Why Officer Charles Cassidy is dead
The Philadelphia Police Department has identified the man they believe murdered Officer Charles “Chuck” Cassidy last Wednesday, and a warrant for his arrest has been issued. The Philadelphia Inquirer naturally had a couple of stories on the warrant, including the suspect’s prior record.
- A drug record, but no violence¹
By Jan Hefler, Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer
John Lewis, who became the target yesterday in a massive manhunt for the killer of a Philadelphia police officer, has been in trouble with the law three times in the last three years.
The 21-year-old North Philadelphia man, who uses the aliases Lewis Jordan and Jordan Lewis, was arrested in 2005 on charges of possession of drugs and possession with intent to distribute. He was placed in a treatment program that he completed in February. The drug charges and a 2006 charge of attempted theft were then withdrawn.
In February, Lewis was arrested again on drug charges. That case is pending.
On Sunday, a warrant was issued for his arrest for the killing of Officer Cassidy, and Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson warned that the suspect is “armed and extremely dangerous.” Mr Lewis is a high school dropout who lived with his mother, Lynn Dyches, a city corrections officer.
Former Mayor Rudolf Giuliani is credited with cleaning up New York City, in significant part by having the police and prosecution treat every crime seriously. The theory was that if they were aggressive against the petty criminals, they’d get them off the streets before they became not-so-petty criminals.
Unfortunately, in the City of Brotherly Love, Mayor John Street’s administration, including Police Commissioner Johnson and District Attorney Lynne Abraham, apparently think that law enforcement is like fishing: if the fish they catch is too small, they just throw it back into the water.
Well, if we assume that Mr Lewis actually is the killer, the city’s “catch and release” program is directly responsible for the murder of Officer Cassidy. Mr Lewis was arrested in 2005 for drug charges, including possession with intent to distribute. In other words, he was a drug dealer. Rather than do the right thing, and prosecute him to the full extent of the law, they offered him a treatment program, and when he completed it, they not only dropped the charges, but dismissed charges, including attempted theft, committed subsequently. Then, in February of this year, he got busted again on drug charges, but on October 31st, Mr Lewis was still out on the streets.
What about the gun? The police say that his mother’s 9 mm was used; she is a corrections officer, and is not only legally allowed to have a firearm, but it’s a requirement for her job. Her son, who lives with her, supposedly took her handgun, and used it to rob the Dunkin’ Donuts — and kill Officer Cassidy. The gun was legally owned, but the obvious question arises: how is it that Lynn Dyches was allowed to take her firearm home if her son had been in frequent trouble with the law? Didn’t anyone check? Did no one ask? Didn’t the District Attorney’s office know that Mr Lewis lived with his mother, and that she was a corrections officer? After all, it didn’t take the Inquirer all that long to discover this. After three arrests, after at least some time dealing with prosecution, how could the city not have known that Mr Lewis, who had been treated leniently before and who was, at the time of the shooting, under prosecution, was living with a corrections officer who had a gun in the home?
If it turns out that Mr Lewis is in fact the man who murdered Officer Cassidy, then the murder is at least partially the fault of a city which does not treat “minor” crimes seriously, and a District Attorney’s office that didn’t do its job. Even if Mr Lewis is not the man who killed the officer, the story still points out the fact that the city leaders are not doing their jobs, because John Lewis should never have been out on the streets.
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¹ - The Philadelphia Inquirer, Monday, November 5, 2007, page A-1
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Cross posted on Red State.
Why Philadelphia Police Offcer Charles Cassidy is dead | Redstate:
[...] If it turns out that Mr Lewis is in fact the man who murdered Officer Cassidy, then the murder is at least partially the fault of a city which does not treat “minor” crimes seriously, and a District Attorney’s office that didn’t do its job. Even if Mr Lewis is not the man who killed the officer, the story still points out the fact that the city leaders are not doing their jobs, because John Lewis should never have been out on the streets. ________________________ ¹ - The Philadelphia Inquirer, Monday, November 5, 2007, page A-1 ________________________ Cross posted on Common Sense Political Thought. Advertise on RedState [...]
5 November 2007, 2:09 pmDana Pico:
6 November 2007, 7:40 amArt Downs:
“Progressives” are rather tolerant of criminality, be it from street thugs to politicians. This may reflect a Democrat heritage that was reflected in the Tweed Gang and its variants. With the loss of the once-solid south, there is a more reliable power base in black urban America. Where else could a William Jefferson or Alcee Hastings regularly get elected?
When it comes to urban violence, some of the locals may be concerned and need to come up with a facade of a remedy that will not inconvenience the criminal element among their constituency.
Look for more calls for gun control.
Some public hangings might have a better effect.
6 November 2007, 8:30 amGreat White Rat:
Dana, for what it’s worth, did you know that your post here was excerpted and run in the dead-tree version of the Philadelphia Inquirer on November 8?
This link is to the online version.
