Germantown shooting leaves campaign canvasser dead

by Tom Beck
Posted 5/18/23

A 46-year-old man who was canvassing for One PA, a progressive political organization, was fatally shot by a fellow canvasser on Monday last week in Germantown.

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Germantown shooting leaves campaign canvasser dead

Posted

A 46-year-old man who was canvassing for One PA, a progressive political organization, was fatally shot in the left armpit by a fellow 22-year-old canvasser on Monday last week in Germantown, the Philadelphia Police Department confirmed to the Local last week. The incident happened on the 2000 block of Church Lane. The victim, Eddie Brokenbough of the 1700 block of Master Street, died after being transferred to Albert Einstein Medical Center.

“What happened on Monday was a tragedy impacting a very loved member of the One PA team,” said Sage Cruz, co-executive director of One PA, in an emailed statement to the Local. “Right now we are taking care of our team as we process our grief, and respect the wishes of the victim’s family. Our hearts and thoughts are with everyone who has been touched by this tragedy.”

Two firearms were recovered at the scene, police said. 

The organization said it is temporarily suspending its canvassing in the wake of the shooting and that it has a “clear policy” about guns never being allowed in its canvases.

“We are reviewing and reiterating that policy to ensure compliance,” Ortiz added.

The 22-year-old canvasser will not be charged in the shooting, the district attorney’s office told the Local on Tuesday. The shooting, the office’s spokesperson, Jane Roh, told the Philadelphia Inquirer, happened out of self-defense.

The shooting happened just a week before the city’s mayoral and city council elections in which OnePA endorsed a number of candidates, including Seth Anderson-Oberman, challenger to incumbent 8th district councilmember Cindy Bass. The group also endorsed at-large candidates Rue Landau, Amanda McIllmurray, Erika Almirón and incumbent Isaiah Thomas.

In a statement last week, the Philadelphia House Delegation also expressed its condolences to the family of the victim. 

“We don’t know yet what led up to this tragedy,” said the delegation’s chair, Morgan Cephas. “Further details on this have not been released, but we do know that a family is mourning one of their own.”

In the statement, Cephas, who represents part of West Philadelphia, also called for an end to gun violence in the city.

“Someone lost their life due to gun violence in our city, and it is heartbreaking,” she said. “This needs to stop.”