Outlaw Is Out: Philly Police Commissioner Resigns For New Post

PHILADELPHIA — After just three and a half years, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw it out.

The 48-year-old California native announced on Sept. 5 she would vacate her post on Friday, Sept. 22.

"It has been my honor and privilege to serve during Mayor Kenney’s administration and alongside each member of the Philadelphia Police Department," Outlaw said in her resignation announcement. "The hard work, resilience, and professionalism of our force is truly commendable. Our team has shown incredible adaptability and has worked tirelessly to maintain our pillars of organizational excellence, crime prevention and reduction, and community engagement and inclusion even in the face of adversity. My staff’s teamwork, innovative thinking, and determination have kept the Department moving forward, and for that, I am extremely grateful."

In her place as interim commissioner will be First Deputy John M. Stanford Jr., who was appointed by Mayor Jim Kenney.

Outlaw joined the city in February 2020 after serving as the leader of the Portland, Oregon Police Department.

Her resignation announcement came on the heels of a deadly incident in which Philadelphia Police Officer Mark Dial shot and killed Eddie Irizarry, who was sitting in a vehicle when he was shot and killed.

Police were found to have lied about the incident's series of events.

Dial is charged with Irizarry's murder and was suspended from the force with the intent to be dismissed.

Outlaw's tenure in Philly will be remembered as rocky at best.

Just a few months into her time as commissioner, the city erupted in chaos as rioters and looters used protests over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis as an opportunity to run rampant.

But, police responses to protestors, not rioters or looters, drew ire and even criminal charges.

One officer, Joseph Bologna, was charged with striking a young Temple University student who was protesting.

Another officer was charged after he was caught on camera pulling masks off protestors faces and spraying mace directly at them as they sat on Interstate 676.

Additionally, Outlaw's leadership, along with Mayor Jim Kenney, was called into question when tear gas was used on protestors on that same highway, and again in residential areas of West Philadelphia where little to no protest or criminal activity was occurring.

Another ding on Outlaw's record is tied to officers abusing their injured on duty benefits, which was exposed by a Philadelphia Inquirer investigation.

While Outlaw called the abuse "repulsive," it increased under her watch.

Also during her tenure, homicides in the city jumped.

In 2019 before her arrival, the number of people killed was 353.

But in 2020, the number jumped to 499. In 2021 and 2022, the figures rose to 562, then back down to 516, respectively.

So far in 2023, 318 people have been killed in the city, a decrease from the same time period over the past three years, per police data.

"Throughout my tenure, I have persistently strived to ensure that we excel in areas where the needs of the Department and the community are not just met - but are exceeded," she said. "To meet specific goals, the Crime Prevention and Violence Reduction Action Plan was developed and shared with the public within the first three months after I was appointed, even as the pandemic was escalating into crisis mode. I am extremely proud of the PPD team. We have made significant progress in all three of the Plan’s organizational pillars - Organizational Excellence, Crime Prevention and Violence Reduction, and Community Engagement and Inclusion. Under this plan, we have seen crime reductions, improved clearance rates, a reduction in complaints against police, new employee and wellness initiatives; to include the development of an employee intervention system, improved diversity in hiring and promotions, better internal and external communications, and so much more. I know progress will continue under this plan since it’s working."

Outlaw is leaving Philly to become a deputy security chief at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.