by KYW's Tony Hanson
Nearly 300 Philadelphia police officers will get to witness history but they will be more than spectators at January's Presidential inauguration in Washington, DC. The officers gathered Wednesday for an orientation and paperwork.
Deputy Police Commissioner of Homeland Security and Domestic Preparedness, Stephen Johnson, says 290 officers and supervisors will travel to Washingon, they’ll be deputized as U.S. Marshalls, and they will be part of the enormous security effort. He says it is an historical first and they are proud to be a part of it.
"It's full circle now. Because, as an African-American you just didn’t envision it happening in your lifetime. You knew there was an inevitability relative to this but you just didn’t see it happening. Not only to live long enough to see this but also to participate in the inauguration of the first African-American president is a very, very tremendous event."
And Washington is picking up the tab for the Philadelphia force.
E-Mail Story
Print Story
