July 11, 2015
Philadelphia Police Department, File/for PhillyVoice
Six formerPhiladelphia narcotics officers acquitted of federal corruption charged will return to the force.
Six former Philadelphia narcotics officers acquitted of corruption by a federal jury back in May have been given their jobs back, Big Trial reports.
The officers - Thomas Liciardello, Brian Reynolds, Michael Spicer, John Speiser, Linwood Norman and Perry Betts – were cleared of all 47 charges contained in a 26-count federal RICO indictment, including racketeering, robbery and kidnapping.
"They are back on the payroll right now," James J. Binns, the lawyer one of the six defendents, Officer Michael Spicer, told Big Trial. "They're being paid as of today."
"They are back on the payroll right now," James J. Binns, the lawyer one of the six defendents, Officer Michael Spicer, told Big Trial. "They're being paid as of today."
The officers will also be receiving a year's worth of back pay, Binns said. It was not clear exactly when they will return to work, though Mark McDonald, a spokesman for Mayor Nutter, reportedly told The Philadelphia Inquirer that the men will not be returning to the narcotics unit.
They would instead be reassigned to various police districts and the impound lot, McDonald said.
The decision to reinstate the officers will likely be met with controversy as at a press conference the day of the arrests Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey vowed to "melt down the officers' badges," adding at the time that the incident was "one of the worst cases of corruption" he had heard in his more than 40 years as an officer.
Read the full report at Big Trial.
