Philly's Top Cop Weighs In On Shooting Deaths Of Two NYC Police Officers
By Jim Melwert
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey is a co-chair of President Obama's task force on policing and said he got a call from the president following the ambush of two officers in New York City.
Commissioner Ramsey spoke with reporters Sunday night, a day after the murders of New York City police officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu. He called their deaths "senseless" and said he has been concerned that some of the signs or chants could incite such violence.
"Not all of the protesters, but there was a small group that would begin the chants of 'what do we want? Dead police!' and you could see some of the signs and so forth, Ramsey said. "And it's not to say that those people would do it, but it doesn't take much to trigger that reaction in some people."
The commissioner said the violence clouds an important issue and overshadows what he describes as a very important conversation about police-community relations.
"It's unfortunate, but hopefully this tragedy now makes everybody take a step back and think about what they're doing and think about what they're saying," Ramsey said. "This is a time for thoughtful discussion."
Ramsey said all lives matter, including police officers, Eric Garner and Michael Brown, and any murder victim.
As for the President Obama's committee, Ramsey said he has some ideas. That report is due in March.
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