District Attorney Krasner Announces Murder, Related Charges for Killing of Police Corporal O’Connor
By: Philadelphia Dao
Tags: Criminal Justice, Philadelphia Police, Philadelphia, Press Release

CONTACT:

Jane Roh, District Attorney’s Office, 215–686–8711, Jane.Roh@phila.gov

PHILADELPHIA (March 17, 2020) — District Attorney Larry Krasner on Tuesday announced the first of a series of expected charges for a police-involved shooting that resulted in the death of an officer on Friday, March 13th, on the 16XX block of Bridge Street.

“Last Friday, Philadelphia Police Corporal James O’Connor was killed while performing one of the most dangerous duties of law enforcement: serving an arrest warrant for a known fugitive. This incident involved multiple individuals and multiple shots fired from behind the walls and closed door of a second floor residence. There is no video or audio evidence of what occurred inside the residence during this incident as of today. The investigation of this incident is being led by Philadelphia Police detectives, and is very much active and in very early stages.

“Today, the District Attorney’s Office is filing charges for the murder of Philadelphia Police Corporal James O’Connor. We have sufficient evidence to establish that Hassan Elliott, the subject of the fugitive arrest warrant, fired the bullets that killed Corporal O’Connor. We are relentlessly pursuing additional evidence to establish all of the facts, including the results of forensic testing that is under way.”

Four individuals were taken into custody following Friday’s police-involved shooting, in which approximately 21 bullets were fired on members of a SWAT team from one firearm and from behind a closed door: Hassan Elliott (DOB: 8/14/1998) of Philadelphia; Khalif Sears (DOB: 7/25/2001) of Philadelphia; Bilal Mitchell (DOB: 7/5/2000) of Philadelphia; and Sherman Easterling (DOB: 5/5/1995) of Philadelphia.

At the time of the incident, Elliott, Sears, Mitchell, and Easterling were in one bedroom of the second floor residence. Shots were fired before officers were able to enter the residence. Corporal O’Connor was in the line of fire and fatally wounded by those shots. Sears and a male resident of the unit were wounded as SWAT returned fire. Elliott, Sears, Easterling, and Mitchell were taken into custody.

Interviews and attempted interviews were conducted of everyone located on the second floor of the building. Ten firearms have been recovered by police from the room where the gunfire started, including a 22-caliber assault rifle that is forensically confirmed to be the weapon used to kill Corporal O’Connor. Additional and important forensic testing is under way.

On Saturday, the District Attorney’s Office (DAO) acted upon the fugitive arrest warrants against Elliott and charged him for a March 2019 murder of an individual and a December 2019 non-fatal shooting of an individual. He has been arraigned for those crimes and is being held with no eligibility for bail.

While not the subject of the law enforcement action on Friday, Sears had also been approved for arrest for his role in the March 2019 murder, in addition to Elliott. The following is a sequence of events leading up to the police-involved shootings on Friday:

· 6/8/2017: Elliott, then 18 years old, is arrested for drug possession and possession of a firearm without a license. During 2018 the DAO succeeds in obtaining his guilty plea and a 9–23 month sentence of incarceration plus 3 years of probation. The sentence is well within Pennsylvania Sentencing Guidelines and approved by the Court. He is released on parole.

· 1/29/2019: Elliott is arrested for drug possession only.

· 2/6/2019: Elliott appears in court for a violation of parole (VOP) hearing. Court grants continuance because PPD seizure analysis of substance found is not yet available. Court does not issue a detainer and instead directs him to appear in his next court date.

· 3/1/2019: Elliott appears again in court for VOP hearing. Court does not issue detainer to hold him.

· 3/1/2019: Elliott and Sears allegedly commit a robbery and murder on the 53KK block of Duffield Street.

· 3/26/2019: Following investigation by the Philadelphia Police, in which video surveillance and firearms used in the 3/1/2019 murder are presented to the DAO as evidence, the DAO approves warrants for police to locate and arrest Elliott and Sears. PPD undertakes to arrest Elliott and Sears with the warrant, but they remain at large.

· 3/26/2019: Elliott is due in court for a VOP hearing and fails to appear.

· 4/3/2019: Elliott is again due in court for a VOP hearing and fails to appear.

· 4/3/2019: Elliott fails to appear for the 1/29/2019 drug possession case. Based in part upon a notification by the U.S. Attorney’s Office from early 2018 that an arresting officer in the drug possession case has admitted to providing false testimony, and based on the U.S. Attorney’s referral of that officer to the DAO for consideration of pursuing perjury charges against the officer, DAO withdraws drug possession charges. Case is also fatally flawed because the police actions described, credible or not, violate the Fourth Amendment and will result in suppression of evidence and dismissal of the case. Elliott is still being actively sought by PPD on the murder arrest warrant approved on 3/26/2019, which is far more serious.

· 12/27/2019: Elliott allegedly commits a non-fatal shooting on the 1900 block of Bridge Street.

· 2/2/2020: A music video featuring Elliott and Sears that appears to have been filmed on the 16XX block of Bridge Street is uploaded to YouTube.

· 3/13/2020: Police Homicide Fugitive Squad and SWAT unit of six officers attempt to execute the fugitive warrant on Elliott to bring him into custody for the 2019 murder on the 16XX block of Bridge Street. Corporal O’Connor is fatally wounded during an exchange of gunfire.

“Elliott and Sears have been wanted, dangerous fugitives for nearly one year. Our police officers put the safety of the public before their own lives, and in the course of performing their duties in order to bring dangerous individuals into custody, Corporal O’Connor was lost to us forever. We all owe Corporal O’Connor and his family a debt of gratitude. Tragically, we will never be able to repay,” District Attorney Krasner said.

Elliott will be arraigned for the following additional offenses in the murder of Corporal O’Connor: Murder (F1), Criminal Homicide of a Law Enforcement Officer (F1), 7 counts of Attempted Criminal Homicide of a Law Enforcement Officer (F1), 7 counts of Aggravated Assault of a Law Enforcement Officer (F1), Hindering Apprehension (F3), VUFA 6110.2 (M1), Possession of an Instrument of Crime (M1), Recklessly Endangering Another Person (M1), Tampering With Evidence (M2), and Obstruction of Justice (M2).

Sears was arraigned on Monday on charges for the March 2020 murder, and is also being held without bail. Preliminary hearings for Sears and Elliott have been scheduled for April 1st, the day the courts are scheduled to reopen following closure for the COVID-19 health emergency.

Mitchell was arraigned on Sunday on charges of Possession With Intent to Distribute (PWID) for 59 vials of crack cocaine found on his person last Friday. He is being held on $1 million bail pending the outcome of a court hearing on a DAO request that bail eligibility be revoked.

Easterling has been transported to state prison on a VOP detainer. He will be held in custody while awaiting a parole board hearing, the outcome of which could result in additional incarceration.

The DAO Homicide Unit has made a request to the city Office of Forensic Science for expedited testing on evidence that will allow the police and DAO to proceed on additional charging for the March 13th police-involved shooting.

“This investigation is early and ongoing. In addition to serious criminal justice actions the three other individuals in custody already face, forensic evidence and witness testimony could enable the DAO to file additional charges for their roles in the Friday incident,” District Attorney Krasner added. “The District Attorney’s Office and I continue to join the city in mourning the tragic loss of Corporal O’Connor.”

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The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office is the largest prosecutor’s office in Pennsylvania, and one of the largest in the nation. It serves the more than 1.5 million citizens of the City and County of Philadelphia, employing 600 lawyers, detectives, and support staff. The District Attorney’s Office is responsible for prosecution of approximately 40,000 criminal cases annually.