How the panel came to be

BACKGROUND

On May 13, 1985, years of tension and intermittent conflict between the city of Philadelphia and a small, urban cult known as MOVE ended in a violent, daylong encounter between some of the group's members and the Philadelphia police.

The confrontation began at dawn, when there was resistance to attempts by the police to serve arrest warrants on four members of MOVE who were barricaded with the others inside a fortified rowhouse at 6221 Osage Ave. in West Philadelphia.

Eighteen hours later, 11 occupants of the house, including five children, were dead. Nearly two square blocks of a residential neighborhood lay wasted by fire. Sixty-one families, some 250 men, women and children, were homeless.

It was one of the most devastating days in the modern history of this city.

THE COMMISSION

On May 22, 1985, the Philadelphia Special Investigation Commission was formed as a board of inquiry. Its members were appointed by the mayor and directed to conduct a thorough, independent and impartial examination of the events leading up to and culminating in the death and destruction of May 13.

The 11 commission members are citizens serving without pay. These citizens are:

William H. Brown III, chairperson of the commission, a member of the law firm of Schnader, Harrison, Segal & Lewis, and the former head of the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Charles W. Bowser, a member of the law firm of Pechner, Dorfman, Wolffe, Rounick and Cabot.

Rev. Audrey F. Bronson, founder and pastor of the Sanctuary Church of the Open Door.

Julia Chinn, president of the Cobbs Creek Town Watch, a community organization in West Philadelphia, and community activist.

M. Todd Cooke, vice chairman of PSFS Bank.

Rev. Msgr. Edward P. Cullen, director of Catholic Social Services for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Bruce W. Kauffman, a former justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and chairman of the law firm of Dilworth, Paxson, Kalish & Kauffman.

Charisse Ranielle Lillie, on leave as professor of law at Villanova University, now serving as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Civil Division.

Henry S. Ruth Jr., a member of the law firm of Saul, Ewing, Remick & Saul, and former Watergate special prosecutor in the U.S. Justice Department.

Rev. Paul M. Washington, rector of the Episcopal Church of the Advocate in Philadelphia.

Neil J. Welch, former assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He is a lawyer and has been in law enforcement for 32 years.

The commission's authority was established in Executive Order No. 5-85, which was signed by the mayor on June 19, 1985. This order provides as follows:

"(1) That the Philadelphia Special Investigation Commission is established to conduct a thorough, independent and impartial examination of the events leading up to and including the incident of May 13, 1985, in the neighborhood of 6221 Osage Avenue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

"(2) The commission shall inquire into the conduct of city employees in the planning and implementation of city government actions prior to and on May 13, 1985.

"(3) The commission is authorized to conduct investigations, hold hearings and perform any other tasks related to the performance of its functions.

"(4) The commission is hereby granted the right of access to the records of any officer, department, board, agency or commission of the city relating to the MOVE organization and the events of May 13, 1985.

"(5) The commission shall have the authority vested in the executive and administrative branch of city government under the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter to compel the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of documents and other evidence relating to the incident of May 13, 1985; and for that purpose, it may issue subpoenas requiring the attendance and testimony of persons and the production of documents and other evidence and cause them to be served in any part of the city.

"(6) All employees within the executive and administrative branch of city government are hereby directed to fully cooperate with the commission by promptly producing documents, records, files and any other information that the commission may request. In addition, these employees, on request of the commission, shall be available to meet with, be interviewed by, and testify before the commission during its hearings.

"(7) The commission shall be provided whatever funding for staff and other resources reasonably necessary for the performance of its functions.

"(8) The commission shall strive to complete its tasks in as expeditious a manner as possible.

"(9) The commission is investigatory only, and shall find facts and prepare a report for the mayor and the citizens of Philadelphia concerning the operation of city government as it relates to the events giving rise to the incident of May 13, 1985, and may make suggestions for future handling of similar situations."

THE INVESTIGATION

The commission's first meeting was on May 28, 1985. They have met 17 times in executive sessions ranging in length from three hours to eight hours.

The staff director and counsel is William B. Lytton, a former federal prosecutor and member of the law firm of Kohn, Savett, Marion & Graf. Deputy director and counsel is H. Graham McDonald, a former state prosecutor now associated with the law firm of Phillips and Phelan. Special counsel to the commission is Carl E. Singley, dean of the Temple University Law School.

The chief investigator was Neil P. Shanahan, a former FBI supervisor, a lawyer and a veteran of civil rights and bombing investigations. He was assisted by seven investigators with diverse backgrounds in law enforcement. They included former police officers from Washington, D.C., Chicago and Philadelphia, as well as former federal investigative agents. The investigative staff had a total of 194 years of law enforcement experience.

The commission, with its members and staff, represents a broad range of business, civic, legal, religious, academic and law enforcement backgrounds. In addition, it has a specific background of judicial, prosecutive, defense and local and federal law enforcement experience to draw upon.

Through the summer and fall of 1985, the commissioners provided direction and oversight to the investigative process. More than 900 in-depth interviews of major participants and witnesses were conducted, including fire and police personnel, city and public utility employees, residents of the Osage community, members and supporters of the MOVE organization and one of the two survivors of 6221 Osage Ave. Other current members of MOVE refused to testify or be interviewed. In addition, each of the principal decision makers and all of the significant policy implementers were interviewed one or more times.

The records of 36 government agencies were gathered and analyzed. Thousands of pages of documents were computer-coded into nearly 600 evidentiary categories. Dozens of audio and video tapes, the electronic record of May 13, were screened for evidence.

Critical expertise was provided by highly qualified experts, including a pathology team and fire and explosives specialists.

PUBLIC HEARINGS

On Oct. 8, 1985, the commission opened an extraordinary series of public hearings which explored every aspect of what happened on Osage Avenue. Over a five-week period, 90 witnesses provided 144 hours of testimony which were public in the broadest possible sense - they were broadcast live by WHYY, public radio and television in Philadelphia.

The witnesses appearing before the commission included:

* The Mayor of Philadelphia

* The former Managing Director

* The Police Commissioner

* The Fire Commissioner

* Members of the Mayor's Cabinet

* Police planners

* Police assigned to assault teams

* Firefighters

* Residents of the Osage neighborhood

* Citizen negotiators

* Former members of MOVE

* The only child to survive the fire

* Expert witnesses.

By the time the hearings concluded, the public had been presented with all the principal facts known to the commission.

DELIBERATIONS

Early this year the commission began prolonged deliberations, sifting through all the facts, weighing what its members had seen and heard, attempting to resolve the contradictions and discrepancies.

The group met in seven deliberative sessions. Every major relevant question was examined, every key issue explored. Strict standards of fairness and impartiality were followed as the group unanimously agreed on 66 of 68 findings, conclusions and recommendations. On the remaining two conclusions, 10 of the 11 commissioners agreed.