Philly City Council member calls out Camden County leader who said Philadelphians are ‘thugs’ and ‘gun-bearing freaks’

Philadelphia City Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson this week said she was “appalled” by what she described as “derogatory” and “asinine” comments by a Camden County commissioner who disparaged Philadelphians following a shooting of a 6-year-old girl on July Fourth.

No arrest has been made, but a teenager from Philadelphia was questioned following the incident, which took place at Camden’s waterfront fireworks celebration.

That prompted Commissioner Louis Cappelli Jr. on Wednesday to aim some pointed comments across the Delaware River.

» READ MORE: A 6-year-old girl was struck by gunfire in Camden on the Fourth of July

“We just want to send a message to the thugs and criminals and gun-bearing freaks over in Philadelphia who live in a society of lawlessness — we don’t want you here,” Cappelli told reporters. “Stay out of Camden. Stay out of Camden County. Stay out of New Jersey. Keep your barbaric behavior in Philadelphia.”

Gilmore Richardson responded to her fellow Democratic elected official by saying that “instead of making disparaging statements, he should work to foster stronger interregional relationships.”

“I am appalled by the derogatory statements made by Commissioner Louis Cappelli Jr. A majority of the 1.59 million Philly residents are self-respecting, law-abiding citizens. To insinuate that ALL Philadelphians are ‘thugs,’ ‘criminals,’ & ‘freaks’ is completely unacceptable,” Gilmore Richardson said in a statement. “Not only were his comments disparaging, but they were asinine and unprincipled for an individual of Mr. Cappelli’s stature. As director of Camden County’s Board of Commissioners, he serves as a leader of Camden County’s 37 municipalities.”

For many Philadelphians, Cappelli’s comments were perhaps strange to hear coming from a Camden official. Although it has recently attracted new development after decades of high rates of poverty and crime, Camden has similar levels of gun violence to Philly. In 2020 and 2021, both cities recorded about 15 shootings per 10,000 resident, according to Billy Penn.

Cappelli, however, is a commissioner for the much larger Camden County, not just the city, a constituency that would be more parallel to representing all of Philadelphia and its Pennsylvania suburbs. In both cases, the rate of shootings and homicides would be much lower than just for the city.

That distinction doesn’t appear to matter to Cappelli, who doubled down on his comments this week but did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Meanwhile, the investigation into who pulled the trigger at the July Fourthth celebration continues, and the Philadelphia teenager who was questioned shortly after the shooting remains a person of interest, Camden County spokesperson Dan Keashen said.

The 6-year-old victim has been released from the hospital “in good health,” he said, adding that she has been offered “VIP treatment” if she wants to attend the fireworks celebration next year.