Fatal shooting by cop dogs Chester's mayor

A SOCIAL-networking storm rained on Chester Mayor Wendell Butler Jr. this weekend after he said he wanted a city cop suspended without pay for shooting and killing a man Aug. 5.

A Facebook site created Saturday called "Support City of Chester Law Enforcement," designed to protest Butler's proposed action, was growing by about 40 people an hour yesterday. At 3:10 p.m., 2,061 had "liked" the page. By 7:30 p.m., that number had jumped to 2,355.

Many expressed outrage at Butler, a former Chester cop of 33 years, calling him "spineless" and "gutless."

"The man is a disgrace to be called a 'mayor'. More like a 'weasel searching for votes' or 'punk-lover'!" wrote a man named Matt Ross. "Maybe he doesn't remember the days of working the beat and understanding that people are actually out to get the men and women who wear the blue."

But Butler said in an interview yesterday that he'd sought the officer's suspension to protect other cops and citizens because there was a "real threat" of violence erupting in the community as a result of the shooting.

"It's a death knell for me," he said of the decision that could end his political career. "But I flash-forwarded, in my mind, to London [where riots began with the protest of a fatal police-involved shooting].

"If I've got to sacrifice myself to save my city, I'll do that," he said.

About 8 p.m. on Aug. 5, Chester police tried to stop Daniel Simms, 21, but police said Simms ran and pointed a handgun at them, forcing them to fire. Simms was hit once in the back and later died. Cops said they believe that they recovered Simms' gun. The officer who shot Simms has not been identified.

According to the Delaware County Daily Times, which broke the story, the Simms family has held two protests over their loved one's death, including one at the Chester police station. Last week, Butler met with Simms' family but said they did not affect his decision to seek the officer's suspension.

He said it had more to do with violence erupting in the area of the shooting and a heated town meeting one week ago at which he and Police Chief Darren Alston were "bombarded" by community members who threatened more violence.

"The words thrown at us were that harm was going to take place," he said. "It was more than hostility, it was a threat."

Butler said that of the 150 residents who showed up at that meeting, not one supported police.

Butler said he wrote a suspension letter for the officer, but the letter was never sent. He said it couldn't have been acted upon anyway because the cop in question was listed as "injured on duty."

Now, Butler said, he will wait for the investigation by Delaware County authorities and State Police to take its course.

"I wish the whole thing didn't happen," Butler said. "Not for me, of course, but for the officer. Nobody wants to take another's life."