We have been living four year long nightmare in the City of Coatesville

This is partly a response to the anti-Paul Janssen people: I was a Coatesville Planning Commissioner. When an alleged death threat did not work; the “Bloc of Four” arranged a different way to remove me from the planning commission. What they might not know is at the planning commission meeting two weeks after the meeting with the alleged death threat District Attorney Joe Carroll waited from before the meeting began until after it was over. If Ernie Campos and/or Richard Legree showed up again he was prepared to charge them with terroristic threats. The alleged threat is in the minutes of the Coatesville Planning Commission meeting May 10, 2006:

According to Ms. Janssen the Janssen family was advised by the FBI not to live in the City of Coatesville. This was because of Janssen’s efforts to remove the drug gangs from the City of Coatesville; the same drug gangs that thrived when Ernie Campos was Coatesville City Council president. Anybody see “the Wire” episode “Amsterdam”? Before Paul Janssen came here there were times when the streets were blocked by drug dealers. It looked like that “Wire” episode.

I wrote this on the “Chester County Cops Blog” DLN on July 29, 2008 4:02 PM Jim Pitcherella said... It was winter time here when I said that this was shaping up to be a violent summer in Coatesville. The response by the Coatesville Administration was a nonchalant smirk. This is one time that I really hate to say, I told you so. The escalation of violence in Coatesville is an inevitable consequence of what I believe is the “dumbing down” of the Coatesville Police Department by the “bloc of four” city council members and their supporters. The Walker Administration made a decision to cut costs to avoid a tax increase or the utilization of Coatesville’s “rainy day fund”. They cut funds across the board by cutting back on staff (administrators salaries were increased). The biggest staff cuts were in the police department. Not only were the number of officers reduced but the police department office staff was nearly eliminated causing patrol officers to fill in for clerical jobs. Our “chief” Mr. Matthews is still not certified as a policeman in Pennsylvania. When Paul Janssen took office as the Coatesville City Manager his first task was to make the streets safe. Mr. Janssen searched for and found a police officer that could tackle the task of policing the streets of Coatesville. When Chief of Police Dominic Bellizzie first saw Coatesville he said that the “streets were an open air drug bazaar”. Janssen and Chief Bellizzie modernized and expanded the Coatesville Police Department. Unfortunately the city was plunged into a series of lawsuits concerning a land acquisition dispute. The 30 plus lawsuits directed against the City of Coatesville that the city was forced to win in court nearly bankrupted the city (The City of Coatesville won every lawsuit; I believe that most should have been thrown out as frivolous). However, Chief Bellizzie’s efforts paid off and by 2005 drug dealers could not risk living inside the city limits of Coatesville. In spite of the drag from the lawsuits the city was on the brink of turning over from the wholesale and retail drug distribution center of Chester County into a normal city. And then came the “bloc of four”. Below is a portion of the resignation letter of former Coatesville Assistant City Manager Tarron Richardson. He refers to the Walker Administration: “Continued association with the cesspool of corruption and misconduct created by the majority of council and its political appointments may subsequently jeopardize my future professional, personal, and political endeavors. Such inappropriate behavior has caused a mass exodus of city personnel, many who carried with them substantial institutional knowledge of the organization." The drug entrepreneurs are well aware that the Coatesville Police Force has been in a state of crisis since the “bloc of four” took office. The real winners in the Municipal Election of 2005 in Coatesville were not the Sahas, they were not the “bloc of four”, developers may be unwelcome by the city administration and certainly the people of Coatesville did not benefit by the election of the “bloc of four”. It might have been unintended but I believe the real winners of the Municipal Election of 2005 were the drug dealers I think that the blame for the violence that we now have here can be placed squarely at the foot of the “bloc of four” and the people that got them elected. As District Attorney Joe Carroll says; “This is an unprecedented level of violence". The summer is still young. The violence could intensify. It is time for the “bloc of four” to do something positive for their city; they can resign from city council. From: http://is.gd/5MrwR

I believe that the setbacks in the Coatesville PD and administrative changes in the Coatesville FD by the “Bloc of Four” and the Walker Administration helped to create a perfect storm for arson in Coatesville:

