Lawyers told to apologize for blasting recorded 'blood-curdling scream' in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Lawyers who blared a looped recording of a woman screaming as a test in their civil rights lawsuit against the city of Philadelphia must apologize in person and in writing to residents where the loud test took place, a federal judge ordered last week.

Video in the player above is from a previous Action News report.

U.S. Judge John F. Murphy on Thursday described the hour-long predawn test on Sept. 23 as lacking foresight and judgment, resulting in "a deeply disturbing and potentially dangerous situation." He gave the lawyers who oversaw the loudspeaker's recorded screaming in South Philadelphia until the end of October to apologize to people who live nearby, about a block from the South Broad Street and Passyunk Avenue intersection.

"It was so upsetting, like very loud shrieking screams," Rachel Robbins of South Philadelphia told Action News previously.

"It was this blood-curdling scream, and it was a series of four or five screams," added Allison Sacks, another neighbor.

The lawyers represent a man who is suing the city and several officers over his arrest, conviction, and 19 years in prison for sexual assault before the conviction was vacated.

The man, Termaine Hicks, was shot by police three times at the scene.

Hicks was convicted of rape at 15th and Mifflin streets back in 2001. He served nearly 20 years in prison until a judge vacated his conviction at the request of the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office in 2020.

DNA evidence concluded Hicks was not the rapist and there were questions about whether evidence had been planted.

At issue in the lawsuit is whether Hicks, who said he was trying to help the victim in the case, could have heard the woman's screams from two blocks away.

The loudspeaker was set up near row homes and a day care center that was preparing to open for the day. Murphy wrote that neighbors were upset, with some watching children go into the day care facility while the recording was played.

"Plaintiff counsel's disregard for community members fell short of the ethical standards by which all attorneys practicing in this district must abide," the judge wrote.

"I'm upset with the attorney who requested it and not take into the consideration of the impact it would have," Sacks previously told Action News.

The apology must explain "their transgression," Murphy wrote, and take "full responsibility for the repercussions of the scream test."

A phone message seeking comment was left Tuesday for the lawyers who represent the man suing the city.

A New York law firm, Neufeld Scheck Brustin Hoffmann & Freudenberger, LLP, which represents Hicks, released a statement apologizing to residents after the initial incident:

"We conducted a test in connection with an important civil rights case and did not intend to cause harm to anybody. We understand why residents are upset, and we want to sincerely apologize to the community, and anybody affected. We feel terrible about the negative impact on the community. We cannot talk with more specificity about the details given ongoing litigation."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.