PHILADELPHIA, PA – A former police officer who was involved in the controversial shooting of an unarmed man in December 2017 is now facing murder charges in relation to that shooting.
The investigation into the shooting was delayed in part by the COVID-19 pandemic and nearly three years after the incident, a grand jury has returned an indictment.
Here are the details of the case.
A grand jury concluded that the former officer, Eric Ruch Jr., was unjustified in shooting Dennis Plowden, 25, in the head, the Philadelphia district attorney said in a statement on Friday. https://t.co/4Tk2GOxlLf
— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 10, 2020
The shooting of Dennis Plowden Jr., 25, has been a point of controversy since it occurred on Dec. 27, 2017.
Plowden was driving a 2013 Hyundai when plainclothes officers spotted the vehicle and noted that it matched the description of a vehicle said to be involved in a homicide.
Plowden was alleged to have briefly stopped his car, then fled from the plainclothes officers when they attempted to conduct the stop based on the patrol alert.
A high-speed chase ensued, during which Plowden struck an unmarked police vehicle and three parked cars, spun and finally came to a stop after crashing into a pole.
Authorities noted that Plowden’s vehicle had suffered “extensive damage” from the crashes. Plowden had exited his vehicle and was discovered by then-Officer Eric Ruch while the apparently dazed Plowden was sitting down on a sidewalk.
According to District Attorney Larry Krasner, moments after Ruch encountered Plowden, the officer fired one fatal shot that traveled through Plowden’s extended left hand and into his head. His right arm was behind him.
Krasner stated:
“Within six to eight seconds of arriving on the scene, former officer Ruch Jr. shot Plowden once, the bullet passing through his raised left hand, wounding three fingers and traveling directly into his head.”
In 2018, 10 months after the shooting, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross opted to fire Ruch – citing Ruch for exercising “poor judgement” for immediately shooting Plowden while he “was likely dazed and disoriented” following the car accident and airbag deployment and “seated on the curb.”
Officer Eric Ruch Jr. will be fired for his deadly shooting of a civilian just after Christmas last year, PPD Commissioner Ross announced https://t.co/vFh7h8SHyo
— Billy Penn (@billy_penn) October 31, 2018
Commissioner Ross also made mention during Ruch’s October 2018 termination that the other officers had taken advantage of the car accident scene to establish cover, when Ruch opted to immediately engage the suspect.
Ross said:
“The officer should have taken advantage of cover and concealment as his other three officers did. This would have afforded him the opportunity to de-escalate the situation where time was on his side.”
It was when the termination was announced that the D.A.’s office noted that it would be taking a look into the case for possible criminal culpability.
Two years after Ruch’s dismissal from the force, he’s now facing four charges related to the killing of Plowden.
The charges are as follows: first-degree murder, third-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter and possession of an instrument of crime.
Former Officer Eric Ruch Jr. shot and killed Dennis Plowden Jr., 25, only seconds after Plowden crashed his car at 77 mph (125 kph), stumbled out of it and fell to the ground, authorities said. https://t.co/DoSUDMNKge
— Bruno J. Navarro (@Bruno_J_Navarro) October 10, 2020
When the case was presented to the grand jury this month, they returned the following after reviewing the evidence:
“Ruch intentionally fired on Dennis Plowden less than 20 seconds after the Hyundai he had been driving crashed at nearly 80 miles an hour, Mr. Plowden had fallen to the ground, and yet was still attempting to obey commands.”
A spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office said the three-year delay in bringing charges was due in part to the incident happening during the term of the previous DA and the COVID-19 pandemic impeding the process of convening a grand jury.
The president of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 5, John McNesby, didn’t comment on case specifics but simply noted that the FOP will be affording legal services for Ruch’s defense:
“We will represent former police officer Eric Ruch Jr. against these serious charges. Our attorneys will review the allegations and appropriately defend this officer. Officer Ruch Jr. is entitled to due process, and we believe the judicial system will protect his rights to a fair trial.”
It should be noted that neither the FOP Lodge 5 nor John McNesby’s Twitter accounts have mentioned anything about the case following Ruch’s arrest Oct. 9 or that there’s any possibility that the charges are frivolous.
Sometimes silence is louder than words – and the silence here might betray that even the local FOP lodge might not have that much confidence in Ruch’s defense.
Plowden is survived by his wife, Tania Bond, two children and three stepchildren. The youngest of his kids, who recently turned three years old, was an infant at the time of his killing.
Plowden’s widow said she’s pleased to see charges brought against Ruch:
“I am happy that Ruch was charged with the murder of Dennis . . . this is only the beginning. There are so many more milestones before we reach the end.”
No details have been released as of yet regarding next steps within the court process, specifically matters such as future court appearances.
Please follow us at Law Enforcement Today to receive updates as this case works through the court system.
Philadelphia District Attorney threatens to have federal law enforcement officers arrested for doing their jobs
July 22, 2020
PHILADELPHIA, PA. – On Monday, far-left Philadelphia district attorney Larry Krasner said that federal law enforcement officers would be criminally charged if they “unlawfully assault or kidnap anyone in the city.”
Krasner is the enemy of the people. Make no mistake about it. He is not interested in law enforcement, or protecting the innocent citizens of his city.
He is more interested in publicity and making a name for himself, maybe positioning himself to be Joe Biden’s attorney general if the Democrats somehow steal the election.
As cities burn and crime runs rampant across the country due to gutless mayors and governors, President Trump has said that he is going to deploy federal agents to some cities in order to get crime under control.
