Philadelphia’s City Council’s public safety committee, on Tuesday morning, held a hearing that, organizers said, was intended to examine the city’s “strategies, laws, and policies for protecting victims of abuse and domestic violence within the justice system.”
The meeting came, organizers said, following a resolution from Philadelphia Council President Kenyatta Johnson (D-2nd dist.) that was approved after the death of Kada Scott from Philadelphia.
The 23-year-old Scott was found dead near a school in the city’s East Germantown neighborhood in October about two weeks after she was kidnapped from her workplace at an assisted living facility in Chestnut Hill.
Keon King, a man who allegedly kidnapped and assaulted another woman earlier this year, has been arrested and charged in her slaying.
On Tuesday, Scott’s parents, Kim Matthews and Keith Scott, were at the hearing, but declined to testify.
In opening Tuesday’s hearing, Johnson said that, too often, the justice system fails victims of domestic violence.
“The criminal justice system is falling short of protecting the people it’s meant to serve,” said the council president. “Far too often the individuals who courageously call the police in moments of crisis do not, or cannot, come to court when it’s time to testify. As a result, cases are dismissed or withdrawn.”
According to statistics from Women Against Abuse, a Philadelphia-based provider of services to victims of domestic abuse, every year police in the city respond to more than 100,000 calls that are related to domestic violence.
City officials said, despite this high volume of instances, many cases never make it to court. And, of those that do, many are ultimately dismisses or withdrawn, which, officials said, can leave victims “without legal resolution or protection.”
With Tuesday’s hearing, officials said in a statement that they are looking for ways that the city can provide strategies or reforms aimed at making sure these kinds of cases don’t fall through the cracks in the justice system.
“Although this hearing alone may not ensure all domestic violence cases go to trial, it is a crucial step toward filling gaps in the system, improving inter-agency cooperation, and pushing for policy changes to prevent future tragedies,” read a statement from Council President Johnson’s office on the upcoming hearing.
In testifying before the City Council committee, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner detailed the work his office does to support victims of domestic violence and the lengths attorneys in his office go to ensure victims of domestic violence are protected in this city.
But, he admitted that his office can always “do better.”
“Make no mistake, we can do better, every day,” he said. “The question is, not just to do different, the question is ‘how do you do better?’”
He also said that the hearing was a step in the right direction to help the city tackle complicated issues that are tied to domestic violence.
“Today is not necessarily the day for every nut and every bolt, but we are happy to talk through every nut and every bolt in our office and outside of our office that presents an opportunity to do better,” he said.
As for some steps his office plans to take, next year, Krasner said, he plans to request funding to create a specialized domestic violence unit in his office.
This was not a voting hearing. Instead, it was intended to gather information for possible future legislation.
As of about 1 p.m., the hearing had taken an intermission for lunch. They were expected back on Tuesday afternoon. To watch more of the hearing, the city’s livestream is available here.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.
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