for BigTrial.net
Twitter fans were the first to discover that Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw was allegedly slugging it out with Deputy Police Commissioner Christine Coulter.
On Sept. 8th, reporter Steve Keeley of Fox 29 initially tweeted that the two top cops had squared off. And that after an "argument/disagreement over handling of a shooting incident, Coulter resigned," Keeley tweeted, and she was supposedly packing up her office.
That same day, Sharrie Williams, a news anchor at 6ABC quoting sources, tweeted that Coulter "expressed disappointment" that she was being demoted to chief inspector and "is considering retiring."
Later that day, however, Coulter told Keely, "I did not resign. No decision has been made yet."
Coulter, who joined the police department in 1988, became the first woman to lead the department when she assumed the role of acting police commissioner in August 2019, after the sudden resignation of former P.C. Richard Ross.
Four months later, Coulter returned to her duties as deputy police commissioner after Mayor Kenney hired Outlaw in December 2019 to be the new P.C. But if you believe Twitter, and who doesn't, the two don't get along.
A week after the alleged blow-up between Outlaw and Coulter, Sgt. Eric Gripp, a police department spokesperson, said that Christine Coulter has not resigned or been demoted. And that Coulter continues to serve the department as deputy police commissioner of organizational services.
Gripp also said he has heard but can't confirm or deny any of the rumors that Coulter hung onto her title as deputy police commissioner after reported interventions on her behalf from [a] Mayor Jim Kenney; [b] Managing Director Tumar Alexander and [c] unspecified City Council members.
Joe Grace, a spokesperson for City Council President Darrell Clarke, said he was unaware of any intervention by any City Council members on Coulter's behalf.
"I haven't heard that," Grace said.
The only rumor that Sgt. Gripp hadn't heard was the one that I started, that shortly before her death, which suspiciously also occurred on Sept. 8th, that the late Queen Elizabeth had personally intervened on Coulter's behalf.
Outlaw has had a history of not getting along with her deputy commissioners. Before she even got to town, she reportedly had then-Managing Director Brian Abernathy fire Deputy Police Commissioner Joe Sullivan.
Since she's been here, she's gotten rid of former Deputy Commissioner Dennis Wilson, First Deputy Commissioner Melvin Singleton, and Deputy Commissioner Ben Naish.
Her latest clash with Deputy Commissioner Christine Coulter has prompted all kinds of rumors that haven't been confirmed. But a motion filed yesterday in U.S. District Court may shed some light on why Coulter and Outlaw aren't getting along.
The "plaintiff's motion for severe sanctions after second violation of the court's order and dissemination of sealed depositions" was filed by former homicide detective Derrick Jacobs, who is suing the city of Philadelphia, Outlaw and the Police Department, alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
In his lawsuit, Jacobs contends that the city failed to pay him overtime for hours worked while on "on call status," and that in not paying him, the defendants were retaliating against Jacobs because he was a whistleblower. The lawsuit names as defendants, the city, the Police Department, Wilson and Coulter.
During his lawsuit against the city, Jacobs, acting as his own attorney, deposed former deputy Police Commissioner Dennis Wilson, as well as Deputy Police Commissioner Christine Coulter.
In an April 4th videotaped deposition in the case of Derrick Jacobs v. City of Philadelphia et al in U.S. District Court, Wilson spoke out for the first time about the teargassing of protesters on the Vine Street Expressway on June 1, 2020 during the George Floyd riots.
The official story, as promulgated at a joint press conference held in 2020 by Kenney and Outlaw, is that the decision to deploy tear gas during the George Floyd riots against protesters who were illegally blocking the highway during rush hour was made solely by Wilson.
At the press conference, then Deputy Police Commissioner Wilson came to the podium and took the entire blame for the teargassing.
"I didn't call the commissioner, I gave the approval," Wilson said. "And it was me and me alone."
"Falling on the sword," was how Outlaw characterized it at the press conference before she dispatched Wilson with a condescending pat on the back.
