A vote of "no confidence" in the Philadelphia cops

Let's face it: Most of us have watched with some amazement over the last decade as the Philadelphia Phillies -- who seemed during the 1990s like they were plagued by permanent ineptitude everywhere from the playing field to the marketing department -- became one of the most efficient and best-run organizations in the entire city. One of the many things they do on a regular basis -- even as they've delighted Philadelphia with back-to-back trips to the World Series -- is manage the inevitable flow of bad news about players who are underperforming or injured or both. They can be masters of the understatement and what is left unsaid -- and one couldn't help put get the same feeling about this annoucement from the team.

 "The police department is conducting an investigation into the use of the Taser gun on the field jumper on Monday night," the statement read. "The Phillies have had discussions at the same time with the police department concerning incidents of field intrusion. It has been agreed that in ordinary circumstances involving field intrusion, the Phillies' game-day security personnel will make the apprehension of the field jumper and turn him over to the Philadelphia police on the field for handcuffing and subsequent charging."

Consalvi, who ran onto the field wearing a Phillies T-shirt and waving a towel, would seem to meet the definition of "ordinary circumstances." Only if the situation escalates will the police become involved.

"If greater force is necessary, requiring the assistance of Philadelphia police in making the apprehension, such assistance will be employed," the statement continued.

It's not that hard to read between the lines here: This is nothing less than a vote of "no confidence" in the Philadelphia Police Department and the training of its officers to deal with situations like Monday's field-jumping episode. And the thing is, it is not as if "no one could have predicted" these issues could have happened. When Mayor Nutter brought in the ex-D.C. chief Charles Ramsey to run the force here in Philadelphia, citizens were warned that the biggest black marks on Ramsey's resume involved civil liberties.

And when the department announced it was was buying 1,000 more Tasers last year, you were warned the temptation would be to use them in situations for which the electroshock device wasn't originally intended -- which is exactly what happened on Monday night. The irony is that this very same week, we're learning more about questions in another incident in which -- this time -- the Philadelphia police used lethal force. The circumstances are murky -- the slain suspect had fired a shot which certainly warrants a highly aggressive response; if reports are correct that the suspect dropped his weapon and was fleeing, however, you can't help but wonder if in this case a Taser should have been used instead of firing an estimated 20-30 shots in a playground.

But frankly it's a lot easier to wonder and speculate months later from behind a computer than to make a snap judgment in a dangerous situation. We've read about some very bad apples recently, but that doesn't change the fact that most city police officers are outstanding citizens, doing a job that would terrify many of the rest of us. And we know they currently receive training in how to respond to difficult situations, from fleeing felons to a teen interrupting a baseball game.

But these situations seem to show that the police brass and City Hall should take a long hard look at that training, and ensure that it's both good enough and extensive enough to help our police officers make the best judgments they can. That's especially true with the arrival of so many Tasers, which have dramatically altered the choices that need to be made.

The Phillies are in a very unique situation in which they can make this kind of "no confidence" vote and still be OK. The rest of us don't have the option.