Philadelphia-based TV reporter Colleen Campbell has been fired from PHL 17 and her profile has been erased by the station’s website after a video showing her abusing city police went viral.
On June 4, Campbell, 28, was removed from the Helium comedy club in Philly during a show featuring comedian Craig Robinson. Campbell’s “loud whispering” was disrupting the audience, according to comedian Wil Sylvince, who recorded her interaction with police. You can watch the video here.
Here’s everything you need to know about Colleen Campbell.
Campbell Cursed At Officers
[protected-iframe id=”2b7460fc4e7a361fa4ec0d9fb0effc5f-3508545-117017491″ info=”https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fwilsylvince%2Fvideos%2F10155404738669600%2F&show_text=0&width=225″ width=”225″ height=”400″ frameborder=”0″ style=”border: none; overflow: hidden;” scrolling=”no”]
After Campbell was removed from the club, a police officer approached her. Campbell hurls a string of profane insults at him, saying he’s “a f—ing piece of s–t” and “You’re f—ing c–k suckers. I did not do s–t, I stood there and laughed like the rest of the audience like I should. I did not disrupt anybody.”
The man with Campbell tried to deescalate the situation but the officers says he just wants the two to go. Then Campbell responded, “Or what? Or what, motherf—er? Lick my a–hole. How about that? F–ing piece of s–t. That’s why nobody likes f–ing police…idiots in this f–king town.”
Campbell then makes as if she is going to spit in the face of a club employee at which point the cop handcuffs her. Campbell tells the cops that she works for a news organization and that “no wonder everyone wants to blow [cops’] f–king heads off.”
In his description of the incident, Wil Sylvince, said that Campbell was “very obnoxious” but he didn’t think she was drunk or high.
Campbell Claims She May Have Been Drugged
In a now-deleted Facebook post, Campbell says that she only had one drink and that she may have been drugged. According to Philadelphia Magazine, Campbell wrote:
I had one drink… and since have been fired from my job. I have never acted like this and asked to go to the hospital last night to find out if anything was slipped into my drink.
The reporter later told Philadelphia Magazine that she had a margarita and two shots prior to going to Helium and had two drinks there instead of just the one she claimed.
She said int he interview that no tests had been done to see if she had been drugged.
No. The police told me that it would slow the process. But at the police station, they had trouble taking my blood pressure. It was so high. I was worked up…
The nurse [at the police station] said if I send you to the hospital it will really delay everything. I just wanted to get out of there. I was really worried about my job. She gave me something similar to a Benadryl. Then later I woke up and had a panic attack. I never thought to get any test done.
One of the servers employed at the Helium club, Alexander Jusino, told the New York Post: “I’ve never seen anyone like that before and I’ve been watching people get kicked out of comedy clubs for five years.” Jusino added that he thought Campbell could have been on “some other level.”
Journalist/Bartender
According to her LinkedIn page, Campbell studied broadcast journalism at Temple University and graduated in 2016.
A bio that was written while Campbell was a student says that she is a native of the Philadelphia/South Jersey area. The profile reads, “Colleen developed a passion for telling stories about the city she knows so well… Colleen’s long term career goals include continuing a career in multimedia journalism and possibly earning a degree in Broadcast meteorology.”
Before studying at Temple, Campbell attended Rowan College at Gloucester County. Her bio read:
Multimedia Journalist by day, bartender by night.Proud Temple Owl. Journalism lover.People Person.Traveler/explorer.Foodie.Hairstylist.
In her Philadelphia Magazine interview, Campbell said that her bartending job at the Devil’s Den bar in South Philly has taught her to “know her limits” regarding alcohol.
Social Media
Since the video hit the Internet it has racked up almost 1.5 million views on Facebook. In response, Campbell has deleted her Facebook and Twitter accounts, telling Philadelphia Magazine:
I feel awful. That’s not me or how I speak or how I talk or how I was raised. I had to delete all my social media, because I’m getting threats.
Campbell also took time in the interview to apologize to the officer.
Court Date
The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Campbell will appear in court on June 13 to answer to charges of resisting arrest, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct.”
A spokeswoman for Campbell’s former employer, PHL 17, told the Inquirer, “Colleen Campbell is no longer employed by PHL17.”
Campbell broke down her firing in her interview, saying:
When I came home, I called my producer to talk about why I was absent. I didn’t realize a video was out. I found out about it later, because HR called me and said I was being terminated. They said there’s a video. I said, “What video?”
