Jacob Schilling and Daniel Humphrey in the Garage Door incident, Rosfeld wrote that he responded to the bar just before 10:30 p.m. to assist another officer. Rosfeld wrote that when he arrived, the first officer had Riley, Schilling and Humphrey up against the wall of the bar.

Rosfeld wrote that the three were intoxicated, and he placed Riley into custody “for (the) officer's safety, as he was extremely belligerent” and yelling at the officer and bar owner Mark Welshonse.

Welshonse told police that he had Riley, Schilling and Humphrey, as well as a fourth man, thrown out of the bar for attempting to fight with other patrons, according to the complaint. He alleged that one man, later identified as Hunt, kicked a glass door.

The complaint alleges that Hunt took off and the other three men began to attack a Saloon employee.

Schilling, Riley and Humphrey were charged with disorderly conduct, trespassing, public drunkenness and simple assault. All charges were withdrawn Dec. 21.

Rosfeld was charged Wednesday with homicide in the June 19 shooting death of Antwon Rose. Rosfeld, now an East Pittsburgh police officer, shot and killed Rose when he ran from a traffic stop.

Rose, 17, was unarmed and running away when Rosfeld fired three shots, which struck him in the face, elbow and back. The gunshot to his back was fatal.

S. Lee Merritt, an attorney for Rose's family, said his investigators have uncovered “a significant history of abuse of authority, and a pattern that should have signaled East Pittsburgh not to hire this officer.”

Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., who filed the charges against Rosfeld, said only that his investigators have a copy of Rosfeld's personnel file and that some of Rosfeld's past behavior concerned him.

Rosfeld's attorney, Pat Thomassey, could not be reached for comment
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http://www.post-gazette.com/news/cr...appala-district-attorney/stories/201806270226

Charging officers for fatal shootings a rarity in Zappala’s 20-year tenure as DA

During his 20-year tenure, Allegheny County District Attorney, Stephen A. Zappala Jr. has rarely brought charges against police officers who have killed people in the line of duty.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette combed through its archives to compile a list of some of the police homicide cases overseen by Mr. Zappala since he took office in January 1998. Of the 22 cases, including the charges filed this week against East Pittsburgh police Officer Michael Rosfeld in the June 19 fatal shooting of unarmed teen Antwon Rose II, one is in the court system, one remains under review, one resulted in a conviction and one in an acquittal. Mr. Zappala did not bring charges in the other 18.

“All of the cases you mentioned have resulted in thoughtful and thorough reviews to determine whether there was justification,” Mike Manko, the DA’s spokesman, wrote in a statement. “In each case where that review resulted in justification, the District Attorney determined that there was a direct threat to the safety of the officer or officers involved and/or a direct threat to others.”

Here is a summary of those cases, listed chronologically and identified by the deceased’s name:

• Todd Norris — Fawn police Officer Benjamin Waugaman shot Mr. Norris during a May 17, 1998 traffic stop, after Mr. Norris grabbed Officer Waugaman’s arm and dragged the officer alongside his moving truck. Then-Allegheny County Coroner Cyril H. Wecht found Officer Waugaman’s actions were justified, and Mr. Zappala did not file charges.

• Ralph Hale Jr. — When Ross police asked Mr. Hale to step out of his car after he had shot his girlfriend and set her house on fire on Aug. 5, 1998, he refused and fired a shot from his handgun. Sgt. Robert Martin and officers Robert Bellan, Thomas Koedel and David Syska fired back. Mr. Hale died eight days later from his injuries. Mr. Zappala did not file charges.

• Raynard L. Bloxson — Wilkinsburg police Officer Michael Mincin shot and killed Mr. Bloxson after a gun fell out of his backpack during a traffic stop on Sept. 25, 1998. After police pulled him over, Mr. Bloxson reached for the gun and Officer Mincin shot him twice. The inquest concluded the shooting was justified, and Mr. Zappala did not file charges.

• Deron Grimmitt Sr. — .Pittsburgh police Officer Jeffrey Cooperstein fired four shots at the car Mr. Grimmitt was driving during a high-speed chase Downtown involving several police units. Officer Cooperstein later told investigators he fired as Mr. Grimmit’s car sped toward him as he stood outside his own police cruiser. Mr. Grimmit’s car crashed, killing him. Officer Cooperstein was charged with homicide and acquitted.

