A Philadelphia police officer
has been arrested for an off-duty incident last fall in which he allegedly
drove into a pedestrian - and then threatened to kill him, shouted racial slurs
and flashed his gun.
Officer Edward Sawicki III, 33,
turned himself in to police today to face charges of terroristic threats,
simple assault, possession of an instrument of crime, harassment, and
disorderly conduct. Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey suspended him for 30
days, with intent to dismiss.
The Oct. 20 incident occurred
at 2:45 a.m. as a pedestrian was walking on Ninth Street near Wharton in South
Philadelphia, according to the District Attorney's Office. Sawicki was backing
up in his car when he hit the 37-year-old man in his knee. The victim pounded
on the trunk of Sawicki’s car with his hand to alert Sawicki that he'd hit him.
Sawicki then leapt out of his
car, pulled up his shirt to show his city-issued gun and rushed at the
pedestrian, yelling: "N--, I’ll
smoke you!” while keeping his hand on his holstered gun, according to the
District Attorney's Office.
The victim called police. His
gun was confiscated, and Internal Affairs officers investigated. Sawicki, a
9-year veteran, was last assigned to the 25th District in North Philadelphia.
It apparently wasn't the first
driving mishap to land Sawicki in trouble. A West Philadelphia man sued Sawicki
and another officer in January in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court, claiming
they beat him and ran him over with their police cruiser during a car stop two
years ago.
In that complaint, John Lewis
claims that Sawicki and Officer Kelly Robbins stopped a car in which he was a
passenger on Jan. 31, 2012, in Fairhill. The officers ordered Lewis and the
car's driver to get out and hand over their identification, according to the
lawsuit. When Lewis reached for his identification, Sawicki yelled "he is
reaching for something!" and began beating Lewis with his nightstick, the
complaint charges. Robbins responded: "You hold him and I will give him
the Taser," according to the lawsuit.
Lewis "became afraid for
his life, having been assaulted and Tasered by police in the past, and managed
to get free," the lawsuit stated. Lewis sprinted down the block - but the
officers jumped back in their cruiser and ran him down, according to the
lawsuit. Lewis suffered a fractured pelvis and elbow, lacerated liver and other
injuries in the incident and is suing for medical expenses, emotional distress
and punitive damages, according to the complaint.
John Geer