The Philadelphia Inquirer: "(Coatesville Fire Chief) 'Johnson reported 295 in 2007, while union records show 733. When the union discovered the difference, it complained to city officials, but nothing was done, Poulson said. 'Fire-suppression services are in complete disarray,' Poulson said of Coatesville, adding, 'It's like the perfect storm for an arsonist.". Richard G. Poulson is the attorney for the city's 13 paid part-time firefighters and four full-time firefighters." From "Hiring practices, management of Coatesville Fire Department criticized" -Philadelphia Inquirer

Maybe you should ask all the people in Coatesville that lost their homes to arson in Coatesville if they want Paul Janssen back. Maybe you should ask all the store owners in Coatesville that were repeatedly robbed at gun point if they want Paul Janssen Back. Maybe you should ask all the people that were shot on the streets and in their homes in Coatesville if they want Paul Janssen back. Maybe you should ask the woman that sat on her porch for more than 40 years and now hides behind the bullet resistant barrier of a brick wall if she wants Paul Janssen back. Maybe you should ask the parents of school children that were brutally beaten by gangs if they want Paul Janssen back. Maybe you should ask the people who moved their young family to homes here thinking Coatesville was moving up and instead had to fight off the drug gangs on their street and constantly worry about their house being set fire if they want Paul Janssen back. Maybe you should ask the people whose family members were brutally murdered if they want Paul Janssen back. I don’t really know if the best thing for Coatesville is to have Paul Janssen as City Manager here or not but with the municipal government that the anti-Paul Janssen "Save our Farm" people installed we have been living a nightmare here in Coatesville.

Today’s Daily Local article about abolishing paid firefighters

There is an article in today’s Daily Local News concerning the referendum to abolish the paid firefighters in Coatesville proposed by Miss Patsy Ray and Harry Walker.

City council rejects firefighter referendum
Published: Friday, December 18, 2009
http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2009/12/18/news/srv0000007110826.txt

I wrote about a proposed referendum to abolish paid firefighters on December 6, 2009:

“Walker wants paid firefighters out…

http://coatesvilledems.blogspot.com/2009/12/walker-wants-paid-firefighters-out.html

We are much safer now that the paid firefighters have some control in Coatesville. But I think that there are still many unanswered questions concerning the volunteer officers in Coatesville and the pandemic of arson fires here.

The Philadelphia Inquirer:
"(Coatesville Fire Chief) 'Johnson reported 295 in 2007, while union records show 733. When the union discovered the difference, it complained to city officials, but nothing was done, Poulson said. 'Fire-suppression services are in complete disarray,' Poulson said of Coatesville, adding, 'It's like the perfect storm for an arsonist.". Richard G. Poulson is the attorney for the city's 13 paid part-time firefighters and four full-time firefighters." From "Hiring practices, management of Coatesville Fire Department criticized" -Philadelphia Inquirer

Walker wants Paid Firefighters out. The Coatesville Paid Firefighters honored by the Crime Victims' Center

“The Referendum to do away with the paid firefighters; I would be totally against that…” Councilperson elect Joe Hamrick at the Coatesville City Council Budget Workshop on Monday November 30, 2009.

Listen here:

http://www.box.net/shared/ek286i5ru5

“The center selected the Coatesville Professional Firefighters Association Local No. 3790 of the International Association of Firefighters to receive its annual John J. Crane Allied Professional Award.”

City firefighters honored for work during arson crisis

Published: Sunday, December 6, 2009

http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2009/12/06/news/srv0000006999769.txt

The Walker Administration is proposing a referendum to remove Coatesville paid firefighters.

How much more would homeowners pay for homeowner insurance in Coatesville without a paid firefighters? How much more property would be lost and how many more lives would be taken if Walker’s plan is carried out? Maybe most importantly would it encourage a new round of arson?

There is something concerning the Coatesville arson fires that’ not talked about at Coatesville City Council Meetings:

It’s the record keeping during the period when the volunteers kept records of fires in Coatesville.

Ask how many arson fires there were in Coatesville. The answer that will come back will be something like “more than” or “about” or some kind of vague answer. That’s because the records of fires by the volunteers are allegedly incomplete.

