Ramsey fires cop involved in Port Richmond shooting

Should Officer Frank Tepper face charges in the shooting death of William Panas Jr.?

Frank Tepper, the Philadelphia police officer who allegedly fatally shot an unarmed Port Richmond man during a neighborhood dispute in November, has been suspended with the intent to dismiss, police officials said.

Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey based his decision to fire Tepper on information gathered by Internal Affairs detectives who investigated the Nov. 21 incident, police spokesman Lt. Frank Vanore said.

Last month, then-District Attorney Lynne Abraham opted to let a grand jury decide if Tepper, 43, should face criminal charges for the Nov. 21 incident. The grand jury has not yet made a ruling in the case.

Fraternal Order of Police president John McNesby said the city's new district attorney, Seth Williams, might want to review the case before the grand jury makes a decision. "We'll respond accordingly," McNesby said.

Police have said that Tepper was attacked when he tried to break up a street fight outside his home on Elkhart Street near Edgemont, causing him to fire a fatal shot into the chest of William "Billy" Panas Jr, 21.

Neighbors contended that the fight actually involved members of Tepper's family. The residents also claimed that Tepper was visibly intoxicated and shot the unarmed Panas after the two men exchanged words.

Panas' father, William Panas Sr., said he was "delighted" by the news of Tepper's firing.

"I just got a call from Mr. Ramsey a few minutes ago, telling me they fired him [Tepper] because he didn't follow any procedures that night," Panas said."It doesn't help bring my son back, but it'll save other children."

Posted by David Gambacorta @ 5:00 PM Permalink |

About The PhillyConfidential team

Dana DiFilippo has covered murder, mayhem and miscellany at the Daily News since 2000. She grew up in Delaware County and studied journalism and photography at Penn State University. E-mail tips to difilid@phillynews.com.

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Stephanie Farr has been reporting for the Daily News since 2007, covering everything from gay porn stars who entered the burglary business to moon trees, skinheads, murders and naked bike rides. She covers crime, both in the city and suburbs, and keeps clippings of bizarre Associated Press articles. Her favorite this year was the story about the drunk in Punxsutawney who gave mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a dead opossum. E-mail tips to farrs@phillynews.com.

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Phillip Lucas joined the Daily News crime team in 2011. He grew up on the mean streets of Seattle and studied journalism and psychology at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Before landing in the City of Brotherly Love, Phillip was a reporter for The News Journal in Wilmington, Del. Email tips to lucasp@phillynews.com.

Morgan Zalot is the newest crime reporter at the Daily News, starting in 2011 after interning at the paper twice as a Temple University journalism student. In her past stints at the DN, she covered just about everything, from drunken Phillies fans to a barber shop in a high school to a grisly murder-suicide. She’s a born-and-raised Philly girl who grew up in the Northeast. E-mail tips to zalotm@philly.com.

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