Quakertown police mimic ICE brutality | Editorial
Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan has charged five teens with aggravated assault. He must also bring that level of accountability to police engaged in the melee.
Students speaking out against abuses by federal immigration agents and the kind of heavy-handed tactics that have led to clashes between protesters and law enforcement across the country were met with excessive force by Quakertown police, who slammed children to the ground and put one in a choke hold.
The irony is not lost. Neither should the outrage.
While some of the facts are in dispute, the picture that emerges from several bystander videos is that it was police — primarily Quakertown Police Chief Scott McElree — who seemingly escalated the confrontation.
Five teenagers arrested during the protest have reportedly been charged with aggravated assault. Those are serious felony charges. Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan must also bring that level of accountability to McElree and his officers.
It all began on Friday, when students planned a walkout to protest the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. According to Inquirer reporting, initial approval from Quakertown Community High School officials changed to opposition over safety concerns. At least 35 students walked out anyway.
The diverse group headed downtown, holding signs and flags and chanting. Some passing drivers honked and shouted approval, or disapproval, from behind the wheel. A letter to parents by Lisa Hoffman, the acting superintendent of the Quakertown Community School District, said they received reports that students were “engaging in unsafe and disruptive behavior.”
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A police statement said students entered traffic, threw snowballs, and damaged property, including a car’s side-view mirror. Available video footage shows students arguing with police about being off the sidewalk to shouts of “this is a peaceful protest,” shortly before McElree — out of uniform and not wearing any clearly visible identification — barrels into the crowd.
McElree engages physically with the students, placing a teenage girl in a choke hold as punches from other protesters rain down. According to students, many believed McElree to be an aggressive counterprotester. A reasonable assumption considering the police chief’s wardrobe and other similar incidents, including one in Texas where a 45-year-old man ended up in a melee with student protesters.
“It’s a grown man. It’s a grown man and a kid! He’s on a child! Why is no one stopping this?” distressed onlookers are heard saying in one of the videos. McElree then throws a teenage girl to the ground, while another Quakertown officer tosses a student onto a planter.
Further compounding the shameful behavior by the authorities, the teens arrested were held in jail until a detention hearing on Tuesday. That’s over 72 hours. This would be unfair for adults; to treat children this way is unconscionable.
The Quakertown community has been justifiably incensed over what happened.
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At a borough council meeting on Monday, borough officials said they were “disturbed” by the incident, but declined additional comment. Residents wanted their elected leaders to go much further, demanding McElree’s resignation or termination.
Evan Smith, from nearby Richlandtown, reminded officials that “Jesus told us to suffer the little children, not to make them suffer.” Colin Hancock, a student who attended the protest, described being afraid to go back to his own home due to the actions of the police. Many seemed shocked that something like this could happen in their small suburban town.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania accused McElree of acting as a counterprotester, rather than as law enforcement. In a statement, the group said the chief “abandoned his job and his mission” and said he must be held accountable.
Khan said his office is investigating. Hopefully, the results of the district attorney’s inquiry will give the community a thorough understanding of the incident and whether McElree or any of his officers merit dismissal. At the very least, changes to the Quakertown Borough Police Department must be implemented so this never happens again.
Students exercising their First Amendment rights and engaging in civil disobedience may yet face disciplinary action from their school, but they should not have to deal with brutal treatment by law enforcement, who ought to know better.