A recent investigation by the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office levied no charges following a confrontation between police and anti-ICE protestors that happened in Quakertown earlier this year. And, on Friday, local lawmakers and officials with the NAACP of Bucks County expressed frustra tion in the DA’s findings. “We are deeply saddened and frustrated by the outcome of this investigation. But we did not gather here today to simply express our disappointment. We are here to talk about what happens next,” said Adrienne King. president of the NAACO of Bucks County. During an event held outside of the Bucks County Justice Center in Doylestown, King and others, talked about the violent confrontation, which included Quakertown Police Chief Scott McElree jumping onto demonstrating students while in plain clothes. Bucks County Aug 3 Quakertown police chief made ‘calamitous decision,' but no charges warranted: DA Bucks County Jun 15 ‘Quakertown 5' teens to undergo diversionary programs to resolve case, DA says Pennsylvania Apr 27 ‘Quakertown 5' fallout sparks protest at borough meeting Pennsylvania Mar 4 Calls grow for Quakertown police chief to resign after clash during protest “The investigation has now concluded, but the questions raised by what happened, and our responsability to learn and to create change from it have not,” she said. A report on the incident that happened on Feb. 20, 2026 in Quakertown criticized McElree’s actions, saying: “While McElree had the legal authority to use the force he employed, his ill-advised decision to do so was the precipitating incident which led to violence outside of Sunday’s Deli.” It also noted that McElree held his arm around a juvenile’s neck, but stated that the move did not meet the standard for criminal charges. On Friday, King said that for six months, the community waited for the completion of the investigation from the District Attorney’s Office, and said there were “serious things that went wrong” during that day. She pointed out that McElree entered the conflict in plain clothes, without waiting for support for uniformed officers and without wearing a body camera. And, King noted, that the report from the District Attorney’s Office claimed the “attempted arrest may have been poorly planned and executed” and that McElree’s actions amounted to an “ill-advised calamitous decision that contributed to confusion and trauma for the entire community.” “I’m the leader of an organization and I know if I received that report from the work that I did, I the leader, would step down,” she said. “Those are not the words of the NAACP, those are contained in the District Attorney’s own report.” The five teenagers who were arrested during the protest and charged with aggravated assault have all reached deals with the DA’s office to undergo diversionary programs to resolve their cases stemming from the incident, prosecutors announced in June. Also, during the Friday event, chair of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, State Rep. Napoleon Nelson (D-154th dist.) said that the events of the day was an example of students in Bucks County expressing their First Amendment rights to call on the federal government to action to ensure that communities were welcoming to others. “February 20th was supposed to be of wonderful student protest,” he said. “February 20th is not that day anymore. February 20th is now a day that those students have now been, unfortunately, baptized into the horrific but rich legacy of good troublemakers of student protest who have, through their righteousness received the brunt force of law enforcement.” And, Nelson said he hopes the student involved grow from the experience and he hopes that officials in the Quakertown School District realizes it’s mistake in kicking that student protest off campus while so many other districts allow students to peacefully demonstrate at their educational institutions across the country. He also expressed concerns with the DA’s findings, noting that local police agencies agreed not to use chokeholds — as he believed were deployed on Feb. 20, 2026 — back in 2020. “In Quakertown, law enforcement can use a chokehold for normal policing activities,” said Nelson. “In Quakertown it is apparently legal for a police chief to grab a 15-year-old young girl, put her in a chokehold and take her to the ground for jaywalking. I don’t think that the sort of law enforcement that the Quakertown community truly believes that they should enforce. I don’t think that the Quakertown Police Department themselves, in a quiet moment, would admit that they would stand for. But, that’s who they are today.” In the end, those gathered at the event told students and young people to not stop raising their voices against things they don’t feel are right or things they feel are injustices against others because of this incident. “We need your voice in this county and we do not want you to shy away from using that voice and using your rights in this county,” King said. This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser. ...read more read less