Could any of the arson fires have been prevented if all the arsons had been reported in a timely manner and the ATF brought in sooner?

Did the Governor need to lay down the law to the Walker Administration on one Sunday morning? If so why? Was the Walker Administration reluctant to declare an emergency that would bring in the PA Fire Marshal and ATF?

The Philadelphia Inquirer:
"(Coatesville Fire Chief) 'Johnson reported 295 in 2007, while union records show 733. When the union discovered the difference, it complained to city officials, but nothing was done, Poulson said. 'Fire-suppression services are in complete disarray,' Poulson said of Coatesville, adding, 'It's like the perfect storm for an arsonist.". Richard G. Poulson, is the attorney for the city's 13 paid part-time firefighters and four full-time firefighters."

"Hiring practices, management of Coatesville Fire Department criticized"

Source: Kathleen Brady Shea Inquirer Staff Writer

"On Jan. 17, 2001, police responded to a domestic dispute involving a man in camouflage gear waving a semiautomatic pistol. As two officers approached the Caln Township residence, a shot was fired "in such a manner as to place individuals in danger," court records said. Less than four years later, the person who shot the gun, Kevin Johnson, was hired as an assistant fire chief in Coatesville. His hiring is an example of Coatesville's weakness in screening"
Published on 2009-03-28, Page B01, Philadelphia Inquirer, The (PA)

See my post:

http://coatesvilledems.blogspot.com/2009/03/perfect-storm-for-arson.html

It looks like someone is planning a referendum for the Fire Department

This is Joe Hamrick talking to the Coatesville City Council at the Monday, November 30th Budget Workshop Meeting.

Joe does not like the idea of doing away with the professional fire fighters.

http://www.box.net/shared/no411eofcg

FIRE GUY

Ronny Suber addressing the Coatesville City Council concerning the sentence of Robert Tracy
And Coatesville City Council President Marty Eggleston’s answer:


I think the investigations are not over and there may be more to come.

The big election in Chester County is in Coatesville.

It's between voters who like the Walker Administration and voters who don’t like drug dealers and worry about fire.

I believe that Matt Baker’s request for a forensic audit of Coatesville’s government is just one step.

I believe that something much more inclusive than a forensic audit in regards to the City of Coatesville will be announced soon.

The Philadelphia Inquirer
Posted on Sat, Aug. 22, 2009
Coatesville confronts financial woes
By Kathleen Brady Shea
Inquirer Staff Writer
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/54074937.html

Is there a home for homeless firefighters in Coatesville?

It may be that our paid firefighters will be needing one soon.

Blame It

I “blame It” the drug trafficking here on the local Republican Party but that’s just me and my opinion. What does a Democrat’s opinion mean in Republican controlled Chester County?

Donations will help Coatesville-area fire victims

"The Coatesville Professional Firefighters Association will donate school supplies to about three dozen children affected by the arson scourge.
Members of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 3790 will distribute the items, including backpacks, pencils, and paper, at 5 p.m. Monday at United Steelworkers Union Hall, 750 Charles St., Coatesville."

Find this article at:
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/pennsylvania/20090724_Donations_will_help_Coatesville-area_fire_victims.html

I was inspired by a column in today’s New York Times by CHARLES M. BLOW-

Pitchforks and Pistols; “Lately I’ve been consuming as much conservative media as possible (interspersed with shots of Pepto-Bismol) to get a better sense of the mind and mood of the right. My read: They’re apocalyptic. They feel isolated, angry, betrayed and besieged. And some of their “leaders” seem to be trying to mold them into militias.”
More at: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/04/opinion/04blow.html

We had a fellow named Pat Sellers in our small city. He ran for PA 6th Congressional District Congress in 96 and picked up Larry Pratt as a speaker for a fundraiser. (See: Lancaster Intelligencer Journal, Lancaster, PA Thursday April 11, 1996 House hopeful charged in fight with teenager) That was after Presidential Candidate Pat Buchanan dropped Pratt because of his alleged KKK connections. Pratt (Gun Owners of America) is partly known as the person who revived the modern day militias. Sellers stated that “he sought Pratt’s support because of his expertise on gun issues.”

