Inspector Anthony Washington — oversight of the Special Victims Unit, as well as Homicide, Major Crimes, and other key units.
The assignment could have been seen as an apex of sorts for Washington’s 30-year career. But to some observers inside and outside the department, his affiliation with SVU appeared problematic.
Washington has been accused in the past of sexually harassing at least four female police officers, as well as a former Temple University student who once tried to interview him for a school project, and retaliating in some instances against cops who spoke out about his alleged behavior.
Last fall, before Washington moved into his new position, a female police sergeant included him in an amended complaint she filed with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC). According to the city’s Law Department, she alleged that Washington retaliated against her for contacting the agency about a male lieutenant, Richard Frank, who had discriminated against female officers in her district. The case is pending.
Two other female police officers also named Washington in PHRC complaints that they filed last year about Frank, whom the women accused of sexually harassing them. Washington was not accused of any harassment in those complaints, but was one of Frank’s bosses.
Between 2011 and 2014, the city spent $198,000 to settle five lawsuits that were filed against Washington over allegations that included workplace harassment, civil rights violations, and physical abuse. (The city says that settlement agreements are not an admission of wrongdoing.)
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