• Jerry Jackson — The district attorney’s office reopened its investigation into the April 6, 1995 fatal shooting of Jerry Jackson on Jan. 6, 1999. Pittsburgh Housing Authority police Officer John Charmo shot Mr. Jackson 13 times in the Armstrong Tunnels at the end of a 5-mile high-speed chase. After the first attempt to prosecute Officer Charmo ended in a mistrial, Mr. Zappala offered him a plea deal. Officer Charmo pleaded guilty in October 2001 and, with time served, was out of jail by Christmas.

• Gilbert Carswell — Homestead police Officer Frank Snyder killed Mr. Carsell in Munhall on Nov. 18, 1999, after police responded to a domestic dispute between Mr. Carswell and his estranged wife Tonya Carswell. Officer Snyder said he drew his gun as Mr. Carswell charged at him and fired accidentally after they collided. Mr. Zappala did not charge him.

• William S. Stanley — North Versailles Sgt. James Matrazzo shot Mr. Stanley in Wilkinsburg on Nov. 21, 1999, after Mr. Stanley led police officers on a high-speed chase in a stolen car. He died a week later. Of the seven police officers on the scene, only Sgt. Matrazzo fired at Mr. Stanley, who was unarmed. Mr. Zappala decided not to charge Sgt. Matrazzo, citing shifting statements by civilian witnesses and the consistency of Sgt. Matrazzo’s account.

• Michael Platt — Off-duty Pittsburgh police officers Phil Mercurio and Stephen Matakovich fatally shot Mr. Platt after he opened fire on a crowded Strip District street and mortally wounded an Allentown man on July 9, 2000. The officers were cleared by a coroner’s inquest and not charged.

• James B. Lewis — After an Oct. 29, 2001 car chase, Mr. Lewis refused to get out of the car and drop the weapon he was carrying. After Mr. Lewis fired a shot, according to witness testimony, three Pittsburgh officers fired 11 times, killing him. Dr. Wecht determined the officers’ actions were justified. Mr. Zappala did not prosecute them.

• Michael Hunter Jr. — As Pittsburgh police attempted to arrest Mr. Hunter, a suspected drug dealer, on Sept. 7, 2002, they said he drew a revolver, pointed it at police, and fired a shot after they instructed him to drop his weapon. Officers Martin Devine, Scott Love and Lawrence Mercurio returned fire, fatally wounding him. Dr. Wecht cleared the officers and Mr. Zappala did not prosecute them.

• Bernard Rogers — Pittsburgh Housing Authority police Officer Tonyea Curry killed Mr. Rogers on Nov. 15, 2002, after a violent confrontation. In 2002, Dr. Wecht recommended that Officer Curry be prosecuted, but Mr. Zappala decided not to file charges. A year later, after reopening the inquest and viewing new evidence, Dr. Wecht’s recommendation changed, and Mr. Zappala did not charge Officer Curry.

• Nicholas Haniotakis — Pittsburgh police Sgt. Terrence Donnelly and state Trooper Samuel Nassan said Mr. Haniotakis tried to run them over when they pulled him over for a DUI stop on March 15, 2009, prompting them to shoot him multiple times. Mr. Zappala determined the officers had used the appropriate amount of force.

• John Shick — A University of Pittsburgh police sergeant killed Mr. Shick at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic after Mr. Shick went on a shooting rampage on March 8, 2012, killing one employee and wounding seven. Mr. Zappala did not charge the sergeant.

• Charles Hull — After police helped his girlfriend escape from his Penn Hills house on Jan. 27, 2014, Hull stood on his porch and aimed his rifle at the officers. After telling him repeatedly to drop his weapon, an officer shot and killed him. Mr. Zappala did not charge the officer.

• Adrian Williams — After a car chase on April 21, 2014, Pittsburgh police Officer Christopher Kertis asked Mr. Williams to drop the weapon he was holding. When he refused, Officer Kertis shot him twice. Mr. Williams threw down the weapon and Officer Kertis fired four more times. Mr. Zappala determined Officer Kertis was justified in shooting Mr. Williams.