“In 1990, Pratt wrote a book, Armed People Victorious, based on his study of "citizen defense patrols" used in Guatemala and the Philippines against Communist rebels — patrols that came to be known as death squads for their murderous brutality. Picturing these groups in rosy terms, Pratt advocated similar militias in the United States — an idea that finally caught on when he was invited for a meeting of 160 extremists, including many famous white supremacists, in 1992.

It was at that meeting, hosted in Colorado by white supremacist minister Pete Peters that the contours of the militia movement were laid out.”
From- Southern Poverty Law Center Intelligence Report- Summer 2001 False Patriots- http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?pid=365

There was an election here in the City of Coatesville PA in 2005. Pat Sellers was a campaign manager who helped to elect 4 Coatesville City Council members who became known as “the bloc of four”. There were alleged threats of “men with rifles in the bushes” on a local radio call in show in the lead up to the election. Coatesville Police could not determine the identity of the caller.

I believe that “bloc of four” city council that led us to a malfunctioning city government in Coatesville and contributed to the 70 plus record breaking arsons and runaway crime here.

Coatesville is in the center of Chester County Pennsylvania it is in the top ten wealthiest counties in the USA in the Main Line Philadelphia area. Princess Grace Kelly grew up nearby. We have regular Fox Hunting with hounds here. Not the place where you would expect to find extremist KKK and Arian Nation activity.

We have had more than our share of KKK and Arian Nation activity here. There were several arrests and convictions of cross burners. But there was one investigation that stood out:

About 7 years ago a City of Coatesville Police Detective Martin Quinn thought that there was something odd about a burglary. He kept the case open. It led to the conviction of three Arian Nation / KKK bomb makers. One bomb maker was David Wayne Hull; the self declared Imperial Wizard of the Pennsylvania chapter White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. Hull’s intended targets for attacks included abortion clinics, police departments and the Peach Bottom Pennsylvania nuclear power plant. The other two were Joshua Sutter -- a ranking member of the Aryan Nations with national visibility -- and John Keohane -- once a member of a local Ku Klux Klan faction. They are all serving sentences of 8 to 12 years in Federal prison. Now retired Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas P. Hogan Jr. was instrumental in bringing the extremists to justice. I am sure that many people are unaware all this was occurring in pastoral Chester County Pennsylvania.

There are still several now quiet extremist “cells” alleged to be nearby Coatesville in Chester County. There are a few people like me who are aware of the threat that just a few well armed extremists can have on ordinary people. It is very discouraging to hear that there is a “call to arms” from Right Wing leaders.

"Perfect Storm" for arson

In my opinion; if you are familiar with the Coatesville City Council, the top level management of Coatesville's city government, the actions of the "Coatesville Police Chief Matthews and the top level officers of the Coatesville Fire Department the seventy plus arsons in the last thirteen months or so could have been anticipated.
The Philadelphia Inquirer:
(Coatesville Fire Chief) "Johnson reported 295 in 2007, while union records show 733. When the union discovered the difference, it complained to city officials, but nothing was done, Poulson said.   'Fire-suppression services are in complete disarray,' Poulson said of Coatesville, adding, 'It's like the perfect storm for an arsonist.". Richard G. Poulson, is the attorney for the city's 13 paid part-time firefighters and four full-time firefighters.  
More at:
http://www.phillymobile.com/topic/1180-Local%20News/articles/190914053

What’s up with the Coatesville West End Fire Company?

“Coatesville firefighter hiring practices criticized”
“Firefighter union's attorney argues background checks would have revealed suspect's criminal past
Friday, March 27, 2009
By JENNIFER MILLER, Staff Writer
COATESVILLE — Just days after police arrested a city firefighter for allegedly setting houses on fire, city officials are facing criticism for Coatesville's employee hiring process.

Rick Poulson, attorney for the city's firefighter union, criticized the administration Thursday for hiring 37-year-old Robert Tracey Jr. as a paid firefighter just weeks before he was arrested in connection with two arson fires.

