Philly police beating caught on tape

Six Philadelphia policeman were removed from street duties after being captured on videotape beating three suspects in a drug-related shooting, Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said on Wednesday.

Ramsey told a news conference he expects more officers to be identified and reassigned to administrative duties after a detailed examination of the video, shot by a Fox TV news helicopter on Monday night.

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The video will be sent to Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham who will decide whether to file criminal charges, Ramsey said.

The three beating victims have been charged with assault, conspiracy and reckless endangerment following their involvement in the shooting, police said. Their attorney said they all had severe bruising from the attack.

A half-dozen police officers kicked and beat three men pulled from a car during a traffic stop as a TV helicopter taped the confrontation.

The video, shot by WTXF-TV, shows three police cars stopping a car Monday, two days after a city officer was shot to death responding to a bank robbery.

The tape shows about a dozen officers gathering around the vehicle. About a half-dozen officers hold two of the men on the ground. Both are kicked repeatedly, while one is seen being punched; one also appears to be struck with a baton.

The third man is also kicked and ends up on the ground.

Ramsey said Philadelphia officers have been on edge since Saturday, when Officer Stephen Liczbinski was fatally shot with an assault rifle after a robbery.

Police fatally shot one of the robbery suspects; another was arrested Sunday and a third man is still being sought.

"There is also a lot of heightened emotions since Sgt. Liczbinski was murdered on the streets just Saturday," Ramsey said.

Liczbinski was the third officer slain on duty in the city in the last two years.

POLICE COMMISSIONER Charles H. Ramsey yesterday asked Philadelphians not "to rush to judgment" when watching a video showing baton-wielding cops repeatedly striking, kicking and stomping three young men whom they had stopped after a triple shooting in Hunting Park.
"On the surface, it certainly does not look good in terms of the amount of force that was used," Ramsey said during a news conference with Mayor Nutter at police headquarters.