A screenshot of dashcam footage of the April 11 traffic stop secured by North Penn Now via a Right to Know request.
A North Penn School Board Director has publicly alleged racial bias after being stopped by Montgomery Township Police while driving in her neighborhood on April 11. However, police are disputing her account of events and bodycam footage appears to show at least one inconsistency in her public statements.
During the Montgomery Township Board of Supervisors meeting on April 24, Dr. Elisha Gee emotionally addressed the township supervisors during the public comment portion of the meeting, stating she felt frightened and violated during the stop, which was initiated after an anonymous 911 call was made indicating that a suspicious vehicle had traversed the neighborhood four times over a 20-minute period.
“I was stopped in front of my home in Montgomery Township by a police officer as I arrived home from work. I was concerned and startled because I had not broken any traffic laws [and] I was in my own neighborhood in front of my home where I have lived for 15 years. The officer approached and distanced himself from my vehicle, shining his flashlight in my face,” said Gee, who added she was shaking while reciting her statement.
“I was immediately concerned. He asked what I was doing. I responded that I lived here, I pointed to my home, and he told me that a neighbor had called 911 reporting a suspicious vehicle, like mine, driving in the neighborhood,” Gee continued. “At this point, I noticed that a backup car had arrived. [The officer] said he was making sure there was not any criminal activity. He asked for my license, and I gave it to him. He again asked me why I was driving around, and I asked, ‘is it a crime to drive in my neighborhood?’”
Gee claimed it was clear throughout the stop that the officer was suspicious of her, adding she felt as though she was being treated as a threat.
“I was basically bad until I proved that I wasn’t bad,” Gee said.
“The incident ended with me being asked for my phone number for a report, and I asked why was there a report on me sitting in front of my house,” said Gee. “[The officer] got in his car, he sped away, he handed my license back to me. There was no ‘I’m sorry for your inconvenience’ or ‘this was clearly a mistake.’”
As she continued through her statement, Gee stated that while some may say the stop wasn’t a big deal, she felt otherwise, adding that she shouldn’t be placed into a traumatizing situation based off an anonymous 911 call.
“This is a big deal, because I am not a visitor in this community,” Gee said. “I deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. A random phone call from a resident that would not even identify themselves should not place me in a traumatizing situation where I am fearing for my own safety.”
Gee invoked the names of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and other Black men and women who have been shot or killed in racial incidents across America in recent years.
“I was told that this was a short interaction. All those interactions that I just named were short. How many short interactions in our country end in people being dead in minutes and seconds? Short does not matter. These incidents were seeded in suspicions and bias,” Gee said. “While I’m thankful that deadly force was not used for any reason in this incident, that does not mean that I felt safe, and it doesn’t mean that I didn’t feel frightened and violated for needing to prove that I belong here in Montgomery Township — that I was not up to anything criminal.”
Gee, who had several residents on hand in a show of support, including fellow North Penn School Board Director Jonathan Kassa, wrapped up her statement by calling for additional training and transparency, and adding she had still not received an apology from Montgomery Township Police Chief Scott Bendig. She then acknowledged that she had received private apologies from three of the five township supervisors.
Her full statement from the April 24 meeting can be viewed here, beginning at the 4:21 mark. Elisha Gee, who is up for reelection in the May 16 primary, declined to be interviewed or provide a statement for this article.
What Was Said in the 911 Call
With approval from the Montgomery County Department of Public Safety, North Penn Now was able to listen to and transcribe the contents of the 911 call, which was made at 9:54 p.m. on April 11.
A male caller contacted Montgomery County Dispatch stating that he had been walking his dog and noticed a white SUV slowly traversing the neighborhood approximately four times over a 20-minute period. The caller stated that he did not recognize the vehicle, he didn’t know if there was an issue, and requested that an officer be sent out to investigate.
When asked to provide a description of the driver, the caller said he could not see them. When asked to provide his name and phone number, the caller declined, saying he preferred to remain anonymous because he “didn’t know if it was an issue or not.”
The call then concludes, and the traffic stop is initiated at 10:06 p.m., right near Gee’s home on Addison Lane approximately 32 minutes after the caller said he initially saw the vehicle in the neighborhood.
Bodycam Footage
The officer exits his vehicle and approaches the SUV from a wide angle while pointing a flashlight at the vehicle. As the officer approaches, Gee can be heard faintly saying “hello,” at which point the officer says “hello” and she responds with “hi.”
The officer asks if Gee is lost, and she replies “no,” adding “my house is right there” while gesturing towards her home. The officer explains that police received a call about a white SUV that had made four passes through the neighborhood, at which point Gee replies, “Ok? Is it against the law to drive through my neighborhood?” She then provides her address and again gestures towards her home.
The officer said he didn’t know that she lived there and again referenced the report, adding that he was conducting the stop to make sure they weren’t committing a crime. Gee responds by asking, “You’re making sure that I’m not committing a crime?” at which point the officer again references the initial call and states that it is common for criminals to “case” neighborhoods.
Gee continues by saying “Well, I’m fine. I live right there,” then provides her driver’s license upon the officer’s request. As Gee reached for her license, she narrates her actions while maintaining eye contact with the officer, at which point the officer says, “Ma’am that’s fine,” followed shortly after with “Obviously, after speaking to you for a second, I realize you’re not out here committing crime.”
With the driver’s license in hand, the officer says, “So you’re just out driving around?” at which point Gee says, “I live in this neighborhood. I’ve lived here for 20 years. And yes, I’m just driving around.”
