A plaque for 'Petey' Porter
Officer, slain in car while off-duty in '96, is honored
Being a police officer is a 24-hour job. It means a cop is never really off-duty.
But Robert "Petey" Porter, 27, was technically off-duty on Jan. 19, 1996, when he was shot and killed in West Philadelphia as he and his partner, Kyle Smith-Bey, were seated in an SUV driven by Smith-Bey.
Yesterday, family, friends, classmates and officials paid their respects to Porter during a plaque-dedication ceremony in front of the First District Plaza, 38th and Market streets, where Porter died.
"One thing is, I know that Pete got respect, always, while he was here with us and after he fell," said a cousin, Thomas Turner.
"He and I were very close. I considered him to be my best friend. I know he touched a lot of people."
Porter's mother, Priscilla; his father, Robert; his brother, Raymond, and his sister, Denise, also attended.
District Attorney Lynne Abraham said she vividly recalls Porter's killing because another officer, Lauretha Vaird, was slain just a few weeks prior.
"They were off-duty, they weren't doing anything to anybody," said Abraham, who noted that Porter was just dropping someone off at a bar, and that the two officers were on their way to New York City.
They were driving up 38th Street, made a left on Market, when a van containing three men pulled up alongside them and one of the occupants opened fire on the officers. Porter was hit four times.
Abraham said the killers knew the two officers were cops.
The triggerman, Brian Young, now 29; Bernard Bennett and Dwayne Brown, now both 32, were convicted of murder and sentenced to life.
It is believed that Smith-Bey had been the intended target because he had shot and arrested Bennett in 1995.
Rick Zambino, who became close to Porter when they were in the same class at the Police Academy in 1988, got emotional as he remembered the bright personality of his fallen classmate.
"Whenever I think of Petey, I light up," he said. "We started in Narcotics together in the early '90s, and we went through class together. We saw each other all the time.
"Narcotics is hard; it takes its toll on you, but no matter what, if I was dragging, I would look at that young man and light up," Zambino said. "His smile, it was like a light surrounded him.
"All I can say is God bless Petey and his family, and I know he'll always be with us."
Rob Dougherty was the citizen sponsor for this plaque dedication.
To inquire about sponsorship or to find out more about the hero plaque program, call James Binns at 215-275-3000. *