• Leslie Sapp — The US Marshal’s Western Pennsylvania Fugitive Task Force attempted to arrest Sapp, an alleged rapist, at his Knoxville home on Jan. 6, 2015. Sapp adopted a shooting stance with what was later discovered to be a pellet gun. Officers — including a deputy, Richard Dwyer, who later tested positive for signs of cocaine — shot and killed Sapp. Mr. Zappala determined Sapp’s death was justified and did not bring charges.
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• Tyrone Harris — Pittsburgh police officers pursued Mr. Harris on June 22, 2015 after he carjacked a vehicle, engaged in a shooting spree, and exchanged gunfire with law enforcement officials. During the car chase, he was shot and killed. Mr. Zappala did not charge the officers and the county honored them for their bravery.

• Raymone Davis — Pittsburgh police Officer Lisa Luncinski fatally shot Mr. Davis on Dec. 4, 2015, after he burst through the front door of a bank on Mount Washington, drew his gun, and demanded money. Mr. Zappala determined her actions were justified.

• Bruce Kelley, Jr. — Port Authority police Officer Dominic Rivotti and Sgt. Brian O’Malley killed Mr. Kelley in Wilkingsburg on Jan. 31, 2016 after they say he stabbed a Port Authority police dog to death. The DA cleared the two officers.

• Christopher Thompkins — Pittsburgh police came to Mr. Thompkins’ Larimer house on Jan. 22, 2017 to respond to reports of a burglary. Mr. Thompkins came downstairs firing a gun, and police officers shot him dead. Brenda Richmond, Mr. Thompkins’ ex-wife, said he was trying to shoot the intruder. The case is still under review and Mr. Manko wrote he is not permitted to comment on it.

• Mark Daniels — Pittsburgh police Officer Gino A. Macioce killed Mr. Daniels in Homewood on Feb. 11, 2018 after Mr. Daniels fired three shots at him. Mr. Zappala determined the officer’s actions were justified.

• Antwon Rose II — Antwon, 17, of Rankin was shot three times June 19, 2018 by East Pittsburgh police Officer Michael Rosfeld during a traffic stop. Investigators said the officer pulled over a car in which Antwon was a passenger because it was believed to have been involved 13 minutes earlier in a drive-by shooting in North Braddock. Antwon, whom Mr. Zappala cleared of any involvement in the incident, was unarmed and fleeing when Officer Rosfeld shot him fatally in the back. Mr. Zappala charged the officer June 27 with homicide.
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http://www.post-gazette.com/news/cr...ical-incidents-Jay-Costa/stories/201806280141

East Pittsburgh to review police operations in wake of Antwon Rose shooting

Following criticism by the Allegheny County district attorney stemming from a fatal shooting by one of their police officers, East Pittsburgh officials said Friday that they are reviewing their police department.

“We are engaged in an evaluation of the operations of our police department in a determined spirit of correcting any shortcomings that we find,” the statement said. “We wish to convey to the residents of our borough and our greater community that we are committed to learn from these very difficult lessons and improve our management of our local government.”

In the statement, issued by council, the mayor and the police chief, the officials acknowledged what they called “the serious allegations directed at our management of the borough police department,” by District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr.

“We endeavor to come to terms with the startling and dramatic events that have occurred over the past two weeks,” it said.

At a news conference Wednesday announcing a homicide charge against East Pittsburgh Officer Michael Rosfeld for fatally shooting Antwon Rose II, Mr. Zappala raised concerns about a lack of departmental policies addressing critical incidents like use of force.

Officer Rosfeld shot Antwon, 17, of Rankin, in the back as he fled from a traffic stop in East Pittsburgh on June 19. Antwon was a passenger in a car that matched the description of a vehicle used in a drive-by shooting 13 minutes earlier in North Braddock. Antwon was not involved in that shooting, but another passenger in the car, Zaijuan Hester, 17, of Swissvale, was charged.

Officer Rosfeld was released on electronic home monitoring pending resolution of his case and is on unpaid leave from the department.