The officer then asks Gee for her phone number, at which point Gee responds by asking why he needed her phone number. The officer says he needed it for the report, and when Gee questions why a report would be filed about her driving around her neighborhood, the officer hands back her license, says “ok,” and finishes the interaction with “Have a good night,” to which Gee replies “Have a good night.”
The bodycam footage then cuts off as the officer walks back to his vehicle. Beginning at the point where the officer exits his vehicle, the interaction was just under two minutes long.
Dashcam Footage
The footage begins with police following the white SUV for a few blocks before the stop is initiated. The officer exits the vehicle, approaches the SUV and walks up to the driver’s side window. A second police vehicle immediately comes into frame once the officer has begun his interaction with Gee, and after he walks back to his vehicle following the traffic stop, a muffled discussion between the officer and the second officer can be heard before the video cuts off.
Nothing else can be discerned from the video as there’s no clear audio.
Police, ACLU, and Officials React to the Incident and Allegations
When asked about the comments made by Gee during the April 24 meeting, Montgomery Township Police Chief Scott Bendig said her statements were “not representative of the actions, professionalism, and dedication to service provided by the men and women of the Montgomery Township Police Department.”
Bendig maintained that the officer acted within the scope of his training and acted professionally throughout the traffic stop.
“I have viewed the footage. The officer was cordial and professional during his very brief interaction with the driver,” Bendig said. “He quickly mitigated the caller's concerns voiced to the police dispatcher about a suspicious vehicle that was slowly looping around the neighborhood for nearly 30 minutes.”
North Penn Now provided copies of the bodycam and dashcam footage, as well as the context of the initial 911 call, to the Philadelphia ACLU for review. In response, a spokesperson provided a statement condemning the traffic stop and expressing support for Gee.
“When police initiate a traffic stop, they have to have a legitimate reason to do so. From the information that's available publicly, this officer had no legal basis to stop and detain this woman in front of her own home simply for driving in her own neighborhood. It's no wonder that she was traumatized, especially as a Black woman in America,” said Sara Rose, Deputy Legal Director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania. “Police misconduct disproportionately impacts Black people, and the abuse of power often starts from overreach in traffic and pedestrian stops. Hopefully this will be a learning experience for the township's police department about how to fairly serve their community."
After receiving the ACLU’s initial statement, a review of recent police incidents in Montgomery Township by this news organization revealed that police were dispatched to three calls since March 16 pertaining to suspicious activity within the neighborhood in which the April 11 stop occurred. The dispatches include:
In comments provided to North Penn Now, Bendig provided context for why the vehicle was stopped, saying his department has recently investigated three burglaries within the township in which the suspect who committed the burglary was dropped off in a neighborhood by a vehicle and later picked up.
“That [suspect] vehicle would then drive around the area until the crime has been completed, wherein the driver picks the individual back up in the neighborhood,” said Bendig. “A similar methodology was utilized during the department's home invasion burglary/robbery in December 2021, where a homeowner was brutally beaten with a handgun. In each of these cases, information was developed during the investigation that indicated that the involved subjects had 'cased' the targeted homes and individuals on dates before the crimes occurred.”
Having reviewed Bendig’s statements, the Philadelphia ACLU reaffirmed that they stand by their original statement.
Montgomery County state Rep. Napoleon Nelson, who also serves as Vice Chairman of Pennsylvania’s Legislative Black Caucus, spoke to the larger issue of the relationship between the Black community and law enforcement and public safety, describing it as “fraught, complicated at best, traumatic, and well documented.”
“Even what some assume to be ‘routine traffic stops’ bring context that requires additional training and transparency. Lives have been lost on both sides of that police-resident interaction, and that never leaves the mind of black residents, just as it is likely top of mind for law enforcement,” said Nelson. “Absent that incremental training in bias, the vetting of officers, the data transparency related to over-policing and disparate traffic stop outcomes, it has and continues to be the position of the PA Legislative Black Caucus that traffic stops should be minimized, and unnecessary trauma eliminated.”
“Everyone in each of our communities wants the peace of mind that comes with a public safety institution that is fair, just, and sensitive to the needs of its residents,” Nelson continued. “We are making great strides locally and in Harrisburg to invest in the best practices of community policing and violence prevention and it always starts with honest dialog. While I am confident that the Montgomery Township community will continue to unpack this incident between their law enforcement and Dr. Gee, I and the Legislative Black Caucus stand ready to assist in any way needed.”
Montgomery Township addressed the controversy publicly for the first time during Monday night’s Board of Supervisors meeting, with township manager Carolyn McCreary reading a prepared statement which confirmed the three recent dispatches to the neighborhood in the month prior to the April 11 traffic stop, as well as detailing at length the training Montgomery Township Police officers receive in regards to equity, inclusion, and anti-bias.
“Montgomery Township, comprised of our elected officials, the Board of Supervisors, and staff, strive to treat our residents and those we interact with daily with respect and dignity, regardless of their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, or sexual orientation,” said McCreary.
Video of the township’s statement can be viewed here. A text version of the statement can be viewed here.
See also:
Special Ed. Supervisor Settles Case Against North Penn Over Comments Critical of Black Lives Matter
Local Elected Officials Sign Statement Condemning ‘Racist Remarks’ Made by Commissioner Joe Gale
Police Investigating Claims a Special Needs Student Was Mistreated by Teacher at Knapp Elementary
Local Activist, Businesses Show Support for Lansdale Police Following Recent Incident
