Fallout in Darby Twp. after firefighters’ racist remarks

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The racist tirade captured on tape

It all began with a meeting via video call on the evening of Jan. 27 to discuss fire services as a whole and the possible consolidation of the township’s three fire companies. Darby Township had asked for assistance from the state to review how fire services were being provided and had sought recommendations. The meeting was set up by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.

Among those on the call were members of the fire companies and several township commissioners, as well as individuals from the Governor’s Center for Local Government Services. The meeting lasted for a little over an hour.

The township did not record the meeting.

Once the meeting concluded, many participants immediately left the call. However, Briarcliffe firefighters stayed on. They referred to the Darby Township Fire Company members in vile racist terms. The Briarcliffe firefighters also described their Black counterparts as lazy.

Briarcliffe Fire Company on Beech Avenue in Darby Township, Pa. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

They complained about Black people moving into the area, and how they are “taking over shit.” And they mocked the first name of Fanta Bility, the slain 8-year-old.

What the Briarcliffe firefighters did not know was that firefighters from the Goodwill Fire Company, including Eichelman, were still connected, and that audio from their conversation was being recorded.

In an interview, Eichelman said he had hooked his laptop up to the big screen in the Goodwill squad’s crew room with five of his fellow members, so they too could see the virtual meeting on Microsoft Teams. Briarcliffe had dialed in by phone. Eichelman stayed on the call because he assumed there would be closing remarks from Township Commissioner Marvin Smith.

After the meeting, Eichelman said, he and the others decided to start recording once they heard the first racist remark. They weren’t alone in listening in, he said: Smith had also heard the remark.

“Darby Township Ward One Commissioner texted me, he’s like, ‘What is going on?’ I said, ‘You’re hearing it with your very own ears just like we are. I’m telling you — this is not good,’” Eichelman said.

Disgusted by the words of the Briarcliffe firefighters, Eichelman and some of his crew members delivered what they heard back to their company.

“We recorded it. There’s a lot of questionability about that, but it’s whatever. We had the data. We had the notes. We had the handwritten notes … I reached out to some legal experts. It’s kind of a gray area because there are stringent wiretap laws in the state of Pennsylvania … But there was also that gray area as well — they dialed into a public meeting, which they knew that there’s probably no reasonable expectation of privacy,” Eichelman said .

Eichelman added that the Goodwill Fire Company is considering retaining legal counsel. The Goodwill Fire Company on West Cooke Avenue in Darby Township, Pa. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

He also said the Briarcliffe Fire Company members indicated that they could possibly be recorded during their rant. At the end of the day, Eichelman said, he and the rest of the company thought that it was important to get the recording before the public.

On Feb. 9, Goodwill Fire Company’s board of directors wrote a letter to the township commissioners that detailed the barrage of racist and offensive comments.

That same day, during their regularly scheduled meeting, the commissioners had an executive session to listen to the audio recording. Upon returning from executive session, the board passed a motion to temporarily suspend the Briarcliffe Fire Company and open an investigation. The probe is being handled by the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office, which declined to comment for this story.

WHYY News reached out to the township commissioners, including Smith, and none offered any comment.

Commissioner Tamara Taliaferro responded but told WHYY News that the township solicitor would respond on behalf of the board. Solicitor Michael Pierce said there have been issues, not all relating to race, with all three of the fire companies over the 30 years he has been involved with Darby Township.

“If everything is accurate, I have no reason to believe that it isn’t, this type of behavior will not be tolerated by the township,” Pierce said. “The commissioners were unanimous in their decision to suspend pending an investigation. This is not something that we deal with or have dealt with on a regular basis. It’s very disturbing and very concerning to the township as a whole, and they will take whatever steps and recommendations are made based on the investigation.”

Eichelman said he can’t see himself feeling comfortable with those firefighters on the scene again.

“No. Not at all. Absolutely not … because of their racial epithets towards people and even some of the threats that they made directly to us as Goodwill Fire Company. It just would not be a conductive operation between them — not with the current leadership that’s in place,” Eichelman said.

He added that the current leadership would have to change before he would agree to any sort of merger or consolidation of the three fire companies in Darby Township.

“Their chief over there at the time … would take swings at us, push us around, he pushed me around a few times. He said, ‘If you keep getting in my way, things are going to get worse.’ I’m like, how’s that possible? And I’m like, ‘You can’t be acting this way on fire scenes.’ And so he’s like, ‘Well, call the cops. I’m protected anyway.’ Well, let’s see how protected you are now at this point,” Eichelman said.

WHYY News reached out to Darby Township Police for comment, but the office said Chief Michael Sousa was not readily available.

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