Daniel Levitt, 52, was found guilty by a Philadelphia jury on Tuesday, June 2, after a two-day trial stemming from a 2021 traffic stop in Northwest Philadelphia, according to District Attorney Larry Krasner.<\/p>\n
Levitt, a former officer assigned to the 39th District, was working with two other officers during a traffic stop on the 2900 block of North Sydenham Street on April 28, 2021, prosecutors said. Officers had stopped a van for allegedly running a stop sign and displaying a license plate that was not registered to the vehicle.<\/p>\n
According to prosecutors, body-worn camera footage showed passenger Tyshon Butts retrieving identification from his backpack before completely zipping it shut and placing it behind the driver’s seat.<\/p>\n
Authorities said Levitt later entered the van, unzipped the backpack, and found a firearm with an extended magazine. He then falsely told fellow officers that he had seen the magazine protruding from the bag, prosecutors alleged.<\/p>\n
Butts was subsequently arrested on firearms charges.<\/p>\n
The case against Levitt stemmed from testimony he gave under oath during a preliminary hearing on Aug. 5, 2021. Prosecutors said that testimony was false, leading to a perjury investigation by the Philadelphia Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division and a subsequent criminal case handled by the District Attorney’s Office.<\/p>\n
Levitt was arrested on perjury-related charges in March 2022. At the time, police announced he had been suspended with the intent to dismiss him from the department.<\/p>\n
A jury convicted Levitt of Perjury on June 2, according to the District Attorney’s Office. Sentencing is scheduled for August.<\/p>\n
“The conduct of former Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Levitt is egregious and chips away at the collective trust in all law enforcement officials,” Krasner said. “It is thanks to the due diligence of the prosecutors on this case, as well as the careful deliberation of a Philadelphia jury, that Defendant Levitt will be held accountable for his actions.”<\/p>\n