One of 233

For the past two weeks the Philadelphia news media have been providing constant coverage of one particular story, and for some reason, it's bothering me.

The story is about the murder of off-duty Philadelphia police officer Moses Walker Jr. As described on NBC10.com:

On August 18, Walker, a 22nd District police officer, was shot three times with a 40-caliber handgun while walking to a bus stop at 20th and Cecil B. Moore Avenue in North Philly after work. Walker was heading home in street clothes after his shift when police say Jones and McFarland approached him and announced a robbery. Police say Walker drew his weapon before he was shot three times.

After the murder, the media covered every element of the case, from the $118,000 reward money for help identifying the assailants, to police efforts to track down the shooter in Alabama.Ten days after the murder of this reportedly "gentle and kind" 19-year veteran of the force, the story is still headline news. (Both suspects are now in custody and the slain officer has been put to rest.)

Why is this bothering me? Because year-to-date (as of 8/27/12) there have been 233 homicides in Philadelphia. Thirty-one more than last year at this time. Offer Walker is one victim. How much do we hear about the other 232? Where is the six-figure reward for catching their killers?

Mayor Nutter at Officer Walker's Funeral

I understand that the police, city government, and the media want to send a strong message that if you kill a cop they will hunt you down and you'll pay for your crime, but in this case Walker wasn't on the job. He was one of us. Victim of a robbery gone bad. Basically, these two criminals picked the absolute wrong guy to attack and they're more likely to pay for their "mistake" than had they victimized some average Joe. In fact, yesterday, at the officer's funeral, Philadelphia Mayor Nutter let the killers know he was going to play God where the rest of their lives are concerned:

"I read the Good Book. The book tells me, 'Vengeance is mine, sayeth the Lord,' but while those two are in custody and here on this Earth, their butts are mine."

I mean no disrespect to Office Walker and I certainly don't mean to imply that this tragedy was not worthy of our attention. I simply think it's almost an insult to the hundreds of others who have also lost their lives on these city streets and whose names we never hear.

As a side note: If anything is deserving of extra attention in this case, it's the failure, once again, of the criminal justice system. The shooter, Rafael Jones, had an extensive criminal record including arrests on gun, robbery, and aggravated assault charges. He was out on probation without the required electronic monitoring ankle bracelet. His accomplice, Chancier McFarland, was being sought with an arrest warrant after two store robberies in February 2011.