This is what our country has devolved into in 2020. As Democrats look the other way as their citizens are murdered in record numbers all because of November 3, one of the only people willing to act has been President Trump.
Trump’s dare to deploy additional troops to more cities will test the mettle of reformist prosecutors like Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, who has aggressively pursued police reforms, reports @brentinmock https://t.co/mLRvwMBAaj
— Bloomberg CityLab (@CityLab) July 22, 2020
Bloomberg is reporting that Krasner blustered the following statement:
“My dad volunteered and served in World War II to fight fascism, like most of my uncles, so we would not have an American president brutalizing and kidnapping Americans for exercising their constitutional rights and trying to make America a better place, which is what patriots do.
“Anyone, including federal law enforcement, who unlawfully assaults, and kidnaps people will face criminal charges from my office.”
Where to even start.
First of all, if Krasner’s father did fight in World War II, he would be disgusted by what he is seeing take place in America’s major cities, including the city where his son is the chief “law enforcement” official.
We use the term law enforcement loosely, because Krasner has shown himself to be anything but.
He continually refuses to prosecute criminals who are looting and destroying the city, while filing charges against a police officer who used pepper spray to clear anarchists who were blocking a major Philadelphia highway back in June.
Krasner said that these people in Portland, Oregon, were “exercising their constitutional rights?” The First Amendment under the Bill of Rights guarantees the right of Americans to peaceably assemble. It does NOT give them the right to break into buildings, assault police officers, set buildings on fire and loot businesses.
Krasner is a clown for even trying to suggest that these “protests” in Portland and other cities are anything other than riots.
Patriots? How about a definition, Krasner? A patriot is “a person who vigorously supports their country and is prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors.”
Patriot? This is an abject insult to his own father, who fought Nazi and Japanese aggression in World War II. It is also an insult to every man and woman who has ever worn a uniform defending our country.
President Trump is trying to fill the void caused by gutless mayors, who refuse to stand up to insurrectionist thugs while their cities burn, and people are murdered…including CHILDREN!
Mayors such as Lori Lightfoot in Chicago, Bill de Blasio in New York, and Ted Wheeler in Portland fiddle while their cities are burning.
In the case of Portland, President Trump ordered federal troops in to protect a federal building, which he clearly has the right and authority to do.
Those were not “patriots” trying to break down doors and enter the building. They were common criminals.
Of course, we get so-called “legal experts” weighing in, saying that the president exceeded boundaries in the actions in Portland.
A so-called “legal scholar” from the George Soros funded Brennan Center for Justice, Elizabeth Goitein wrote on Twitter:
“[T]he use of a secret federal paramilitary force in Portland (and soon Chicago and likely other cities) is every bit the abuse of power it appears to be, while making the unfounded claim that the president’s decision to protect federal property is ‘pure pretext’ to have federal agents take the place of local police.”
In short, the use of a secret federal paramilitary force in Portland (and soon Chicago and likely other cities) is every bit the abuse of power that it appears to be. And it’s an abuse we can expect to see again in November if the administration isn’t called to account. 14/14
— Elizabeth Goitein (@LizaGoitein) July 21, 2020
If you want a real hoot, read the responses to Goitein’s tweet. Some liberals in this country are truly brain-dead.
Krasner, one of a number of district attorneys who were beneficiaries of Soros’ unlimited supply of cash, has been pursuing police reforms and he has taken steps to reverse so-called unethical and unconstitutional police practices which he claims the president wants to see more of.
According to U.S. News & World Report, President Trump said that he was “going to do something” about out of control crime, and he cited Philadelphia along with other major U.S. cities as places he might take federal action, which he noted were all run by liberal Democrats.
Philadelphia’s feckless mayor, Jim Kenney, a Democrat of course, said the president singling out Democratic led cities was “a politicization of federal resources that should outrage all taxpayers.”
The Associated Press said that the Department of Homeland Security is planning to deploy about 150 agents to Chicago, according to an official with the agency. The official was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.
Clueless Krasner seems to ignore the fact that as of July 6, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer, 888 people had been shot in the city, an average of 4.7 people per day. On the same date last year, 701 people had been shot, nearly a 27 percent increase year over year. That would put “The City of Brotherly ‘Love’ ” on pace for the highest murder rate since 1997.
While there is no single reason for the increase in crime, frustration over nearly four months of lockdown restrictions, combined with anti-police sentiment resulting in officers taking a hands-off approach to enforcement, and the fact that Krasner is a soft-on-crime for the bad guys, tough-on-cops doing their jobs kind of guy, it isn’t a wonder that crime is running rampant.
Krasner is one of a number of district attorneys put in place by George Soros, including Paul Howard in Fulton County, Georgia, Kim Foxx in Chicago, Rachael Rollins in Boston, Chesa Boudin in San Francisco and famously St. Louis’ Kim Gardner, who recently charged two citizens criminally for defending themselves against an angry mob that broke onto their property.
Krasner of course is a hypocrite. While he criticized President Trump for avoiding military service, Krasner himself never served in the military.
During his interview with Bloomberg, Krasner compared President Trump to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said he is acting like a “historical Argentinian dictator” and said that the president “likes the image of the strong man.”
Krasner spent the bulk of the time trying to deflect from his own incompetence and inability to deal with crime in his own city under his watch by criticizing the president, who at least is trying to do something.
Hopefully the American people are waking up to frauds like Krasner, Gardner, Howard, and other Soros stooges occupying district attorney offices throughout the country. Until these people are removed, the rule of law will be ignored and people will keep dying, including our most innocent, our children.
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