Poulson argues a proper background check should have kept the city from hiring Tracey, who has a criminal record. Additionally, Poulson said a background check should have kept the city from appointing Kevin Johnson to fire chief in 2006 due to his criminal record
”More at:

Coatesville firefighter hiring practices criticized

By JENNIFER MILLER, Staff Writer 

POSTED: 03/27/09, 12:01 AM EDT | UPDATED: ON 03/27/2009

When District Attorney had a meeting with the West End Fire Company officers it was at the Washington Fire Company. Why wasn’t the meeting at the West End Company? Do they have something to hide?

The word on the street is that the West End Fire Company is what the black population here in Coatesville calls “Old Coatesville”.


Coatesville Fire Chief Kevin Johnson was still on parole when he was appointed Chief by the Coatesville City Council.

CLICK HERE FOR JOHNSONS COURT DOCUMENTS:
http://www.box.net/shared/r21tbc210e

New arson in Coatesville; 20th this year

"The Daily Local (dailylocal.com), Serving Chester County, PA

Saturday, March 14, 2009 9:11 AM EDT
COATESVILLE, Pa. (AP) - Authorities say there has been another arson in the suburban Philadelphia city of Coatesville.

The 1:30 a.m. blaze struck two homes on East Valley Road in the city, and firefighters say they were badly damaged.

John Hageman of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says the latest blaze was deliberately set.

It's the 20th arson in the city this year."

MORE AT:
http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2009/03/14/news/police/doc49bbacfa12a55647024782.txt

Still on edge despite arrests

The Daily Local (dailylocal.com), Serving Chester County, PA

Thursday, March 12, 2009 1:47 PM EDT
By PATRICK WALTERS, Associated Press Writer
COATESVILLE — Sgt. James Audette is patrolling the business district when a man sitting on a bench calls out the question everyone has been asking in this fire-plagued town: "Has there been any more arsons?"

"No there haven't been," Audette tells him.

More at:

http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2009/03/12/news/doc49b9472666801918145921.txt

And at:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=7067087

And at:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/6307637.html

And at:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/AP/story/946317.html

And at:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/03/12/national/a083544D17.DTL&type=education

And at:
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/03/12/ap6160915.html

I guess that Harry Walker, Kurt Schenk and Patsy Ray will have to add some newspapers to their “condemned list”.

"HOME INVASION IN COATESVILLE ... AND A ROBBERY SPREE UPDATE"

"28 February 2009
HOME INVASION IN COATESVILLE ... AND A ROBBERY SPREE UPDATE
Coatesville Police have put out a county-wide alert for as many as seven subjects who were reportedly involved in a home invasion robbery earlier today."

From:
West Chester Unplugged v.2.0
CRIME - POLITICS - NIGHTLIFE - HOMETOWN: WEST CHESTER, CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
http://www.wcunplugged.com/

I believe that the owners of the "Pizza Peddler" on the 100 block of North 2nd Avenue have called it quits after several armed robberies and have closed. Maybe it was the "pistol whipping" the last time that did it.
Jim Pitcherella

THE COATESVILLE DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS A WONDERFUL AND STUNNING “PROBLEM”

Twenty eight people attended a Democratic Meeting at my home on Saturday afternoon, February 28, 2009.

It included the nine Democratic candidates currently running for Coatesville City Council. And Chester County District Attorney Joseph W. Carroll.

There are four positions on the Coatesville City Council up for the Spring Election.

We have a problem, but it is a wonderful and a stunning problem to have. The candidates decided, on their own, to run for office. And there are too many candidates. Those nine Democratic Candidates need to decide among themselves who is going run and who is going to step aside and support those candidates.

Chester County Democratic Committee Chair, Michele Vaughn led the meeting. PA 13th Legislative District Representative Tom Houghton, United Steelworkers Union representative, Dave McLimans; CCDC Secretary, Adam Thomas; Tom McCann, candidate for Chester County Clerk of Courts; Phila Bach, Organizer, Working Families Win and Fern Kaufman were in attendance.

Chester County District Attorney Joe Carroll began our meeting by addressing our gathering.

He stated that from a law enforcement view the Coatesville Administration had to change. Joe believes that Coatesville cannot sustain another four years of the current administration.

Joe said that he would support any candidate Democratic or Republican who he thought would bring about the needed change to get Coatesville back on track.

