“‘Whether you’re a businessman or you’re selling drugs, it makes no difference. If you’re a black person in Trenton and drive through this community, you can be harassed by Trenton police,’ Tracey Syphax [Leading with Conviction™ 2019] said.
“Syphax spoke during a recent Capital City Community Coalition meeting inside a Friendship Baptist Church where the Department of Justice offered insight about an investigation into potential violation of residents civil rights by the City of Trenton and the Trenton Police Department.
“Junis L. Baldon, an assistant U.S. attorney in the Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, explained the probe will investigate a five-year window of city law enforcement policies and police behavior. …
This has been going on for decades.
“‘You talk about only going back to 2017 for what the Trenton Police Department has done. I think when one looks at the systemic foundation of racism, brutality and corruption at the police department, you understand this has been going on for decades,’ Syphax, who waved off anecdotal stories and grapevine tales, said.
“‘I’m not talking about I heard about these things. I’m talking about my experience as a former drug dealer, of having drugs planted on me, being handcuffed and being beat in the back of the head with a shotgun — that’s the Trenton Police Department.’
“Syphax said his change of status from drug dealer to business entrepreneur has done little to alter the dynamic between himself and police. …
“‘To be a businessman for 30 years and still connected to the Martin Luther King Boulevard community, and still being cussed out and treated like a dog when I’m not even in the game anymore — that’s the Trenton Police Department,’ Syphax testified. …
“In August 2020, The Trentonian published an article regarding a document that identified about 30 city police officers who faced disciplinary action over the last nine years. More than half of the cases involved allegations of serious misconduct, including criminal excessive force, falsifying records in a criminal case, dangerous unauthorized car chases, and incendiary social media posts. …
“Syphax, like many Trenton residents, seemed skeptical about five years delivering enough evidence to accurately portray his personal interactions with the Trenton Police Department.”
Read the full article at Trentonian.com.
(Photo above by John Berry for The Trentonian)
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