The members of the Police Liaison Committee elected a new chair last week who is committed to developing and strengthening relations between police and the local LGBT community.
The committee elected Franny Price, president of Philly Pride Presents, which organizes the annual Pride and Outfest celebrations, as the agency’s chair at its meeting Dec. 10. The 10 members present also voted in Rick Lombardo, special investigator with the Department of Revenue, Cigarette Enforcement Division, as the committee’s secretary.
Price, a member of the committee for about five years, said she wanted to take on the position so she could utilize her own connections to and understanding of the local LGBT community to enhance police-community relations.
“I thought I’d be a good liaison because I’m out there in the community, not only very visible but also very accessible.”
Price said her first and primary goal as head of the agency will be to heighten awareness about the committee and its role as an advocate for the community.
“I want to give the community more accessibility to the committee. A lot of things happen and people might not know who to call or they may be afraid to call someone. There is a liaison committee here to help you, whether it’s to be there to support you if you have to make a police report or refer you to who you should make a report to. I think that the community itself needs to be more involved with the committee.”
Price said LGBT individuals should also practice safety precautions on their own, especially this holiday season — which she said is tied with Memorial Day weekend as the highest-crime period of the year for the community.
“There are a lot of things that I’ve seen that people do wrong that puts themselves at danger. Around the holidays, there are more gay muggings than gay bashings, because people know that a lot of gay people come into the city around the holidays and may have more disposable income than other people. It’s a very-high-crime time of year, and if people come down to the city and go out and have cocktails and are dressed up and might have a couple drinks, they could be targets for criminals,” she said.
Price noted that city residents and visitors should always keep aware of their surroundings and refrain from having packages or presents visible in their vehicles, and avoid lingering in their cars before locking the doors.
People walking through the Gayborhood at night should also feel comfortable looking to local businesses for assistance if needed, she added.
“If anybody feels scared walking around, please go into one of the establishments in the Gayborhood and, if you need them to, they can call police or call a cab for you.”
Price also encouraged LGBTs to always report a crime to the police and to seek help from the committee in order to decrease fears of homophobia.
“If something happens, you shouldn’t be afraid to report it. I know that a lot of people in our community are afraid to report things to police because of the fear that they may be outed. But if you have an incident, you can call the liaison committee, or you can call Chief [James] Tiano, [police liaison to the LGBT community].”
Chief Inspector James Tiano can be reached at (215) 685-3655. The liaison committee can be reached at (215) 600-0627 or [email protected].
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].