Philadelphia fears new violence after black man killed by police

On the night of Monday to Tuesday, an outbreak of violence rocked the neighborhood of West Philadelphia after the death of a man identified as Walter Wallace Junior, 27, shot dead in the street by two police officers. The latter did not appear to be in imminent danger according to a video posted on social networks.

Thirty police officers were injured, almost all of them with minor injuries, but a policewoman remained hospitalized on Tuesday, her leg broken after being "deliberately" knocked over by a van, said city police official Danielle Outlaw.

At least 91 people were arrested, including 76 for burglary, she said, with many distributors and stores damaged.

The two police officers involved - suspended pending the results of an investigation by the police and the local prosecutor - had arrived at the scene after a call mentioning a family dispute and about a man with a knife. According to a police spokesperson, Walter Wallace Jr. refused to drop his weapon despite the officers' orders.

“We expect further unrest tonight, and we are taking further steps to ensure order,” Ms. Outlaw said. "We are going to strengthen our presence at key points in the city", in particular by deploying an anti-looting unit in shopping districts, she added.

National Guard evoked

To maintain order in this metropolis, which has become one of the main electoral battlegrounds between Republicans and Democrats, she said "explore all options", requesting the support of police officers from the surrounding counties and not excluding the use of the National Guard.

The Democratic mayor, Jim Kenney, was also worried about a sudden rise in tension in a city where the demonstrations for "Black Lives Matter" after the death of George Floyd at the end of May had been accompanied by looting and violence, and an increase in crime.

"We hope that there will be no repeat of what we saw last night, and we are taking all possible precautions to have the necessary staff," he said.

He did, however, distinguish between “peaceful protesters, who were there last night and may be there for a week or two”, and “vandalism and looting which are not acceptable forms of free speech”.

The White House "closely monitors"

If the violence continued in the coming days, the situation in Philadelphia could become a central subject of this end of the presidential campaign.

Donald Trump and the Republicans have made the rise in crime in large metropolitan areas - often run by Democrats - an argument against Joe Biden.

The American president often cites Pennsylvania - Philadelphia in particular - as a place where the risk of electoral fraud is the highest, even if no incidents have come to support this thesis.

“We are monitoring the situation closely. We stand ready to deploy federal resources, if necessary, ”indicated Tuesday morning Alyssa Farah, director of communications for the White House.

Joe Biden also reacted quickly: while deploring a new "injustice" against the black community - at the heart of his electorate - he warned against any looting and attack against the police.

"Looting is not demonstrating, it is a crime", he stressed. Donald Trump is "incapable" of "bringing people together, but we will get there," he said.

The exact circumstances of Walter Wallace's death remain to be established. Danielle Outlaw like Jim Kenney on Tuesday refused to identify the two police officers, or to commit to making public the images of their on-board video cameras, pending evidence of the investigation.

According to the young man's father, interviewed by the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper, his son suffered from psychological problems and was under treatment.

"Why didn't they use a Taser (electric pulse gun)? », Lamented Walter Wallace Sr.« His mother was trying to calm the situation ».