Philadelphia officials are reacting to the arrests of a city worker and her husband that took place on the shoulder of the Vine Street Expressway early Saturday morning. NBC10’s Brian Sheehan has the latest.
A state trooper who was caught on viral video arresting two Philadelphia LGBTQ+ officials back in March is no longer employed by Pennsylvania State Police.
"We can confirm he's no longer employed by our department," a Pennsylvania State Police spokesperson told NBC10 on Friday, May 10.
Caught on video arrest on I-76
The arrest of Celena Morrison and Darius McLean
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On March 2, 2024, at 9:09 a.m., a member of the Pennsylvania State Police, Philadelphia Barracks, initiated a traffic stop on a grey Infiniti sedan on I-76 westbound at mile marker 344.9 in Philadelphia. State police said the trooper observed multiple vehicle code violations. Before the trooper spoke with the driver of the Infiniti, later identified as 51-year-old Celena Morrison, a green Dodge sedan arrived and parked behind the trooper's vehicle, state police said.
The trooper then approached the driver of the Dodge, later identified as Morrison's husband, 35-year-old Darius McLean. State police said McLean became "verbally combative" toward the trooper and refused to comply with the trooper's demands. As the trooper attempted to place him under arrest, McLean allegedly resisted.
State police said Morrison then approached the trooper and tried to stop him from arresting her husband.
Morrison and McLean were then arrested and charged with resisting arrest, obstruction of justice, disorderly conduct and other related offenses. The couple was detained for about 12 hours before being released.
Morrison and McLean dispute report from state police
Morrison leads Philadelphia's Office of LGBT Affairs and is a top aide to Mayor Cherelle Parker while McLean runs an LGBTQ+ community center in the city. Video of their arrest later surfaced on social media.
Following the arrest and the release of the video, lawyers for Morrison spoke out about the incident and disputed the report from state police.
Morrison said she started recording the arrest because she feared for her husband's life as a trooper handcuffed him.
Morrison's lawyers claim the trooper then charged at her "like a linebacker" and knocked her cellphone away, ending the recording.
“This state trooper held my husband's life in his hands,” Morrison said at a news conference in March. “Fearing the worst was about the happen, I yelled out to the trooper, ‘I work for the mayor,’ multiple times, hoping that would make him realize he was dealing with people he did not need to be afraid of."
Morrison and McLean both said in March that they planned to file a lawsuit over the traffic stop. They also said at the time of the incident they were driving behind each other to drop off a car for repairs. Their lawyers questioned the trooper's apparent “warrior” policing tactics.
“What is it about the training that he’s receiving that makes him think that that is an OK way to treat civilians that he is sworn to protect and serve?” lawyer Riley Ross asked.
He also questioned the reason for the stop, saying the trooper would not have had time to run the registration before he wedged between them and pulled Morrison over. The trooper, on the video, said he stopped her for tailgating and failing to have her lights on.
Morrison claimed she was targeted for being Black.
“It’s disheartening that as Black individuals, we are all too familiar with the use of the phrase, ‘Stop resisting!’ as a green light for excessive force by law enforcement,” Morrison said.
McLean, following behind his wife, said he stopped to ensure her safety before the trooper turned first to speak with him and quickly drew his gun and ordered him to the ground. The trooper can be heard asking who he was and why he stopped.
McLean said he couldn't shake the image of the trooper “charging at my wife, tackling her as I lay handcuffed in the street.” He tried to ask passing traffic to call 911, the lawyers said.
Mayor Parker called the cellphone video that Morrison shot “very concerning.”
“I now know that there was nothing I could have done or said that was going to stop this trooper from violating our rights,” Morrison said.
After their arrest, the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office said they were investigating the incident.
"The District Attorney's Office has made no charging decision pending a thorough, even-handed investigation," a spokesperson for the DA's Office wrote back in March.
Morrison, who is transgender, has held the city post since 2020. McLean is the chief operating officer of the William Way LGBT Community Center.
The trooper involved in the incident was initially placed on restricted duty. While he is no longer employed with Pennsylvania State Police, officials have not released his identity.
