Keith Edmonds to get full back pay, benefits, zero disciplinary action
An arbitrator on Friday, March 8, ruled that Keith Edmonds, the fired Pittsburgh Police officer who tased Jim Rogers numerous times during an arrest in Bloomfield in 2021 and who later died the following day, be reinstated to the police force. The arbitrator also ruled that Edmonds receive full back pay with no disciplinary action.
The news was met with swift resistance from the City of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh NAACP.
“First and foremost, our thoughts and our prayers go out to the friends and family of Jim Rogers. The City is deeply disappointed in the arbitrators’ award,” read the beginning of the City of Pittsburgh’s statement, sent to the New Pittsburgh Courier. “Officer Edmonds himself testified that he violated the policies of the City of Pittsburgh, however this award adopts a new standard that says that even an admission of guilt by the officer isn’t enough to warrant disciplinary action. Our city deserves a police bureau that prioritizes treating every resident with dignity and respect and we deserve a system where our officers can be held accountable for their actions.”
The City of Pittsburgh fired Edmonds and three other officers in March 2022, six months after the incident that occurred on Oct. 13, 2021, when Edmonds was the first officer to respond after reports of a man on a stolen bike on Harriet Street. Edmonds ended up using his Taser on Rogers multiple times, bringing him to the ground. As other officers ultimately arrived, Rogers was placed in the back of a police vehicle and could be seen gasping for air, saying among other things that he couldn’t breathe. No medical attention was given to Rogers for more than 40 minutes after his initial arrest, and by the time two other officers, who were both White, transported Rogers to UPMC Mercy Hospital, it was, in effect, too late. Rogers died on Oct. 14.
But when the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled in January 2022 that Rogers’ death was “accidental” and not necessarily caused by the actions of the officers, the fired Pittsburgh Police officers were able to return to the force if they wanted to. However, Edmonds was not, purportedly because the city saw him as the principal figure in Rogers’ apprehension and consequently, death.
The case went to arbitration. Both sides made their case—the city, and the Fraternal Order of Police, representing Edmonds.
The arbitrator, late in the afternoon on March 8, ruled in favor of Edmonds.
The Pittsburgh NAACP, in the midst of its own renaissance, immediately put out a statement condemning the arbitrator’s decision. The NAACP said it was “outraged” by the reinstatement of “the officer directly responsible for the death of Jim Rogers.” The local NAACP did not specifically use Edmonds’ name.
“The reinstatement of the officer directly responsible for the tragic death of Jim Rogers has sparked justified outrage and profound disappointment among us all,” Pittsburgh NAACP President Daylon A. Davis wrote, provided to the Courier. “Mayor Ed Gainey moved quickly in dismissing all officers involved, offering a glimmer of justice. Yet, the reinstatement of the officer directly responsible for this tragedy is deeply troubling. It not only erodes trust within our community but also upholds a system that neglects accountability, especially among those tasked with protecting and serving. Such a decision devalues Black lives, reducing them to mere financial sums. Regrettably, it seems the price tag of taking this Black man’s life has been valued at eight million dollars this time.”
Davis continued: “The persistent absence of empathy exhibited by individuals in positions of authority, alongside prosecutorial determinations made by Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., neglect to acknowledge the severity of the circumstances. Such actions serve to exacerbate the anguish and inequity experienced by Black people and the family of Jim Rogers, as well as our wider community. We cannot overlook the fact that accountability is essential in upholding the principles of justice and ensuring the safety and well-being of all members of our society. The lack thereof for Black people in Allegheny County, especially in cases as egregious as this one, only continues to erode any confidence we might have in our law enforcement institutions. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Jim Rogers, who continue to mourn his loss and seek the justice he deserves. We will not rest until those responsible are held accountable for their actions and until meaningful change is achieved to prevent such tragedies from occurring in the future.”
A grand jury declined to recommend that criminal charges be filed against any of the officers involved. The City of Pittsburgh settled with the family of Rogers for $8 million in a civil wrongful death lawsuit in April 2023.
TIM STEVENS
Tim Stevens, Chairman and CEO of the Black Political Empowerment Project, was disappointed in the arbitrator’s decision. He told area media after the ruling, in part: “There are many wonderful police officers in the Pittsburgh bureau, but when an officer performs inappropriately; when an officer performs in a way that is seriously negligent, there should be a price to pay, and that should not be a paid vacation.”
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