What I wrote in my previous post "Did tampering with the Coatesville PD present the opportunity for arson in Coatesville?" is my synopsis of part of Joe's presentation on Saturday.

James J. Pitcherella Zone Leader, CCDC Zone 18, Coatesville

Did tampering with the Coatesville PD present the opportunity for arson in Coatesville?

Just in case there are any lingering doubts as to why many members of the City of Coatesville Police left the PD for more secure employment elsewhere in 2007.

Here is the letter from Coatesville Police Chief William Matthews to Chester County District Attorney Joseph W Carroll, May 18, 2007. "...Because of lay-off we will lose six (6) patrol officers."
http://www.box.net/shared/ha1zzj1b7d

The order to lay off police was rescinded shortly after May 18th but the police officers knew about it and many officers looked for better more secure jobs in other departments. The police officers did not know if and when the lay-off order would be reinstated. We lost some of our most experienced officers and detectives that had extensive knowledge of the community.

• The Narcotics Division was disbanded and its officers transferred to patrol.
• The bike unit was disbanded.
• The community relations officer was put on regular duty.
• Non-uniformed office staff was laid off. This added to the regular officers duties.

In all 15 Coatesville Police Officers left the 32 person Coatesville Police Force.

Lt. Matt Gordon was described by Joe Carroll as the most knowledgeable narcotics investigator in Chester County. Lt. Gordon was removed from the Coatesville PD and put on “administrative leave” by Chief William Matthews in October of 2007 and has not been on the force since then.

The results of all the tampering with the Coatesville PD were predictable; armed robbery, muggings, and shootings all increased dramatically. The news spread that the drug business was good again in Coatesville and drug dealers, some violent street gangs and guns came into Coatesville.

No one could foresee the dramatic increase in arson but the general lawlessness presented an opportunity for arson.

The Walker Administration was alleged to be resistant to requests from the PA State Police and ATF to come into Coatesville and investigate the arson for nearly a year. It was only after the Fleetwood Street fire that Governor Rendell forcefully asked the City of Coatesville to declare an emergency and the PA State Police and ATF began their investigation.

"Police seek public's help with manhunt for homicide suspect"

"Coatesville man slain in October 2006
Saturday, February 28, 2009 6:08 AM EST
By JENNIFER MILLER, Staff Writer
COATESVILLE — The Coatesville Homicide Task Force is seeking the public's help in its search for a man allegedly linked to the killing of Coatesville man nearly 2½ years ago.

Jeremiah "Young" Bush, 22, of Philadelphia, alias Hanif Murphy, is wanted for his alleged role in the killing of Jonas "Sonny" Suber, who was killed in the doorway of his Walnut Street home Oct. 21, 2006.

Investigators said Friday afternoon they are actively pursuing Bush, who will face homicide charges. Bush has ties to Coatesville and West Chester and is believed to be living in Philadelphia."
MORE AT:
http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2009/02/28/news/srv0000004800660.txt

Also See:
“Vicious cycle, tragic ending
Monday, November 27, 2006 3:00 AM EST
By By: Jennifer Miller
...‘I was hoping he would leave Coatesville. It's not a good place for a young black man,’ Stretton said... "I warned him this summer he should leave for his own safety."
‘He wasn't going to leave. Jonas felt rooted in Coatesville,’ Stretton said...

Then, on Oct. 21, a gunman ended Suber's life with eight bullets. The gunman shot him at 9 a.m. in the doorway of his Walnut Street home.”
MORE AT:
http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2006/11/27/frontpage/17519212.txt

"Pulver grants for hotel, office building at risk"

"Chester County Reporter
by Allen Davis
Staff Writer
Posted: Wednesday, 25 Feb. 2009 10:30 p.m.
Developer Don Pulver must begin land development for his proposed Marriott Hotel and multi-level office building within the next 60 days or lose $4.6 million in state grants.
Pulver last week asked the city Redevelopment Authority (RDA) to speed up finalizing the deal that allows him to purchase the air rights for the hotel and office...
"These grants are coming to end of their useful life," said Pulver."

http://chestercountyreporter.com/109pulversite.html