PHILADELPHIA — Three Philadelphia police officers sustained gunshot wounds in a shooting near North 54th and Arlington Streets on Saturday evening. Eric Franks, 57, died at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital at 11 p.m. after collapsing on the sidewalk from the exchange of gunfire.

Police responded to reports of gunfire involving a vehicle around 10:30 p.m. Video footage shows Franks yelling at officers, pushing a sergeant, and being restrained by another individual. Officers instructed Franks to stand down prior to attempting his arrest at approximately 10:45 p.m.

Franks pulled a firearm from his waistband and discharged it toward officers. Four officers returned fire. Three officers, including a sergeant, were transported to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center with facial, hip and leg injuries. All three were in stable condition on Sunday. Police recovered fired shell casings from a sewer drain.

Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel stated Franks was not involved in the initial police call. Family attorney James Funt disputed this. "That's just not true. I don't know where he got that information," Funt said. "He is not someone who would try to be an initial aggressor. All we want is for the facts to come out."

"We're just grateful that tonight, they will survive their injuries," Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said. "These men and women give their lives for this work," Bethel said.

Franks was a former U.S. Marine and firearms instructor. City payroll records indicate Franks retired from the Philadelphia Fire Department in September 2025 after nearly 20 years of service.