City Council voted Thursday to investigate the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office after an internal audit found $20 million in misplaced funds.
The resolution, from Council President Kenyatta Johnson, calls for hearings to “restore public confidence” in the sheriff. The hearings will be held by the Committee of the Whole, and no date has been set yet. Sheriff Rochelle Bilal is expected to testify.
Johnson was clear about what the hearings are not for. “My goal is not to eliminate the sheriff’s office but to reform the sheriff’s office, in partnership with the actual sheriff and the other stakeholders who have an interest in taking a look at the operations of the actual sheriff’s office,” he said.
The audit finding came first. An internal audit of the office found $20 million from sales proceeds that should have been disbursed to taxpayers, according to the Inquirer, which first reported the finding in October. Council’s resolution follows that audit.
The Sheriff’s Office is a big operation. More than 400 employees manage public safety in courtrooms for defendants, judges, staff, witnesses, jurors, and the public. It also handles court ordered property foreclosures, including mortgage and tax sales. When money from those sales does not get to the people it belongs to, that is the kind of failure that erodes trust in the whole system.
Bilal has been sheriff since 2020, and the criticism has been building. PhillyVoice reports she has faced criticism over fake, AI generated news stories on the office website, reports of missing guns, and complaints from sheriff sale bidders who did not receive deeds for over a year after an auction.
The problems did not start with her. Former Sheriff Jewell Williams was named in multiple lawsuits claiming sexual harassment allegations and discrimination, with workplace retaliation claims. During his final weeks in office after losing reelection, two high ranking employees were transferred after filing complaints against him.
That history is part of why Johnson framed the hearings as reform. Bilal will get a chance to go on the record, Johnson said, and Council will ask what is happening and what is not happening in the office, then decide on recommendations and further collaboration.
No hearing date has been announced. This story will be updated when one is set.
