Philadelphia sued for allegedly not promoting five police officers because they are White

The city of Philadelphia is facing a lawsuit from five police officers who claim they were denied promotions because of their race and sex. 

The plaintiffs include Lieutenants Christopher Bloom, Kollin Berg and Joseph Musumeci, as well as Sergeants Marc Monachello and LeRoy Ziegler Jr., all of whom are White males. The class-action lawsuit alleges that in November 2025, the five officers were denied promotions because of their race and sex due to the city’s “Rule of Five” policy.

“The City of Philadelphia has adopted a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) promotion policy that it calls the ‘Rule of Five,’ which was instituted for the express purpose of increasing the representation of minority and female candidates in supervisory positions within the City of Philadelphia at the expense of white men,” the lawsuit reads.

For decades, Philadelphia had used the “Rule of Two,” which mandated appointing authorities to choose between the top two candidates on the civil-service eligibility list for promotions. The practice ended in 2021 when the city adopted its “Varying Rule” policy, commonly known as the “Rule of Five,” which gives the appointing authorities the ability to choose from a larger pool of candidates.

When introducing the 2021 policy, then-City Council Member Cherelle Parker, who is now the mayor of Philadelphia, said that “the Rule of Two has held back Black and Brown employees, either from obtaining that entry-level job or from getting that promotion.”

America First Legal, which filed the lawsuit, alleges that the city of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) and “senior law enforcement” implemented the policy to manipulate “the racial and gender makeup” of the police force so it mirrors that of the city itself, “regardless of individual merit.”

“Federal law forbids employers from discriminating against Americans based on their race or sex. There is no exception for white Americans. No discrimination means no discrimination, and we will vindicate the rights of our clients,” Gene Hamilton, president of America First Legal, said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.

America First Legal said that Wally Zimolong of Zimolong LLC and Jonathan F. Mitchell of Mitchell Law PLLC would serve as co-counsel in the lawsuit.

“We are not targeting the City of Philadelphia. The City just so happens to habitually enact policies that violate the United States Constitution,” Zimolong told Fox News Digital.

Police patrol in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pa., on May 7, 2024. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

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This is not the first time that the Philadelphia Police Department’s promotional policies have been challenged. In November 2025, the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #5 (FOP) asked the Justice Department to investigate.

In a statement following the November 2025 promotion announcements, the FOP said that despite being assured that there would be “no widespread use of the ‘Rule of Five,'” the promotions “clearly show otherwise,” according to the lawsuit.

“The FOP has filed grievances on behalf of all impacted members and is actively exploring additional remedies, including potential relief under recent guidance provided by the Federal Department of Justice and Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission concerning unfair DEl practices in law enforcement,” the union said in a statement cited in the class-action lawsuit.

“Frankly, we need more support for our officers at a critical time when morale is low and retention of our officers is vital to the department’s long-term growth and success,” it added.

FOP President Rosevelt Poplar said at the time that there were an increasing number of complaints from members who “believe they have been unlawfully passed over for promotion under the city’s current promotional practices,” according to WTXF-TV. The outlet noted that the union said that many of the complaints came from officers who thought they were passed over for promotions in favor of less qualified candidates because of protected characteristics, such as race and gender.

A Philadelphia Police vehicle is seen in Philadelphia, Pa., on May 27, 2025. (Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The lawsuit makes several requests for relief, including a permanent end to the “Rule of Five” and a ban on considering race and sex for hiring or promotions. Additionally, the lawsuit asks that the plaintiffs be promoted to their respective ranks. It also asks that the plaintiffs be given retroactive seniority, benefits and back pay for what they lost by not being promoted in November 2025.

The Philadelphia Police Department declined to comment. Mitchell and the FOP did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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Fox News Digital also reached out to the Philadelphia mayor’s office for comment but did not immediately hear back.

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