David A. Harris, a law professor at the University of Pittsburgh said it’s essential to have written policies and procedures in a police department.

“If you don’t have a policy, you really haven’t given your officers the guidance they need to do their jobs,” Mr. Harris said “And as a result, you can’t train them to do the job you want. And you can’t supervise them. And then you can’t hold them accountable for anything.”

“If you don’t have rules, regulations and standards within a police department, you are essentially saying, ‘Here is a gun, here is a badge, go and do whatever you want to do,’ ” said Elizabeth Pittinger, executive director of Pittsburgh’s Citizen Police Review Board. “It’s irresponsible, and it’s negligent. That kind of negligent act that leads to the death of someone is unforgivable. You must have some accountability.”

The failure to have such policies in place, Mr. Zappala said, was concerning, and he said he was going to refer the issue to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

“A police department is a paramilitary organization that runs on rules and regulations. For East Pittsburgh to reveal following the shooting death of Antwon Rose that they have no policies and procedures to cover critical incidents and use of force, runs contrary to their mission to protect and serve,” said Mike Manko, Mr. Zappala’s spokesman. “If there are minimum standards to become a police officer then perhaps it’s time for the state legislature to step up and establish minimum standards for a municipality to operate their own police department.”

On Friday, state Sen. Jay Costa D-Forest Hills, announced he is developing legislation to standardize and modernize police training for officers across the state.

In a statement, he said the legislation would create specialized units to respond to crisis situations like officer-involved shootings and provide mental health counseling for police and community members; develop a statewide database that details officers’ disciplinary actions, misconduct and complaints; and create a statewide use-of-force policy that would apply if municipalities lack their own policy.

Sen. Costa is seeking co-sponsors for the bill.

Mr. Harris said having good policies in place gives officers benchmarks for how to operate safely and efficiently in the field.

“It actually could not be more important,” he said.

Generally, smaller departments can take model policies and best practices from national law enforcement groups — like the International Association of Chiefs of Police — to create their procedure manuals, Mr. Harris said.

“Then you take that and customize it to fit because not all police departments are the same.”

In small departments — those with fewer than 15 officers, often with many working part-time — policies are not priority, Mr. Harris said.

“They’re just holding it together, and you can imagine having well-thought-out policies might not rise to the top of the to-do list if you don’t have them,” he said.

He continued, “It becomes a very good argument for consolidating them [the departments] or eliminating them.”

If East Pittsburgh is lacking those policies, Mr. Harris said, it could face a potentially large verdict or settlement in a suit over Antwon’s death.

“You could have exposed your city to catastrophic loss,” he said. “If I’m an insurance company, I want to know the agency has done, at least, the basics to protect themselves against these kinds of catastrophes.”
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https://triblive.com/news/adminpage...ent-myriad-of-death-threats-against-officials

East Pittsburgh officials break silence, lament 'myriad of death threats' against officials

East Pittsburgh Borough officials have received "a myriad of death threats" and altered daily operations amid calls for justice and accountability in the killing of 17-year-old Antwon Rose, the borough's law firm said Friday.

A statement attributed to the elected officials of East Pittsburgh and its police chief emphasized that the borough is taking seriously the "tragic events" and allegations directed at the management of the borough's police department.

East Pittsburgh Police Officer Michael Rosfeld — the 30-year-old Penn Hills man charged with criminal homicide Wednesday in Rose's death — will remain on unpaid leave while the criminal proceedings play out in court, said the statement provided by the borough's Downtown Pittsburgh-based law firm, Evashavik, DiLucente & Tetlow LLC.

"We endeavor to come to terms with the startling and dramatic events that have occurred over the past two weeks," borough officials said in the statement. "We continue to strive to maintain borough operations while presented with numerous protests and the myriad of death threats directed to borough leadership which have caused us to make certain changes to our operations."

The statement did not specify the types of changes underway.

"We are engaged in an evaluation of the operations of our police department in a determined spirit of correcting any shortcomings that we find," the statement said.

A borough attorney reached by the Tribune-Review declined to comment beyond the newly released statement.

East Pittsburgh officials also expressed their sympathy for the family and friends of Rose, a Woodland Hills High School student one English class shy of graduating , and their "profound sorrow" over the teenager's death.

