? Want this daily digest emailed to you? Sign up for the free Billy Penn newsletter and it’ll land in your inbox every morning.

---

Police officer to be fired for fatally shooting 12-year-old

The police officer who shot and killed 12-year-old Thomas Siderio is being suspended with intent to dismiss, PPD Commissioner Outlaw announced.

• It’s unclear if Siderio tossed his gun before getting shot in the back, but police aren’t supposed to shoot fleeing suspects. The union arbitration process means the suspended officer is likely to get his job back.

There’s no body cam footage from the incident, since the officers were undercover. Siderio’s father is suing all four officers involved, CBS3 reports.

Philly resident tells the story of his wife’s escape from Kyiv

Sean Moir lives in East Falls, but his heart is in Ukraine. His wife has been stuck in Kyiv, caring for her ailing mother as war erupted around them.

• After initially resisting the push to flee because of her mom’s frail health, fighting got bad enough that Valentyna Levytsky and her brother decided to go for it and drive out.

Moir was in touch with them as they traveled, Jordan Levy reports, taking a circuitous route to avoid the fighting and make it to relative safety in Lviv.

RECAP: What else happened?

$ = paywalled 

• The Supreme Court will not take up the Republican challenge to Pa.’s new congressional map. [AP]
• Philly district schools are going mask-optional starting today, with one week of mandatory masking after spring break, April 18-22. City Catholic schools are following suit. Some students are worried about confusion, others say it won’t make much difference. [Phila SD/@KeeleyFox29/Billy Penn]
• Dine Latino Restaurant Week starts next Monday, with more than a dozen restaurants offering deals on lunch and dinner. [Hispanic Chamber]
• The dude behind Freelance Pizza, whose square pie pop-ups with custom-drawn boxes became popular during the pandemic, is ending his side hustle this summer. [PhillyVoice/@freelancepizza_]
• Reading, Pa., has the second-best Wordle scores of any U.S. city, according to this global study that analyzed tweeted scores. [Word Tips]

Weekly brief on gun violence prevention (with PCGVR)

We publish this report each week in partnership with the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting at the Community College of Philadelphia. 

• A community organization is teaching kids how to disarm weapons and stay safe during shootings. Urban Navigation calls itself “A GPS for urban youth.” [Billy Penn/Urban Nav]
• West Philly’s Soundboard Against Violence open mic series every other Wednesday offers prizes up to $500 for music that doesn’t celebrate gun violence. [PQRadio1]
• Neighbors in West Oak Lane came out to rally against violence hours after three young men were killed in a shooting Saturday night. [CBS3]
• The DAO’s Youth Aid Panel diversion program is looking for new volunteers, especially people who speak Spanish, Creole, and Arabic. The program has been keeping young people out of jail since 1987. [WHYY/Tribune$]
• As shootings continue near Temple’s North Philly campus, the mother of one student hired a private security firm. [@TempleUniv/Inquirer$]
• Learn how to turn firearms into garden tools at free workshops Saturday at Penn. Artist Shane Claiborne started these sessions in Philly back in 2019. [Billy Penn]

By the numbers in Philadelphia

• 43: Shooting victims recorded last week, vs. 43 the week prior [Open Data Philly]
• 152: Shooting victims in February, down from 189 in January [@pcgvr]
• 375: Shooting victims this year, 3% ahead of last year [PCGVR]
• 98: Year-to-date homicides, 10% ahead of last year [Philly Police]
• 627: Gunpoint robberies, 56% ahead of last year [PPD Google Drive]
• 574: Aggravated assaults with a gun, 13% below last year [PPD Google Drive]

MAYOR WATCH

No public events on the schedule for Philly’s 99th mayor today.

ON THE CALENDAR

? Billy Penn event: Join us for pub trivia about the city you love. Our monthly Philly Quizzo night is back at Jose Pistola’s in Center City. Free RSVP, happy hour specials, and prizes for the top score. See you there. (6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 23)

? The Our House Culture Center in Northwest Philly hosts “Femme Noire,” a live music and happy hour reception showcasing works by six Black women photographers. Tickets are $10-$15. (4 to 8 p.m. Friday, March 11)

? Learn how to make your own syrup at the Cobbs Creek Maple Sugaring Festival, with tree tapping tours, sap boiling lessons, candy making and pancake tasting. (11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, March 12)