‘Crime has no borders’

McLean (left) and Gormley are poised to take a shot at correcting the state of affairs in the NE, which include too many burglaries, thefts from autos and drugs. BILL ACHUFF / FOR THE TIMES

The concept of change in the Philadelphia Police Department could easily be considered a misnomer.

Take the Northeast Division, for example. The Northeast is one of six geographic territories that constitute the police department’s administrative map of the city. An inspector commands each division. There are four patrol districts within the Northeast as well as a detective unit, each with its own captain.

Since January 2014, there have been six changes in command within the division, including new captains in three districts and the detective unit, as well as a new inspector who oversees them all.

The latest appointments occurred earlier this month when Capt. Thomas McLean replaced Frank Palumbo as head of the 2nd district and when Capt. Michael Gormley took over for Frank Bachmayer in the 7th district.

And while some local crime trends have been reversed within the last 13 months — notably last year’s rash of murders in the 2nd district — the prevailing problems facing the Northeast remain the same. There are still way too many burglaries and thefts from autos for the police department’s liking, and too many drugs, too. McLean and Gormley are poised to take a shot at correcting the state of affairs, not just for their own districts but for the entire Northeast and its neighbors.

“Crime has no borders and you’re not going to disperse crime to eliminate it,” said Gormley, 51, a 28-year veteran of the police force. “We want to stop crime everywhere. We want to educate the public to prevent it. One crime is too many.”

“Drugs are the engine that’s driving a lot of our property crime, burglaries and thefts from autos,” added McLean, 47, a 23-year veteran. “A drug user that has a habit needs to fund it. They’ll break into houses and cars and steal. That’s the correlation.”

Drugs lead to a lot of violent crimes, too, including murders. But in the 2nd district at least, the killing has ceased this year after an unusually deadly 2014. There were 14 homicides in the 2nd district last year, including at least six within the first 44 days of the year, all within several blocks of each other in Lawncrest.

Police eventually arrested one man for the execution-style shootings of three other men inside a house on Martins Mill Road. The alleged killer is awaiting a preliminary hearing. Meanwhile, the slayings of a mother and son in similar fashion inside a home on Stevens Street remain unsolved.

There have been zero homicides in the 2nd district so far in 2015. According to McLean, his officers will try to keep the good karma going by focusing their patrols and community outreach programs in highly localized patterns. Wherever the community sees a spike in crime, that’s where the cops will be.

“We try to break it down to the affected PSA, the affected (police service) area,” McLean said. “We’ll go door to door with the community relations officer to hand out pamphlets. We’ll encourage community members to be good witnesses. That’s how most crimes are solved, with concerned citizens taking ownership of their neighborhoods.”

High-crime areas are nothing new to either captain, nor is the Northeast. McLean grew up here, graduated from Archbishop Ryan High School in 1985 and still lives in the 8th Police District. His first assignment in the department was as a patrol cop in the 15th district, also in the Northeast.

The 15th is the busiest district in the Northeast and the city in terms of 911 calls, although districts in other divisions have higher rates of violent crimes.

Upon his promotion to sergeant, McLean transferred to the former 23rd district in North Philly west of 10th Street. The neighboring 22nd district later absorbed the 23rd, which no longer exists. McLean also served as a sergeant in the Highway Patrol before he made lieutenant and went to the 22nd district for a decade. He also worked on South Street for several months during that time.

McLean earned another promotion to captain earlier this year. The 2nd is his first district command.

“The district has changed dramatically,” he said. “It’s really a melting pot of cultures. When I go to community groups, I preach tolerance. You have to respect each other’s traditions and cultures.”

Over the years, he has learned to embrace new crime-fighting ideas and technologies. While in the 22nd, he supervised the police department’s trial use of closed circuit “body” cameras on its patrol officers. The department enlisted 30 cops who volunteered to wear the cameras while carrying out their regular duties. The test period began on Dec. 1 and will continue through May.

“I was shocked at how tolerant the police officers are in some situations, the amount of abuse some officers take in certain situations,” McLean said. “But they still follow the policies of the police department and treat the public well.”

Some officers may be skeptical about how and when the cameras are used, and how the images are managed after the fact, according to Northeast Division Inspector Benjamin Naish. For example, cameras may not be suitable when an officer is speaking with a confidential informant and they certainly don’t belong in a bathroom. Those issues are all being considered.

“It’s double-edged,” Naish said.

Cameras can protect the public from abusive officers and can protect officers against false allegations of abuse.

“Eventually, you will see every officer wear a body camera, in the very near future,” Naish said.

Gormley is a Fishtown native who graduated from Northeast Catholic High School in 1981 and now lives in the 15th district. He began his career in the former 4th district in South Philly east of Broad Street. The neighboring 3rd district later absorbed the 4th.

Gormley was promoted to corporal and reassigned to the police radio room at the Roundhouse. He followed that with a promotion to detective, when he went to Northeast Detectives. He made sergeant in 2002 and was moved to the 35th district in Olney and East Oak Lane. He also served as a sergeant in Northwest Detectives.

As a lieutenant, he worked in the 19th district in West Philadelphia and Overbrook, as well as Northeast Detectives, where he supervised special investigations. He was promoted to captain last year. The 7th is his first district command.

“Our district is similar to a lot of suburban areas with a lot of parks, a lot of single homes. The population is spread out. We have a lot of diversity from a lot of different groups, a lot of immigrants from other countries,” Gormley said.

He and McLean agree that their districts have some of the most active and conscientious community leaders and organizations in the city. Gormley is looking forward to furthering partnerships with them.

“First of all, we need people to accurately report crime and feel part of crime prevention in the 7th district,” he said. “And I want to educate people on how to prevent crimes from happening to themselves.”

One of his biggest talking points will be video surveillance cameras. Many businesses and apartment buildings in the district already have them, but many don’t. He will push hard for single-family homeowners to get them too.

“Homeowners, we need them to be eyes and ears,” Gormley said.

Both captains will have to stay in front of potential conflicts between police and the communities they serve, considering that all police have been placed under a microscope since the police-related controversies in Ferguson, Missouri and Staten Island, New York.

“There is no question that this is an issue that is at the front of American consciousness,” said Naish, who wants his officers to act with transparency and equal consideration to all. “There is a suspicion right now within the public in general. We have to be aware of this and work together to build trust.” ••