The statement broke days of silence by borough officials during the turbulent aftermath of the June 19 killing of Rose, who was shot while running from Rosfeld.

Soon after stopping a jitney car believed to be involved in a North Braddock shooting earlier that night, Rosfeld ordered the 20-year-old driver to the ground, and two teenagers ran from the car. Rosfeld opened fire, striking Rose three times. The other person kept running.

Rose, who was unarmed when he was shot but had an empty handgun magazine in one of his pockets, was pronounced dead a short time later at UPMC McKeesport hospital.

The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office ruled Rose's death a homicide two days later.

The shooting of Rose, who is black, has led to numerous demonstrations in and around Pittsburgh and sparked vigorous public debate nationally. Rose was eulogized in a private funeral service Monday.

The borough office, normally open until 2:30 p.m., has been closed for at least two days. Trib reporters who went to the office before that time on Wednesday and Thursday found it locked and empty.

East Pittsburgh police cars were seen Thursday afternoon at the Turtle Creek Police headquarters, a three-minute drive away.

On Wednesday, District Attorney Stephen Zappala rebuked East Pittsburgh for having no policies "for anything, as far as we know," describing the borough's setup as "a very dangerous situation."

Zappala noted the borough cannot be held criminally responsible for Rosfeld's actions but added that "civilly, they've got a lot of answering to do."

The DA further lamented that Allegheny County police procedures vary widely across 118 individual departments.

Legislation is in the works in an effort to enhance and streamline police training across the region.

In Friday's statement, East Pittsburgh officials thanked bordering agencies for the "positive support that neighboring municipalities have extended to us."

The statement emphasized that the borough was cooperating fully with Allegheny County Police detectives.

Rosfeld is out on a $250,000 unsecured bond and on house arrest until his next court appearance.

"We recognize that Officer Rosfeld has a right to due process of the law as the criminal prosecution proceeds," the statement said. "We wish to convey to the residents of our borough and our greater community that we are committed to learn from these very difficult lessons and improve our management of our local government."

In Friday's statement, East Pittsburgh officials thanked bordering agencies for the "positive support that neighboring municipalities have extended to us."

The statement emphasized that the borough was cooperating fully with Allegheny County Police detectives.

Rosfeld is out on a $250,000 unsecured bond and on house arrest until his next court appearance.

"We recognize that Officer Rosfeld has a right to due process of the law as the criminal prosecution proceeds," the statement said. "We wish to convey to the residents of our borough and our greater community that we are committed to learn from these very difficult lessons and improve our management of our local government."
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http://www.post-gazette.com/news/cr...ls-Coalition-revoke-bail/stories/201806300076

Black elected officials call for bail to be revoked for East Pittsburgh officer involved in teen shooting death

Members of the Pittsburgh Black Elected Officials Coalition added their voices Saturday to the call for revoking bail for Michael H. Rosfeld, the East Pittsburgh police officer accused of killing teenager Antwon Rose II during a traffic stop June 19.

Officer Rosfeld, 30, was charged Wednesday with homicide after District Attorney Stephen Zappala determined he had no reason to shoot Antwon, 17, three times as he ran away from the traffic stop. Officer Rosfeld had stopped the car because he suspected it had been involved in a shooting in Borth Braddock minutes earlier and ordered the driver to get on the ground, but Antwon and another passenger ran.

At the officer’s arraignment Wednesday, District Judge Regis Welsh Jr. released him on $250,000 bond with electronic home monitoring. In a news release, the elected officials asked for Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning to revoke the bond.

“The message that the house arrest portrays to the greater Allegheny County community is that the taking of a young man’s life is not a serious enough infraction as to warrant serious, immediate repercussions,” the coalition said. “Based on the terrible nature and character of this offense, it is imperative that Officer Rosfeld be refused bail.”

The coalition includes state Reps. Jake Wheatley, D-Hill District, and Ed Gainey, D-Lincoln Lemington, and Pittsburgh Councilmen Ricky Burgess and Daniel Lavelle.

Antwon’s family, groups who have been protesting the shooting and Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto all have asked for Officer Rosfeld’s bond to be revoked.
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