So why did Wilson take the fall, along with a voluntary demotion to chief inspector, and an annual pay cut of $26,000, from $206,000 down to $180,000?
Because, as Big Trial has previously reported, according to police sources, Wilson had been told that District Attorney Krasner was planning to arrest him. And if convicted, under Pennsylvania law, Wilson stood to not only lose his pension, but also a DROP bonus of some $800,000.
In his deposition with Jacobs, Wilson did not admit that he had lied at the press conference. But he did change his story.
"Everyone knew that decision was going to be made," Wilson testified about the use of tear gas. Wilson added that "everybody" included the police commissioner, whom he had just had a cell phone conversation with "immediately before" the tear gas was dropped.
"And I took a voluntary demotion when the heat, I guess, got too much for the city," Wilson said.
At the 2020 press conference Wilson said he was taking a voluntary demotion because he "didn't call the commissioner" to get her final approval to drop tear gas.
But in his deposition with Jacobs, Wilson testified that he did speak to Outlaw via cell phone shortly before the tear gas was deployed.
"How long before you approved the use of tear gas, were you in communication with Police Commissioner Outlaw?" Jacobs asked.
"Immediately before," Wilson replied, "but I'm not exactly sure of the time."
Wilson's deposition made headlines on Big Trial on May 2nd. A day later, on May 3rd, the city filed a motion for a protective order prohibiting the parties in Jacobs's lawsuit from "disseminating" deposition testimony to any third party who was not involved in the case.
At a June 7th hearing, at which Jacobs was present, Jacobs writes, "the defendants' counsel strenuously pursued the sealing of the depositions . . . to prevent Ralph Cipriano and website bigtrial.net from exposing public corruption."
In motions filed in court, the city solicitor's office contended that excerpts from Wilson's deposition testimony published on big trial.net were allegedly used to "harass, annoy and/or intimidate" former deputy police commissioner Wilson.
The city solicitor's office similarly argued that if Coulter's deposition was excerpted on bigtrial.net, it would expose Coulter to"harassment and undue distress."
A month later, on June 10th, Judge Joel Slomsky bought the argument, and granted the city's motion for a protective order that effectively sealed depositions in the case.
During his depositions of Wilson and Coulter, Jacobs writes in his latest motion, "both defendants were asked during depositions why was Detective Jacobs disciplined." And, Jacobs added, "Both defendants could not provide an answer as to why Detective Jacobs was disciplined."
On Sept. 1st, Jacobs filed a motion to unseal the depositions of both Coulter and Wilson, alleging that the motion was filed "due to the defendants's effort [counsel] to cover up public corruption."
In his latest motion, Jacobs asserts that the city violated the judge's order not to disseminate Coulter's deposition by sharing it with top city officials, including Outlaw.
"Upon information and belief, due to the information contained in the plaintiff's filings, counsel for the defendants disseminated the deposition testimony of defendant Christine Coulter to non-parties" to the lawsuit that included Mayor Kenney, Police Commissioner Outlaw, and District Attorney Krasner, "in violation of the court's order."
"Upon information and belief," Jacobs stated, Outlaw "confronted defendant Christine Coulter regarding her 'truthful' and under oath 'deposition testimony,' which the defendants requested to be sealed."
"Upon information and belief, after the confrontation," Jacobs writes, "an ongoing feud (for lack of a better word) developed between Coulter and Outlaw, which lead to Outlaw giving Coulter the options of demotion or resignation, on or about Sept. 7th," which Jacobs writes, was six days after Jacobs filed a motion to unseal the depositions of Coulter and Wilson.
According to Jacobs, Outlaw was provided with the deposition so that she would "retaliate against Coulter for her truthful testimony provided under oath" with Jacobs.
A spokesperson for the Police Department declined to comment on the allegations made by Jacobs.
"The Police Department can't comment on ongoing litigation," Sgt. Gripp responded.