Scott Dean Harris was brutally assaulted in the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia last month and he’s concerned that police failed to act promptly to solve the crime.
Harris, 62, left his home at about 11:44 p.m. Aug. 26 to walk his dog Nora. He believes he was attacked by an attendee of an unlawful party at Jefferson Playground, which is directly across from his residence.
Harris suffered a brain concussion and severe lacerations to his face, which required more than 100 stitches to close. His wallet was stolen, which contained a treasured memento of his late mother. He spent three days in the hospital, being treated for his injuries. He still suffers from dizzy spells that he hopes a neurologist will help to resolve.
“A friend told me I looked like I was curb stomped,” Harris told PGN. He’s a military veteran and said he’s never experienced anything so violent in his 17 years of service.
Harris will need extensive plastic surgery and teeth reconstruction. But he’s on the mend and happy to be alive, he said.
For the past four years, Harris has shared a residence in Brewerytown with his husband, Joseph Hurchick Jr.
“I love Brewerytown,” Harris said. “The neighbors are great. I get along with everyone.”
It was Hurchick who called 911 to report Harris’ assault. A security camera outside Harris’ home shows that a 22nd district police officer failed to arrive until more than an hour later and didn’t leave their cruiser.
“That’s inexcusable,” Harris said.
PGN has filed an open-records request with the police department, seeking computer-aided dispatch records relating to Harris’ assault. As of presstime, the dispatch records hadn’t been provided to PGN.
Harris was walking his dog on the 3000 block of West Jefferson Street directly parallel to the late-night party at the playground when he was assaulted, he said.
Earlier that evening, shortly before Harris was assaulted, Hurchick called 911 to disperse the unlawful party, to no avail, Hurchick said.
Because Harris was assaulted from behind, he can’t describe his assailant or assailants. But three females who walked Harris back to his residence may be able to, Harris said.
“I think they witnessed my assault and they felt bad for me and they helped me,” Harris said. “Thank God. I would have bled out.”
A grainy video from a security camera outside Harris’ residence captured the females’ images. So far, police haven’t given Harris any indication they’ve tried to locate the females. “They [females] may know something worth pursuing by the police,” Harris asserted.
Officers of the 16th District visited Harris at Penn Presbyterian Hospital, where he was transported for medical care. But Harris wasn’t able to speak with ease and no officer from the 22nd District — where the crime occurred — visited the hospital to gather details from Hurchick, Harris said.
Capt. Michael Goodson, commanding officer of the 22nd District where Harris lives, called Harris four days after the incident to express support. Two detectives also visited Harris at his residence, four days after the incident. But he hasn’t heard back from them, Harris said.
PGN has learned that a low-quality video of the assault was secured by police. But as of presstime, police hadn’t spoken to Harris about the video.
Cpl. Jasmine Reilly, a police spokesperson, told PGN the video is “poor quality,” and unsuitable for publication to help solve the crime.
“It appears that a commotion is seen in a portion of the screen and the video is low quality — any zooming in will completely blow out the image,” Reilly explained. “At this point, there is nothing in that video that holds investigatory value — which is when we release videos.”
Reilly added: “Of course, we are still searching for viable video that can be used to identify the perpetrators. The incident is still being investigated by Central Detective Division.”
Hurchick said he called 911 about two dozen times over the course of four years, attempting to shut down unlawful parties at Jefferson Playground. Police didn’t respond to his calls, or they responded in an inadequate manner, he said.
Hurchick said one Philadelphia police officer asked him sarcastically whether he’d personally like to shut down an unlawful party.
“I told her, ‘That’s your job, not mine,’” Hurchick said.
Also raising concerns for Harris is a press conference held by police regarding the incident. Harris wasn’t invited to attend the press conference, which was held five days after Harris was assaulted.
In a news release announcing the press conference, police gave the wrong location for the block where Harris was assaulted. Harris was assaulted on the 3000 block of West Jefferson Street. The news release states he was assaulted on the 1500 block of North 30th Street.
If Harris had been notified of the press conference, he could have attended and conveyed the correct block where he was assaulted, he said.
Hurchick said there’s a fence around the playground but there are two openings in the fence where individuals can enter the playground at all hours.
A spokesperson for the city’s Parks and Recreation Department told PGN last week that steps are under way to “secure” the playground. She said the hours of operation for the playground are “dawn to dusk.”
Reilly, the police spokesperson, said officers are making periodic checks of all playgrounds and recreation centers in the area.
“Since this [Harris] incident, officers in the 22nd District, which is where this incident occurred, have been making periodic checks to all playgrounds and rec centers to ensure that any gathering of unlawful crowds are dispersed,” Reilly continued. “Officers in other districts have also been directly advised to ensure they are making checks in their districts and dispersing crowds. Of course, we ask anyone who witnesses or is aware of a pop-up party to contact 911 immediately.”
Harris expressed hope that his assault has motivated city officials to monitor city parks and recreation sites more diligently.
“I just wish I didn’t have to go through what I did, to make that happen,” he concluded.