11 November 2007, 11:50 pmDana Pico:
Mr Rat: No, I didn’t know that. I usually get the print edition, but it wasn’t at the Turkey Hill on Thursday when I arrived.
Thanks for the link!
12 November 2007, 2:14 pmCommon Sense Political Thought » Archives » Why Officer Charles Cassidy is dead (Part 2):
[...] This just boggles my mind. But it points out exactly what I wrote before about the government of the city of Philadelphia: it doesn’t take crime seriously. But, perhaps I wasn’t exactly right, because I had written that the city “does not treat ‘minor’ crimes seriously” — and somehow armed robbery² doesn’t fall within what I would define as a “minor” crime. [...]
15 November 2007, 2:13 pmLORETTA:
OFFICER CASSIDY IS DEAD BECAUSE WE LIVE IN A CITY WITH A MAYOR WHO IS THE WORST SINCE GOOD WAS MAYOR. THIS GUY SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN JAIL. IF THE OFFICER DID NOT GO IN THE STORE THE YOUNG GIRL WORKING COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED.PHILADELPHIA HAS BECOME A JOKE. I HAVE FRIENDS WHO WILL NOT COME TO PHILA. BECAUSE OF THE DRUGS AND THE CRIME.OUR LEADERS ARE A JOKE.IM SURE THIS WILL TURN INT A RACE THING IT ALWAYS DOES. BEFORE YOU DO IT JUST LOOK BACK AT ALL THE BLACK OFFICERS WHO WERE JUST AS HEARTBROKEN AS ALL WERE.IF THE OFFICER WHO WALKED IN ON THE ROBERY COULD HAVE BEEN BLACK AND IM SURE IF HE WAS HE WOULD BE AS DEAD AS OFFICER CASSIDY, REMEMBER THAT.ITS TIME TO PUT THE RACE BULL AWAY.I DONT CARE IF YOU ARE GREEN IF YOU DID IT YOU PAY FOR IT.THE POLICE BOTH BLACK AND WHITE WERE HAND IN HAND THAT DAY FOR ALL OFFICERS WHO HAVE BEEN SHOT AT.THEN TO ADD INSULT TO INJURY 2 MORE OFFICERS WERE SHOT. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT COLOR THEY WERE NOR DO I CARE, THEY WERE SHOT PERIOD.THIS GUY SHOULD ALSO BE IN JAIL THE REST OF HIS LIFE. IF YOU KILL OR SHOOT A COP YOU CAN KILL A CHILD OR A POOR OLDER PERSON.TAKE THE CUFFS OFF THE POLICE AND LET THEM DO THERE JOB.I FOR ONE AM GETTING OUT OF PHILA. FOR THE VERY BAD NAME IT HAS. WAKE UP PHILA.SO CALLED. LEADERS START LOCKING THESE PEOPLE UP. I FOR ONE AMM TIRED OF THE BULL SHIT THAT IS ALLOWED IN THIS CITY.POLICE SHOULD GO BACK TO THE WAY THEY DID THINGS WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. YOU COULD NOT EVEN HANG ON A CORNER.STOP THE RACE BULLSHIT. IM WHITE AND WE RAN FROM POLICE WHEN WE HUNG OUT.WE GOT THE SAME THING BLACK PEOPLE GOT WHEN WE WERE LOCKED UP.DISRESPECT A COP YOU GOT IT.SIMPLE HISTORY THEY DID SOMTHING RIGHT BECAUSE WE NEVER HAD TO GROW UP WITH THE TRASH ON THE STREETS TODAY.YOU CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE STREETS YOU DONT WANT TO BECAUSE YOUR AFFRAID OF ALL THE LIBERALS WHO THINK YOU CAN DO WHATEVER YOU WANT.LET THE POLICE BLACK AND WHITE DO THERE JOBS. STOP THE RACE BULL AND MAKE THEM PAY FOR WHAT THEY DO.
24 November 2007, 5:33 amblonde sagacity: November 2007:
[...] [...]
26 March 2008, 2:22 amCommon Sense Political Thought » Archives » Who will take responsibility for this murder?:
[...] first time I’ve asked this question concerning a Philadelphia murder. On October 31, 2007, police officer Charles Cassidy was gunned down by a thug who should have been in jail. The man who was arrested for that murder, and who has confessed to the killing, was the known [...]
3 June 2008, 9:43 amCommon Sense Political Thought » Archives » San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom should be arrested and charged as an accessory to murder:
[...] is dead because the City of Brotherly Love didn’t treat John Lewis, his killer, seriously when they had him on a drug charge, when they had him on robbery charges and even when he was identified as the perpetrator of an [...]
22 July 2008, 4:34 pmCommon Sense Political Thought » Blog Archive » Once again, our friends on the left want to place the blame everywhere but where it belongs:
[...] Charles Cassidy is dead because the criminal justice system treated his murderer, John Lewis leniently, and because they didn’t even follow up on a positive identification of Mr Lewis as an armed [...]
22 March 2009, 8:51 pm