PHILADELPHIA – Mayor Kenney today announced the firms selected to conduct the independent after-action review of the City’s preparation and response to recent protests, demonstrations, police use of force, and other activities in the wake of the killing of George Floyd.
The City received responses from consulting firms and law firms. After reviewing the responses, the City decided that the best approach was to meld the subject matter expertise and data analysis approach of a consulting firm with the investigatory and legal expertise of a law firm.
As a result, the City selected both CNA, a nonprofit consulting firm, and the Philadelphia-based law firm Montgomery McCracken Walker and Rhoads, LLP, specifically the services of A. Nicole Phillips, a partner at Montgomery McCracken, to conduct the after-action review.
About the selection, Mayor Jim Kenney said, “I’m confident that the prior knowledge and experience of CNA and Montgomery McCracken will enable the team to hit the ground running to conduct this independent AAR thoroughly and efficiently. I thank both firms for their willingness to take on this critical work, which is vital to strengthening the Philadelphia Police Department and rebuilding trust with the residents of Philadelphia.”
The City anticipates the AAR being completed before the end of the year. A final written report of the findings and recommendations will be issued and shared publicly. Preliminary findings will also be shared publicly prior to the final report being issued.
About CNA
CNA is a nonprofit research organization with a strong history of delivering high-quality, independent, and objective reviews of real-world incidents to local jurisdictions and federal agencies. CNA’s approach is to conduct independent reviews coupled with objective, data-driven analysis with deep subject matter expertise to produce valid findings and practical recommendations based on best practices.
As a leader in the field of justice system research, CNA has played an important role in building innovative and effective policing principles and practices through their research, analysis, and support to national training, and technical assistance programs. The diverse CNA project team has experience managing similar reviews for many other jurisdictions. The experienced analysts bring decades of experience in law enforcement and expertise in conducting objective reviews of sensitive incidents involving crowd control and the use of force.
CNA has led and supported after-action reviews of the planning and response to special events that have drawn mass protests and demonstrations across the nation. In addition, members of the project team led the Philadelphia Collaborative Reform Project bringing numerous reforms to the PPD surrounding officer-involved shootings. As a result of these reform efforts, the number of officer-involved shootings in Philadelphia dramatically decreased. This Collaborative Reform Project provides CNA with knowledge of PPD operations, policies, practices, directives, and training.
About A. Nicole Phillips and Montgomery McCracken
A. Nicole Phillips is a partner in the Montgomery McCracken’s White Collar and Government Investigations practice group. Ms. Phillips is a former federal and local prosecutor with a wide range of investigatory experience and has familiarity with investigating the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD).
Montgomery McCracken is a full-service law firm with offices in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Delaware. The firm represents leading businesses, multinational corporations, nonprofit organizations and individuals across a wide range of industries in complex litigation matters, significant corporate transactions and challenging disputes. For more information about Montgomery McCracken or its practice areas, please visit the firm’s website at www.mmwr.com or on Twitter at @MMWR_Law.